masterbaits

Wife and I early forties , no parasites yet , except couple of dogs.

I am considering utilising the business del boy entry visa , you know the 3 year "exploratory" one.If it doesnt work out then moving on to australia for the same thing , if that doesnt work out then flossing with the shotgun rather than go back to the uk , unless it moves to the med of course.

We want somewhere in nz thats pretty sunny , yet not the most wet as well , ie not the uk usual weather in either city or town.Although we may try several places for a few months each to get the feel of it.

Cost of lving is not that important to us compared to others , which seems the biggest overall complaint on here.We have incomes from early pensions of £30k sterling combined annually , is that enough?We have 250k sterling invested for 3 years should we decide to start , or buy , a business during our stay.We will be renting until roots happen and I assume have to have health insurance.

So where would be suitable for us do you think , we dont do beaches except for walking dogs , so that isnt important.We dont mind rural too for the tranquility.Any more than an hour to the local shop , or main hospital , by car is pretty much out of the question.

Suggestions please , other than dont.

thanks

Frenchy

Sunny Blenheim shares hours per year sunshine with Nelson. Rural feel to the place. Small hospital here and shops 28thousand population.

UK 30k would be a fair wage equivalent along with interest from your capital you would be fine but may want to get into the workforce to really get to know the place

Good luck

janek

Funnily enough when I read the OP post Blenheim sprang to my mind too!

I live in Nelson, which also gets plenty of sun, there is however a bit of a beach thing going on here which might not appeal, if the OP does not appreciate.
I also believe there may be some national park around Blenheim where one can excersize the dogs but don't quote me on that.

Picton is very close and that is the gateway [ Ferry terminal] to Wellington.
Also close to Nelson if you did feel like a look.... and don't forget all that fabulous wine!!!!!!!!!!! There is some money kicking around there....
All in all I feel Blenheim has quite a lot going for it if you are someone with an entrepreneurial bent there could be plenty of potential.

I don't know much about the North Island, will leave that to someone else....

masterbaits

Thanks guys , and the doomers have left it alone thanks.

Like most brits I was led to beleive the north island is the best for the weather , just like the south west scotland is supposedly best while the north east holds the sunny records...strange.

I think I will have to try various places , of different sizes and community types.The biz im currently thinking of is diy solar kits for electric , and swh for pro installs all sourced from china.You honestly wouldnt believe the purchase price , compared to prices I have seen in nz they cost buttons , ie the tiny grants given are more than the unit price itself.

The other option is d2d pc repair , but no doubt theres plenty of them in the press or working from home anyway.

thanks again

janek

'I think I will have to try various places , of different sizes and community types.The biz im currently thinking of is diy solar kits for electric , and swh for pro installs all sourced from china.You honestly wouldnt believe the purchase price , compared to prices I have seen in nz they cost buttons.'

Oh please hurry hurry out here, we need you!!!! Solar here is such an overly priced commodity here, I am not sure why China hasn't been more involved in this, may be they are and I haven't heard, mind you the Govt. haven't found a way of taxing the sun so that could be one reason why it hasn't taken off for the masses [so to speak]

your post has not been up long, don't worry the 'doomers' will be along any minute now.

masterbaits

I can see the reluctance of a govt in losing taxes with pv and swh , but money lost in fuel and energy taxes can be made up elsewhere...like licences.

In the billy connoly world tour of nz he mentions the govt making self use of geothermal illegal , but not whether they implemented a national harnessing program ...I suspect though that this may be against moari(sp) religion as a reason.

If it was the same yearly price to put in pv and svh in your home as the energy used , then thats when the tide will turn.People cant see past paying fuel bills every year v the long term , shortermism on personal economy , and scared of bills.

Thin Vaccum tube tech and seethrough pv harnessing ontop , its the future of micro generation.Combine this with a 12 volt battery based led lighting in the home and I project energy use at a third , or less.

Unit payback could/should be in 3 years on diy in cold areas that use a lot of heating , if it can be used in the orkneys then it would be ok in nz.

With the life expectancy of quality units ranging from 10-30 years then charging light weight electric vehicles for short distance travel become more viable also...and free.But I supect not comfortable.

Other countries implement selling back to the nat grid , this reduces the need for any battery storage , sure theres still a bill but your creditted for energy creation in these places at more than the purchase cost.

Its not a sales pitch just summit I beleive in.

masterbaits

Also on the green front.

do nz use sheepswool based insulation , after all there should be a lot of it about.

It is an manufacturing economy that can be done very easily and eviromentally.The biggest part of processing expenditure is shipping the wool to factory then the hot water....so if a factory was made using "free" hot spring water then the cost to produce would be incredibly low.

Being sheeps wool it can be vac sealed for transport to a fraction of its size , and then expanding on opeing not unlike a modern mattress.

P2L

http://www.woolbloc.co.nz/

Although most builders & DIYers seem to stick with Pink Batts

southerner

We retro-fitted wool insulation into our ceiling loft - very happy with it. Hot springs are only common in certain parts of NZ, and from an energy point of view really only are practical in the Rotorua/Taupo and Northland areas (where there are not a lot of sheep ).