3 Years and Counting!
Mar 17th 2013, 11:36 pm
#1
If u see Sid, tell 'im...
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2007
Location: Ex of Hucknall and Mansfield, Notts and now in Manly, Whangaparaoa, just North of Auckland!
Posts: 973
3 Years and Counting!
Well, it's been a fairly easy 3 years, actually. This isn't my first move abroad and we had planned to do another move, years ago, so think we may be mentally more prepared than most (?) We first got here in March / April 2010 (me first, then the family) and rented a place on the Whangaparaoa peninsula, in Matakatia Bay. This was replaced, 18 months later by a property purchase in Manly. We bought it at the bottom of the market slump and have recently had it valued at $100k above purchase price, a nice change to the 75k drop in sale price of our UK home! We've been ticking along slowly, adjusting to the lack of spare cash you have when paying NZ mortgage, rates and associated bills, it's a lot cheaper renting! Having said that, we are now nearing a break even point, where we can put money aside, weekly for those luxuries we miss from the UK, like holidays, weekends away and possibly a newer car! It has taken some time but we left ourselves 3 years to settle and make a base before we worried too much about the 'little' things. The thing with being here is, if you know where to look and have enough outdoorsy pursuits to take on, free time can be just that, FREE! I fish, swim, enjoy the beach and like being outside, so I have an endless supply of destinations and free to cheap sports I can do. The kids have their mates and their own pursuits and the wife is just happy seeing them having fun, so all's good.
We both have jobs we enjoy, earn a respectable amount for the careers that we have and now have a good work/life balance. All in all a great move!
Advice - Times will be hard, it's not a bed of roses, it's a very long way from anywhere and especially from family. Hurdles are there to make the good times even better. Don't look back at the UK with rose tinted glasses. We went back for Christmas, after 3 days in the UK, I was ready to head home to NZ! Remember, you left the UK for a reason (hopefully a good one!).
You don't need a fortune behind you but it helps, we didn't arrive here with pots of money. We were lucky to bring 40% of what we had hoped for, thanks to the housing crash and the strength of the Kiwi Dollar. We survived the initial start by renting before buying, cutting our cloth accordingly, saying no to the kids and by actually planning for the worse, before we left. We bought cheap cars, not caring that they weren't in keeping with our old UK one's, stopped following the fashion, we live on the coast and dress like it's beach day! We started living life like the locals and felt a lot happier for it!
If you have a plan, make it a thorough one and incorporate plenty of "what if's", that way, when it all goes according to plan, it's a welcome bonus and a plus for the karma. When it all goes wrong, it's no surprise.
Keep positive, smile a lot, start a new hobby (an escape) to keep you sane and keep asking questions. No matter how hard it get's or feels like it's getting, somebody somewhere will have gone through the same and know a way out!
I think that's covered it.....I'll chip in with more pearls of wisdom, when I remember !!
We both have jobs we enjoy, earn a respectable amount for the careers that we have and now have a good work/life balance. All in all a great move!
Advice - Times will be hard, it's not a bed of roses, it's a very long way from anywhere and especially from family. Hurdles are there to make the good times even better. Don't look back at the UK with rose tinted glasses. We went back for Christmas, after 3 days in the UK, I was ready to head home to NZ! Remember, you left the UK for a reason (hopefully a good one!).
You don't need a fortune behind you but it helps, we didn't arrive here with pots of money. We were lucky to bring 40% of what we had hoped for, thanks to the housing crash and the strength of the Kiwi Dollar. We survived the initial start by renting before buying, cutting our cloth accordingly, saying no to the kids and by actually planning for the worse, before we left. We bought cheap cars, not caring that they weren't in keeping with our old UK one's, stopped following the fashion, we live on the coast and dress like it's beach day! We started living life like the locals and felt a lot happier for it!
If you have a plan, make it a thorough one and incorporate plenty of "what if's", that way, when it all goes according to plan, it's a welcome bonus and a plus for the karma. When it all goes wrong, it's no surprise.
Keep positive, smile a lot, start a new hobby (an escape) to keep you sane and keep asking questions. No matter how hard it get's or feels like it's getting, somebody somewhere will have gone through the same and know a way out!
I think that's covered it.....I'll chip in with more pearls of wisdom, when I remember !!
Mar 18th 2013, 12:07 pm
#2
BE Co-Founder
Joined: Feb 2000
Location: Florida
Posts: 25,928
Re: 3 Years and Counting!
Brilliant update. Thanks so much for sharing. 
Aug 18th 2013, 3:30 pm
#3
Hello World!
Joined: Feb 2011
Location: Auckland, NZ
Posts: 45
Re: 3 Years and Counting!
Two thumbs up! A positive attitude makes the difference.
A positive attitude makes the difference.
Aug 18th 2013, 11:15 pm
#4
Looking for my marbles.
Joined: Jul 2013
Location: durham, durham, England
Posts: 730
Re: 3 Years and Counting!
Well, it's been a fairly easy 3 years, actually. This isn't my first move abroad and we had planned to do another move, years ago, so think we may be mentally more prepared than most (?) We first got here in March / April 2010 (me first, then the family) and rented a place on the Whangaparaoa peninsula, in Matakatia Bay. This was replaced, 18 months later by a property purchase in Manly. We bought it at the bottom of the market slump and have recently had it valued at $100k above purchase price, a nice change to the 75k drop in sale price of our UK home! We've been ticking along slowly, adjusting to the lack of spare cash you have when paying NZ mortgage, rates and associated bills, it's a lot cheaper renting! Having said that, we are now nearing a break even point, where we can put money aside, weekly for those luxuries we miss from the UK, like holidays, weekends away and possibly a newer car! It has taken some time but we left ourselves 3 years to settle and make a base before we worried too much about the 'little' things. The thing with being here is, if you know where to look and have enough outdoorsy pursuits to take on, free time can be just that, FREE! I fish, swim, enjoy the beach and like being outside, so I have an endless supply of destinations and free to cheap sports I can do. The kids have their mates and their own pursuits and the wife is just happy seeing them having fun, so all's good.
We both have jobs we enjoy, earn a respectable amount for the careers that we have and now have a good work/life balance. All in all a great move!
Advice - Times will be hard, it's not a bed of roses, it's a very long way from anywhere and especially from family. Hurdles are there to make the good times even better. Don't look back at the UK with rose tinted glasses. We went back for Christmas, after 3 days in the UK, I was ready to head home to NZ! Remember, you left the UK for a reason (hopefully a good one!).
You don't need a fortune behind you but it helps, we didn't arrive here with pots of money. We were lucky to bring 40% of what we had hoped for, thanks to the housing crash and the strength of the Kiwi Dollar. We survived the initial start by renting before buying, cutting our cloth accordingly, saying no to the kids and by actually planning for the worse, before we left. We bought cheap cars, not caring that they weren't in keeping with our old UK one's, stopped following the fashion, we live on the coast and dress like it's beach day! We started living life like the locals and felt a lot happier for it!
If you have a plan, make it a thorough one and incorporate plenty of "what if's", that way, when it all goes according to plan, it's a welcome bonus and a plus for the karma. When it all goes wrong, it's no surprise.
Keep positive, smile a lot, start a new hobby (an escape) to keep you sane and keep asking questions. No matter how hard it get's or feels like it's getting, somebody somewhere will have gone through the same and know a way out!
I think that's covered it.....I'll chip in with more pearls of wisdom, when I remember !!
We both have jobs we enjoy, earn a respectable amount for the careers that we have and now have a good work/life balance. All in all a great move!
Advice - Times will be hard, it's not a bed of roses, it's a very long way from anywhere and especially from family. Hurdles are there to make the good times even better. Don't look back at the UK with rose tinted glasses. We went back for Christmas, after 3 days in the UK, I was ready to head home to NZ! Remember, you left the UK for a reason (hopefully a good one!).
You don't need a fortune behind you but it helps, we didn't arrive here with pots of money. We were lucky to bring 40% of what we had hoped for, thanks to the housing crash and the strength of the Kiwi Dollar. We survived the initial start by renting before buying, cutting our cloth accordingly, saying no to the kids and by actually planning for the worse, before we left. We bought cheap cars, not caring that they weren't in keeping with our old UK one's, stopped following the fashion, we live on the coast and dress like it's beach day! We started living life like the locals and felt a lot happier for it!
If you have a plan, make it a thorough one and incorporate plenty of "what if's", that way, when it all goes according to plan, it's a welcome bonus and a plus for the karma. When it all goes wrong, it's no surprise.
Keep positive, smile a lot, start a new hobby (an escape) to keep you sane and keep asking questions. No matter how hard it get's or feels like it's getting, somebody somewhere will have gone through the same and know a way out!
I think that's covered it.....I'll chip in with more pearls of wisdom, when I remember !!
Wow, what a lovely positive post. Here's hoping for more great years ahead for you and your family.
Aug 19th 2013, 12:11 am
#5
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2013
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 215
Re: 3 Years and Counting!
Great post....thanks for sharing your experience.....
