The Property Council of New Zealand says building owners want to improve the earthquake resilience of their buildings, but changes to the tax system are discouraging people.
A report by the Department of Building and Housing into the failures of three key buildings in Christchurch during the February earthquake contains a number of recommendations, including that the stairs on all multi-storey buildings are checked and reinforced if needed.
The Property Council says building owners want to make their buildings as safe as possible, but those improvements may come at considerable cost.
President Chris Gudgeon says changes to the depreciation rules in April created a disincentive to carry out upgrades and they need to be reviewed.
