NZ homes 'not for sale' to foreigners

This article is more than 12 months old

Oct 25, 2017 06:00 am

WELLINGTON: Overseas buyers will no longer be allowed to purchase existing homes in New Zealand, Prime Minister-elect Jacinda Ardern said yesterday as she unveiled a raft of policy deals made with her coalition partners.

The move to tackle soaring property prices was agreed during lengthy negotiations between the Labour Party leader and populist powerbroker Winston Peters to form a new government that also includes the Green Party.

Ms Ardern announced plans to slash immigration and focus on regional development and job creation.

"We have agreed on banning the purchase of existing homes by foreign buyers," she said, specifying that the new rules only applied to non-residents. "(We) also have plans around farmland and other critical infrastructure," she added.

Anti-immigration campaigner Peters, whose support was crucial for Ms Ardern to form a ruling coalition in the 120-seat parliament, said a message has been sent that New Zealand was "no longer for sale".

Foreign ownership and a housing shortage in New Zealand's larger cities were prominent issues in the lead-up to the Sept 23 election - AFP