The cost of Living in NZ?
Oct 27th 2011, 12:48 am
#61
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Dental check ups and fillings may be free for kids, orthodontic treatment is not- so beware if you're bring kids over needed braces ... $5-8k is not unusual.
Oct 27th 2011, 1:09 am
#62
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
There is NHS. I just had an operation on it. So have my kids. You have to pay for some stuff but the majority of it is paid by the NHS or DHB as we call them. You pay for Drs visits but my blood screening is 'free' as are other samples, my sons dental work is free but NOT for adults and is stupidly stupidly expensive!!!!! Kate did just have to pay for a mole to be removed at the Drs and a while ago I paid for an ultrasound but on the whole I feel that it is very well and generously subsidised. Not silly waiting lists like the Uk and when you have an appt at the hospital you are not there all day and are seen promptly unlike in the UK. Of course you can have private insurance if you so wish but like everywhere its an arm and a leg and I doubt if it will ever save your life. BTW NZs ACC (accident claims and compo) pays for all costs (or most of them) for ANY accident or sports injury.
Acc covered the treatment at the time but now are not happy to pay for the opp he needs as they say the origianal injury occured in the UK.
So where does that leave us, do we have to pay. We didn't ask for a private specialist, happy to go through the local hospital if he can get it done but were not given any option.
Don't know what to do
Kaz
Oct 27th 2011, 4:30 am
#63
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Location: Queensland, Australia
Posts: 1,010
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
ACC has its benefits but it can let you down big time 
.
It's a shame that NZ doesn't have the same cheap private health insurance system that they do over here in Australia. His operation would be covered here, as the insurance companies can't exclude pre-existing conditions. You'd only have to pay the excess on the policy for the operation. If you have extras cover it would pay towards physio too.
Not sure what to suggest to you, other than to see if your GP can make his a priority case and get it up the waiting list. Elective surgery can take forever though, poor kid. Have you thought about a chiropractor or an osteopath perhaps?
.It's a shame that NZ doesn't have the same cheap private health insurance system that they do over here in Australia. His operation would be covered here, as the insurance companies can't exclude pre-existing conditions. You'd only have to pay the excess on the policy for the operation. If you have extras cover it would pay towards physio too.
Not sure what to suggest to you, other than to see if your GP can make his a priority case and get it up the waiting list. Elective surgery can take forever though, poor kid. Have you thought about a chiropractor or an osteopath perhaps?
Last edited by Expat Kiwi; Oct 27th 2011 at 4:34 am.
Oct 27th 2011, 5:35 am
#64
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Acc trying to get out of paying for an opp my son needs at the moment. He dislocated his knee in the UK 3 times playing basketball. Then here in his first training session, same knee,
Acc covered the treatment at the time but now are not happy to pay for the opp he needs as they say the origianal injury occured in the UK.
So where does that leave us, do we have to pay. We didn't ask for a private specialist, happy to go through the local hospital if he can get it done but were not given any option.
Don't know what to do
Kaz
Acc covered the treatment at the time but now are not happy to pay for the opp he needs as they say the origianal injury occured in the UK.
So where does that leave us, do we have to pay. We didn't ask for a private specialist, happy to go through the local hospital if he can get it done but were not given any option.
Don't know what to do
Kaz
Oct 27th 2011, 5:46 am
#65
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Posts: 906
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
I will phone the surgeon's secretary tomorrow and see what they have to say. Unlikely to get it covered even if we quickly take out private insurance as I guess they too will claim it is pre-exsisting.
With 3 boys we really did get our tax worth out of the good old NHS.
Just to mention not all ortodentist work is covered by the NHS they have tightened up the criteria. Our youngest missed out on free braces by half a millimeter (a hair width), cost to get it done £3,000.
Kaz
Oct 27th 2011, 6:52 am
#66
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Posts: 38
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Private Medical Insurance here in NZ is NO dearer than the UK (e.g. BUPA), and you can get cover for doctors visits, prescriptions, optiticans, and dentists - albeit a cap of $400 per annum for Dental cover per person, but this covers check up, scale, polish, xrays, etc. A doctors appointment here is 15 minutes too... and you actually get time to sit down, have a proper discussion, and feel like you are being listened to. Appointment times are usually kept to, which to me is worth the $30..... opposed to being sat in an NHS GP surgery for an hour, picking up bugs, and coming out with ailments you picked up in the waiting room.
I took my food bill last week $150 - and went onto Tesco and worked my way down the list.... the total was very much consistent with UK. Sure you don't get many buy 3 for 2 or buy one get one free here in NZ.... but for now with the current fx the costs are not much different.
Car Insurance - under 200 pounds fully comp - try getting that in the UK. I am sure someone will respond to say they can.... but that is very reasonable. As is petrol, which currently sits around 1 pound a litre.
I took 3 work colleagues for lunch in a nice bistro / dinner last week (so 4 of us) - all in I paid around 30 pounds.... this was for a substantial and well cooked / presented meal.
Many things here are VERY expensive..... but I think it probably balances out, especially when you consider the low cost of doing normal things - a day at the beach or a nice park.... costs very little if anything here..... an ice cream maybe.... which I had over the weekend.... a pound for a double scoop of nice quality ice cream.
Drive into Wellington.... straight into city centre at weekend.... no traffic to speak of, parking is free in a lot of areas... in the capital.... where in UK can you do that now? Can't imagine the cost of parking in London or a big city for a day at the weekend - 15 - 20 pounds?
Wages are my BIG bug bear here..... peanuts.... and something I constantly battle with.... especially when I know I can earn multiples of my NZ wage back in the UK, with decent pension provisions (relative to NZ).
I took my food bill last week $150 - and went onto Tesco and worked my way down the list.... the total was very much consistent with UK. Sure you don't get many buy 3 for 2 or buy one get one free here in NZ.... but for now with the current fx the costs are not much different.
Car Insurance - under 200 pounds fully comp - try getting that in the UK. I am sure someone will respond to say they can.... but that is very reasonable. As is petrol, which currently sits around 1 pound a litre.
I took 3 work colleagues for lunch in a nice bistro / dinner last week (so 4 of us) - all in I paid around 30 pounds.... this was for a substantial and well cooked / presented meal.
Many things here are VERY expensive..... but I think it probably balances out, especially when you consider the low cost of doing normal things - a day at the beach or a nice park.... costs very little if anything here..... an ice cream maybe.... which I had over the weekend.... a pound for a double scoop of nice quality ice cream.
Drive into Wellington.... straight into city centre at weekend.... no traffic to speak of, parking is free in a lot of areas... in the capital.... where in UK can you do that now? Can't imagine the cost of parking in London or a big city for a day at the weekend - 15 - 20 pounds?
Wages are my BIG bug bear here..... peanuts.... and something I constantly battle with.... especially when I know I can earn multiples of my NZ wage back in the UK, with decent pension provisions (relative to NZ).
Oct 27th 2011, 7:09 am
#67
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Excellent, balanced post EdT. You could have added that taxes are generally a bit lower here when NICs, council tax, water and TV licence are taken into account.
Last edited by DC10; Oct 27th 2011 at 7:12 am.
Oct 27th 2011, 7:23 am
#68
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Thanks DC10.....
And my comments come from someone who has struggled with life in NZ recently.... so hopefully more balanced than someone totally pro or against life in NZ.
Your comments re: taxes etc do indeed merit highlighting..... although my wages are a LOT lower here in NZ, the taxes I currently pay are signifcantly lower - meaning more money after deductions.
Moving to NZ is a HUGE life changing move, and as you transition into the kiwi way of life, you reflect on what caused you so much angst.... and for me, it has been (and to a certain extent still is) comparison.... and the sooner you come to terms with the fact that you can't really compare, or it is like comparing apples with pears.... that you become more settled and accepting of the differences. Some may argue that you concede defeat and become more tolerant or have lower standards.... but again that is comparing kiwi life to life in UK, and they are quite different..... both in good and not so good ways.
Life in NZ (for most) is less materialistic.... less polished..... and less pretentious. I sometimes miss this.... what I call refinement..... but it is kind of nice not to live your life on the hamster wheel of who has the best car on the road.... or who has the biggest conservatory..... It does exist here, and there is a LOT of very wealthy people here in NZ.... but it seems to be a lot less in your face or more modest.
I miss Blighty.... I really do..... and I miss my family and friends like crazy.... somedays I wake up feeling profoundly sad.... no reason other than I must have dreamt of something like family and wake up feeling quite isolated and lonely. I usually just open the Daily Mail website when I am feeling down which just serves to revalidate why I made the move..... or take a trip to an immaculate beach where I can drive for miles on the sand, pick a spot and pull over and have the beach and ocean to myself....
And my comments come from someone who has struggled with life in NZ recently.... so hopefully more balanced than someone totally pro or against life in NZ.
Your comments re: taxes etc do indeed merit highlighting..... although my wages are a LOT lower here in NZ, the taxes I currently pay are signifcantly lower - meaning more money after deductions.
Moving to NZ is a HUGE life changing move, and as you transition into the kiwi way of life, you reflect on what caused you so much angst.... and for me, it has been (and to a certain extent still is) comparison.... and the sooner you come to terms with the fact that you can't really compare, or it is like comparing apples with pears.... that you become more settled and accepting of the differences. Some may argue that you concede defeat and become more tolerant or have lower standards.... but again that is comparing kiwi life to life in UK, and they are quite different..... both in good and not so good ways.
Life in NZ (for most) is less materialistic.... less polished..... and less pretentious. I sometimes miss this.... what I call refinement..... but it is kind of nice not to live your life on the hamster wheel of who has the best car on the road.... or who has the biggest conservatory..... It does exist here, and there is a LOT of very wealthy people here in NZ.... but it seems to be a lot less in your face or more modest.
I miss Blighty.... I really do..... and I miss my family and friends like crazy.... somedays I wake up feeling profoundly sad.... no reason other than I must have dreamt of something like family and wake up feeling quite isolated and lonely. I usually just open the Daily Mail website when I am feeling down which just serves to revalidate why I made the move..... or take a trip to an immaculate beach where I can drive for miles on the sand, pick a spot and pull over and have the beach and ocean to myself....
Oct 27th 2011, 8:01 am
#69
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Location: Queenstown
Posts: 90
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Thanks DC10.....
And my comments come from someone who has struggled with life in NZ recently.... so hopefully more balanced than someone totally pro or against life in NZ.
Your comments re: taxes etc do indeed merit highlighting..... although my wages are a LOT lower here in NZ, the taxes I currently pay are signifcantly lower - meaning more money after deductions.
Moving to NZ is a HUGE life changing move, and as you transition into the kiwi way of life, you reflect on what caused you so much angst.... and for me, it has been (and to a certain extent still is) comparison.... and the sooner you come to terms with the fact that you can't really compare, or it is like comparing apples with pears.... that you become more settled and accepting of the differences. Some may argue that you concede defeat and become more tolerant or have lower standards.... but again that is comparing kiwi life to life in UK, and they are quite different..... both in good and not so good ways.
Life in NZ (for most) is less materialistic.... less polished..... and less pretentious. I sometimes miss this.... what I call refinement..... but it is kind of nice not to live your life on the hamster wheel of who has the best car on the road.... or who has the biggest conservatory..... It does exist here, and there is a LOT of very wealthy people here in NZ.... but it seems to be a lot less in your face or more modest.
I miss Blighty.... I really do..... and I miss my family and friends like crazy.... somedays I wake up feeling profoundly sad.... no reason other than I must have dreamt of something like family and wake up feeling quite isolated and lonely. I usually just open the Daily Mail website when I am feeling down which just serves to revalidate why I made the move..... or take a trip to an immaculate beach where I can drive for miles on the sand, pick a spot and pull over and have the beach and ocean to myself....
And my comments come from someone who has struggled with life in NZ recently.... so hopefully more balanced than someone totally pro or against life in NZ.
Your comments re: taxes etc do indeed merit highlighting..... although my wages are a LOT lower here in NZ, the taxes I currently pay are signifcantly lower - meaning more money after deductions.
Moving to NZ is a HUGE life changing move, and as you transition into the kiwi way of life, you reflect on what caused you so much angst.... and for me, it has been (and to a certain extent still is) comparison.... and the sooner you come to terms with the fact that you can't really compare, or it is like comparing apples with pears.... that you become more settled and accepting of the differences. Some may argue that you concede defeat and become more tolerant or have lower standards.... but again that is comparing kiwi life to life in UK, and they are quite different..... both in good and not so good ways.
Life in NZ (for most) is less materialistic.... less polished..... and less pretentious. I sometimes miss this.... what I call refinement..... but it is kind of nice not to live your life on the hamster wheel of who has the best car on the road.... or who has the biggest conservatory..... It does exist here, and there is a LOT of very wealthy people here in NZ.... but it seems to be a lot less in your face or more modest.
I miss Blighty.... I really do..... and I miss my family and friends like crazy.... somedays I wake up feeling profoundly sad.... no reason other than I must have dreamt of something like family and wake up feeling quite isolated and lonely. I usually just open the Daily Mail website when I am feeling down which just serves to revalidate why I made the move..... or take a trip to an immaculate beach where I can drive for miles on the sand, pick a spot and pull over and have the beach and ocean to myself....
Oct 27th 2011, 8:11 am
#70
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Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
A general question:
In your experience how much does a person have to earn per week in NZ dollars - after tax is deducted - to be able to pay all bills and have anything left over?
are the centres (wellington/auckland/chch) cheaper or more expensive?
is the north island more expensive than south island - are the salaries higher etc?
In your experience how much does a person have to earn per week in NZ dollars - after tax is deducted - to be able to pay all bills and have anything left over?
are the centres (wellington/auckland/chch) cheaper or more expensive?
is the north island more expensive than south island - are the salaries higher etc?
Oct 27th 2011, 8:42 am
#71
you dewty owld maan!
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: is practically perfect in every way
Posts: 5,565
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
A general question:
In your experience how much does a person have to earn per week in NZ dollars - after tax is deducted - to be able to pay all bills and have anything left over?
are the centres (wellington/auckland/chch) cheaper or more expensive?
is the north island more expensive than south island - are the salaries higher etc?
In your experience how much does a person have to earn per week in NZ dollars - after tax is deducted - to be able to pay all bills and have anything left over?
are the centres (wellington/auckland/chch) cheaper or more expensive?
is the north island more expensive than south island - are the salaries higher etc?
first question is "how long is a piece of string one". who knows, want to live with mortgage, rent, have no mortgage. have kids, a boat, cars?
generally you get paid more in the centres, or it's at least easier to find work.
they are also more expensive as far as housing goes. auckland is the most expensive, then welly then chch. most employees working for the govt are on collective agreements with salary scales and there are no weightings for city work (AFIK). good places to look at housing costs are the websites of the various estate agents, quotable values qv.co.nz and there are some websites that keep rental prices, etc from numerous agents in a searchable form.
good luck
Oct 27th 2011, 9:05 am
#72
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Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 38,611
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
I usually just open the Daily Mail website when I am feeling down which just serves to revalidate why I made the move.....
or take a trip to an immaculate beach where I can drive for miles on the sand, pick a spot and pull over and have the beach and ocean to myself.
Oct 27th 2011, 9:10 am
#73
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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 38
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
BEVS - what is all this Erk business...?!
90 mile beach for starters..... check it out... my local beach is a road (30kph speed limit) and I can travel from one town to another down the beach.... assuming the tide is out.... makes a nice change to taking the tarmac road.
Check out the Daily Mail.... you may also understand why I made this comment.... riots, stabbings, doom and gloom....
90 mile beach for starters..... check it out... my local beach is a road (30kph speed limit) and I can travel from one town to another down the beach.... assuming the tide is out.... makes a nice change to taking the tarmac road.
Check out the Daily Mail.... you may also understand why I made this comment.... riots, stabbings, doom and gloom....
Oct 27th 2011, 9:19 am
#75
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Location: Somerset
Posts: 226
Re: The cost of Living in NZ?
Mmm! Daily Mail. Not the first place I'd look for an honest, un-biased view.
