Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

 Plain Language Law homepage
Back to
77H: Requirements in Schedule 3A may be modified to enable greater development
or “Councils can change the rules to allow more housing to be built than what the law says.”
You could also call this:

“Special reasons why councils can limit building heights and density in some areas”

You can make changes to the medium density residential standards (MDRS) and policy 3 requirements in certain areas, but only if there’s a good reason. These reasons are called ‘qualifying matters’. Here are the qualifying matters that allow you to make changes:

You need to protect something important to the nation, as listed in section 6 of the law.

You need to follow a national policy statement (except for the NPS-UD) or the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010.

You need to follow Te Ture Whaimana o Te Awa o Waikato, which is the plan for the Waikato River.

You need to follow the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act 2000 or the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act 2008.

You need to make sure that important national infrastructure can work safely and well.

You need to keep public open spaces as they are.

You need to follow a designation or heritage order, but only for the land it applies to.

You need to follow rules about working with iwi.

You need to make sure there’s enough land for businesses that need a lot of space.

There’s another good reason why more houses or taller buildings wouldn’t work well in an area, but only if it follows the rules in section 77L.

Remember, you can only make these changes if they’re really necessary to deal with one of these matters.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

Next up: 77J: Requirements in relation to evaluation report

or “The law says you need to explain why you're changing the rules for building houses in your area”
Next

Part 5 Standards, policy statements, and plans
Local authority policy statements and plans: Intensification requirements in residential zones

77IQualifying matters in applying medium density residential standards and policy 3 to relevant residential zones

  1. A specified territorial authority may make the MDRS and the relevant building height or density requirements under policy 3 less enabling of development in relation to an area within a relevant residential zone only to the extent necessary to accommodate 1 or more of the following qualifying matters that are present:

  2. a matter of national importance that decision makers are required to recognise and provide for under section 6:
    1. a matter required in order to give effect to a national policy statement (other than the NPS-UD) or the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010:
      1. a matter required to give effect to Te Ture Whaimana o Te Awa o Waikato—the Vision and Strategy for the Waikato River:
        1. a matter required to give effect to the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act 2000 or the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act 2008:
          1. a matter required for the purpose of ensuring the safe or efficient operation of nationally significant infrastructure:
            1. open space provided for public use, but only in relation to land that is open space:
              1. the need to give effect to a designation or heritage order, but only in relation to land that is subject to the designation or heritage order:
                1. a matter necessary to implement, or to ensure consistency with, iwi participation legislation:
                  1. the requirement in the NPS-UD to provide sufficient business land suitable for low density uses to meet expected demand:
                    1. any other matter that makes higher density, as provided for by the MDRS or policy 3, inappropriate in an area, but only if section 77L is satisfied.

                      Notes
                      • Section 77I: inserted, on , by section 9 of the Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 59).