Stats NZ says it’s still too early to determine the nature of the empty dwellings
It seems Marlborough properties can’t keep up with its growing population as it had more than 3,000 empty homes on census night last year.
Census results revealed that there were 22,149 homes in the region but only 18,192 were occupied on census night in March last year.
A spokesman for Statistics New Zealand said it’s still too early to determine the nature of the empty properties but they’re more likely to be untenanted and holiday homes.
Marlborough Housing Group member Vance Kerslake said the number of private dwellings in the region increased by 249 since 2013 but the population also increased by nearly 4,000 people to 47,340.
"The number of new dwellings is a lot lower than the increase in population. That tells me the number of new properties we're creating is not keeping up with our growing population. It gives us an insight into why the property market is so stretched," Kerslake said.
"There's definitely a real shortage of affordable homes and rental properties, particularly in Blenheim."
Read more: Auckland faces ‘worrying’ rise in empty homes
Dr Kay Saville-Smith, director at Centre for Research, Evaluation, and Social Assessment (Cresa), said empty expensive homes that owners struggled to sell but refused to rent may have been to blame.
"The issue for the owners of those homes is whether they want to go into the rental market, or they want to just sit on it instead,” Saville-Smith said.
“If they have no financial problems, the choice of just keeping it empty may be more attractive to them than filling it because there are costs around meeting the requirements for rental homes ... or they might not want to fill it with the sort of people who rent. And they can use the house to underwrite or secure finance, or other buildings.”
"But the pressure on the housing stock is exacerbated by the fact Marlborough has a lot of second homes and holiday homes. We've always known in the Sounds, for instance, probably the majority of dwellings there are unoccupied most of the year,” Saville-Smith concluded.
