New Zealand passes bill to allow denser, more affordable housing | Hacker News Reader

New Zealand passes bill to allow denser, more affordable housing

rnz.co.nz

51 pointsvwoolf9 comments

Would a kiwi like to explain the "resource consent" mentioned, and how many (if any) planning regulations remain? Does this mean that people can now build anything that meets building regs, or is there a different consent process remaining?

No longer requiring a resource consent means that there is no need to consult with other parties who might be affected by your build (obvious one is NIMBY neighbours, but it targets problematic councils as well). They also cannot tie you up in the Environmetal Court with frivolous greivences to bleed you for time and money.

So yes, broadly you can build anything as long as it still meets building codes, zoning, fire, covenants etc.

hi. everything still has to go through the local councils' resource consent process but somethings used to have more hurdles than others i.e. needing neighbours sign-off for 3 stories, amount of lawn per house etc.

I'm happy that this is happening and I hope this would slow down the price increase in a meaningful way. But I fear not much will change without introducing capital gains tax on property.

I hope this results in more houses built, rather than more houses “converted” into 3 premises. Having moved to Auckland in 2021, from Melbourne, I’ve seen more large houses rented as 3 “separate premises” than in Melbourne. And rent is more expensive.

Land blocks are big too. Even very close to the city.

With this public transport, this is going to get fun.

Auckland and Wellington are sure ready for double traffic :D :D

We should be next.

They just passed a similar (actually worse) couple of laws in California, allowing up to 10 units where a single-family house stood.

In a place like CA, this is a corrupt developer handout. It removes approval requirements for developers and targets already-residential neighborhoods. And this is in the midst of another epic drought. These properties will cover even more ground with concrete, worsening water loss and wiping out trees.

Meanwhile, massive former-anchor-tenant stores like Macy's sit boarded up in dying (or dead) malls. But did the California government target disused COMMERCIAL properties for redevelopment into high-density, walkable residences? NOPE. They didn't even try that before voting to destroy existing residential neighborhoods.

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