Peter Wolfkamp says The Block is being influenced by Auckland's housing woes

The Block NZ site foreman Peter Wolfkamp says the new season reflects Auckland's shift towards high-density housing. Photo / supplied

When The Block NZ premieres its sixth season on Sunday, builder, broadcaster and presenter Peter Wolfkamp returns as the site foreman; overseeing the teams' building sites and ensuring the contestants follow council regulations as they carry out their renovations.

This year's theme is Side by Side; so-named for the fact that the teams are working on semi-detached terraced houses that sit side by side. This year's teams - twins Julia & Ali, brothers Ling & Zing, best friends Stace & Yanita and brothers-in-law Andy & Nate - are given 12 weeks to finish their three-bedroom, three-storey home; each of which was divided from one existing property.

As each new season of The Block NZ looks at a different style of property, Wolfkamp says shifting to higher-density homes was a natural progression for the show that reflects the direction of housing in Auckland city.

"This is kind of The Block meets the Unitary Plan," Wolfkamp says.

"This is what, in many parts of Auckland, is going to be what the city is going to look like. And there's some real challenges with that, because we need to get more people living in the same space and we need to build quality houses."

Previous seasons of The Block NZ have been criticised for its depiction of homes being flipped for profit; last year's winners Sam and Emmett pocketed $480,000 after their three-bedroom Meadowbank townhouse went for $1.6 million at the end-of-season auction.

In response to this, Wolfkamp quotes Phil Twyford - who in 2014 said The Block NZ had been "more successful than the National Government at completing and selling homes" - and says this season of the show will help encourage viewers to embrace high-density living.

"Auckland has a massive housing shortage without a doubt ... The fact that we're building new homes - in this location there was one home, we're now creating four - that's what we need to be doing. That's what's going to be a part of solving the housing crisis, is to be able to build better homes on smaller sites.

"People are embracing city living again. This is where we're heading, and you're either on board or you're not."

Lowdown:
Who: Peter Wolfkamp, site foreman
What: The Block NZ
When: Premieres Sunday, June 25 at 7pm, airs Sundays 7pm and Monday-Wednesday 7:30pm
Where: Three