Wellington Bound (well maybe)

[Raj4210]

Thanks Manks.... We are a couple with 2 yr old kid. So, we are planning to have a 1 or 2 BHK but not one room :-). Looks like the best way would be to go there and then have a look, as suggested by Ana.

[Manks]

You ABSOLUTELY have to look at houses, especially with the health of a toddler in mind. Kiwis are experts at making the grottiest places look like palaces on Trade Me.

There are plenty of great suburbs for families that are really accessible to town - in fact, nowhere is inaccessible! Some thoughts for you: Johnsonville, Newlands, Ngaio, Karori, Wadestown, Island Bay, Lyall Bay, Miramar.

[girlwithanewf]

You ABSOLUTELY have to look at houses, especially with the health of a toddler in mind. Kiwis are experts at making the grottiest places look like palaces on Trade Me.

There are plenty of great suburbs for families that are really accessible to town - in fact, nowhere is inaccessible! Some thoughts for you: Johnsonville, Newlands, Ngaio, Karori, Wadestown, Island Bay, Lyall Bay, Miramar.

I agree totally.

[Raj4210]

Thanks a lot Manks. I'll keep these suggestions in mind before finalizing a place. Initially, I might compromise on higher rent but will give more priority to take a house near my work place to balance work, personal life.

What would be the average lease/agreement time for a rented accomodation? And current security/advance rent deposits? Can I negotiate on these attributes?

[Lauralocks]

We've found that most people want you to take a 12 month lease. It's probably possible to negotiate down to 6 months but not everyone will be willing to do this, especially if there are other people interested abs you are competing for a property. The bond/deposit varies between properties. The best I've seen is 2 weeks rent but in some cases they wanted 4 weeks. Additionally, depending on whether you are renting directly from the landlord or via an agency there may also be letting fees, I saw these set at 1 week rent in a lot of cases. Not all agencies have these fees though.

A lot of suburbs in Wellington city are no more than 30 minutes commute to the city centre, if that is where you are working. It's worth getting copies of the train and bus timetables and checking the travel times out based on those as they seem pretty accurate - much more so than the UK.

It is quite amazing how different places can seem on trade me and when you go to see them! However there is plenty of places around in that price bracket, much of which is nice. Make sure you ask which direction the house faces and check closely for mould/damp on walls. Also ask about insulation and heaters. If a place is damp you can usually feel it in the air.

Good luck! House hunting is definitely a good way to see the city.

[buraddo]

I've been tracking Wellington neighbourhoods on a couple of rental sites and have a long 'short-list'. Part of the difficulty is that there are about 1,000,000 different neighbourhoods in Wellington. My list is basically within a 1/2 hour walk of my work (Tory St), preferably going south, not north, and not gritty. Having never actually seen these neighbourhoods I don't know which are good. Starting at the 12:00 and working clockwise:
Thorndon
Mount Victoria
Oriental Bay
Hataitai
Evans Bay
Maupuia
Roseneath
Karaka Bay
Mirmar
Kilbrirnie
Seaton
Stathmore Park
Breaker Bay
Melrose
Rongotai
Houghton Bay
Lyall Bay
Island Bay
Kingston
Berharmpore
Vogeltown
Newtown
Brooklyn
Mount Cook
Te Aro
Kelburn
Lambton

Anyone interested in giving a 0-10 rating (or even just flagging the do-not-consider ones) would be most welcome. I am looking for a cool, casual neighbourhood where I can feel safe and comfortable walking in the evening. A local pub would be excellent, decent cafe a close second. Calm, and chilled. No other-half, no kids, not great need for anything other than comfort. 1-2 bedroom. Max $500

[kiwi.]

If you're serious about the 30min walk to work you can get rid if half of your list.

[tigerlily]

If I were single and wanted to walk to work, I would live in either Thorndon or on Oriental Bay (Roseneath or Mt.Vic) or the Aro Valley. Wellington is a very walk friendly city. People mostly seem to commute by train, bus or walking. One of my favorite things about Wellington.

If I were single and wanted to live by the beach, I think I would live in Plimmerton (Porirua) in a little cottage overlooking the sea.

If I had a 2 year child, I would choose a house with a flat section near a park in Karori. If my partner was willing to commute, I would live right where I do: Kapiti Coast. The weather is better, and he commutes by train, plus rent and house prices are lower, still with flat large sections and heaps of clean not crowded beaches!

If I could afford private education and had older kids, I would live in Island Bay. Great family area, lovely play ground, views, reasonable bus commute. But the educational options for older kids aren't my first choice of college. I like Haitaitai, which has a shorter commute, but it has the same school problem.

If I had truck loads of money, I would live in Seatoun or Karaka Bay. Just wow. The beaches are paradise.

But if you are renting, the quality of the house (and its heating and sunshine) are as important as the neighborhood!

[buraddo]

^ very very helpful. Thanks.

[KatieLouP]

Thank you all so much for your advice. My head has been in a bit of a spin since I got the job offer, it is happening very quickly. I am now going thro everything above and trying to do a pros and cons on if we should make the move. We have always hoped to make the move to NZ after spending 9 months travelling there (pre children) and now it is a reality getting shaky. Anyone moved from UK ? We have been in Sydney for 2 years on route (mainly because we had a 176 visa which required we stay in NSW for 2 years before we moved over to NZ). Love Oz, but just not for us.

Have lots of people telling me that NZ has stupidly high cost of living, but doing research not sure I agree entirely, all tho I can see some differences. Have been offered a salary of $110k, OH is stay at home dad, (a fantastic cook and seasonal shopper and makes a little go a very long way) we like to have money so kids can go to clubs (swimming, ju-jitsu, hip hop and hopefully scouts or something similar) We are not extravagant but enjoy a decent bottle of wine at the weekend (and by decent I dont meant the $30 a bottle and up stuff, but then I have had enough of the $2.99 cleanskins, so somewhere in between) The stuff we like doing tends to be free or inexpensive (Walking, Camping, Cycling, having friends over) does this sound reasonable?????

Excited and Nervous and very happy to have your help xx