Auckland NZ - Anyone have tips for moving there?

[nickiw]

DH is having 3rd telephone interview tonight, they seem quite keen and may want us out there in 2 months!! Any tips for good areas to live, schools etc??

We had fun yesterday, Robert was a star going into school and I didn't cry either. All went very well, joined library, went to the park, nipped home to get mobile, then it started to ring, could I pick Robert up from school please, he had a bang in the playground, bleeding mouth, very swollen lip and two loose front teeth!! He is getting on very well with the boy next door, but Charlies nose is a bit out of joint...Sorry if I sound down about the cost of living here, but it was a shock I am sure we will start sussing out things soon and of course I will get my little job soon..

I sympathise - because you have had to pay for stuff for kids etc. When we moved here we were childless and so the only people we had to spend money on was ourselves. We'd had bugger all money in the UK, so having bugger all in NZ wasn't much of a change.

Poor Robert - hope he's not feeling too horrible and his wobbly teeth are his milk teeth!

The thing I find hard about the prices in NZ is the size of the numbers - the numbers are a lot bigger than they are in the UK (when we arrived back in London, we went a bit nuts with our spending, as everything seemed cheaper cos the numbers were smaller - when we did the conversions, there wasn't really much in it). One thing that is definitely cheaper for us in NZ is rent - we pay the same amount in pounds as we did in dollars for our weekly rent over here, and our salaries in pounds are less than half the dollar figure of our salaries in NZ. It's quite handy to look at things in terms of precentage of income, rather than trying to do direct conversions, which don't necessarily give a good indication. Have to say, I find amenities much cheaper over in the UK (but I'm convinced there's something wrong with our gas and electricity meters, as our bills are so low!!) - apparently that's about to change though, as British Gas are putting their prices up by 30% - OUCH!!

I guess part of the shock is that Richard did take a big salary drop to come here and we knew that meant a lifestyle change! If we sold up in the UK and bought here we would have no mortgage and could live very comfortably on his salary. However don't really want to get off the housing ladder in the UK at the moment. We will have to supplement his salary with our savings for now until I get a job or he may change his at some point in the future.

Hi nickiw-sorry things are still so stressful but great that Robert is happier about school. about his poor teeth though.
We know we will have to sell up in the UK in order to emigrate but we're banking on that big drop in mortgage outgoing to give us the freedom we don't have here. Basically the mortgage we have to have to live where John can work is crippling us but if we move he can't find work.

I picked up Catch 22 from the library on Friday! Robert asked yesterday why we have to stay for 2yrs, it's too long and we have pointed out the positives for him - Xmas on the beach, no school uniform, new adventures and the fact that we still have our house in the UK to go home to seems to make him feel more secure. I think if we sell I just won't tell him for a while..... The option of buying over here is really appealling to me but I will have to work on hubby!!

2 years must seem like forever to a six year old! Isabella (5.10) thinks it's forever till Christmas while Suzy (4.3) can't even cope with "the day after tomorrow"! They do adjust quite quickly though as their memories are so short.
Suzy had two mornings at school this week while I was working. I hardly saw her and now she's nagging to go on Monday and stay for lunch. I felt a bit sad that she so obviously didn't need me!

Running 2 houses on one income must be expensive - is your UK house rented out?

Yes it is rented out, but the rent only just covers the mortgage and the washing machine just blew up so I have had to spend £350 on that!!

We wouldn't be able to charge enough rent to cover the whopping mortgage

Have you got much equity in your house Kate?

How is Richard getting on at EDS NickiW? Is he doing the same job he did over here? What does he think of NZ so far? My dh works in IT so interested to know what EDS are like!

NickiW, another question...How much would you have to pay to buy a house in the area you are?

We bought a decrepit older house which had been empty for 2 years because it had a great garden for the kids. So far we have put in new windows, had the drive done, stripped all the wallpaper and carpets but there's a long way to go. Eventually we should make about £70k on it. Just have to live on a shoestring in the meantime but then we've never had much anyway!

Getting on okay at EDS, promoted to Team Leader, team of 12 all they are all brits which surprised him, I could email you with his other points of view!!! There is also a lot of contracting work out here. What does your hubby do? They are crying out for IT staff all over. We looked in the paper today and for a large 4/5 bed house near the shops, school and beach they are between $470K - $570k approx £170k - £200k. If we bought these we would have a tiny mortgage here I havent looked inside though, if you went up to £300k you would get a lovely house with pool. The area is quite built up though so it would take careful looking to see how close the house next door and in front and behind you are! This is only in Browns Bay. Richard saw a beautiful house in Albany for $1.2m (£500k), included shares in a farm, tennis courts and 5 acres, near to M/way and shops.

Think North Shore will be too expensive for us but like the look of Howick. What are the western suburbs like? I am dead keen on Christchurch now but dh being stubborn as usual.

£70K profit is great, take the money and run

That's the plan. Live on nothing for the next 2 years, plough it all into the house then cut and run.

If you want I could send you a property paper to give you an idea of what you get for how much money on the North Shores! The traffic is a nightmare so I would get an idea of where your husband could work before you decide.

Look at www.realenz.co.nz for house prices, doing a search up and down can reveal the prices for "negotiation" and "auction" properties.

Houses where I live currently selling for $400-440K for a 4 bedroom, new, double glazing 250sqm.

Kate, my brother lives in the North Shore area, a place called Beachhaven. I've never been there so don't know what it's like but it sounds nice. It can't be too expensive because he and his wife don't earn a lot I think - she works a couple of nursing shifts a week and he is currently managing a bar.

Are they really crying out that much for IT staff? Looks like I will have to take a deep breath and be the breadwinner for at least a bit when we get to NZ then - damn!

You are like me - you have 2 skills, one you can do immediately and earn lots of money - one that is your plan and your dream for when your dp/h gets a job. It's actually a really strong position to be in.

AND, your dd is only young. You may want a daytime job when she is at school. I certainly don't want to be working evenings and weekends when Bob is 5 - okay no childcare costs - but I'd never see him.

KateF ... Howick is lovely (it is where I live) but it is getting pretty crowded (new developments popping up all over (the new Dannemora development is projected to have 40,000 new inhabitants by 2010)
Mind you I live in 'old' Howick which is has a lovely village feel to it. I have found that there are few suburbs of Auckland that have that.
Houses around here are about $600,000+ for a nice 4 bed with garden. If you want a sea view it is much more expensive.

Nickiw ... sorry that Robert bumped himself on the first 'good' day
Hope he is feeling better soon. {{{}}}