The broad scale relaxation of planning rules leads to a significant increase in housing supply, new research into New Zealand planning changes has found. A similar approach could help property prices and rents in Australia fall by as much as 12.5 per cent, making housing more affordable, economists said. Auckland “up-zoned” about three quarters of the city in 2016 in response to a housing affordability crisis, which meant the planning laws allowed for the construction of townhouses, terraces and units within 20 kilometres of the CBD.
Read the full article here