Michelle & Chris

Hi

Wonder if anyone can help. My better half maybe hearing this week if he has a job offer and the company is based or at least where he would be working is Onehunga. Could anyone tell me anything about this part of Auckland and any other area that would be good to live in. We have two girls 4 and 12 so would like to sent them to good schools. Would prefer not to built up an area.

Any advice, warnings or ideas are welcomed. We can commute but would like to keep this down to a minimum.

Cheers in advance.


Michelle & Chris

fiona i

Hi

My OH also has a job offer and the company is based at onehunga but he will be working out of the oil terminal at Wiri. We are looking to go to Howick on the east coast as it is one of the nicest areas out of Auckland and the schools have great decile ratings which is a good start for our kids.

Is it for a truck driving job?

fi

Michelle & Chris

Hi

No it working within the Water Industry. Hopefully we will hear this coming week. They have 3 sites but we've only just found out where he would be based if successfull. The area you mentioned sound nice, I'll look it up. What are property costs like. Mind you with the interest rate being what they are, I think we would rent for a while and make some money in the bank.

When are you planning to make the move.

Cheers

Michelle

fiona i

Hope to go end january 06. onehunga didnt look too bad - i considered one tree hill area for a bit until the news came that the job wasnt there after all but further out!

when are you off then?

fi

Michelle & Chris

Hi

Just had to pop out to pick up the eldest.

Hard to say really. If we get an offer then they will put us through on a talent visa which takes about 40 days approx, but the problem is we are just about to put the house on to the market. Its a good house and things are starting to move where we live, but if it doesn't sell then Chris may have to go out first on his own. Don't like the idea of that much but as yet we don't know how long the job will remain open. That may have to be the way things go. At the very earliest with police checks and the visa and if we sell the house we're looking at about around the same time as you, end JAn Feb 06.

How old are your children? What do they think of the move?

Where are you based in the UK.

fiona i

Hi Michelle

Our police checks were quick back in a couple weeks visa should hopefully take a matter of weeks.

We are in Scotland with 2 boys aged 8 + 9.

Where are you? You can pm if you have other questions. i have done loads of research so ask away!

fiona

Michelle & Chris

Hi Fiona

We're in the North East south of Newcastle (40 miles). 2 girls 4 &12.

It's all happening though, we got a call at 8.30pm from another company we meet at the Manchester Expo who want to telephone interview with a panel of 3 tomorrow night for another job.

Anyway bed time. If I need for info I'll mail.

Cheers


Michelle

annaerb

Onehunga is an up and coming area with a mixture of Old (Villas) & New Houses and also has a mixture of different cultures. It has lots of Cafes/Restaurants etc here are some sites to look at. I can't tell you anything about the Schools over that way but the bottom link is for Onehunga High School.

http://www.onehunga.net.nz/
http://www.onehunga.net.nz/30%20What...0_WHATS_ON.htm
http://www.ohs.school.nz/index.html

Howick/Dannemora,Flat Bush,Botany/Medowlands,Eastern Beach, Half Moon Bay, Bucklands Beach etc these are all nice areas also and Botany is the most recent area still being developed along with Flat Bush going ahead big time.
If I had a choice I think I would look around these areas rather the Onehunga. You also have Whitford,Beachlands & Maraetai areas which is a little bit more out towards country. Around any of the areas mentioned there is lots of Beaches well put it this way everything that you could possibly need or want are in these areas. To drive from any of these places to Onehunga or Wiri you are looking at about 20-30 min drive.

I would suggest having a good look around first. House prices vary but the average price is from $300,000 upwards. Rental properties range from $280 upwards depending on what you are looking for.

Around Howick there are several High Schools both Public and Private. I have a daughter at Howick College.

If you need to know anything just ask.

Carol

thebears

Howick is nice - very english. Also try Bucklands Beach (my home) unless you want to limit commuting in which case try further up the hill towards one tree hill or mt eden. If you have the dosh try Remuera where my parents live.

livewire

Hi, did his other job offer fall through?

That water company is moving all its offices to Newmarket later in the year so Onehunga may not be the best place to live. There are better areas. send me a private message if you need any further info.

camelot

I like Onehunga very much. It has definitely come up in the desirability stakes in the past few years. It used to be considered a dump but not anymore. You see, it fringes the very well heeled area of Epsom which is very hoity toity but the young execs couldn't afford to buy in Epsom when the house prices took off so Onehunga sorta became the next best thing to Epsom (well not quite) but you get the picture.

It's not built up in a UK sorta way, but it's sort of part industrial, part residential and part urban retail all rolled into one. Which is great if you want everything in the one place and want to be close to work. Some streets are rough but some are lovely by the park and some even have sea views. It's desirable now because kiwi's wanted the old historical villas to do up (it's the oldest part of Auckland). It's close enough to the city and the back motorway to south Auckland (not that you'd need to go down there unless you work there.)

I wanted to buy in Onehunga because of all these great factors and because I think it's quite a nice place to live - there's lots of schools, shops, and parks, etc - but we moved out west instead.

If you want to be close to Onehunga but in a more upmarket area then Epsom and Mt Eden are right on the doorstep but you're really going up in price - but they are gorgeous burbs to live in (I used to live in Epsom). But in all honesty I think Onehunga is a good compromise. You're right close to Cornwall Park too which is such a jewel - it's a beautiful park with a planetarium (great for star gazing for the kids) and everyone goes there for picnics (they even have public bbqs) and family outings. I even drive over there a few times a month because it's such a nice place to visit with my dog for a walk. It's great for kids - they'll always wanna be there - and it'd be right on your doorstep!

livewire

Duh, just noticed that this is an old thread was bumped by Thebears.

Michelle, he must be getting ready to leave quite soon. How are all your plans going?