Monthly Costs

[Dawn]

It's tough isn't it? It frustrates the hell out of me! This is such a beautiful place to live and as Johnty says the fun things in life are much cheaper, that has a very strong influence on our wanting to be here. We didn't come because we thought it would be a cheaper lifestyle we came because we thought we would have a better lifestyle. 'Better' as in, more family time, less peer pressure for the kids, less class pressure on all of us, more tolerance and acceptance of individuality, less pressured education for the kids with a wider perspective on ability, more freedom to live our way and not the authorities way.

Surely as the population grows, and I predict it will boom in the next 10 years, wages will have to go up. As more and more well qualified people are attracted here things will have to change, either that or NZ will stand still and be left behind. Has this already happened or are we still in the game? Gary works in an affluent suburb of Hamilton, he sees many stay at home mums whose kids are in the best schools in town, they all drive Mercs and BMWs and do lunch, so someone's doing something right (with regards to salary). In my experience, most families need both parents to work, the kids get themselves to and from school and make their own tea etc. Maybe as McFod says, NZ is becoming like the rest of the world and the day to day living is going on the credit card. The interest rates are so high here that that's just a fools game.

We love it here, we feel at home and let me make it clear that we will stay BUT we realise it will be hard financially. We've never cruised financially, we've always earned and lived and little else, it won't be any different here but somehow it just doesn't seem like a big deal? I wake up every morning, look out at the trees, the horses, the space, the blue sky, Gary next to me and feel truly blessed. I say a huge thank you for being here, for the simple things in life that make it all worthwhile, for the freedom my kids feel here, the freedom we all feel here, for Gary's recognition of his ability to walk his own path. Coming here has made us stronger as a family, changes have occurred in our personal relationships that wouldn't have made it in the UK. New Zealand has set us free, maybe it's not NZ, maybe it's just the change but I have my reasons for thinking otherwise.

Don't assume this is Dawn's little bird singing, deer prancing, flower buds bursting into bloom fairytale, it's not like that at all. It's been a roller-coaster of extreme emotion, I've been on the verge of booking flights home, there have been as many tears as smiles but what's worth having is worth fighting for right?

Let's hope that immi agrees and grants our residency soon eh?

[ebianca]

I'll drink to that Dawn

I hope we feel the same when we arrive, I certainly don't want to be coming back anyway.

[macfod]

On e of my girls back from a flying visit last week..She is one of these that miss's live in UK and is always on about things over there and friends etc..
However, first comments since she came back is she hated it over there and was glad to come home.....grass and green come to mind...

[Dawn]

That's good to hear MacFod. She sounds like my 17 year old. Lauren is always hankering for home. She wants to go back this year to see her friends. It frightens me that she may not come back

[MotherBear]

Food prices up again

[Samnl06]

so wud u guys say tht most of the immigrants are UK nationals????


when the prices are this high.....and everything is sooo expensive! is anyone getting paid enough to be able to afford everything????

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by Samnl06

so wud u guys say tht most of the immigrants are UK nationals???? Not really although a good percentage are British, but there's quite a few Americans and a mix of other nationalities also. Not forgetting the Pacific Islanders, too.


when the prices are this high.....and everything is sooo expensive! is anyone getting paid enough to be able to afford everything???? There is a problem with wages/salaries being quite a lot lower than in some other countries. There's quite a bit of discussion about low salaries in the NZ media these days and why so many people are shifting to Australia, so I don't know if the problem will be looked into by the government. I guess the main thing is to try to live within your means and not overspend. If you can budget well and not worry about having to go without some of life's little luxuries, you should be able to manage. Some folks can do it, others don't want to do it. It's a matter of choice. .

Making the choice to move to NZ means accepting what it has to offer in other ways rather than going there to get rich, which is a remote possibility.

[Dawn]

Originally Posted by Samnl06

so wud u guys say tht most of the immigrants are UK nationals????


when the prices are this high.....and everything is sooo expensive! is anyone getting paid enough to be able to afford everything????

The official highest number of immigrants are Chinese. Wages are crap. Most people struggle to make ends meet. A lot of the English are well set up here because they come over with lots and lots of English pounds that travel well into NZ dollars. When you've got a cushion things never seem so bad eh?

I heard on the radio the other day that with regard to income and house prices, NZ is the most expensive place in the world to buy a house. The salaries just don't match with the house prices. To top it off the interest rates are high, much higher than in the UK. The UK was 4th on this international list and you know how hard it is there. Listening to local people, they are outraged at how expensive property is. They are being priced out of their own backyard. They've never known everything to be so expensive at once. An older lady, 60ish?, in one of my classes was telling me the other day that she has never witnessed food prices so high. She was angry that the simple fruit and veg, potatoes, carrots, cabbage, broccoli that are all grown locally are out of her price range for the first time ever. She asked, 'When has anyone not been able to afford a cabbage? It's often been the staple diet of the poorest families because it's so cheap and easy to come by.' Apparently, we are told we must pay international prices for what is grown here so that the farmers don't lose out if they sell their produce here and not to overseas buyers. The farmers, however, were paid out their highest ever subsidy last year.

Something has to give. It just doesn't make sense. Go figure!

[KiwiHopeful]

The thing that's really starting to $%^& me off is the constant 'It's all China's fault,' on the lips here.

Just the other day TVOne News did a report on the high price of milk and dairy products. Why are they expensive? 'Because China is developing western tastes.'

Why are property prices so high? 'Well, all the Chinese immigrants are buying up the property.'

Milk prices are up for one reason--greed. I have no problem with farmers making a decent living. Farming is hard work and it would be a shame for NZ's farmers to end up like the farmers in the US. That said, the farmers know that Labour is in trouble, and are unwilling to act against them, so they are gouging the consumer while they can. And believe me, if the Nats win, it won't get any better--and probably will get worse.

As for property, Asian immigrants have low rates of home ownership, so how are they driving up property prices? Considering that only about 1/2 of all homes in NZ are owner-occupied--the other half are rentals--it's Kiwis screwing over Kiwis. They climb the property ladder, then pull it up behind them.

/rant

[Taffy]

We tend to hear up this way that it's the Brits and Americans driving up the property prices as they all come in loaded to their teeth with cash. The only people driving up property prices are the estate agents, as they are the ones who value the properties for sale! Huge increases in property values = high commissions.