Therein just one of the problems with KiwiBuild. “Don’t you want more affordable housing?” some ask. It would be good, but the solution isn’t easy, and while ‘cheap’ shouldn’t necessarily mean unimaginative, it has often been the result, both in NZ and elsewhere. The state houses that were built by the government beginning in the mid-1930s are fairly identifable as such from the street.
Hillside Villa from 1988 in L.A.’s Chinatown is one of the affordable apartment complexes that will turn to market rate soon.
The Los Angeles City Council on Friday ordered the housing department to come up with recommendations for preserving the covenants that keep apartments affordable. Those covenants typically keep rents between about $350 and $1,300 for a one-bedroom, depending on income and family size. (The average price of a one-bedroom in Los Angeles is $1,745 per month [$NZ 2,640].)
But National and Labour have deemed NZ to be a low wage economy, especially for the low paid. This while still letting more or less anyone from overseas buy our housing stock pushing prices to all time highs.
In fact National and Labour have wrecked NZ for ordinary New Zealanders.