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auckland here we come

auckland here we come

Old Feb 13th 2006, 4:07 pm
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Wink auckland here we come

My husband has been offered a job in Auckland with an initial 3 month contract. We are looking forward to the move, but we are quite anxious aswell. We have three children aged 11, 9 and 7. I have a couple of questions. Which Auckland suburbs are nice for families and have decent schools etc. And when applying for a mortgage over there do they run a credit check for your time in the UK.

Any general Auckland information would be greatly recieved.
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 5:23 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Originally Posted by wardiz
My husband has been offered a job in Auckland with an initial 3 month contract. We are looking forward to the move, but we are quite anxious aswell. We have three children aged 11, 9 and 7. I have a couple of questions. Which Auckland suburbs are nice for families and have decent schools etc. And when applying for a mortgage over there do they run a credit check for your time in the UK.

Any general Auckland information would be greatly recieved.
Hi there, welcome to the forum

The book Where to live in Auckland is a definate must, it gives in depth info on all areas of Auckland, including schools, isbn no. is 0-476-01558-8.
When will you go??
Good luck with your plans, we fly out on 11 March so may see you there!

Tracey & Adiy
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 6:05 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Hi....

We are in Auckland, we love it here. We emigrated in June 05.

We live in Beachlands which is East Auckland...we are 20 mins drive through beautiful countryside with pockets of natural bush.... so pretty rural too. We looked at that book when we got here and found it very good. We have some nice beaches here too... the sea is pretty flat here so good for kayaking etc... ideal for kids too. I hear the schools arnt too bad round here either. In Beachlands there is a thriving British Expat community too....I have met some really nice people.

The weather here is not too bad too! It can rain for periods of time, especially in springtime but once its cleared the clouds disappear and its blue sky again. Its definately warmer than the UK... I have worn a coat about half a dozen times since getting here.

I have my parents coming out later this week and cant wait to show them around.... I expect they will love it here.

Obviously not everything is rosy.... you will need a decent wage coming in to be able to afford to live in Auckland. You will be ok if you have 2 wages coming in... I have just been offered a part time job which will make things a bit easier for us moneywise.

Good luck, I wish you well with your move.... hurry up and get here before the summer ends!! Dont bring any of that UK grey stuff with you ta!!

Cheers

SarahB
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 6:10 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Yes - buy the book, and no, they don't do credit checks, in my experience. Where is th job in Akl - it's a huge place and you don't want to live on the opposite side
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 6:48 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Originally Posted by westies
Hi there, welcome to the forum

The book Where to live in Auckland is a definate must, it gives in depth info on all areas of Auckland, including schools, isbn no. is 0-476-01558-8.
When will you go??
Good luck with your plans, we fly out on 11 March so may see you there!

Tracey & Adiy
Thanks Tracey & Adiy

No definate date for going yet as we have to sell the house first, which is proving slow going. Thanks for the advice on the book. I will definately get it. Where abouts in Auckland are you going?
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 6:56 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Originally Posted by lapsed kiwi
Yes - buy the book, and no, they don't do credit checks, in my experience. Where is th job in Akl - it's a huge place and you don't want to live on the opposite side
The job is in east Tamaki, obviously looking at the maps etc, you cannot really judge the distances.
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 7:00 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Originally Posted by SarahB
Hi....

We are in Auckland, we love it here. We emigrated in June 05.

We live in Beachlands which is East Auckland...we are 20 mins drive through beautiful countryside with pockets of natural bush.... so pretty rural too. We looked at that book when we got here and found it very good. We have some nice beaches here too... the sea is pretty flat here so good for kayaking etc... ideal for kids too. I hear the schools arnt too bad round here either. In Beachlands there is a thriving British Expat community too....I have met some really nice people.

The weather here is not too bad too! It can rain for periods of time, especially in springtime but once its cleared the clouds disappear and its blue sky again. Its definately warmer than the UK... I have worn a coat about half a dozen times since getting here.

I have my parents coming out later this week and cant wait to show them around.... I expect they will love it here.

Obviously not everything is rosy.... you will need a decent wage coming in to be able to afford to live in Auckland. You will be ok if you have 2 wages coming in... I have just been offered a part time job which will make things a bit easier for us moneywise.

Good luck, I wish you well with your move.... hurry up and get here before the summer ends!! Dont bring any of that UK grey stuff with you ta!!

Cheers

SarahB
Thanks for the reply Sarah

My husbands job is based in East Tamaki so obviously we need to be that kind of area. I am going to start looking for a job upon arrival once the children are settled etc. I've heard that Auckland is quite expensive compared to the rest of NZ and we have been looking for houses to rent. Any regrets about your move?

wardiz
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Old Feb 13th 2006, 10:29 pm
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Default Re: auckland here we come

My advice - get the book and a good map. Get yourselves booked into a motel/short term rental somewhere before you arrive. Buy a car the day/day after you arrive and then "get lost" everywhere.

Use the job location as a starting point and then work out what is important for you, ie short commute, close to the sea, schools, or perhaps a larger house is more important, living in the countryside etc. Eventually you'll find an area that has what you are looking for even if you have to compromise on your list somewhere. What I'd also say is that our list of "must have's" for our location changed as soon as we'd been living here - so don't be concerned if yours changes too!! eg, you may think that living within a 2 minute walk of the beach is a must for you now, but then after arriving and realising that everywhere is only a 15 min drive to a beach your plans may change!

Don't panic too much about getting the kids into school within the first week of arriving - they'll be fine for a few weeks whilst you do some investigating, they catch up very quickly!

Lots of luck to you all !
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Old Feb 14th 2006, 3:05 am
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Default Re: auckland here we come

Originally Posted by wardiz
Thanks for the reply Sarah

My husbands job is based in East Tamaki so obviously we need to be that kind of area. I am going to start looking for a job upon arrival once the children are settled etc. I've heard that Auckland is quite expensive compared to the rest of NZ and we have been looking for houses to rent. Any regrets about your move?

wardiz
Hiya again

No regrets .... I dont think Id have regrets even if it all goes pear shaped and we had to move back.... you just gotta give it a try havnt you!! What a great thing to experience anyway, living in another country... we are so privileged and so very lucky to have even tried it.

East Tamaki is easy to get to from here. It just depends what you like and want in an area. I know people that love it here but also people who dont care for it here.... each to their own eh? We dont all like the same thing.

The big thing for me was that I knew I wanted to buy myself another horse as I left mine in the UK.... so I had to be near livery yards or fields to rent. So it depends what your priorities are.

Its a nice area here, the beaches are nice but as I said not surfing beaches.... its more like a lake round here.. people are friendly and say hello to you.... we have shops 20 minutes drive away.

PM me if I can help in any way.... off to watch Neighbours...yep sad I know!

SarahB
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