Figure 7: Permanent and long-term immigration to New Zealand (quarterly)  Source: Statistics New Zealand. The role of high-LVR lending restrictions The LVR lending restrictions in operation from 1 October 2013 are primarily intended to reduce systemic risk by slowing house price inflation.
They seek to reduce the risk that a subsequent price correction in an increasingly overvalued housing market could pose for the financial sector and broader economy. Given the relatively slow response of housing supply, it does not make sense to let credit-based housing demand get too far out in front.