Money money money!
#61
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: North Shore, Auckland
Posts: 688
Re: Money money money!
Don't know if anyone else on here has ever driven up to the Cardrona pub? It has undoubtedly the most impressive (and beautifully stacked) pile of firewood I have ever clapped eyes upon. Makes me smile just thinking about it. We were there in spring and it was still, well, PRODIGIOUS.
#62
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2015
Posts: 6
Re: Money money money!
Thank you one and all for your replies. Much appreciated and helpful too.
PS what's a cord of wood??!
PS what's a cord of wood??!
#63
Re: Money money money!
Have to say, having read the first few pages of this thread, there are a lot of statements here that are similar to statements I made a year or 2 ago and ultimately played a big part in our return to the UK.
To earn that amount of money and to be in a "no frills" situation, pretty shocking. Then there's the near-impossibility of being a home owner.
We just had a friend of ours who lives in Auckland visit us this past weekend. He was fairly blown away by where we lived, our house, the weather (for mid-October) and how much is going on in comparison to his life. This is despite us earning considerably less money than we did in Auckland. Looking back, life was a real struggle at times there, but of course - miss the scenery, our great friends we meet there and cheap tickets to watch the rugby!
To earn that amount of money and to be in a "no frills" situation, pretty shocking. Then there's the near-impossibility of being a home owner.
We just had a friend of ours who lives in Auckland visit us this past weekend. He was fairly blown away by where we lived, our house, the weather (for mid-October) and how much is going on in comparison to his life. This is despite us earning considerably less money than we did in Auckland. Looking back, life was a real struggle at times there, but of course - miss the scenery, our great friends we meet there and cheap tickets to watch the rugby!
#64
Re: Money money money!
You clearly didn't read the whole thread: we have a poster living the good life with four kids on a combined total pre-tax income (including working families tax credits) of circa $70k who managed to buy a 5-bedroom home with only a normal deposit so pays $800 in mortgage every fortnight and the kids do multiple clubs etc. Apparently, it's quite doable.
#66
MODERATOR
Joined: Oct 2011
Location: Wellington - I miss Castles, the NHS & English school system
Posts: 9,077
Re: Money money money!
You clearly didn't read the whole thread: we have a poster living the good life with four kids on a combined total pre-tax income (including working families tax credits) of circa $70k who managed to buy a 5-bedroom home with only a normal deposit so pays $800 in mortgage every fortnight and the kids do multiple clubs etc. Apparently, it's quite doable.
#67
Re: Money money money!
Ahh, but MrsFychan, you are now an estate agent and therefore nothing you say can be relied on
#68
MODERATOR
Joined: Oct 2011
Location: Wellington - I miss Castles, the NHS & English school system
Posts: 9,077
Re: Money money money!
ahh but you probably was not aware that I am not your standard agent that comes from a marketing background but rather from many many years of Customer Service, for me its all about giving excellent service and doing right by all involved, strange but true, I will not compromise on my high standards.
#69
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Mar 2008
Location: Kapiti Coast, Wellington
Posts: 704
Re: Money money money!
Trying to compare house prices in Wales to those in Auckland is completely unrealistic. Try comparing London to Auckland and it's a different story with house prices way higher relative to incomes.
Kitti is not in a 6 bed house in Auckland living on $70,000, she is on the lovely Kapiti Coast an hour from Wellington. It would be virtually impossible in Auckland or London/SE but it sure would be in Wales or other cheaper parts of the UK.
Kitti is not in a 6 bed house in Auckland living on $70,000, she is on the lovely Kapiti Coast an hour from Wellington. It would be virtually impossible in Auckland or London/SE but it sure would be in Wales or other cheaper parts of the UK.
#70
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: North Shore, Auckland
Posts: 688
Re: Money money money!
Trying to compare house prices in Wales to those in Auckland is completely unrealistic. Try comparing London to Auckland and it's a different story with house prices way higher relative to incomes.
Kitti is not in a 6 bed house in Auckland living on $70,000, she is on the lovely Kapiti Coast an hour from Wellington. It would be virtually impossible in Auckland or London/SE but it sure would be in Wales or other cheaper parts of the UK.
Kitti is not in a 6 bed house in Auckland living on $70,000, she is on the lovely Kapiti Coast an hour from Wellington. It would be virtually impossible in Auckland or London/SE but it sure would be in Wales or other cheaper parts of the UK.
#71
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: North Shore, Auckland
Posts: 688
Re: Money money money!
You clearly didn't read the whole thread: we have a poster living the good life with four kids on a combined total pre-tax income (including working families tax credits) of circa $70k who managed to buy a 5-bedroom home with only a normal deposit so pays $800 in mortgage every fortnight and the kids do multiple clubs etc. Apparently, it's quite doable.
One thing that does come with regards to Aucklnad specifically, is house prices to buy. If you go back even to 2009, you could buy a regular family house around here for around 500k. That is now just around 900k! Things like that make a massive difference.
#72
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2013
Location: Kapiti
Posts: 63
Re: Money money money!
You clearly didn't read the whole thread: we have a poster living the good life with four kids on a combined total pre-tax income (including working families tax credits) of circa $70k who managed to buy a 5-bedroom home with only a normal deposit so pays $800 in mortgage every fortnight and the kids do multiple clubs etc. Apparently, it's quite doable.
#73
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2013
Location: Kapiti
Posts: 63
Re: Money money money!
And I'm not in Auckland, where admittedly you need more money.
#74
Re: Money money money!
I appreciate my posts are Auckland-centric and I know elsewhere in NZ, things are more affordable, i.e. the lovely Kapiti Coast (great choice btw).
However, NZ is overly Auckland focused and for most, they need to end up in primarily Auckland, maybe Wellington or possibly CHCH for work. NZ doesn't have the bulk of jobs that other countries have.
I moved to Auckland for a "better life" but in the end I found whilst I had a good/interesting life, I never could have settled. Being back in the UK, I have easy access to Bristol, Cardiff, Newport, Gloucester, Swindon, Bath - all with good job opportunities and a lot of affordable housing. I'm also 2.5 hours drive away from both sets of family.
What I'm saying is, if you're considering a move to Auckland and not full of money, you should consider looking elsewhere in the UK, Europe or somewhere other than Auckland in NZ. I do not believe today that you can go to Auckland and be better off (unless you're very lucky). Had you gone out there 6-10+ years ago, I'd say yes - you've probably done great and improved your lot.
Trying to compare Auckland house prices to London house prices is completely unrealistic.
However, NZ is overly Auckland focused and for most, they need to end up in primarily Auckland, maybe Wellington or possibly CHCH for work. NZ doesn't have the bulk of jobs that other countries have.
I moved to Auckland for a "better life" but in the end I found whilst I had a good/interesting life, I never could have settled. Being back in the UK, I have easy access to Bristol, Cardiff, Newport, Gloucester, Swindon, Bath - all with good job opportunities and a lot of affordable housing. I'm also 2.5 hours drive away from both sets of family.
What I'm saying is, if you're considering a move to Auckland and not full of money, you should consider looking elsewhere in the UK, Europe or somewhere other than Auckland in NZ. I do not believe today that you can go to Auckland and be better off (unless you're very lucky). Had you gone out there 6-10+ years ago, I'd say yes - you've probably done great and improved your lot.
Trying to compare Auckland house prices to London house prices is completely unrealistic.
Last edited by davros1984; Oct 16th 2015 at 10:15 am.
#75
Re: Money money money!
BTW did you re-mortgage to get the lower interest rate ? If so, did you have to get the house surveyed, LIM report etc etc all over again ? Were you able to made a professional (no pun) valuation on the house as you're a licenced Estate Agent ? Or were you able to increase your mortgage to get the better interest rate without doing any of that ?
Last edited by MrsFychan; Oct 17th 2015 at 1:51 am.