scotty45

Hi
Can anyone give me their thoughts and experiences of living and working in NZ. We spent 3 weeks touring round and our favourite place was Nelson and I got really excited about the thought of moving across with my wife and 3 children and starting a new life.
The only thing is I've been amazed in the amount of stories and comments about the low wages and expensive fuel bills, expensive electrical goods etc and the lack of disposable income.

This has actually put my wife off in a way because she does'nt want to trek to the other side of the world to be financially worse off and to have the stress and anxieties that a lack of money brings.

We realise that there are other things that compensate - ie. relaxed lifestyle, clean and safe environment, beautiful scenery etc. Also it would depend on your occupation and financial situation before moving.

Briefly, we would need a mortgage, we are both newly qualified professionals with little or no work experience

But is the financial side of NZ living really as bad as they say

Any thoughts and comments would be great

Mark Scott

Woodlea

You'll be worse off financially - but there's more to life than money and there's more to live for here than in Britain. IMHO.

Bellasmum

Scotty comparisons are difficult. As a Kiwi I have lived in four other countries including the UK (hubby is British) and we have not found it wasy to compare.

Each move we have made we have had to change our priorities and focus on the positives.

We have been pretty settled each time. Homesickness has been accepted and dealt with as part of the process.

One of the things I notice in here about cost of heating and weather issues folk in here can have is the "dampness".

NZ is PI surrounded by water with all the minues and pluses to go with it e.g. damp houses.

We don't have a high power bill. Firstly we choose not to live in an older home, newer homes in NZ are insulated, we also ensure the house is aired each day and we run a good dehumidifier as needed.

We don't have a fire place but do have an oil burner that we only turn on to take the chill of as required.

IMHO unless you are very flush with money, it is not possible to come to NZ (that PI Island at the bottom of the world) and immediately live a UK lifestyle.

NZ is certainly not for everyone that is for sure.

UK friends I have who have been able to make adjustments to their expectations have embraced the wonderful diversity and outdoorsy lifestyle that NZ has.

happynz

How much patience do you have? Do you need it 'all ' now or can you wait a bit? I think it's quite possible, if someone is clever in a business sense (I sadly lack business acumen), that within a few years they'd be quite OK off.

C'mon. Give it a whirl.

Littletoe

I totally agree with the responses that you've received. Prior to coming to NZ (hubby's a kiwi) I had convinced myself (having backpacked here previously) that the cost of living was great, wages was great and it would all fall into place. Sadly the household income in NZ is around $45, 000. I don't have a clue about budgeting, so I'm crap with about things like that. We've always lived beyond our means. Currently hubby is still getting a UK salary and I was lucky enough to walk into a job with a higher salary than the average and we still struggle!! Only because we pay ridiculous amounts in rent and insist on having nice cars. If you're concerned, do your homework. Look at the sort of salaries you can expect in the area you want to move to and look at house prices. If you lived in NZ and were moving to the UK, you'd wonder, how the hell do people afford to live there?! Moving to NZ shouldn't be a career move or a way to make money. Its a total lifestyle choice. If you want to earn the big money and live in a big house, work all the hours under the sun and rarely have time for friends and family - stay in the UK. If you would prefer to spend your evenings walking along the beach, weekends camping and enjoying the beautiful scenery - than come here. Once you've evaluated the money, your'll probably ask about heating, then the crime rate, etc. These are other things people complain about on here.

I don't know what you've qualified in, there is certainly a skill shortage here and lots of jobs are available in lots of industries.

To summarise, my advice, look at some jobs, look at some houses, look at schools/childcare options.

Good luck!

garryhg

hi jacky g here
im going to say the opposite we arrived 2 days ago and oh starts work next week,he has great job auckland city hospital and they are paying him more money than he earned in edinburgh royal.i guess it depends on what you do.at the moment were still finding our feet but first indications are good,cant believe we are in nz because its just like home but without your familypeople are very friendly country lovely its well worth the move.we moved because of the stress factor of living back home,and we lived in a good area but generaly life going down hill in britain,daughter at good school in st andrews but social side of school leaves a lot to be desired,drug culture looming over every childs head in britain scary.anyway rabbling on here gl with your decision just got to sort out whats more important to you,whats the worse that can happen you dont like it here you go back take care x

annbee

Hi Mark

Know exactly were you are coming from, my hubbie has got a job with the RNZAF and his wage is going to be half of what he gets at the minute. We are going for quality of life, ie fresh air, beaches and a whole new experience. We are not going to be better of but hopefully we will be happy and the girls will grow up in a safer place

Good luck with your decision

Ann