National’s housing spokesperson, Chris Bishop, has unveiled a policy aimed at assisting young people in paying rental bond deposits, if the party is elected in October.
The proposal would let those under 30 access their KiwiSaver savings to cover bond payments for rental agreements.
Bishop concedes coming up with upfront funds for rental bonds is a significant challenge for many, particularly students and young graduates.
"Our policy will mean that people who have some money saved in KiwiSaver accounts will be able to use that money to pay the bond for a rental agreement," Bishop said.
"The money will be transferred from their KiwiSaver account to Tenancy Services and returned to the KiwiSaver account when the tenancy ends."
Tenants would have the option to transfer their bond to a new tenancy, although the policy would be limited to five years' worth of bond payments.
According to Bishop, the restriction on the policy's availability for five years aims to encourage young people to participate in KiwiSaver from an early age and maintain their contributions in the long run.
The policy announcement comes amid the NZ Herald's poll of polls, indicating that a National-Act coalition is the most likely outcome following the upcoming elections.
The data suggests the chances of the current Labour and Greens coalition securing a majority have diminished, but a Te Pāti Māori, Labour, Greens coalition remains possible.