A United Nations expert on housing says New Zealand should look at a capital gains tax and a rent freeze to end the housing crisis, which she called a significant human rights crisis.

United Nations Special Rapporteur on housing Leilani Farha has been on a 10-day visit to New Zealand to report on whether or not the right to adequate housing is properly provided, on the invitation of the Government.

She found it was not and equated the housing crisis to a human rights crisis with violations of the right to housing, health, security, and life.

MONIQUE FORD / STUFF The UN expert said New Zealand had a serious housing crisis.

While she praised the Government for some "important steps" to fix the situation such as stepping up the public housing build but said the core of the crisis was a speculative property market that successive governments have enabled.

READ MORE:

* Gender-based violence NZ's shame, women's rights commissioner tells UN

* United Nations calls on NZ to adopt human rights-based national housing strategy

"At the root of the crisis is a speculative housing market that has been supported by successive governments who have promoted homeownership as an investment, while until recently discontinuing the provision of social housing and providing inadequate tenant protection."

RNZ Motels are reaping record amounts for housing the homeless - tens of millions of dollars every month. (Video first published November 2019)

While the net amount of public houses decreased under the last Government it did not stop being available.

"There are a lot of people playing in the residential real estate sector," Farha said.

"It's amazing to see a Government that clearly does grasp that there is a problem in your lands, and a serious one at that - nothing less than a housing crisis."

"It's so close. I think one hand is on it. And we need to get two hands on it. There's a lack of a kind of solid foundations for all the incredibly good ideas and good actions and programs and policies that are being put forward."

She recommended not a "smattering of policies" but a fundamental shift to embed the right to housing in legislation and focus housing policy on the right to housing.

"It is not clear to me that the Government has pursued all options to address the housing crisis. It will take courage and new ideas, and it may require taking what are perceived as politically unpopular decisions, such as imposing a capital gains tax on the sale of residential properties, rent freezes, innovative use of vacant homes, and tighter regulation of short term rental platforms."

"What I haven't seen here yet is enough gutsy innovation," Farha said.

"In Germany they are looking a five-year rent freeze. Even in New York they are looking at more edgy tenancy laws."

"What if every time a landlord had a vacant property they had to offer it to the Government who could rent if or a person in need?"

Asked if moves like a rent-freeze would be possible given the strength of the landlord-lobby in New Zealand, Farha said the Government should pay attention to human rights holders.

"They shouldn't be beholden to a landlord lobby."

The Government ditched the idea of a CGT last year and has shrunk away from serious controls on rents.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said "from the moment we took office" the Government had been working to end the housing crisis.

"We have done everything from closing tax loopholes to banning overseas buyers in our residential market to rebuilding our state housing stock," Ardern said.

"I'm proud of that record but in 24 months we've still got a long way to go."

Young Greens co-covenors Dani Marks and Mata Roche called on the three parties in Government do more.

"The political will to do anything transformational just isn't there. All of our government parties need to think seriously about how they respond to this report if they want to stay in government next term," the pair said.