The rather lengthily worded Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act passed into law on December 20, 2021, with mixed thoughts on reception.

This act amended the Resource Management Act 1991 by bringing forward and strengthening the National Policy Statement on Urban Development, with the basic idea of increasing housing supply in our urban areas where it is needed most.

New Zealand has a shortage of affordable housing, especially in our main urban areas. Most residential zones currently allow only a single dwelling per site and have two-storey height restrictions in urban residential areas.

These new standards will enable people to develop up to three dwellings on each site, each being up to three storeys, without needing to apply for resource consent. This is provided all other rules and standards in relevant plans have been complied with.

This led many people to jump to the conclusion they may end up with something horrible right next door, blocking the sun and lowering their house value.

I was probably one of the people who said “sounds like a great idea” followed by “as long as it’s not next to me”.

So, I decided to look into the benefits a bit more.

The rules and standards are intended to minimise negative effects, in part covered in the National Medium Density design guide in six ways.

The site needs to reflect being part of the community, have a welcoming address, be a good neighbour, a well configured building, integrated into the landscape and a liveable home. This helped to allay some of my fears immediately.

Opportunity For Developers?

Intensification helps decouple land prices from housing costs by enabling more housing in areas where people want to live. These locations often have the highest land values. If it is possible to build more housing units on the land, it should follow that developers can still make good profits per housing unit sold.

With such a radical change, architects should be able to design really interesting spaces. The Wellington School of Architecture recently asked students to re-imagine mass housing, with amazing results.

What About Investors?

The current government has moved investors towards buying new build properties by allowing more flexibility around lending to buy. I feel it should be possible to purchase new homes within these developments for rental purposes, with an improved yield, when compared to the classic “four-bedroom, two-bathroom, double garage” new builds we have seen in the suburbs.

Also, having two residents renting a four-bedroom home will go nowhere towards helping the unequal supply vs demand problem.

Benefits For Renters?

The average number of residents per dwelling in New Zealand is around 2.7. By intensifying housing, we in turn create properties that can better match what tenants require. This will help tenants by providing housing that lets them live affordably while being close to the places they most need and want to access – eg work, education, healthcare and recreation.

Benefits also include being close to transport for ease of travel which in turn cuts costs considerably. Any newly-built property will be dry and healthy.

Re-Think On The Cards?

I spent the best part of two years living in Sweden, a country very similar in population, relative to land size. I lived in a city about the size of Hamilton, yet the urban landscape was very different. Most suburbs had high-rise and low-rise dwellings, as opposed to urban sprawl.

I lived in an apartment in a seven-storey building within 500 metres of my workplace, multiple outdoor “common areas”, shops and public transport. It was brilliant.

I never needed to own a car; renting was low cost and convenient; and access was easy to everything I needed. Many cities and towns in Sweden follow a similar pattern.

It will be interesting to see where things go from here, but I feel intensification is a great way to go to provide more housing, which is much needed in NZ.

Greg Watson is an experienced property manager who excels in providing informed advice and continuously improving the property management service. He is a recognised industry expert, winning national awards and contributing to industry standards. Phone 06 353 7274, www.watsonrealestate.nz