Building activity slowed in the final three months of 2013 as non-residential work dropped for a second quarter.

New Zealand building consents for residential housing rose 7.6% in December, taking the annual level of new permits to a six-year high.

A boost in new apartment consents led to an 11 per cent rise in the number of new dwellings consented in November 2013, according to Statistics NZ.

The house-building sector's rising fortunes have taken a tumble, with the latest Statistics New Zealand data showing the rate of increase slipping.

Auckland house building activity is rising but unemployment remains high.

Auckland has lost 4 per cent of its most fertile rural land to housing over the past two decades and is set to lose more under the strain of a million more residents.

Risks to the financial system posed by an overheated housing market may be greater now than they were in the leadup to the global financial crisis, says Grant Spencer.

The country's biggest house builder has opened four new franchises and will build almost 1000 new houses in the year to next March.

If the market distortion is going to persist then those with the means should be buying multiple houses, they can't do anything but go up in value, writes Gareth Morgan.

Cold and damp conditions are adding to health problems, including pneumonia and tuberculosis, faced by residents of overcrowded homes.

Lockwood's third generation says sticking to what they do best is working.

There is further evidence the Aussie housing sector is struggling, but it may not be enough to get the Reserve Bank of Australia to cut its interest rate.

In a sign of the discontent spreading across many suburbs, residents are now mobilising to save their homes, sunlight and views against plans for intensification in the new unitary plan.

Intensification isn't just about getting more height; it's about being smarter with what we have, writes Rob Hutchison.

A fee for tapping into the waterworks in parts of Auckland has gone up by 900 per cent in the past two years - from less than $850 to almost $8000.

Damien Grant writes: By law, Watercare has to keep the overall costs of water at minimum levels.

The Government is under fire for fast-tracking legislation which retrospectively legalises the unlawful collection of thousands of dollars in fees from plumbers and gasfitters.

A couple who took out a Master Builders guarantee and paid more than $500,000 in progress payments on their new home are in danger of getting nothing back after their builder went under - because they paid too much in advance.

The future of a $330 million subsidised home heating and insulation scheme is in doubt despite tracking ahead of budget and being considered a huge success.