Building levy changes

The Minister for Building Issues, Hon Chris Carter, has announced that the Building Levy will increase from 1 April, allowing the Department of Building and Housing to take a stronger, more robust approach in ensuring buildings are built right first time.

‘Clearly this new strengthened approach to the sector requires that we appropriately fund the expanded responsibilities of the Department to ensure that we meet the needs of consumers, and that all New Zealanders can have confidence in the sector as a whole,’ the Minister commented.

After several years of challenges to the building sector, particularly weather-tightness issues, the Building Act 2004 provides for a more proactive central building regulator with significantly expanded functions.

The Building Levy change, which was foreshadowed by the government when new building control legislation was first announced in 2003, will fund this expansion and ensure the Department can perform its new role effectively.

The Levy supports the building controls part of the Department and is currently set at 65 cents per $1,000 of building work for which there is a consent. It is only collected on building works valued at $20,000 or more, and was last changed in 1995.

From 1 April 2005, the Levy will be $1.97 per $1,000 of building work for which there is a consent and will still only be collected on works valuedat $20,000 or more. This represents approximately 0.2 percent of building costs.

Building levy changes