Genesis

Apparently median rental in Auckland has risen around $110 a month due to a lack of supply. The median for a 3 bed rental in this region is now $550 a week a report out this week opines. Not the best news but forewarned is forearmed.

Expat Kiwi

I wonder how much of this is because of an increase in demand caused by people leaving Christchurch?

http://www.3news.co.nz/Struggle-cont...7/Default.aspx

Justcol

It is getting silly, you can see rents going up weekly even for properties that have
had no tennents and been on the market for a while

sr71

Fair-weather Southerners. Aucklanders and anyone north of the Bombay Hills have been the most hated in NZ for years, but now they all come crawling north when something bad happens to their area.

Justcol

Wow and I thought I could be harsh at times

barnsleymat

It's one of the reasons why we're trying to leave Auckland. It's hard enough being ripped of for essentials and non essentials like food, broadband, tv, mobile, pub etc but high rents and house prices aren't worth the comfort of living in the big city. Wages aren't any higher in Auckland in our lines of work.

We swapped one rat race for another.

Coffee obsessed Euro wannabe Jafa's might be a thing of the past soon.

chippy64

I take it you are being funny!

Genesis

I wanted to go to Auck. Kate said no for the exact reasons you have stated. We went for Palmerston North..small town, so unlike the huge city we left in the UK. Certainly not a rat race. For sure it is not as exciting as Auckland but I get enough of that with 3 small kids.

barnsleymat

Having just spent a weekend in Dunedin with my family down there we've realised what an overpriced rat race Auckland is. We both love Auckland but after 10 months the novelty has worn off.

crap coffee

Wellingtonians leave for auckland as well - fear of earthquakes since 2010.

a friend of mine works for the city council in Welly, desperately try to leave asap (earthquake fears) but job is not accepted at auckland city council. so still here.

the other one I know, the house in the market for sale at the mo (earthquake fears)

another one already left Welly last year - business sold and moved to auckland (again earthquake fears)

But why auckland?

I'd move to Dunedin if I'm healthy enough.

sr71

I'd say jobs, Dunedin just wouldn't have certain kinds of jobs and is a bit isolated. e.g. IT industry you really only get good work in Wellington or Auckland.

Earthquakes don't scare me much, I just wouldn't like to be in an older multi-storey building, and I guess that liquefaction and having your home damaged would be a huge stress emotionally, but that is repairable.

I've been in a couple of earthquakes/tremors in high-rises and it's not pleasant at all (once in Melbourne and once in Santiago - but apparently it happens so often there they are used to it)

crap coffee

food price in auckland - still much cheaper than Welly.

I sometimes phone mum and tell her the price of red peppers at NW- its almost triple /least double price you see. She mourns why I live here in Welly.. proper cr@p weather + earthquakes + expensive place to live... haha what I can say.. yes, I'd like to escape from this place too but no where to go really if not leaving Nz.

and beerwise,,

hehe,, I don't go to pub these days.... $8.50 ~ 9 for a pint of beer,,, what ??? surely not cheaper than auckland I guess.

some locals say - not a point leaving because wherever you go,, you will face the same kind of problem to deal with anyway,,

Justcol

The only difference I've noticed between Aucks and anywhere else id the cost of housing both to buy and rent,
food, gas everything else seems to be the same

chocolate cake

Aye, I'd agree cost of housing is the only difference. I've found price of food,
clothing, electronics, pretty much everything else, no more expensive in Auckland than elsewhere.

House prices & rentals though are significantly more.

davros1984

I like your post... whilst Auckland is in no way a ratrace compared to my previous commute in the UK... I'm starting to get a little worn down by the overcrowded buses.

When I first started commuting in I could always get a seat. Now..... unless I catch the 6:55am bus I do not get a seat on my regular express bus until after 8:30 - they seem to run the smallest of buses as well. So I've resorted to walking down Shakespeare Rd every morning to Smales Farm.

I can see us moving elsewhere in 12-24 months (elsewhere as in somewhere else in NZ) but as I work in IT.. I'd have to have a massive change and start a new business somewhere.

Back onto house prices..... small 2-bed flats/apartments seem to be selling in excess of $400K now and the average 3-bed rental I am finding is well in excess of $500+ a week. That's a lot of money!

I look forward to reading more comments on this.