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Trademe house rentals
Has anyone tried to rent a house through Trademe prior to arriving in NZ? I've narrowed down the areas I'm interested in (with lots of thanks to folk on this forum :cheers) and I've tried to contact people who are renting places that I'm interested in but keep getting the response that I can't register for Trademe without a NZ or OZ email address. If it's an agent it's fine as I can go to their website, but if it's an individual there seems to be no way of getting in touch with them. Are there any free NZ email providers that I could register with to get a NZ email address? I'm trying to have my new employer set up an email address for me for when I arrive but I don't think I'll get it before I actually start work.
Sorry to repeat this question in a new thread - I asked the same thing on another thread, but it was a bit of a non sequitur on that one so I didn't get any response there.
Alternatively, how did other people arrange a house rental before arriving in NZ? I'm a wee bit worried about being homeless after our first week if I haven't got something arranged beforehand :eek:
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i have an account with trademe, set up when i was there i am now in the uk, my email address is .co.uk and it worked fine when I set it up, do you need a physical address in NZ
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They track the IP address when you set it up, so if it's outside NZ when you register it gets cancelled 12 hours or so later... Happend to me. I guess you were ok as it passed the kiwi test when you created it.
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I saw your other question - sorry you didn't get any answers from people already in NZ. I'm still in the UK, but know something of what has happened to others upon arrival, so I'll do my best from that basis.
No, I don't think you will be able to get onto TradeMe before you get to NZ. Other people have tried to get round their rules, been found out, and been booted off. (I believe the thinking is that everybody trading on the site should be answerable to NZ law, and get-attable in case of default.)
Unless someone already in NZ has acted on their behalf, very few forumites arrive in NZ with a rental already arranged. Most go to stay in temporary accommodation of some kind at first, to give themselves a chance to look around. What sort of temporary accommodation depends on all kinds of things - money available, how many in the family, how soon people are going to start work (so if you need to be fairly near) etc., etc.. You could put up a thread asking for recommendations for hotel/motel/appartment/hostel or whatever, for the approximate area you want to be in, and no doubt people will tell you their experiences. And/Or, you could Google for accommodation in your price range in the area.
You may have seen other people's reactions to their first experience of (some) NZ houses. If they strike unlucky, they can be horrified by the cold and lack of heating and insulation. This is the kind of thing you cannot tell without actually setting foot in a house. I certainly would not want to arrive and find myself committed to paying several months rent on a place that made me feel I was living in a fridge. Unless you have somebody who you trust to vet things for you, I seriously wouldn't try to rent at arm's length as you're tempted to do. You're reluctant to have an unknown quantity ahead of you, in the shape of 'no known address'. But I honestly think that is a better option than having an unknown quantity there, in the shape of something you can't tell the quality of - you're better off deciding on a couple of weeks or a month in a hostel, till you've had the chance to make a decision based on a first-hand impression.
Sorry if this isn't what you want to hear, but it's an honest opinion, based on having seen NZ buildings for myself.
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Hi
our house in nelson was rented via trade me, we are still in the uk and leave in 2 weeks. we were unable to contact the seller as we didn't have a nz email address. we had to get our friend in nz to set up an account and contact the landlord.
despite that bit of frustration it has all gone exceptionally well. we have a lovely property to move into and the landlord has been extremely helpful.
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I personally would NOT commit to renting a place from the Internet only. Kiwis are masters at taking good photo's of bad houses!
My advice - stay in a motel /hotel / holiday let for a couple of weeks whilst you look at the houses in person.
After missing familiy and friends, I reckon cold and damp houses is the main reason ex pats don't stay here - and you won't see the cold and damp on Trade Me.
Sorry for being blunt (and for repeating JandM's advice)
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Hi there, we have been living in Auckland for almost 2 years, we came over with only our suitcases as tourists and now both have permanent jobs and residency. When we arrived we were booked into a motel for a week moved to another for a further 2 weeks then found ourselves a rented apartment. We have recently moved to our second rental which is great, but strongly recommend you wait until you get here....you cannot tell off a photograph what a place is like, e.g. damp and cold or what sort of area it is in. Good luck I'm sure you would find something after you arrive.
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Definately wait until you're here to find a rental. Sometimes the house is lovely, warm etc but is too small (like I have found) or isn't on a bus route or whatever...as well as problems with damp etc.
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From a property manager point of view, I would not rent to someone from overseas. it is just too risky, you might take one look at it in the flesh and hate it, all that work getting paperwork and payment organised from overseas down the drain in one fell swoop with unhappy tenants and a vacant property again very quickly. Sadly, much more hassle than I'm prepared to risk, my job is stressful enough!
I did have someone enquire from the UK about one of my properties recently and I advised them to do somewhere short term and get here and look at areas, particularly as where she wants to move (Manukau) is a minefield of rough areas with the odd nice bit, she'd never know what she'd got until she got here if the agent isn't completely truthful and knowing some other agents, I'd say that would be a high possibility!
From a movers point of view, I did attempt to set something up before arriving but in hindsight I am so glad I didn't. I didn't know where I'd be working, how far and the method of my commute. This was with having lived here before too, I knew areas pretty well but it is still infinitely better to be on the ground to have a look.
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You could use the services of a re-location agents like:
www.well-located.com
or
http://www.onarrival.co.nz
I did not use these services yet but I will when I make my move to nZ
hope this helps.