Higher house prices not caused by build costs – Treasury

Dominick Stephens says land restrictions are to blame for high prices. (Image: Treasury)

Thu, 18 Aug 2022

Rising house prices over the past two decades were more about land limitations than population growth or construction costs, a joint Treasury, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, and Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) report says.The paper, released by the agencies' housing technical working group, suggested rather than the global fall in interest rates, tax inefficiencies in relation to land ownership and supply restrictions were at the heart of high pricing over the past 20 years.The report, issued on Thursday, focused on housing a...

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