Some Canterbury homeowners affected by a devastating earthquake want to be paid out for their damaged sections, so they can walk away and start their lives again elsewhere.
About 1200 homeowners have buildings on badly damaged land following the 7.1 quake hit on 4 September and will need to demolish and rebuild, or undertake extensive renovations.
Margaret Simeonidis owns a property in the Christchurch suburb of Bexley, which was badly damaged.
She and her husband, both in their 70s, have been told they need to demolish their house and rebuild.
Mrs Simeonidis says the couple consider prospect of rebuilding daunting, and want to know whether they can get the money and go.
Earthquake Recovery minister Gerry Brownlee says while he can understand how they feel, the answer to that is no. He says people are free to sell their land if they wish, but the Government will not be buying it.
The exception is the 16 homeowners have been told their land is so severely damaged that they will probably need to resettle elsewhere. The Earthquake Commission will provide a payout for their land.
Christchurch City Mayor Bob Parker says he wants to meet with different agencies to discuss possible solutions, but it is too early to talk about what form those solutions could take.
