Capital gains from property targeted in government’s plan to fast-track consents

Capital gains from property targeted in government’s plan to fast-track consents
By Paul McBeth May 20 (BusinessDesk) - The government is aiming to cool housing inflation, seen as a threat to New Zealand’s financial stability, while speeding up consents as part of a plan to encourage construction of 39,000 new homes in Auckland. Housing Minister Nick Smith’s special housing area proposal, where central government would buddy up with local authorities to unlock land supply, will remove certainty for landowners “that there will be capital gains from holding land” rather than selling to developers, according to the Ministry...