John MacDonald: The foreign buyer ban has run its course

So the Government's doing all sorts of things to try and get rich migrants into the country - except one thing. Which it should be doing. Former immigration minister Stuart Nash was on Newstalk ZB this morning saying it's time to lift the ban on foreigners buying houses. And I agree with him. The so-called 'golden visa' the Government announced yesterday is going to mean an end to the English language test for rich migrants. It will also give people residency if they invest $5 million over three years in a growth-type project or $10 million over five years in a more conservative operation. We’re largely talking here about investing into a business, managed fund, commercial property or new property development. But if they want to live here - they have to rent. They’re not allowed to buy. Which is a rule Winston Peters likes. But according to Stuart Nash earlier, it's a rule he might be prepared to see go. So too would the immigration lawyer saying today that, if these wealthy types can’t buy a place here, then they’re just not going to bother. Nick Mason’s his name. And he’s saying that if the Government’s really serious about getting these people over here, then the ban on foreigners buying houses needs to be ditched. It came-in back in 2018. Remember that was around the time that Phil Twyford went through the phone book, noted down all the foreign-sounding names and claimed the place was being overrun by aliens. Which it wasn’t. So eight or nine years down the track, this immigration lawyer is saying that it’s a real sticking point and it will continue to be a sticking point if the Government doesn’t get rid of it. He’s saying: "Let’s say we all have $15 million and I choose to invest that in New Zealand and I can get permanent residency. That’s great, I can stay in New Zealand as long as I like but I can’t own my own house until I’ve spent at least six months of a 12-month period here.” Now we might be thinking, what’s wrong with waiting six months?. But that’s the tricky bit. Nick Mason says people with this kind of money don't necessarily spend six months anywhere and he thinks if they can’t buy a house on day one, then it will continue to be “a considerable barrier for many investors”. And let’s get real. If a millionaire or a billionaire is coming here, they're not going to be buying the weatherboard and tile place or the brick and tile place from the 50s. They're not going to be denying first-home buyers their chance to own a place. So this thing about foreigners pricing New Zealanders out of the market - I don’t actually believe that it’s a thing. I reckon this ban is like something from the dark ages. It’s based on paranoia and not much else. And it’s not just Stuart Nash who thinks Winston Peters might not be as paranoid as he used to be about foreigners buying up all our houses and spoiling the quarter-acre dream. Nicola Willis was dropping similar hints on Newstalk ZB today as well. You can imagine what’s going on behind the scenes though, can’t you? Because this is something National and NZ First haven’t agreed on in the past. NZ First has wanted it to stay and National has wanted it to go. I think it should go too. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.