The Government has opened the door for many building products from overseas to become available in New Zealand, including cladding systems, external doors, plasterboard, and windows.
Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk said products had been given “the green light” for use in New Zealand to end what he called “costly monopolies” on select products.
“These changes have the potential to reduce total building costs by thousands of dollars when building a home.”
Penk said it was “frankly outrageous” how much it cost to build a house in New Zealand.
“It is 50% more expensive to build a standalone home in New Zealand than in Australia.”
He said there were thousands of well-made, high-performing products that had been tested against international standards but had faced barriers here because they had not been tested against New Zealand standards.
“This Government is serious about lowering the cost of building and helping Kiwis into homes faster.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said it would provide “much needed” competition, lowering the cost of building and subsequently the cost of living.
“We want to level the playing field by increasing competition for high quality buildings products, and in turn, lower prices for builders, which leads to lowering the cost of living and making houses more affordable for Kiwis.”
The first version of the building product specifications document would be released tomorrow.
This lists international standards for products such as plasterboard, cladding, windows and external doors.
“Later this year, additional pathways will go live enabling more high-quality building products to be used including over 200,000 plumbing products through the Australian Watermark scheme,” Penk said.
