Hi.
Auckland university is right in the central CBD of auckland.
So rentals in centre cbd are high. Close and best areas to look for rentals would be ponsonby/grey lynn (cool), mt eden (cool) and Kingsland (cool.)
All have great cafes, restaurants etc, very hip (without being wanky) and are very close to central auck and university.
Mt Eden has the best bakery on the planet, and kingsland has one of the best chinese restaurants this side of xanadu.

You husbands training could be well needed. NZ is very much a fisheries country (being islands!), and the sciences of food are very developed in NZ, being one of the worlds most advanced primary producers.
But if not, Auckland has a massive amount of construction always going on, so there is always room for another pair of hands on site.

A good job site to register in is www.seek.co.nz

best of luck.
Mike Dunn (ex aucklander)