Where oh Where.... Canterbury/Chch area

[LAsmith]

We know which general area we want.... Near Chch BUT outside its heating regulations. We need to be within 90mins but also want a rural community that will welcome us. My Dh is a blacksmith and I raise sheep/goats/horses etc and have taught ponyclub and so on. Since i do intend to study in Chch we need a relitively direct commute as i loathe driving (the act not the distance) My son will probably be 18mo when we move so he doesnt get a vote. Where should we be looking? Are the stocking rates per hectare similar to UK (they wont be anything like Texas as you can run one cow per million ruddy miles of dust) are some area friendlier to ExPats then others?

[veronica]

think you need to look at Darfield /Oxford area or down south of Christchurch, might pay you to see if theres any stats on where the most horse owners are from.

[mylesdw]

90 mins is a VAST distance by Chch standards! I commute (car pool) 40 mins from Amberley and people see that as a very long way. Lots of rural communities within 30 mins of Chch city centre. I'm not very familiar with the countryside south of the city but Tai Tapu, Lincoln and Leeston look nice. To the north Rangiora is a decent size self contained town and is popular with expats. Oxford is also nice but the commute includes a 23km straight road into the sun twice a day (Tram Road). The eastern end of Tram Road (Ohoka,Clarkville,Mandeville,Swannanoa) is very popular but also more pricey.

Stocking levels are lower than the UK because the place dries out in the summer and there is no growth for a few months. As a guide, we have 5 horses and 40 ewes (plus lambs) on 10Ha. At this time of year there is more grass than we need but we make hay with the spare.

[nickydwuk]

. Oxford is also nice but the commute includes a 23km straight road into the sun twice a day (Tram Road).

Instead of the Tram road we used to go on the South Eyre Road - not as straight - a much more pleasant route. Adds about 5 minutes to the journey.

[GrumpyGoat]

Things I have found:

South and West of the city has better soil so is more expensive and less likely to be sub divided into lifestyle blocks. North of the city is more affordable and more options but can be rocky soil. Ohoka is pure gravel, for example.

Oxford is in the foothills of the Alps and is much colder and gets snow. It loses sun behind the mountains much earlier in the day than the rest of chch.

Personally, I like Amberley, Loburn and other communities to the north. Though Chch (and Canterbury) are flat, it becomes slightly hilly (and can be windy) when you get this far north. The motorway isn't a highway by US standards but it is a few miles (or Km) of nicely flowing traffic on a bigger, multi laned road--so anything near it will ensure a relatively easy commute into the city.

Rangiora is probably the most complete small town north of Chch--with shopping and a library etc. Although most of the other areas will (likely) have a school and dairy, Rangiora is a nice sized self contained town and has everything you need--including feed stores, bakeries, etc etc. It has all the amenities including dept stores. Kaiapoi is another town similar but smaller.
Oxford also has all the amenities but is quite a bit more distant (and colder).

Lifestyle blocks are generally 10 acres (4 HA). Occasionally, the land may be divided up smaller or larger but that is more exception than rule. And a smaller parcel of land does not equal smaller price. In fact, I have found the opposite--5 acres is generally more expensive than 10 acres because many people don't want that much land but it is hard to find it divided up smaller (did I make sense?)

Good luck with your search!

[LAsmith]

yep...you made sense and the land prices in texas are the same way. We call it "lingerie pricing" the less there is the more it costs! then again you can always buy 100-1000 acres of Texas a camel would die in and a goat couldnt climp for a very reasonable price

I realise also that 90 mieans lightyears in NZ terms but then it was in UK terms till I leived in Texas where EVERYTHING is minimum an hour and you can't leave texas without having three meals and the kids peeing 50 times!

Sounds like we need Oxford/Darfield/Rangiora although i am looking for any and all suggestions..... I hope to be house hunting in the dead of winter so i can see it at its muckyest draughtiest muddiest and move from there.

[GrumpyGoat]

Another thing to keep in mind (that is the opposite of living in Texas) is that the sun is VERY important here!
You want as much sun exposure as possible. You want few trees blocking the sun and you don't want to be at the mercy of your neighbors trees either. And the "tree hedge" is very popular in the area. A variety of different plants are used as hedges but pine trees are very popular. And they grow very large very quickly and block the sun. People trim them but you don't want that out of your control.
So think of these things when you are looking at land layout and/or house layout.

I can't stress how wonderful life is when your house gets all day sun! And when you don't? It's miserable.

Same for your animals!

[diogenese]

But if you don't have the hedge then you get blown away by the wind....

[GrumpyGoat]

Even with a hedge, you are likely to get blown about by the wind!!

It can get VERY windy (and all of a sudden) here.

You definitely WANT the hedges---you just dont' want them to block your sun!

And the wee hedgehogs are sooo cute!! Love them! (of course, if you have one, you likely have 100 which is a bit freaky to come outside at dark and find a bunch of lumps rustling about in the garden)

[benandclare]

I'd say Rangiora / Oxford would be a good place to start looking