For a generation of New Zealanders who earn enough to live but not enough to save, the dream of home ownership has quietly slipped out of reach — not because of recklessness, but because the rules were written for a world that no longer exists. National's proposal to nearly double the income cap for the First Home Loan scheme is an acknowledgment that middle-income earners — junior doctors, tradespeople, dual-income couples — have been caught between thresholds frozen in 2022 and a cost of living that has not stood still. The policy does not build a single new home, but it would reopen a door