Westport?

[just5me]

Our whole point in moving to NZ is to experience/see a new place with lots of narural beauty and outdoor activities. So...looking at the map, it seems the SI is where we want to be. As far as main cities go, of course Nelson looks ideal. But we aren't really city people anyway, and the branch in Greymouth gave us an offer - which it turns out has OH working just north of Westport. From the map, living around there looks good to me - and cheaper to live than Nelson (one of the links I found on here put rent in that area for 4 bedrooms at $200 week)

Does anyone know what its like there - and other than it having poor job prospects for most people - would it be a pretty neat place to live with kids?

OH will work 5 days & have 3 days off as his rotating shift - work about 50hrs. He'll earn $70-$75k NZD. We plan on renting & don't want much yard work or upkeep. We want to be off riding bikes, camping, hiking & riding down rivers! I'm hoping to have somewhere we can swim regularly, and access to a good library (the kids read so much I have to restrict their reading at times!) Things that I would also like to find are dance, music, & soccer lessons and a scouting group for the boys.

Do you think we'll find what we want in Westoprt (or in a spot nearby)?

[katandbob]

Hi,

if your partners going to be earning that amount, i dont think you will have much of a problem, rent will be lower than Nelson, chch etc and if your not working you will have plenty to do when hes rostered off, so do some research on the climate etc....and just out of curiosity... what position is it?...being nosy now... as the wage seems high??

Good Luck,

Kat

[just5me]

Hi,

He's really got it made as far as having a job he can go anywhere with. He is a mechanic with a catapillar dealer. So he can go anywhere in the US or the world and easily get a job at any CAT dealer. The very good, profesional & computer literate mechanic is hard to come by! Within a dealership, the pay is about the same whether you are in a metro area or way out in the country - so, like with our last move, we find a nice spot that not many people would choose - and they usually have an opening. The pay is right at the same - in USD - that he gets now, and housing cost looks about equal, though I'm sure we'll find many things in general more expensive (hope to find a lot of yard sales/2nd hand since we may come over bare bones with 5 kids). So this is deffinately not a money making venture for us! It's an adventure - we'd look back on and really regret not taking it if we don't do it! I suppose if we could afford (& had the time off) to take a family of 7 on extended vacations - we'd do that instead! So we just move every 3 years - not that I ever plan it that way! After 13 yrs of moving from place to place in Florida, we came to a great little community in north Georgia and we all intended to stay put. We really have it great here, but we've just got a bug to see more of the world. Oh, well! We talk to the kids about what we'll be leaving behind & missing, and how we have so much that many people can only dream of having(not just our 'stuff' but the intangibles of life as well). All of them REALLY want to go. Well, the 1yo can't tell me, but he's the most outdoorsy, adventuresome one of the bunch!

The OH has been checking the weather daily in the NZ hearald - so he's really getting a handle on that. He's been saying 20feet of rain a year over there?! If we get tired of that area after a couple of years, we'll just ask to be transfered elsewhere in NZ I suppose!

[katandbob]

just a quick reply before I go to work then...I'd say you have it made, you can tour NZ at a leisurely pace...lucky you!

We were thinking the same, we could move later when the kids have left home, and visit bits of NZ at the same time of working!

but for now Invercargill is home, and we like it

good luck

Kat

[just5me]

Well now it's my turn to be nosey....what led you down to Intercargill...and what line of work are you & OH in? Just curious!

I think we'll love it once we get to start exploring NZ....just the getting there is starting to terrify me!

Since everyone I talk to - friends, family even strangers - all say they would love to go too....than it must be a good thing!right!?