Hi there i am too looking to go to NZ next year between July and September possibly sooner U didnt say what jobs or qualifications u have but i am a nurse and am registered with agencies in NZ who will not begin to look at jobs for me until 6months prior to going out there this seems to be a standard thing. The agency will be contacting me in September and will help with visa's etc so it may still be a little early for you to be planning but get all info u can now so that u are up to date with things. Another tip is i also have two kids and 1 dog to go and have just recently taken my dogs for her booster vaccinations and encountered a problem. Apparently before taking a dog to NZ they have to have blood tests to ensure they are free from disease well one of the vaccinations we protect our dogs against in the uk (cant remember name but was leprosi or something) shows up in the blood test and may cause you problems getting your dog out there so after a long consulatation with my vet we decided not to vaccinate our Border Collie against that particular disease so she just had a bit of a booster as i was unwilling to risk her being denied entry to NZ. Hope this helps and if i can be of further help to you just ask. I am going to NZ for a month in November to find somewhere to live.
Regards
Lozza