Thank you both for your input. We would be looking outside Chch or at least the outskirts. We previously lived in Oxford so are likely to go that area or maybe Darfield/Waddington way. Not sure if these areas would have been affected by the EQ and changes to insurance.
We wouldn't have much if any input into the day to day build - just a visit probably once a week to see how things were progressing so a reputable builder is essential for us. Have looked at some builders online and they have pre-existing plans with a price - any idea if that IS the price or what extras could we expect? I suppose it is something we can't get a good handle on until we arrive in NZ but not sure if we can afford a build-your-own on our budget. Would really like to arrive with a plan to do this or not rather than wait and see.