HOUSING CONDITIONS

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 264, 6 August 1942, Page 8

HOUSING CONDITIONS

Flats In Christchurch Dominion Special Service. CHRISTCHURCH, August 4. In its endeavours to improve housing conditions in the city, the housing and town-planning committee of the Christchurch City Council has approached the Standards Institute urging that the new standard code of building by-laws be made available as soon as possible. The committee expressed the view that fixation of rents at a reasonably low figure—7 or 8 per cenL on capital expenditure—was necessary to‘ prevent the “present promiscuous subdivision of large bouses.” Specially-built blocks of flats and those large houses which were subdived into two or three flats by the owner who found his home too large for him were usually satisfactory, stated the committee, in its report on flats. Large, houses purchased and subdivided, frequently with the sole object of producing the maximum revenue at the minimum cost, were the chief trouble.

Apparently the Labour Department would not act to have rents reviewed, except where an appeal was lodged by a tenant, stated the report. If the Labour Department were to act on all cases reported by the responsible authorities. without waiting for appeals, this would have the effect of limiting rents. The matter might be taken further by having the value of new flats for renting assessed when the building permit was taken out. Unless the present system of waiting for appeals was to continue, amending legislation was required.