Is Christchurch a good place to settle

[chocolateaddict]

We have done some research and pretty much decided that we want to settle in Christchurch.I would love to here from anyone already living there, especially brits,who can give me the benefit of their experience.

thanks

hear even

Have you been there?

not as yet but plan to soon.

i went to stay with a friend there. seemed quite nice, but a bit quiet, with a fairly elderly population (this was a long time ago though)

My sister settled there 11yrs ago.She is here at the moment ,has been for two weeks.She is meant to be here for three weeks but is missing home so much she is trying to get an early flight back.

I've never been but believe it to be a very laid back lifestyle,great for kids as they can be outside most of the time.My sis is forever going to the beach

Oh and she lives in Sumner if thats any use

I wouldn't settle anywhere until I had visited and probably lived there on a trial basis for a year or so TBH.

Just a word of warning. Christchurch can get very cold in the winter. Because of the Port Hills it can get an inversionlayer during the winter months, trapping pollution and leading to fog. It's got much better in recent years, but I would be very wary of moving there if anyone in your family suffers from asthma or lung problems.

I loved the place, went to university there, but suffered from chronic bronchitis every winter.

oh I went to University in Christchurch too and LOVED it! I love the city myself - but as slug has said , has high pollution sometimes. Also they get these bizaare winds that sends everyone abit skewiff sometimes ... or perhaps that was only me, after a beer too many!!

Thanks for all the advice,much appreciated.

oh I only just found this
we moved to ChCh last September and we love it. My parents are here so it was a given we'd come here rather than anywhere else in NZ, but there's a good chance we'd have chosen here anyway.

Houses here are cheaper than the North Island cities - you may find that you can buy something very nice with your UK equity/equivalent mortgage. But it is bloody cold, and the older houses, whilst v.pretty, tend not to have central heating or double glazing. However, although the cost of housing is cheaper here, wages tend to be correspondingly lower and it can be slightly tricky to get into the job market here, depending on what you're looking for (and there isn't the range of jobs/companies here that there is elsewhere)

Um, rather than me blather on, feel free to ask some speific questions and I'll do my best to help. Twentypence also moved here from the UK , quite a bit earlier than me though, but she knows more than me.

I tell you something though, ChCh is JAMPACKED with British people, sometimes I think I'm back in London....