Joining the dots to solve ‘one heck of a problem.’

One of New Zealand’s foremost housing strategists, today unveils an independent initiative that aims to solve Auckland’s housing crisis.

Whilst you would need to be hiding under a rock not to have heard about Auckland’s housing woes, the narrative is repetitive and tedious. It’s clear there’s an escalating problem. What isn’t clear is a visible, cohesive solution with clear targets.

Enter Leonie Freeman.

Changing policies, finger pointing, demand, supply, and a disconnect between public and private sector players have all contributed to what has become one heck of a problem, says Ms Freeman, founder of the thehomepage.nz.

‘I think we’ve all reached a point where it’s become increasingly obvious that no single idea, organisation or person can solve such a complex problem. To solve the problem requires real leadership with a long term focus and commitment.’

The philanthropic enterprise aims to first understand the true nature and scope of the crisis and provide a comprehensive solution with a detailed plan for getting there.

‘Enough is enough’, says Ms Freeman. ‘We can’t wait any longer. We need to fix Auckland’s housing issues now by connecting what currently look like the scattered pieces of a jigsaw. We’ll do it by implementing four key steps.’

The first step is to define the vision by identifying where Auckland wants to go and what success looks like. Secondly, a structure will be put in place using a collective impact methodology. This is a practice used globally to ensure that multiple players are working together towards the same goal and measuring the same things.

The third step is about creating a housing framework to make sense of the problem. Ms Freeman says the framework she has created provide a structure to help make sense of all the pieces of the housing jigsaw.

‘Finally, we need a resolute and unified action plan. We need to be clear and transparent about where we are going and how we can get there together.’

Ms Freeman is the pioneer who created and built the ground-breaking concept that now goes under the name realestate.co.nz.

Her solution is strategic, detailed and logical, incorporating key stakeholders from policy makers to infrastructure providers, developers, construction companies, consultants and planners. ‘We all have plenty of ideas, there’s no shortage of them. The challenge is to coordinate them, bed them in and get on with the hard work.’

‘I say this to all Aucklanders; if Auckland wants to solve its housing crisis then it is up to us, as Aucklanders, to solve it.’

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