Myotai

Thanks. I guess we were planning on a furnished rental to start with.

I am however getting the distinct feeling that NZ is going to be hard work in terms of moving and then the possibility that my hard gained qualifications and years of experience potentially not being enough. Now 20k (around $34k) might not be enough.

It all feels a little off putting I'm afraid.

When I was looking at Oz there was an enthusiasm from both sides (until I discovered I was over the age limit)

Sorry but that's how it's feeling.

Dorothy

Moving countries is not easy and many of us have either taken a step back career wise, or in some cases (mine).been forced to change careers altogether, even with years of experience and qualifications.

It's expensive to emigrate. You have visa costs, medicals , setting up a home , and don't forget to have a contingency fund for the months it might be before you start work. Car, bond on a rental, first shop, etc quickly eat up savings.

escapedtonz

I'm another that thinks you'll find it challenging with $34k on arrival.
You can do it but you'll have to really watch the pennies.
We were a family of 3 on arrival in March 2012. 2 adults and a 13 month old. We arrived with $80k and rented fully furnished for 8 weeks until the shipping container arrived. Luckily my new job paid $15k in relocation expenses and covered our shipping insurance for free. That money paid for the container, our flights and the furnished rental. We'd already paid and secured resident visas. We then spent $45k on 2 cars that would last, $10k on setting ourselves up in an unfurnished rental (4 weeks bond, 1 week letting fee + GST, furniture, new bed/mattress, couple appliances etc then stocking up the fridge freezer and wine rack.
Amazing how quickly it slips through your fingers in those first few months.

SkylarkR

Just to give you some up to date costs, we move next month so these are all 2017 prices. You need a good few £k for the visas, our Medicals alone were £1200 (2 adults plus 2 infants... you'd have cost of 3 adults so would be more). Total cost of our visas will be about £4K by the time we're all paid.

We are moving with a 40ft container - £7k, plus another £1k for insurance, then you have your flights, high cost of temporary accommodation when you get there, cars to buy, bonds and deposits for rent, if you have a pet to ship that's another few £k depending on the type/size.

I've quickly realised that cost of emigrating is like the cost of weddings, everything gets rolled up into £1000's. I think your 20-30k would get swallowed up really quickly and I'm not sure you'd have any equity left to keep you going without income or to get onto the property ladder.

MrsFychan

also you may find it hard to find a furnished rental

Myotai

Blimey!

So, do only extremely wealthy people make the move to NZ as it seems the salaries and cost of living dictate New Zealanders are moving to Oz to find a better standard of living?

I'm struggling to see a reason to move at the moment

xizzles

Please, don't get the wrong idea mate. Plenty of people make the move for a variety of reasons, but each potential migrant/ex-pat's reasons are obviously unique and one man's experience by no means is the be all or end all of all debates.

There are, however, a few common threads underlying a potential move. You will be making a move from the U.K to N.Z. I would deem that a lateral move from a developed economy, to another similarly developed one. I personally loath the idea of first world countries versus third world ones - I mean, what's a second world country, or a fifth world, for that matter, and it all smacks a bit of colonialism and imperialism, not to mention perpetuates the unkind image of the superior white man bringing light and hope to the undeveloped savages.

This is unlike some of the potential migrants from, shall we say, lesser developed or developing economies, making the move "up" to a developed nation like Australia or New Zealand. Squatting in Australia or slumming it out in New Zealand may still be a more palatable existence than what they may be faced with back home - and I mean that in the most respectful way possible.

Obviously, if you find yourself confronting a step down from your present quality of life and living, then you should question the rationale of making the move in the first place.

Good luck with your decision, whichever way you end up choosing!

MrsFychan

No just people that maybe are happy to compromise and it obviously depends on what/where you come from and end up.
My personal experience, my day to day life is harder and standard of living is lower here than the UK, but others making the move have a better day to day life and possibly a better standard.

sr71

No, plenty of people arrive here with nothing and make good lives out of it.

Australia doesn't necessarily have a better standard of living, in many areas NZ is far better. Unskilled people can earn more there, and they have cheaper housing - but there are reasons for that. It's not any cheaper to make a move to Australia - shipping is the same, rentals require more upfront (4-6 weeks bond, 4 weeks rent), cars are the same and residence visas cost a small fortune. And you may get a higher salary but it's higher tax and the difference not huge

sr71

You've completely misunderstood the definitions. They are outdated geopolitical terms, but 1st world refers to post WW2 allied countries (Capitalists), 2nd world refers to Russia and Eastern block countries (Communists) and 3rd world refers to any others that don't fit into the first 2.

Pulaski

Some people arrive with their entire worldly possessions in a back pack, so the cost of moving is much less, but in truth you can't move between any industrialized/westernized country and find a significant difference in "standard of living".

You might be able to find a mix of costs and experiences in another country that is better than you have, but probably not far removed from what you could find by moving within the UK.

You could probably find a similar "lifestyle" change that you're seeking in NZ, by moving from say London or the South East to Cornwall, central Wales, or the north of England, with the added advantage that you could still be in London in a few hours or fly to anywhere in western Europe in a similar time, which you certainly can't do from NZ.

SkylarkR

Have you been to New Zealand? Are you clear on what you are trying to achieve from a move? We aren't in NZ yet (next month) but we are aiming for a bit of adventure, more outdoors life, better family life, living near a beach, education standards etc and we accept that we won't have as much disposable income and are ok with that .

Everyone's reason is different but I'd recommend if you are serious about a move and can afford it that you make a trip to check it out before you commit all your finances to a move. You might find lots of reasons to move that you wouldn't know about until you have been an experienced the country.

Myotai

Thanks!

Genesis

Well I do not think I was extremely wealthy....and I did it. Okay I was abit older and as I had owned a house for 20 years in the UK had reasonable equity, but not that much!!

It is an expensive process however. For me one of the biggest downers on the path of an emigree is lack of folding, from what I can glean from this site. I would not do it personally unless the figures stacked up. It is an exacting and arduous roads, many emigress end up divorced, I certainly did!!

You do NOT need money issues when you are trying to totally rebuild your lives in an alien nation.

Timmy Chch

Correct, if you're after money, go to Australia. It's one of the many hit/misses when comparing aus/nz. The fact so many people do successfully move to nz shows it is indeed achievable and there are other non financial advantages in choosing nz. Some people just don't integrate with friends/culture (rugby and domestic violence are popular!) here and so this plus average wages makes a fair few return too.