Where would you choose to live - Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Wellington or Auckland?

[thentherewerethree]

We are fortunate enough to have the choice of living in any of these places...but can't make up our minds! We are currently living in the UK but all of our family are in New Zealand. We have a two year old DD and are looking to relocate back to the antipodes next year.

If you had the choice between Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Wellington or Auckland, where would you go? Or would you go somewhere else altogether?

We are looking for what every other family is, I guess - reasonable housing, good schools, on an average wage (does such a place even exist??!!)

Thanks in advance, all opinions gratefully received...

I think Melbourne would be a lovely place to live but personally the heat would be too much for me. I like visiting Sydney but can't imagine living there (too busy and feels all squashed up to me-but have only been there briefly) and again it can get very hot. (Haven't been to Canberra but it doesn't sound very exciting.)
I think Auckland is too big and sprawling but my friend prefers it to Wellington because it is warmer and doesn't have 'the wind'.
So for me it would be Wellington but probably because I have lived there before!
(Mind you my siblings have gone to Melbourne for the better wages.)

I'm in Melbourne so that gets my vote. Good schools, housing, wages and shopping. Not too far from NZ so visiting isn't a problem.

We have DD5yo, DS2yo and another DC due in Feb and can afford for me to be a sahm while DH earns a reasonably average salary. We are also building our own home atm.

I guess it comes down to what you want most. Job prospects. Family. Housing. Standard of living.

Good luck. Let me know if you have any Melb questions.

Thank you both for your replies. I think we are down to Wellington or Melbourne...the thing that concerns me with Melbourne is longer commuting times as it is a larger city than Wellington; the thing that concerns me with Wellington is feeling stuck at the end of the world, a long way from anywhere (we are avid travellers!)
Thanks again for your responses.

If your family are in NZ then you will still be quite far away from them if you are in Oz (not as far as the UK obviously).

I have visited all of those cities as a tourist and I would rule Canberra out straight away. It was interesting to visit but rather surreal to live in I would think.

I really liked Melbourne and would happily live there. Sydney would probably be a bit too hot and humid for me, but it is a very lively and interesting city.

Aukland has really odd traffic problems IME probably because of its wriggly coastline. But I think it would be a lovely place to live if you were on the same side of the city as your workplace. I got the impression that almost everyone lives within easy access of a beach and it was very outdoorsy in its attitude.

Friends of mine lived in Wellington for about 5 years and they found the weather really draining. Even on a calm day it's like living in a bit of a wind tunnel, and on a rainy day (they have plenty of those) it's really unpleasant. They weren't delicate flower type people either, she's originally from Donegal and he's from Scotland. They never quite got used to the constant earthquake tremors either. When I visited I thought it was very pretty, but quite small. My friend found NZ to be a bit sexist in her career too, which is why they ended up moving back to Oz.

Thanks for that Bran.

It may well come down to choosing between working for the NZ government in Wellington, or working as a maths teacher in Melbourne. We are totally split between these options!

I'm in Auckland and love it. Great lifestyle, access to beaches, good schools, we have found it easy to get jobs, the recession has hardly hit here compared to the UK and earn good money. The down side is NZ is a long way from anywhere else. They have a huge shortage of teachers here so you may well be able to easily get work teaching here.

I love to visit Wellington and there are alot of Wellington mumsnetters who will tell you how great it is, but the weather would put me off. Something to bear in mind is the current government is axing alot of public sector jobs and has a freeze on growth in the public sector which is affecting to job market there.

Likewise I love Melbourne and Sydney to visit but we moved here to beat the rat race of city living (commuting, crowds, etc etc) so am not sure I'd move there. I wouldn't rule it out though as there are both great places. I personally love Brisbane but think the heat would be a bit too much.

I think if I wanted to live in a city with all it can offer I would go to Melbourne or Sydney. If I wanted a lifestyle I would come to Auckland.

I would live where my family lived.

NZ and Aus look close on a map, but you really won't see that much of them if means a four-hour $600/pp flight.

And if you're working as teachers, you'll only be able to travel in peak school-holiday season.

My A$0.02/NZ$0.0165. Or whatever the exchange rate is these days.

Thanks Sibble and ninedragons, for your responses.

Sibble - thanks for the info on public sector jobs. I would like a change from being a maths teacher and thought government might be good - but at least as a maths teacher I have job security.

Ninedragons - whilst a four hour flight to see family seems a lot, it is an improvement on the 27 hour journey that we currently have (from the UK to the South Island of NZ)! Only being able to travel in peak season is annoying though and $600/pp is more expensive than I thought it would be from Aus-NZ.

I too would rule out Canberra, it's a weird, boring place in the middle of nowhere. Plus, it's a government town and people come in for "postings" and then leave again so hard to build up friendships.

I lived in Sydney for a year - it's a great city. Expensive and busy but vibrant, lots going on, great restaurants, plus easy to get around the country from there.

Melbourne I like but the weather is odd - boiling or raining (I'm sure this isn't strictly true). Big advantage with Melb is the countryside around it, which is lovely. Mornington Peninsula, Daylesford, Great Ocean Road, all lovely and easy to get to.

Wellington I don't know, but have heard nice things about. Auckland I have visited. It's ok, I didn't love it, and just thought it was another city really, but cetainly not awful or anything.

What a lovely lot of options to choose between. Hard though as they are very different cities.

If money was no object, I'd say Sydney. But if you can't afford to live centrally there, I'd say Auckland. It depends what sort of lifestyle you want. I find Auckland has a lot of the advantages of a city without the disadvantages of the country. You can live by the beach and if you are sensible about work/home locations the traffic isn't bad. We live 10 mins from the beach and it's just beautiful.

I wouldn't move here unless I matched my UK income though as NZ is an expensive country.

Have a look at Trademe.co.nz for houses etc.

I'm from Scotland and Welly is too windy for me. We spent a weekend there and kept asking people- 'is it always this windy?'

and they would say

'is it windy today?'

Thanks Ozziegirly and newkiwi. I think Auckland is coming back as a possibility along with Wellington and Melbourne. After 10 years in the UK we are very much looking forward to sea and sun again!

I live in Sydney and it's fantastic - I would definitely recommend it. I'm from London and we think we will need to go home to family if I hopefully become pregnant next year... but it's not easy as Sydney would be a far nicer place to bring up children.
The climate is the biggest plus - you can do outdoorsy stuff all year round - which of course is cheaper as well as nicer! Although I'm not quite at that stage yet myself, just walking around on the weekend you can see the fantastic lifestyle that other young families are having in the parks, on the beaches etc. The scenery is spectcular, the city feels very safe, and the whole place just has a nice, more relaxed feel to it than London.
I would rule out Canberra too - Sydney and Melbourne are both nicer in my view.
As to Auckland or Wellington I really couldn't say. If you've come all this way to be nearer family then may be NZ as Australia really isn't really that close.. if that's not the most important factor then I'm sure you'll be happy in either Sydney or Melbourne and grow to love whichever you choose.

Thank you Jojo7. It's certainly useful to hear that Sydney is child-friendly; we have been worried that, being a largish city, it might not be - that moving from London to Sydney might be a bit of "from the frying pan to the fire"!

We find Sydney very child friendly too and a great place to bring up kids, though mine are older now (6,11 and 16). It has something for everyone and there is loads of things happening all the time. I sat on a beach here yesterday in the sunshine watching two whales play out in the water! You don't get that in Brighton. My kids go to a fantastic school and best of all from my point of view, kids seem to stay kids longer. My 16 year old goes to the beach, or bike riding in the national park, or plays sport - on a recent trip to the UK most of his old mates were firmly into pubbing and clubbing. I'm totally biased though as I fell in love with Sydney when I came here as a backpacker 20 yeas ago! The downside is it's expensive, especially housing.

That's really useful info sunnydelight, thanks. Kids being able to stay kids longer is definitely one of the reasons why we want to move from the UK back to the antipodes. It's good to hear that can still happen in Sydney, despite it being a decent sized city.

Hi there I'm in Wellington! yes it is windy in Spring so about 3 months of the year which can be very draining. In fact New Zealand in general is a pretty windy country. Rains a lot less than Auckland tho!
You can get flights to Oz for around $300pp if you pick up deals - but its probably right that they are double that during school hols. Schools don't seem to mind all that much if parents take their kids out of school (primary school at least) for a week during term time. Its not like the UK where you have to legally gain permission. Of course its your choice whether you think that's OK!
I've just returned from a week in Laos which was absolutely amazing - Bangkok is an 11 hour flight from Auckland. Similar distance destinations by direct flight include Honolulu, Hong Kong, Singapore, KL, Tokyo, San Francisco. You can also fly direct to Vancouver as my friends do each summer to go skiing. Closer to home options are of course various Pacific Islands such as Cook Islands and Tahiti.
IMO the wind is almost Wellington's only downside, everything else is really good. There are great schools, low crime rates, lots of options for families and you can still get a reasonably priced property within a 15 min drive of the city.
Its also not true that there's a freeze on govt hiring - have a look at www.jobs.govt.nz to see what options there are. Also www.teachnz.govt.nz for teaching jobs.
Feel free to ask any Wellington specific questions.

Hi - I'm in Wellington as well. Its a great place for families. I have two dds - aged 5 and 2 - and we love it. The schools and kindergartons are great and the open spaces and easy access to beaches and countryside make it a fantastic place to raise kids. The girls are out on their bikes and climbing trees in the local park most days. It the idealised lifestyle for children.

Even though its the capital city it only the size of Bournemouth and has a village atmosphere in some of the suburbs. DH has a 20min commute on the trains into the city every day and they are very cheap compared to what he paid in the UK.

It is windy - but it is also beautiful and the changeable weather makes it an exciting place to live.

Hi Buzzy. How are you? Re. the govt freeze on public sector jobs I'd heard/read that the govt had put a freeze on the 5% growth in the public sector and had axed approx (might have got the figure wrong) 600 jobs this year. So although there will obviously be a natural turn over of positions and vacancies the number on the market are less than there would have been say a year or two ago. I have friends who have just returned to the UK as their job in IRD was under threat here. I was suggesting that the OP doesn't rule out teaching here as there seems (my perception of course) that there is a shortage of teachers and might be easier to find employment teaching????

That's big thumbs up for Wellington then!

You lot are making this choice more difficult - you are all making strong cases for Sydney, Melbourne, Wellington and Auckland!! I guess we can't really go too far wrong with any of them...and you have helped us definitely rule out Canberra.

The other big decision we have to make is when to go...we either stay in the UK until we are financially very secure (ie another 3 years - but in jobs we don't like, in a climate that is driving us nuts, and in an environment that we don't want to raise our 2 year old DD in); or we head off next year and ignore the very perilous state of our bank account (but hopefully gain better quality of life)...sigh...I don't like the decisions that come with being grown up!

Have lived in Wellington, now in London. If I could find a good job, I'd live in Auckland if I had small kids - the opportunity of going to the beach every day would win me over, despite the traffic jams! Wellington is nice but windy and (sssh) cold. When I lived there I went to the beach once (even though I lived right above one). Very pretty, fairly cosmopolitan lifestyle for a small place, typical of govt-dominated cities in that people are pretty middle class and relatively well paid, and love talking politics. They also love good coffee, food and wine - and it has good bars. But you may find unless you are very hardy and/or love kites and windsurfing the terrible weather will get you down. Oh, and if you like hiking then Wellington is also OK. When I was a young civil servant being courted by a mad alpine climber, then Wellington was fine - we went hiking and drank coffee. IME those who have lived in Christchurch before like Auckland, those who have lived in Dunedin can stomach Wellington!

I think the heat, the erratic weather and the risk of water shortages might put me off Australia! If you are after long-term opportunity then Australia does have significantly higher income levels - something to consider. You really notice the fact that, to be frank, NZ is relatively poor compared to London and Sydney. Having said that, in Wellington you can live well on a government salary as long as you don't hanker after luxury imported goods.

We've been quite shocked by the cost of relocating. If I didn't it again I'd make a much more realistic budget cos being skint and having no access to credit is pretty stressful. It's taken us a year to get on our feet. But the we've bought two cars, furnished a house, moved twice and added DD1 to the family.

You might find the forums on emigratenz.org useful too.

But I guess the costs will similar wherever you go. And I'm so glad we did it!

Hmm, well yes, I'd agree with ruling out Canberra.

Australia does have higher salaries and (I think) a slightly higher standard of living. Though it's 13 years (eek) since I spent a year there and that was as a backpacker so hardly the same considerations then. Lots of Kiwis do seem to move there to make better money and/or progress in their careers. Though lots of them seem to miss NZ (and Pineapple Lumps, for some bizarre reason )

Both Sydney and Melbourne are big cities with loads going on, I prefer Melbourne but really, a nice area in either would be fab. And yes, there aren't the super cheap flights between Oz and NZ that you get between some parts of Europe (though they are getting cheaper) so the price of flights home could be a consideration. Depends how often you would be planning to see family - presumably they could come visit you too?

I'm in Auckland and very luckily live near the beach, not far from the Waitakere ranges, dh has a 20-40 min commute, depending on traffic. I like it here very much but then everyone I know in Welly loves it there too.

NZ can be expensive than some people anticipate, property in a nice area, for example, can be quite heftily priced (espec compared to salaries) but we have a good life. And I don't think there's a huge difference anymore in property prices between Auckland and Wellington. Really, a nice area in any of the cities you are considering would be fine (apart from Canberra ), it depends how much proximity to family vs salary matters

Hi Sibble, yes totally agree she shouldn't rule out teaching!
TTWT - I'd also have to say that if your big motivation to move is leaving British weather behind then maybe Wellington is not the place for you. As I said below Wellie is an ab fab city but I wouldn't market it based on the weather. If you don't mind being hot some of the time then Sydney probably has the best climate - but it is a BIG city. Auckland is probably the second pick on this basis. Melbourne's weather is probably only marginally better than Wellington. Depends on whether you mind temp fluctuations between 15 and 40 degrees over summer (and much colder in winter)! Whereas in Wellington it generally varies between 19 and 25.

Thanks everyone, for your responses. It's heartening to know that (bar Canberra) we can't go too far wrong!

Thentherewerethree... just one more thought on the finances. I guess it will vary for everybody and of course there are big costs associated with relocating.. I was lucky in that my company paid for my transfer and that might not be possible for most people.

But, once you get here, I definitely think the cost of living. I am definitely much better off financially here than I was back in London and kind of dreading having to go back to where everything feels like such a stretch!

One important thing to ask any future employer for is whether they will give you LAFHA - the living away from home allowance. It is a tax benefit for people on a 457 visa and it makes a really big difference.

Good luck!