Hi,
have been reading the forum for ages now, decided to post & ask some opinions & advice.
I am currently in NZ & very homesick, not just for family & friends, but have got that awful feeling of not belonging, not feeling at home, & missing the way of life we had at home.
I could go on & on about what i think is wrong with NZ, but i will list the following in no particular order.

Cost of living isn't cheaper than the UK, but wages are less.
Lack of travel opportunites to other countries.
Standards of a lot of properties for sale or rent.
Lack of modern infrastructure in cities.
lack of facilities in many places.
Interest rates
Possibility of NZ$ decreasing massively against GBP
Driving culture (having to drive everywhere)
Kiwis - I just cant get into the whole kiwi ideal & mentality of things.
Standard of public transport
Healthcare & the fact NZ has lots of 'highest figures of........'

We've been here for 18 months now, with a break in the UK last year. I know the UK has its social problems, but i actually think it has a structure that tries at least to help modern day life, that i dont think exists here.
I would love to go back to the UK, but am nervous about doing so, regarding the cost of properties, i'm not sure how my credit rating is doing, but when it all comes down to it, its home & i miss it. We just dont feel happy here, our relationship just doesnt feel like 'us' as we've had to change so many things we like doing because of the financial constraints of NZ salaries & annual holiday entitlement (15 days).
We were so excited about coming away & coming back once we'd been in the UK in the middle, but just dont feel like we're progressing any, is it OK for people who've been so determined etc to go somewhere & it just doesn't happen for them. Simple, you try & try & it just doesnt happen, something is missing.
Any advice or thoughts would be welcome, as i feel like i'm going mad.
I would like to know anyone's thought, regardless of country on moving away / coming back, the problems they felt, the things they missed, whether they had fears over 'bigger picture' things like a countries economy or currency value, healthcare etc.

Thanks

Yes, certainly big picture things like health care, economy, exchange rates, property price differences, etc. figure into thoughts of did you make the right decision. Many people where I am (US, non-expat type community) have no idea that these things might affect me. I've been screwed by exchange rates for example, both times I moved, and currently every time I send money home I think of the fact that my US money is worth less than it used to be, sterling-wise. Scares me sh*tless that if I ever got really sick I could end up bankrupt in a heart beat. Of course some of this (price of healthcare for example) applies to other folks who live here too. But while they are happy that house prices are very low here, for example (eastern NC), I just see that since I left the UK in 2001 house prices have shot up in the UK, but remained stagnant here. When I go back that's really going to hurt.

Good luck with your situation, and don't worry about going mad, you are in good company.

Thanks for that, the property prices here in NZ scare me, was talking to a guy at weekend who has been buying & selling them for a living for 30 years, & he said not to buy in NZ at the moment, which is crap news.
In addition, say we did & we made eg, $50k NZ, right now thats 20k GBP, if as expected the currency reverts to its 'proper' rate, that $50k NZ, could be worth about 16000, & thats at a small ish change in rates.
In addition, i get sick pay for 10 days per year, what happens if i break my leg, or get sick as i did in the UK 3 years ago & needed 3 months off, like you say, i'd be bankrupt at the end of it.
I wake up every day scared as there is so little margin for error here, & i dont like that feeling at all.

Hi there. Your list of things you dislike about NZ applies to the US too (especially the car culture part ) so I know how you feel. I also know what you mean about feeling like you are going mad. It is almost impossible trying to decide whether to make a move or not. At the end of the day you have to go with what you think is going to make you happy, and stop doing all the calculations to see if you can make it or not. I would do the same sums every day and the answer would always be the same! As far as hearing people's thoughts who have moved back I recommend you read through the archive of posts here. I know you said you've been reading the forum for ages, but seriously, read through all three years worth or however much is still available. That's what I did and there are just so many wonderful posts. It's a great resource. Good luck with everything, and I'll echo dunroving's sentiments that you're in good company here.

If you're saying you make money out of buying a house, why worry if it's 20k or 16k, you've still made money! We live in the US and like Dunroving we have lost on the exchange rate, but I think that's one of the pitfalls of living abroad, you just have to try and roll with the punches. When we arrived it was $1.41 to the pound, it's now around $1.75, so when we go home next year we stand to be worse off on the exchange rate. Nothing we can do about it except fume!!!
As far as healthcare goes, did you know the score before you moved to NZ or was it something you discovered once you arrived? Can you get additional healthcare insurance? Insurance here in the US is very high, I hate the system, but you're gambling without it. Anyway, I hope you sort things out and I wish you all the very best.

i totally agree on the house money point, but we're wondering if theres a point in being here for say 18 months to make X amount of money, if it were the higher rate, maybe, the lesser the value, the less point in staying, i know i mentioned a difference of 4k, but thats just an example.
In as far as the healthcare thing is concerned, we knew some was chargeable, but we didnt know you had to pay for ambulances to get to hospital, & its the standards aswell, NZ has recently said that GP's can refuse to accept you as a patient when pregnant, if they choose, someone has to provide free care for pregnant women, but it could end up being a regular midwife, anyway, theres been cases since this law came in of babies dying because midwives just dont have the knowledge or skills to spot some things, how scary is that.
Thanks for the best wishes

Hi there!

18 months is long enough to know whether it's right or not. Not only do you miss your family and friends - but you have a list of things you don't like either! Same here - if that helps! Nowhere is perfect, pros and cons to every country. I've been to NZ about 4 or 5 times on holiday and I can identify with most of the things you say.

My brother and his wife have lived in New Zealand for the past 20 years. My sister-in-law said she thought she was only going for 2 years, and she wanted to come home for the first 8 or 9 years! Now though they haven't got a chance as their children are all kiwis, and they would be well out of the housing market in England. I know what you mean about the kiwi mentality, I have 2 nephews and a niece, and they all tell me how NZ is the best country in the world - but they've never been anywhere else!!! They say things like "How could you NOT want to come and live in New Zealand"!!!! Hmmmmm.....

The travel thing bugs me too. "Variety is the spice of life" - so they say, I've always liked to visit different countries for holidays and can't stand the thought of spending the rest of my life camping in one country, because that's what everyone seems to do!!!! As you said - wages are low, but the cost of living is high, and we would not be able to travel here there and everywhere, from here. Just ain't going to happen!

Just wanted to add, as another poster suggested, it really helps to read back through all the threads in this forum, it takes forever, but it helps to put your own thoughts and feelings into perspective, it also helps to know you aren't the only one, and you certainly aren't!

Good luck in deciding what to do - you only live once!!!

My daughter and I were so excited when we moved here to Victoria, Canada, just over a year ago. My parents live here and call it 'paradise'. We soon learnt that it's not paradise for all people. We struggled to find jobs that paid enough. My qualifications weren't recognised. Too many people were going after the same jobs as me. We ended up using all our savings we'd brought over, not that it was much anyway, just a few thousand dollars. Now we're giving up and going back to UK. We'll have no jobs, home or income, but who cares? That will all come in time. Our friends have agreed to give us a bed until we're sorted out. I'll be back with my best friend in the whole world and near my son again. What's more important than having those you love near you, your health and happiness? We've just been depressed here, not sleeping well and not feeling well most of the time. We don't regret coming here, as it was a fantastic experience and we met some wonderful people, but we're glad to be going back home. I think we'll appreciate it far more now!
Follow your heart, that's what I think, and don't worry about 'stuff'. I am going home with just one suitcase and my clarinet, I will have virtually nothing to help start up my life again in UK, but who cares? It's only 'stuff' and can be bought/begged/loaned again!

Donniboo

Just want to wish you well, we feel like we have been on a merry-go-round with where to live.

Moved Oz to UK last year, hubby wants back to Oz like yesterday, I do but not ready. We rent here in the UK with a few possessions and have a house full of goods/furntiure in storage in Australia to set back up with.

His Father recently passed away, has left us a small amount of Aussie $$, enough for a house deposit but now it is which country, when, where how . . . .

I hope you find happiness and settle soon wherever you feel is home.

All the best.

MMum

I think many of you will be in for a BIG shock when you get back to the UK. This place has become damned expensive to live in and the economic situation is not looking rosy for 2006 either.

I predict the beginning of a major downturn next year that will have consequences from years of unrealistic house prices and uncontrolled personal debt.

Isn't that why a load of people left/are leaving - for 6 years?

Of course.

I battled with this question for a while when i first arrived in the States; although i can't say i was determined to come here. I just happened to arrive here because of work but early on knew it wasn't for me. I'd lived in Europe for a number of years and never had this feeling before so thought i would be happy living anywhere. Eventually i remembered what i thought when i first left the UK. "I'll give it six months and if i don't like it i'll go back to the UK". Well i did like Europe and haven't lived back in the UK since but will most probably return to the UK next year for a while.

So you've done it, experienced it and decided it's not for you. It's definitely OK to do that - unless someone can persuade me otherwise ?

Sorry that it didn't work out, but at least you gave it a go. I always think that it's better to follow your dreams than to wonder "what if". If it doesn't work out, at least you tried. My husband and I visited Victoria about eight years ago and we thought it was a wonderful place and dreamt of going to live there (but it was just a dream for us as there was no way we could have moved there). However, as has been noted by others living in a place is often different from visiting a place.

Good on you for giving it a go anyway and best of luck to you on your move back home.

We were in Perth and missed the things you miss. What you have to look at is..

You moved to NZ and took all the risks...moving back to the UK may seem harder but it's not...you have family/friends, you know they way of life, things are familiar, you know the system. If you can't afford to buy then rent until you can.
Good luck, it is hard but it was harder going out in the first place.