Christchurch Earthquake Real Estate Fund budget blows up

The Government is set to make a major announcement on its 'for sale programme' after the earthquake as costs continue to rise and delays leave hundreds of homeowners waiting for settlement.

The support package was created in 2019 to provide ex-gratia payments to eligible homeowners in Canterbury to cover the excess portion of the cost of repairing natural disaster damage.

It covers properties that were repaired after the earthquake and signed over, but once they were resold it became clear that the work was not up to standard, with many homes needing a complete rebuild.

The original budget for the program was $300 million, but the Treasury revealed to 1News under the Official Information Act that the figure had doubled to $717 million.

Construction costs have risen by 40% and the number of homeowners has increased.

About half of the settlements still have not been paid, with hundreds of homeowners still waiting.

Ali Jones is one of about 1,500 homeowners who are part of the program, and said getting it settled was “tough” but “we got there in the end.”

“I'm glad we did it when we did, because from what I hear, it's not as easy now as it was two, three, four years ago.”

She said settlement delays “must and can be overcome.”

Hundreds of homeowners are awaiting settlements, but the minister in charge of the Natural Hazards Commission says “at some point, the music has to stop.” (Source: 1 News)

“People should not continue to deal with claims for a long time after earthquakes. It is unacceptable because of the stress and pressure, I have seen people's mental health affected by this.”

“The Music Must Stop” – Seymour

Assistant Finance Minister David Seymour said he was “shocked” by the numbers when he became the minister responsible at the start of this year.

“It's now worth more than $700 million and it's not over yet, and at some point the music has to stop,” he added, describing the program as “a very good example of government cost inflation.”

Jones said she would “step back” from calling the increase an explosion.

“I think the cost of software sold is whatever it costs.”

Tina Mitchell, chief executive of the Natural Hazards Commission, said “good progress” was expected over the next 12 months.

“Our main priority is to wrap support around these people,” she said.

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