Housing Boom Fails the Average Kiwi | Auckland News

New Zealand’s housing boom is masking a deeper crisis: despite building more homes than population growth, affordability and distribution remain broken. Developers prioritize the private market, leaving low-income families stranded. Growth in places like Marlborough and the West Coast outpaces need, while regions like Gisborne and Taranaki see soaring rents and longer social housing waits. People fleeing Auckland are buying up rentals elsewhere, shrinking local supply. A shocking 18% of new homes built between 2019–23 sat empty—often owned as second homes—with Thames-Coromandel at 50%. The Salvation Army demands urgent public housing investment, warning that inflation has outpaced subsidies, leaving vulnerable households behind. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/fef66eeeecc4770f