READ MORE:* Public housing waitlist hits 24,000, half waiting more than 200 days for a home* Data reveals hundreds living in transitional housing for months on end* It would be cheaper to just house the homeless, so what are we waiting for? The latest figures show the public housing waitlist hit a new record high of 24,474 in June, about three times what it was three years ago. People say they are living in mouldy, unsuitable properties while waiting for public housing. “Residential care does not cater for Māori whānau, we like to gather in the numbers and often.”Associate Minister of Housing Poto Williams acknowledged the Government “need[s] to do more” to tackle the growing public housing waitlist. She said the Government was making “strong progress” towards its target of delivering 18,000 public and transitional housing places by 2024.

Source: Stuff September 11, 2021 17:01 UTC