Abstract
This paper examines how care is constructed and constrained in the governance of community housing providers (CHPs) in Aotearoa New Zealand. Using interviews and document analysis, we draw on Tronto’s ethic of care and find that CHP leaders construct care as a relational, values-based practice extending beyond housing provision to include community-building and personal development. We find that care can also veer into paternalism, particularly when tenant participation and power are limited. Regulatory and funding frameworks shape and restrict the forms of care CHPs can offer, discouraging holistic or crisis-responsive practices. Rather than enabling democratic models of care, government policies have narrowed its scope, despite having contributed to housing-related disadvantage. These dynamics reveal care as a contested site of power, shaped by government influence and structural constraints. We argue that without tenant self-determination and democratic input, care risks reinforcing control rather than advancing justice or transformative housing outcomes.