Wilester

If i was to make the gigantic leap accross this planet i would be in the fortunate position of being able to buy a property outright (Have slaved many years with a mortgage)

When looking at an asking price are their many hidden costs in the house buying process in NZ

Thanks in advance

Genesis

It is the cheapest, easiest place to buy a shed..er house. Cheap is a reference to the legal costs. Alas NZ in relation to wages is quite expensive house price wise. It cost us $1k 5 years ago to buy this house. It is even cheaper these days. There is no stamp duty, no tax of any kind just the legal fees and disbursments..whatever they are. It is all done in a matter of weeks and does not trawl on for eons like in the UK. Once a deal has gone unconditional you cannot change anything or there are very big penalties. We bought this place and moved in within 2 weeks. Alas when and if you come to sell most agents will charge you the cost of marketing your houise in the property press etc. Then they will charge you a very tidy C3%-4% for not doing a lot. One caveat. Get a WRITTEN builders report afore purchase about $450ish and an independent valuation about $300. These can be used as levergae if there is an issue with the fabric of the house or the price. Most houses in NZ ARE NOT getting their quoted GV. That is govt. valuation. Have you looked at www.trademe.co.nz at the 'real estate section? Where are you headed?

Am Loolah

Genesis has pretty much covered it there.

When you see a house you like you make a conditional offer, usually. This can be conditional on pretty much anything, the usual conditions being;

Builders Report - like a survey
Registered Valuation - Independent market valuation
LIM - Land Information Memorandum - Basically a check over the Council files for correct regulations and to ensure house has been signed off/approved

You can have an LIR which is a Land Information Report which is the Builders report and the LIM in one.

Finance - not applicable if you will be mortgage free

In addition to the above you can have;

Due Diligence - which basically covers all of the above
Solicitor's Approval - self-explanatory

You will then decide how long you want to take to get these things done, usually 3-5 working days, although you can take up to 10 working days.

Then you go Unconditional providing all of these have been met and arrange a settlement date. From going unconditional you have 3 days to pay the agreed deposit. Paying the balance on settlement.

If buying at auction you need to be cash unconditional. So have carried out any of the above prior to auction day.

Wilester

Still very early days yet im sucking as much info from the forums as possible.

I have to admit i do like the look of Christchurch and north Canterbury being middle aged i think the pace would suit us more

From what i have read so far people seem to like Rangoria i dont seem to see much negative feedback about it.

viv jones

Hiya
We moved out a few months ago now and decied that buying rather than renting was for us. It helped us to feel settled straight away, saved on rent and gave us an immeditae base to make ours.
I trawled the internet, looked at every photo possible and drew up a list with a definitley place in mind. Decided to fly out to check on the children's school we had chosen and see the internet house we had selected. Came out for 3 days last June as I knew nothing about anywhere!
The school was great but the house was nothing like my careful research!!!! Whizzed around a few with the help of an estate agent and found one I liked all in a day. Estate agents are brilliant here and drove me around to possible places! Much easier when you don't know the place!
I have to agree with the earlier replies. House buying is cheaper, loads quicker, less stressful and just a whole load easier than in the UK. No hidden charges and so quick. Go for it but check it out in person first!!

Snap Shot

I'm doing much the same thing i.e. looking at gazillions of photos of houses for my husband and I to rent first and also to buy. I've seen some nice photos but won't see the properties in reality (no pun intended) until we arrive next Feb/ early March. Thought about buying somewhere quickly to save the rent money, but I'm now thinking about renting so we don't feel rushed and pressured. Which is the same reason why another poster rented first. However, you've gone down the 'buy' route so it just depends on personal circumstances as does so much else.

shirl

Hi Wilester

We are in Rangiora, we too are middle aged and the pace of life is slow, we like the town which is an easy walk if you fancy it from the North (where we are) although you can park in the High Street should you wish to take the car. We have a coffee culture, (fab coffee) Farmers (department store), New World Supermarket and a Countdown supermarket and numerous boutique type shops and a Warehouse, bakeries etc etc. We have a spanking new pool complex with a lovely spa pool for us oldies to relieve our bones! It is about 15 min drive to the beach one way and a 30 min drive to Oxford the other direction which has the lovely mountain backdrop which is snow covered at present. We find it an amiable place to live although OH wants to move further out in the country! We often go into Christchurch a couple times a week where there is the buzz of the malls and theaters and such like although Rangiora does have a picture house and theater we prefer Chch. All in all not a bad place to live, could think of a lot worse. Check out Rangiora.com to give you an idea of services etc. and trademe.co.nz for house prices etc. When do you hope to be here?

Wilester

I have wanted to try to make the move for a long time but the better half was not willing to leave her very elderly father behind (Cant blame her tbh). Well hes not to well and in all honesty will probably shed his mortal coil in the not to distant future.

He has had a damn fine innings bless him. Not wanting to sound heartless but if someone dropped 90 on the table today for me i would take 90

shirl

I left my elderly mum behind and she is now coming up to 92. Every Christmas she tells me its her last one and she is still with us. Been saying that for the past 10 years or so but I know what your wife means. I still have a brother and sister back home in the UK so not too bad for me as I have a sister here in NZ also. Hope you don't wait too long to realise your dream.