Renters are facing a class war this election with none of the political vocabulary
Trade Me data: Kiwi renters paying $2600 more a year than last year
Tenants are paying on average $50 a week more than this time last year, according to new Trade Me data.
It comes as Kiwis battle a cost-of-living crisis, which has seen food prices rise and inflation at 6 percent as New Zealand falls into recession.
Trade Me released its Rental Price Index for June on Wednesday, which showed New Zealand’s median weekly rent rose 9 percent on last year to claim another record.
Renters are paying $50 more a week after the country’s median weekly rent reached a new record of $620 in June – that’s $2600 more a year tenants are having to fork out, according to Trade Me’s director of property sales Gavin Lloyd.
“In this economy, costs are increasing across the board and this is hitting renters hard. Landlords are still feeling confident to put up prices, but this might be reaching a peak as the confirmed recession, cost of living and lack of disposable income hits tenants,” Lloyd said.
There is an unspoken promise between the neoliberal State and the untaxed capital gains private landlord class that the neoliberal State never builds enough State Houses to alleviate housing desperation so that the untaxed capital gains private landlord class can exploit that housing desperation ON TOP OF getting a $1.5Billion annual subsidy in the form of the Accommodation Allowance EVERY SINGLE YEAR!
So the neoliberal State work hand in glove with the interests of the untaxed capital gains private landlord class to constantly keep desperation in the Housing market by never building enough State Houses WHILE handing taxpayer funded subsidies to the untaxed capital gains private landlord class!
This rigged casino where Landlords can constantly use their own debt to buy more property and out leverage first time home buyers just adds insult to injury.
On top of this, ACT and National want to give that same untaxed capital gains private landlord class the power to evict you at will so they can kick out the smelly domestic renters and exploit the new 100000 migrant workers coming into the country, remove all the healthy home and environmental regulations and put back in place the tax loopholes that benefit the untaxed capital gains private landlord class.
On top of this, the Real Estate pimps are donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Right and are dangling the promise of house prices jumping 20% if National and ACT win.
The Housing Crisis is a political decision and you as renters should be incandescent with motherfucking rage at how this has been allowed to continue!
Yes Labour has been slow to respond to the State Housing crisis that is impacting rentals but comparatively they have been far better than National:
Between 2008-2017, National built 3000 state homes.
Between 2017-2023, Labour has built 16,000> state homes.
Kainga Ora managed stock is at 70,649. The NZ state housing record was set in 1990 at 70,000.
Let’s not pretend there isn’t a very clear difference between Labour and National this election.
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The one negative thing I will admit about labour is that they have done badly in housing. Even the previous Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, had little or no justification for it. The current Prime Minister, Chris Hipkins, is simply too stubborn to admit to it and he has the right to be in an election year.
But, honestly, what do National ever do for housing?
Danny, why not ask Bob the First. He seems to think despite all evidence to the contrary that National will do wonders.
Perhaps more bullshit P testing to throw people out of state houses so they can sell them to the private developers who by then sell them to Luxon and his backers.
I think Labour have done a National job and for that they do deserve all the criticism
If you import in poverty and have incompetent people in government who seem to have made the situation far worse for renters, while spending an absolute fortune of money on it, then clearly we are having the natural outcome of more people without housing, and with in government role making money off emergency housing that increasingly does not seem fit for purpose.
Million dollar state houses that flood and fall off foundations!
The most expensive, Kainga ora new builds being bought from private developers that takes housing away from first home buyers and other renters, while also may not last very long either with criminal damage and what has been happening so far with other new builds purchased!
It is always a problem housing high needs people together due to the risks of arson and safety – but still woke pressed on with high rises and large blocks, now we are adding deaths into the situation with Loafers Lodge and now another fire on a complex for Kainga ora before it is built.
But Labour in the form of Phil Twyford had the answer 6 years ago, build 100,000 houses. It was the right answer then, still the right answer now,
Alas no one in Labour has the wit to understand how to get them built even tho the they had the example set by Gerry Brownlee in the aftetmath of the Chch earthquake. ” we are the Govt, we are in charge, this is a national emergency, we are building them over there, get to it!”
Labour just don’t have the wit or ability to get anything real done.
They did do worse, and no they didn’t try…