Breakthrough! Signed a 12 month lease on a rental property within 30 minutes walk of my office. It's a "character" property so the kitchen and bathroom are pretty basic, but it's a stand-alone house with garden, garage, heat pump and situated in a quiet neighbourhood. We move in on Saturday and as it's unfurnished we'll literally be camping there until we get some furniture. At least sleeping on a yoga mat is great for the back.
The funny thing is that a couple of days ago we missed out on a rental that was higher rent, further from the shops and overall less suited to us. Yet I would have taken it in an instant had it been available.
There's an almost child-like sense of excitement at the prospect of having our own little place no matter how basic it might be. We'll quickly make it a home and settle in.
Cherry, glad my notes were of help to you. I think some of the agony we went through was self imposed by attempting to get a job and a rental in the first week after arrival. I think a more realistic schedule for property hunting would allow you to reject the "almost" suitable properties and also allow you to develop realistic expectations.
RR
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Originally Posted by edw123
That's great news, a little bit of stress taken away on your fist day of work is surely a bonus! I think our budget is going to be very similar to yours by the sounds of it. Did you look at any places in Riccarton and upper Riccarton? There seems to be lots of properties available there. One last question....from where did you obtain a reference to give to the potential landlords? I have only ever rented accommodation once, for a short period of time about 2 years ago. Would one reference be enough do you think or would they look for people with a bigger rental history? 
