Unpacking housing affordability policies in New Zealand

Abstract

Recent New Zealand governments have sought to increase the provision of affordable housing by increasing the supply of land for housing and encouraging builders to include affordable housing in their developments. Despite claims to the contrary, affordable housing policies introduced by both centre-right and centre-left governments are expressive of neoliberal capture of the political process. This paper explores tension between public endorsements of affordable housing policies and acceptance of market mechanisms in the provision of affordable housing. Thus, while Members of Parliament from both National-led and Labour-led Governments have identified the distinctiveness of their respective housing policies, recent legislative provisions draw on shared acceptance of post-political conceptions of state and society.