Fendalton Christchurch - Is it worth it?

**jen1** · 29th August 2006, 10:24 PM

We have been looking at Fendalton, is it worth paying the premium to be there and for the schools? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Have deceided we want to be near other people/the childrens friends. OH will be working at the airport, so not too far from there (he would like to cycle there). He will be in chch from 18-22 September checking out areas. What about St.Albans, Burnside, Merivale - HELP!

**ENZ** · 30th August 2006, 07:25 PM

Hi jen1, Merivale and St. Albans are quite central, if that's what you want. St. Albans is an up and coming area. Houses in Merivale won’t be any cheaper than in Fendalton. There are more flats/apartments in Merivale than Fendalton. The great majority of houses in Fendalton are detached.

If Fendalton appeals, you might also want to consider Ilam and Avonhead. Ilam borders on Fendalton and Avonhead borders on Ilam. Ilam and Avonhead are farther from the city centre than Fendalton and, as a result, houses are a bit cheaper. You will find many broad, leafy, pleasant streets in both areas. I saw you asked about primary schools in another post, so I would add that Ilam School and Avonhead School (primary schools) both have very good reputations.

The University of Canterbury is located in Ilam and there are a few "studenty" type streets that you might want to avoid. The College of Education, where jodieinchch is training, is in Ilam too, close to the boundary with Avonhead. This looks like it would be a pleasant area to live in.

**richard** · 31st August 2006, 12:19 AM

I would be inclined to just find a short term let or holiday park for a week or two when you first arrive then take your time to find somewhere decent to rent longer term. We ended up in Ilam after we took the best of a bad bunch of rentals. We have now bought a house a few doors away from where we were renting and the kids go to Westburn Primary which has a good reputation.

If you have the money and want to pay the premium prices then by all means settle in Fendalton otherwise Burnside, Ilam, Avonhead, St Albans etc are all fine. Every street is different so just take your time.

Once the kids are settled in a school you are likely to stay in the area so you need to be able to afford a house in the same area if you want to buy. A house in Avonhead could be $200,000 less than a similar one in Fendalton

**jodieinchch** · 31st August 2006, 11:43 AM

Westburn school, thats up the road from me!!! I live on Dovedale Ave

)

jen1: i would recommend chosing wisely around the uni area, there are some very 'student orientated' streets, where i'm sure you wouldn't ideally live. but going further away from uni quarters there are some fantastic properties. next year we're renting a big house in avonhead, a really nice area, we're so lucky. there there's merrin school, which from speaking to my best friend (that did a teaching placement there last time) is a fantastic school. Ilam school is also a high decile school, with 46 different cultures at the school (at last count), so children would definitely not feel 'non-kiwi'. It all depends on what you like. I agree with richard when he says that you should wait to get out here to look at rentals.

**Tanya** · 31st August 2006, 11:56 AM

Totally agree Jodie - I wouldn't like to be near the uni either.

We are the the other end of Ilam, off Waimairi Road, near Avonhead road.Its still classed as Ilam.

Westburn is a good school - it seems to have a good reputation as Richard posted (he's the hubby if you didn't realise!).I found it hard to want to move the children after renting for 6 months to another school - hence why we bought just around the corner. I know kids are adaptable, but with the upheavel of moving to the other side of the workld and them just having started to form friendships - I couldn't do it!

So best advice is to rent or get a holiday home for a few weeks and really make sure you are in the right area for you!

Tanya

**dean1968** · 18th September 2006, 07:44 PM

Fendalton is overated but it is consider aflluent with it being mainly professional occupatons doctors lawyers etc. Britain has a class system Ch-ch has a class area. The first they will ask where do you live? The second question what do you do? And third is what do you drive? Ch-ch are full of conservative snobs. What are the attractors. Ilam is very popular with the Asians so the European snobs are not gonna like itthat much. Avonhead is another area which is called Asianhead.Why are they buying there? Because of the proximity to the University and schools. The two best public are burnside and Boys' high and you have to be in the zone. Fendalton is way overated but it has snob value. Two things I don't like the rail track, the double road lane that runs though Fendalton. Any good real estate agent will always tell you to keep away from water. Avonhead river runs through Ch-ch and through Fendalton. Water Rats burrow in from the stream and get in the houses nice and warm in Winter. I don't like it if a river runs near or on the back of a house. St Albans is a big no-no. A lot of crime. A lot of rented houses that attracts crime and a lot of trasients. St Albans is the best area to get robbed statistically speaking. A lot of students live there which makes it a robbers prime motivation. They like portable things like laptop computers, TVs, Ipods etc anything easily transportable that students usually have. they are not interested in robbing some old granny for her old stuff. I would advise against st Albans. My colleage live there and a Rat got in the rafters in the attic. Apparentlyt rats like St Alabans lots of fruit trees in the area. Merivale is a flash area and is on the border of of St Albans and is anothe snob area but has a lot of private schools there which it it popular and expensive. Ch-ch is a bad smog area and a lot of new migrants who come from overseas can't cope with the pollution. A woman I know has got asthma from living here in Ch-Ch blames it on the pollution. Check on the city smog it exceeds the world WHO limit 30-40 times each winnter. They say it is the equivalent of smoking a pack of cigarettes durring one days' Winter smog.. Other new migrants have had sinus and or respiratory problems. On top of that the Canterbury Plains blows a lot of dust in the sumner with all thhe agricultural chemcial spraying and pesticides acroos the plains which alos includes pollen. Canterbury is one of the worse for asthma /allegies respiratory illness in NZ.

IF you want you kids to stay healthy try to live more onthe fringes of the city in the newer suburbs where you are lesss prone to pollution. The other option is the hills you have to rich or affluent to live there. Most people in live there never want to leave. Cashmere Summner Redcliffs theses areas can be flat and they are near the coastline away from heavy industry and a good place to live you need at least $400,000-$600,000 for a 4 bedroom house. Asians don't seem to like water and not many live there. 50 percent who live there are usually overseas born British,European, North American. Some New Zealaner's who made there wad of money overseas and moved back to NZ live there.

**able** · 18th September 2006, 08:14 PM

I am researching living in Christchurch. Do you have any reliable sources to back up these statements please?