Labour is promising to bring in rent-to-buy schemes for Kāinga Ora and participating community housing tenants and to extend the first home loans income eligibility cap to $300,000.
Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said they would not reduce the number of public homes as people rent-to-buy.
"For every public home sold through rent-to-buy, Kāinga Ora will build three more, with the proceeds reinvested in new public housing," he said.
The rent-to-buy scheme would be for people who were "working and ready to move towards home ownership". Those tenants could also use a first home loan to purchase their home with a 5% deposit.
The scheme for some Kāinga Ora and community housing tenants would see $100 a week credited towards their house deposit, with that money put into a trust account. They would then have an opportunity to buy their rental at a price set by an independent valuer.
Some state home tenants have the option of buying their rental, however the major centres where there is high demand for state homes are excluded.
First Home Loan scheme income cap to $300,000
The cap is currently $150,000 or less for two or more buyers or $95,000 or less for an individual buyer without dependents. National has also promised to extend the cap to $300,000.
The First Home Loan Scheme, administered by Kāinga Ora with participating banks and lenders, makes it easier for first home buyers to get into home ownership by only requiring a 5% deposit rather than the standard 20%.
“For a $700,000 home, a five percent deposit is $35,000, compared with $140,000 for a 20 percent deposit. That’s a huge difference for people trying to get their foot on the property ladder," McAnulty said.
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