Mood of the Boardroom: Housing measures too mild

Photo / Chris Gorman.

Almost half of survey respondents would like stronger measures to curb Auckland crisis, reports Greg Hall

The Government's moves to curb Auckland's rapid house price inflation don't go far enough, say about half of the CEOs surveyed about the present state of the housing market.

Thomas Pippos of Deloitte said taxing gains on residential property, even more comprehensively, will only ever take an edge off the market and also partially address equity issues across the taxation treatment of different asset classes. It will raise an amount of revenue but is not an answer in itself.

"They (new rules) should not have been introduced because they are not addressing the real housing issue -- supply," said Dr Oliver Hartwich of New Zealand Initiative. Similarly, a transport boss says "they will not make one stick of difference to house prices. This has been tried elsewhere and failed."

They (new rules) should not have been introduced because they are not addressing the real housing issue -- supply.

Oliver Hartwich, NZ Initiative

The government measures which take effect on October 1 are:

-Auckland property investors will require a 30 per cent deposit on their new purchases.

-Any property bought and sold within two years that wasn't owner occupied will be subject to a capital gains tax.

-Foreign buyers will need a New Zealand bank account and IRD number.

In the survey, 48 per cent of respondents said the measures don't go far enough, while just 21 per cent were satisfied and 31 per cent were unsure.

Greg Lowe of Beca said the measures are a start and the subject needs to stay on the agenda. "Regulation to constrain short term speculation is important as this consumes capital for no productive economic gain."

Mark Cairns of Port of Tauranga, said: "Perhaps if there is foreign investment in residential dwellings, they should be required to live in the properties."

A technology-based executive believed that the two-year bright line test should be extended to between three and five years.