New Zealand turning to condominiums too

In Wellington, New Zealand, housing space is at a premium, and realty developers are likely to be told to build up because there is not enough room to build out, and it is significantly cheaper. The Wellington City Council hopes to house more people in apartment zones at low cost instead of the free-standing houses with lawns that are common to the area.Most of the new apartment dwellers are older people and childless couples. “The next challenge is going to be housing families in apartments,” says Ernst Zollner, the council’s urban development and transport director. The council is putting more thought into building playgrounds and parks, to make sure children are not “cooped up” indoors.

The other critical issue is size. “We need apartments that have more than two bedrooms. At the moment, once you go to three bedrooms it becomes dramatically more expensive.”