Canada to NZ 2018 - 6 Months In. What we learned.

[diallta]

A lot of people forget that there are quite a lot of subsidies on food in Germany, which makes it cheaper, plus only half of gst on food. Many people are renting, because rights for renters are (sometimes a little too) more on the renters side. I have friends who never owned a house and likely never will. And there is a lot more of apartment- life, not everyone expects a house with a garden.

All true, but my wife has done a direct comparison between the cost of food items in Germany and in New Zealand, and has found that it is quite comparable if you're just a little bit clever about it. I will concede that is easier to carelessly walk into a shop and spend way more in New Zealand on the essentials, however.

The tax is what it is, and the subsidies are what they are, we're not comparing items to prices in North America where they are so strangely advertised without tax. Everyone's personal finance situation is different, but I think as a basis for the job market, you'll probably get along better in NZ with its $15 minimum wage and some clever shopping. I don't think you'll do worse.

[dragstrut]

NZ min wage has risen to $17.70 now. Its one of the reasons things cost a little more. For me, I don't mind paying a little more, knowing that workers are getting paid fairly for their time

[Juniper]

Thanks for the breakdown! We purposely didn't get pets in the years while we were considering the move, because it's so much expense and likely stressful for the animal, and it makes it harder to find housing. We really want a couple cats (and daughter has her heart set on an axolotl), but are waiting until we can buy our own place. Our residency application is still processing, so we have to wait for that. We are in a rental that's in the best school zone for $500/wk in New Plymouth, not that nice by our old standards but fine for now. Far cheaper than California!

As for shopping options, we now avoid the Warehouse when it comes to household goods, the stuff falls apart too easily. It's Walmart-like. I hear Pak n' Save is the place for the bulk shopper, I haven't tried it yet, our fridge/freezer and pantry space are all reduced. For furniture, it seems like it's more common to find solid wood options here in general, compared to the US. Both for vintage and new stuff. Prices are quite low on TradeMe and Facebook Marketplace.

Overall, cost of living is just different. Housing and health care are far cheaper, which used to be our biggest expenses, even when we weren't USING health care services, the insurance is ridiculous. Shopping and household expenses are higher, but we don't exactly scrimp, so there's room for improvement there. There's less impulse shopping though, since it's not so easy access.

[summerpixy]

Hi there, we are planning a similar move with two young kids from outside of Vancouver, and just wondered which shipping company you ended up going with?
Appreciate the post! thanks!!

[jawnbc]

If you get cats, please put bells on them to protect indigenous birds (if they're outside cats).

Thanks for the breakdown! We purposely didn't get pets in the years while we were considering the move, because it's so much expense and likely stressful for the animal, and it makes it harder to find housing. We really want a couple cats (and daughter has her heart set on an axolotl), but are waiting until we can buy our own place. Our residency application is still processing, so we have to wait for that. We are in a rental that's in the best school zone for $500/wk in New Plymouth, not that nice by our old standards but fine for now. Far cheaper than California!

As for shopping options, we now avoid the Warehouse when it comes to household goods, the stuff falls apart too easily. It's Walmart-like. I hear Pak n' Save is the place for the bulk shopper, I haven't tried it yet, our fridge/freezer and pantry space are all reduced. For furniture, it seems like it's more common to find solid wood options here in general, compared to the US. Both for vintage and new stuff. Prices are quite low on TradeMe and Facebook Marketplace.

Overall, cost of living is just different. Housing and health care are far cheaper, which used to be our biggest expenses, even when we weren't USING health care services, the insurance is ridiculous. Shopping and household expenses are higher, but we don't exactly scrimp, so there's room for improvement there. There's less impulse shopping though, since it's not so easy access.

[dragstrut]

Hi there, we are planning a similar move with two young kids from outside of Vancouver, and just wondered which shipping company you ended up going with?
Appreciate the post! thanks!!

I gave away everything I owned before coming, and arrived with a couple carry on bags and the airlines maximum 23kg per passenger allowance.

I know a few people who shipped a container here, they mentioned that after all expenses, damage to your things etc, they wouldn't do it again. total cost was around 15-18 thousand NZD from western north america

[Juniper]

If you get cats, please put bells on them to protect indigenous birds (if they're outside cats).

Some people actually shoot cats here, so not sure what we’ll do about the inside/outside situation :-( Our neighbor, a retired guy who is quite friendly and has a cat himself, told our 8 year old visitor that he’s shot a cat before - but he would only shoot a “nuisance” cat. I’m sure there is lots of normal cat behavior that folks would consider annoying other than killing birds. It seems a bit much to treat them like possums or other pest predators, since they could easily be a pet. Hopefully any cats we get will be the sort who can’t get their collars off, we’ve had some Houdini animals in the past.

Some people seem to be pretty irresponsible about abandoning kittens though, that really needs to be addressed, unwanted cats ruin things for everyone.

I also saw something in the paper about a dispute between neighbors because a cat was missing, and foul play suspected, the people got into some kind of altercation.

[newarrival]

I gave away everything I owned before coming, and arrived with a couple carry on bags and the airlines maximum 23kg per passenger allowance.

I know a few people who shipped a container here, they mentioned that after all expenses, damage to your things etc, they wouldn't do it again. total cost was around 15-18 thousand NZD from western north america

I suppose a lot depends a lot on a personal take on that. We brought most of our household with us, and still own and use at least 80% of it. Some of our furniture is old and inherited, so comes with memories and personal attachment. I have a lot of china, which I wasn't willing to get rid of and replace with generic Briscoes plates.., but everyone's situation and feelings are very different. For us it was easier to spend the money beforehand and then being in a situation where we could move into a (rented) house and not worry about having to buy everything for a family of six. But then again our start was a bit different and not as easy as it might be for someone who goes straight into a job.
I find it very hard to give advice on that topic, especially if someone hasn't been here before and had a look around themselves to see what is available etc.

[Juniper]

I suppose a lot depends a lot on a personal take on that. We brought most of our household with us, and still own and use at least 80% of it. Some of our furniture is old and inherited, so comes with memories and personal attachment. I have a lot of china, which I wasn't willing to get rid of and replace with generic Briscoes plates.., but everyone's situation and feelings are very different. For us it was easier to spend the money beforehand and then being in a situation where we could move into a (rented) house and not worry about having to buy everything for a family of six. But then again our start was a bit different and not as easy as it might be for someone who goes straight into a job.
I find it very hard to give advice on that topic, especially if someone hasn't been here before and had a look around themselves to see what is available etc.

We were very happy to receive our container. Minimal damage, not enough to warrant an insurance claim (we used Rainier). The replacement cost of not only our furniture and basic necessities, but also our treasured collections of books, board games, dance costumes, legos, video games - it would be astronomical here.

You’re right, it’s very dependent on individual circumstances and how much you enjoy your stuff! It was refreshing in some ways to go two years living without any of that, we realized it’s non-essential, but on the other hand, it is SO comforting to have our house and hobbies back.

[summerpixy]

We have had our "to ship or not to ship" debates, and are pretty set on shipping.. like newarrival and Juniper have mentioned, we are looking forward to having most of kitchen/dining stuff, nicer furnitures we've collected over the years, and all our kids' belongings too.
I am from NZ myself, been away for almost ten years... and am quite aware of what one can get from the warehouse and briscoes; partially why we are pretty set on shipping...

I had one quote from last year for selfpack around 7k (20 foot container), just wanted to shop around in case there are other good shipping companies I may have missed!!