Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown is confident her council will pass a proposal to speed up the planning and consenting process for thousands of new homes in the capital.
A proposed Housing Accord between Wellington City Council and the Government aims for 7000 new resource consents to be issued during the next five years.
Ms Wade-Brown said the move would lead to more affordable housing for first-time buyers.
"At the moment, a house in Wellington, the average price is over five times the median income and when I was discussing it with the minister, we think that four times begins to put it into the affordable category."
Wellington had the infrastructure to cope with the growth, she said.