01 December 2024
Widespread transformation of the building industry is on the cards, with the coalition government unveiling a comprehensive programme to make building in New Zealand faster, easier, more efficient and more affordable.
The big announcements in the first half of 2024 included:
The new scheme will remove or reduce the role of building consent authorities in reviewing builders’ work on certain projects, including simple residential dwellings. Individual builders and companies will be eligible to apply for self-certification. They must demonstrate a specified level of competency, experience and trust.
The government believes the new scheme will reduce the load on BCAs, shift accountability to those who are doing the work, improve the efficiency of the building consent system, and reduce costs.
All changes to the Building Regulatory System go through a review process of consultation with established building industry representatives and other interested parties before any updates or new legislation is implemented.
“There are currently 67 BCAs across the country, each with different practices and approaches. We have a single building code that is supposed to apply consistently to all building work nationally.
“However, there are many instances of builders submitting the exact same plans to different BCAs and finding considerable additional costs and delays resulting from differing interpretations of the building code.”
Developers often have to pre-sell a proportion of dwellings in any development to secure finance, which has become much more difficult in the current economic downturn.
“In times of expensive borrowing, underwrites are an effective tool for supporting housing supply,” Housing Minister Chris Bishop said when announcing the proposal.
Only developments of 30 houses plus are eligible for the underwrite scheme, and the developer must have a proven track record of building or selling houses of a similar size and scale.
While targeted to high population areas, including Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Wellington and Christchurch, the scheme will be available everywhere.
Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk said the number of houses supported will depend on wider economic conditions, demand from developers, and the speed at which houses are built and sold.
“The faster projects are completed, the more capacity will be recycled back in capacity for further underwrites.”
The big announcements in the first half of 2024 included:
- Reform of ‘granny flat’ regulations allowing people to build a secondary self-contained dwelling (up to 60m2) on their property without resource or building consents.
- Planning law changes targeted at freeing up more land for development, reducing section costs and making it easier to develop land into housing.
- Remote building consent inspections to become the default standard throughout New Zealand.
Self-certification
A new opt-in self-certification scheme is being developed for low-risk residential building work done by qualified building professionals and accredited building companies.The new scheme will remove or reduce the role of building consent authorities in reviewing builders’ work on certain projects, including simple residential dwellings. Individual builders and companies will be eligible to apply for self-certification. They must demonstrate a specified level of competency, experience and trust.
The government believes the new scheme will reduce the load on BCAs, shift accountability to those who are doing the work, improve the efficiency of the building consent system, and reduce costs.
All changes to the Building Regulatory System go through a review process of consultation with established building industry representatives and other interested parties before any updates or new legislation is implemented.
Major reform of the Building Consent Authority system
Major reform of the building consent system is proposed by replacing the Building Consent Authority (BCA) with a new model designed to streamline the consent process. Three options are being considered.- Voluntary consolidation. Allowing councils to group together to deliver building control functions. A number of councils are currently pooling some resources.
- Regional BCAs. Establishing a smaller number of relatively large regional BCAs to replace the current district and city council BCAs.
- Single point of contact. Setting up a single point of contact for builders to submit plans to. Building inspections may be contracted out to existing BCAs or private consenting providers.
“There are currently 67 BCAs across the country, each with different practices and approaches. We have a single building code that is supposed to apply consistently to all building work nationally.
“However, there are many instances of builders submitting the exact same plans to different BCAs and finding considerable additional costs and delays resulting from differing interpretations of the building code.”
Government finance for new homes
One of the most radical plans announced late in 2024 involves the government getting directly involved in temporarily underwriting the cost of construction of new homes. The scheme is designed to make financing easier for developers to obtain to start building.Developers often have to pre-sell a proportion of dwellings in any development to secure finance, which has become much more difficult in the current economic downturn.
“In times of expensive borrowing, underwrites are an effective tool for supporting housing supply,” Housing Minister Chris Bishop said when announcing the proposal.
Only developments of 30 houses plus are eligible for the underwrite scheme, and the developer must have a proven track record of building or selling houses of a similar size and scale.
While targeted to high population areas, including Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Wellington and Christchurch, the scheme will be available everywhere.
Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk said the number of houses supported will depend on wider economic conditions, demand from developers, and the speed at which houses are built and sold.
“The faster projects are completed, the more capacity will be recycled back in capacity for further underwrites.”