How many truly affordable homes?

Auckland Council’s Planning Committee has requested a review of all Special Housing Area files to ascertain how many affordable houses have actually been provided pursuant to the Auckland Housing Accord.

Under the Housing Accord, 154 Special Housing Areas (SHA) were approved.

Developments of 15 dwellings or more had to provide either 10 percent relative affordable dwellings or five percent retained affordable (targeted to social housing providers) or a combination of both.

At its meeting on August 1, the Planning Committee asked Council staff to come back with information on the number of affordable dwellings that have been consented under the Housing Accord and SHAs and with Code of Compliance Certificates issued.

Of concern to one local councillor was the fact that a review on the Auckland Housing Accord presented to the meeting stated that just 49 statutory declarations have been received from purchasers of completed ‘relatively affordable’ houses across Auckland.

These declarations are the means by which Council checks how many affordable homes are being built in the SHAs.

Cr John Watson says the low number of declarations indicate that the SHAs have done virtually nothing for housing affordability.

The Planning Committee asked staff to report back as to whether all the statutory declarations have been provided to Council.

Council staff will report back in October.