MPUMALANGA has exceeded its share of the national housing target by 6000 houses and is building eight new low-cost houses every hour, housing MEC Craig Padayachee said in the provincial legislature on Monday. The houses are larger than those being built by other provinces, and are the product of community partnerships. The national target for May 1999 was one million low-cost houses, which the government has conceded it will not reach — but Mpumalanga has already passed the 53000 mark, its share of that target. The province is also investigating large rental developments. Padayachee’s department spends only 33,6% of its budget on salary costs, half that of other departments.