3. Question No. 3—HousingBROOKE VAN VELDEN (Deputy Leader—ACT) to the Minister of HousingQuestion No. 3—Housing3. BROOKE VAN VELDEN (Deputy Leader—ACT) to the Minister of Housing: Have the Government's housing policies made it easier to rent a home in New Zealand?Hon Dr MEGAN WOODS (Minister of Housing): The Government has rolled out comprehensive reforms to help renters but we acknowledge that it is still not easy for everyone in the rental market at the moment. Our reforms have included increased security of tenure for tenants limiting rent increases to once a year ending the practice of rental bidding and healthy home standards to ensure homes are properly insulated and have an efficient heat source. We know housing supply continues to be an issue and that's why we're looking at a range of additional measures including in the rental market such as via build to rent and we'll have more to say about all of this in the very near future.Brooke van Velden: Why are rents going up with reports of rent prices hitting record highs at the start of this year? Hon Dr MEGAN WOODS: Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment data shows that we've had about an 8.6 percent annual increase in rents across the whole country. There are a range of factors that come into play around why this may be primarily the incredibly hot housing market. We know that we do have issues of supply and that's why our Government is currently working on a package of measures to address the supply issues.Brooke van Velden: Does she agree with the regulatory impact statement for the Government's recent Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) changes that This could affect landlords' willingness to rent the amount of rent charged and could lead to more stringent vetting of tenants."?Hon Dr MEGAN WOODS: While I didn't have ministerial responsibility for that piece of legislation—the RTA reforms are of course within the delegations of the Associate Minister of Housing—what I can tell the member is the regulatory impact assessment for that piece of legislation did say a range of things and it did make some assumptions some modelled assumptions not all of which have come to bear: so for example—not just in the regulatory impact statement—that there were many landlords for example that indicated before the passage of that legislation that they would exit the market but the data simply doesn't support that modelled assumption.Nicola Willis: Can she confirm median rents have increased by $110 a week since Labour took office?Hon Dr MEGAN WOODS: As I said what we do know is that in the last 12 months rents have increased around 8.6 percent. That we have seen increases of rents through that period of time—nobody is contesting that fact. But what I can tell that member is that we are a Government that is determined to put together a package of both demand and supply measures to address the issues of housing—something that was sorely lacking under the party that member is a member of when they were in Government.Brooke van Velden: Does she expect Government policies to have any effect on lowering rents over the coming year?Hon Dr MEGAN WOODS: One of the issues that we are facing in our rental market is a lack of supply. So the package of measures that we are currently putting together that are aimed at increasing supply—we do expect to see some change that will occur from this. Of course supply-side measures do take a period of time to kick in but one of the things that we are determined to keep doing is to explore a range of options to make sure that New Zealanders have access to warm dry and secure homes."