Why so cheap...

[saltybroad]

Looking at rents across the North Island, mainly from the Dept of Building and housing website.

So the question: why are the Rotorua and Taupo areas (Taupo apparently more so than Rotorua) so inexpensive? We have visited both destinations and Taupo in particular seemed quite liveable. In the US, generally, if it's cheap to live someplace, there's a reason for it. Is this not the case in NZ? Or does Taupo have some terrible secret that I don't know about?

This is not purely an academic question - we have airfare to Auckland but have not yet sorted jobs or accommodation - so we are the very definition of flexible. ANY advice is very welcome.

[Duncan74]

Limited employment mainly. Also, you need to know the areas to be able to take a real judgement on any place.

[mooncalf]

No matter what the real estate agent tells you it is not commutable to Auckland on a daily basis!

[Kea]

You do know they are weekly rents.....

[L00pback]

Hi, you do get what you pay for.

You can pay upwards of $500/week for very nice accommodation or a couple of hundred a week for not so fantastic (cold, wet and old).

Oh, my hubby has just told me that Taupo does have a secret..... he is sexy (nice of him to tell me )

Seriously though, it is a great place to live in but like everywhere in NZ there are good and bad roads.
If you want any info/advise on specifics then PM us.

Cheers

Emma

[ferncastel]

Hi Emma, How on earth did you get a work permit in 1hr and something minutes? That sounds fantastic… I just sent my WP application yesterday and I go my fingers crossed it will come back to me before month end. Any secret you want to share?

[L00pback]

Hi, it had a lot to do with luck.

We were staying in Waikanae at the time and decided on a Friday afternoon to travel to Palmerston North to submit our paperwork. Got there just before 2pm with them closing at 3pm and one of the ladies that worked there said she was free to process the paperwork there and then (I guess it was a slow Friday )

I've got my fingers crossed for you getting a speedy return on yours

Emma

[saltybroad]

No matter what the real estate agent tells you it is not commutable to Auckland on a daily basis!

I love it! Luckily, we have lived in California (where the real-estate market is positively cut-throat) long enough to take anything an agent says with a giant MOUND of salt.

Kea, yes, we are converting our thinking to the weekly rates, thanks for the reality check though!

Thanks Emma, we may very well take you (and your sexy husband) up on that offer.

"Also, you need to know the areas to be able to take a real judgement on any place."
Exactly! This is what concerns me - we have been over on two recce visits, but there were very few places we didn't like - so that didn't narrow the field much...and of course, you can only gain so much insight in a few weeks of travel.

Perhaps a better question is: is there anyplace we should NOT consider as a first stop? (Begging pardon in advance if this seems an impolite question, I'm not trying to stir up trouble!) Since we aren't planning to commute (we'll move to wherever the job is when an offer comes in) our big priorities are: cheap, safe, and cheap.

We are also considering the south island as a first base so if anyone can weigh in on those options, we'd love to hear it.

Thanks for the advice so far - keep it coming, everyone!

Andrea

[Duncan74]

It's impossible to be so general regarding where to live, as every town will have some good areas and some bad. The balance may change between those from town to town, but it's impossible to list all the good/bad on a thread like this for the whole country.

However, if you're going to be travelling to find work then you need to be close to an airport with a fair few routes. Rotorua / Hamilton / Palmerston North would fit in the North Island. However, you also need to think about what you'll do for the 90% of days when you're not at interview. Keeping costs down is good, but if you're stuck with nothing to do then the costs will go up as you travel to do things. And you don't want to be trapped and bored when you first arrived.

But be aware, travel costs are high (flights) and the public transport system is pretty ropey, so any econimising you do by not living in Akl/Wel/ChCh may quickly be offset by regular travel / hotels for interviews.

[saltybroad]

Good points Duncan, thanks! We're torn between "NZ is our oyster" and "maybe we better just fly into Chch and stay with friends". We're considering anyone who can introduce some reality into the debate an ally!