Changes to make it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent process will make building a home more affordable, says Building Minister.
“The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can rebuild the economy and get Kiwis into homes faster,” Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says.
Referencing construction data from Stats NZ released in April showing it takes an average of 569 days for a home to be built after it receives a building consent, Penk says, “This means that, once you account for the time it takes to issue a consent, it takes nearly 600 days to build a house in New Zealand. In the face of a housing and cost of living crisis, this is simply too long.
“That is why the Government is clarifying the definition of a ‘minor variation’ and introducing ‘minor customisations’ to the Building Act. This will provide more flexibility, which will help reduce delays and lower the cost of building and renovating.
He says Building Consent Authorities will still need to assess building work to ensure it complies with the Building Code, but homeowners won’t need to submit a new consent for minor product or design changes.
“This will also help increase competition for building products and give effect to the Commerce Commission’s recommendation from its market study into residential building supplies to remove impediments to product substitution and variations.”
These are the latest changes in the Government’s bid to drive down costs and make it easier to build, Penk says. Other measures include:
- Remove barriers for the use of overseas building products and require councils to accept products that meet international standards which are the same as or higher than those in New Zealand.
- Bring forward a review of the earthquake prone building legislation and extend remediation deadlines by four years while the review is underway.
- Exempt small building projects under $65,000 from paying the building levy.
- Require councils to submit timeframes for building consent applications.
- Cut more red tape for farmers by raising the height threshold for dam safety regulations from one to four meters.
New Regulations will be introduced to define minor customisation for Multiproof Certificates. Currently, once a Multiproof is issued by MBIE there cannot be changes to the plans. These regulations will enable minor customisation to be made.
Examples of possible changes to a building consent are:
- Replacing one brand of a product, such as plasterboard, with a comparable product from a different brand.
- Putting a window where a door was initially planned.
- A mirror image of a room’s layout to maximise sunlight or to work in with a specific landscape.
Copy link