An Auckland MP is considering a members bill to strengthen protections for historic buildings.

Several historic buildings sit abandoned around Auckland, including Carlile House in Grey Lynn and the former Carrington Hospital in Mt Albert.

Labour MP Helen White told Morning Report she first became concerned about the issue when learning about Carlile House, which has sat empty and decaying for many years.

"As I made enquires, it became apparent that there just really weren't the tools in the toolbox to deal with that situation effectively."

The former Carrington Hospital building has been abandoned for five years.

White was concerned that the building would go the same way as Carlile House, and wanted to give councils more teeth to enforce the rules.

"When I wrote to the mayor about Carrington, I did get referred to the right people to deal with that ... they could deal with some of the issues by issuing notices, but they couldn't deal with enough of them. And we have a building that is in trouble as a consequence."

There should also be an obligation for people who bought a historic building to keep it in good shape, she said.

"I think you need a bill that says 'if you take on a building with these kinds of historic protections, then you need to at least protect the status quo.'"

She acknowledged extra funds might be needed to support the maintenance of heritage buildings.

"I appreciate that at the moment, things are really tough for everyone, including developers, and it's really important that their are funds around to help support things that are important to the community like heritage."

It was important to preserve historic buildings, she said.

"Historic buildings have gone through a process where we've decided that they're really important to the neighbourhood, and to the nation."