Changes to New Zealand’s buildings laws to speed up housing construction
Major changes to New Zealand’s building laws have come into force to speed up the supply of housing.
Building and construction minister Poto Williams said that the new laws will support housing supply and affordability, improve trust and confidence in the building sector and support the use of new, innovative and efficient building methods.
The changes passed are the first phase of a suite of reforms to the Building Act that aim to lift the efficiency and quality of building work and provide fairer outcomes if things go wrong.
“The government is committed to delivering affordable housing quickly and efficiently, increasing sector productivity and reducing the cost of building,” said Williams. “These laws deliver on this commitment by taking advantage of modern technology, such as offsite manufacturing. These reforms will support the government’s priority of speeding up the supply of housing without compromising on the quality of the homes New Zealand needs and deserves.”
A new scheme for modular component manufacturers will allow offsite building manufacturers who meet certain requirements to be certified. This will allow them to sign off their own designs and construction, which could significantly speed up the consenting process, said the government.
“We are bringing building consenting processes into the 2020s to make the most of industry innovation and modern technologies,” said Williams. “Offsite manufacturers have an important role to play in delivering the modern, healthy homes we need.”