Ensuring access to social housing is fair and reasonable

Changes announced last year to discourage people from refusing reasonable social housing offers come into effect from today. 

“Too many people have been refusing offers of social housing properties without a good reason and this is delaying others from getting into homes that suit their needs,” Social Housing Minister Paula Bennett says.

“The Government’s number one focus in social housing is getting those who have no home into a safe and warm property as quickly as possible, and we don’t think it is reasonable to hold that up by being overly demanding.”

The changes coming into effect include:

• Reducing from three to one the number of times a person can decline a home without a good and sufficient reason before they are removed from the social housing register.
• Where reasonable, requiring people on the social housing register to name a minimum of three suburbs they could live in, up from one.

Nearly 10,000 social housing offers were made last year and of those 3,453 were declined, with 414 for unacceptable reasons such as wanting a garage or a bigger back yard.

Under the changes people who refuse a property without a good reason may be removed from the social housing register for 13 weeks.

“The Ministry of Social Development, who administer the social housing application process, will look at each case on its merits so that people declining properties for good reasons like health, safety or security concerns aren’t penalised,” says Mrs Bennett.