Housing scheme misses the target

National says the Government's Kiwibank home loan insurance scheme may help around 1800 New Zealanders buy their first home, but it does nothing for thousands of state house tenants locked into the rental trap.

"The whole point of the Government's housing policy should be to target those most in need, not those on relatively good incomes who are already well catered for in the mortgage market," says National's Housing spokesman Wayne Mapp.

"Steve Maharey should be allowing long-term Housing Corporation tenants to buy their houses, move off welfare and move on to the property escalator.

"I believe that even those who seem unlikely to ever become homeowners would opt to escape the long-term rental dependency trap," says Dr Mapp.

"All the Housing Minister's doing with this scheme is creating more confusion around an already inconsistent housing policy.

"It's giving 1800 people a chance of home ownership - many who can already afford it in today's competitive mortgage market.

"But it's shutting out thousands of low-income earners barred from buying their state house," says Dr Mapp.

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