Yesterday Queenstown Lakes District Mayor Jim Boult and Building and Construction Minister Nick Smith announced a three-year extension to the Queenstown Lakes Housing Accord.
Formed in 2014, the housing accord aims to increase the supply of housing by speeding up the consenting process and freeing up more land for development.
Wanaka and the Upper Clutha were not included in the previous accord.
Mr Boult said demand for housing across the district was stronger than ever and he supported any measure which allowed more local families to buy homes in the district.
There was no fixed number of houses or sections which would need to be consented under the accord in the Upper Clutha area, Mr Boult said.
No areas had been signalled as potential sites for a Special Housing Area.
''There's nothing on the table at the moment but in a year or two's time, who knows? The need might be very great.''
Although not under the same pressure as Queenstown, house prices in Wanaka had also increased and it made sense to include the Upper Clutha, so a Special Housing Area could be set up, if needed.
Prices in Wanaka have increased dramatically in the past five years and the median is now over $1 million.
Those looking for cheaper options have bought homes and sections in Luggate and Lake Hawea, which are experiencing population booms.
Thousands of new houses are already planned for the town and major development is taking place at the North Lake, Three Parks and The Heights subdivisions.
A decision on the accord still needed to be put to the full council and agreed upon.
