New Zealand - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

[DawieO]

I don't; in fact, when buying a place, which I have done three times here, I don't even consider anything that is up for auction. I only look at the places which have an actual price attached to them, then negotiate from there. In my mind, no fixed price is dangerous as is an auction, because it is very easy to get caught up in emotion and pay more than what it is worth.

 

That's just me, though. I think DawieO bought his place at auction - poor bugger is busy moving in right now. Moving suck massively! More than jetstar, even.

 

Hey crew!

 

yes indeed we bought at auction 2 months ago.

 

Thank you. My question was more in terms of the sale price achieved. I understand testosterone etc plays a part but when looking at an open home the agent advises an expected price of X. How often is X achieved and how often is the pricing lower than X. been looking at sale prices on homes.co.nz and they look reasonable but then when asking agents in the same area the price is considerably higher.

 

Hey Ramrod,

 

Intern is right, we bought at auction about 2 months ago.

The auction process can be a bit intimidating, but there are 2 cardinal rules:

1. PREPARE WELL - Valuations, LIM reports and inspections.  These all cost a bit of money, but will save you lots in the long run.

2. Know how much YOU want to spend and don't go over that - CRITICAL.  You have to live with this liability.

3. Don't get worked up by the emotions.

4. Go and observe a couple of auctions if you can.  These are public so you are allowed to observe ad the learning is very valuable.

 

The auctioneer's job is to make people spend as much as possible.  Don't fall into that trap.  If the bidding doesn't start from the floor, they will start it off.  Let it run a bit, and if you want chip in with small'ish increments.  As they get closer to the room appetite for a property, the bidding will slow.  This is where it becomes small increments up to YOUR price, and after that LET IT GO.

 

If the bidding stalls, and it is near the reserve price, the estate agents will tend to come and whisper in your ear that "a little bit will get us to the reserve".  Remember, you can only spend what you can afford.

 

In terms of the ask vs the realised price, it really depends on how much they can squeeze the pressure in the room.

 

We got ours a smidgen UNDER the reserve price, but only because we have reached our top and wouldn't budge.  The agents then confer with the seller and sometimes they drop the reserve.

[Ramrod]

Thanks for the advice DawieO

[niterider]

Yes, well, maybe you guys are right, being a **** has it's drawbacks.

 

And maybe you're right also - I need to stop posting here. Especially since as of today, I am no longer a South African :-D

 

Congrats, dude!! That's a big milestone!

[niterider]

Thanks man appreciate it. The end of a very long road that started at the beginning of 2010.

So now instead of being the d000s I've always been, I am officially what we locals refer to as a d1ckhead. ha ha.

 

d1ckheads always reminds me of 

[rad006]

What an amazing evening we had last night at Intern. My wife and I had an absolute blast. Thank you for everything, you and your wife are an amazing hosts. Hope the little one is better this evening.

[hayleyearth]

Yesterday after work I went to go chainsaw (yip actually cut some myself) fallen over trees on the farm to clear the fences and paddocks (for "the boys" = cows). I found it very cold the last 2 days here in Auckland (anyone else feel the same?), no jacket still though during the day. I am fine as soon as I get some farm clothes on, then I have no problem doing tasks out and about in gumboots

 

I have always wanted to live on a small holdings/small farm when I was small (my cousins did/does and I saw it there and spoke about it lots when I was still small to my folks, but of course money wasn't available for them to give us that then) and somehow it looks like moving to NZ might just give me that opportunity, looking into a 3.26ha piece of land currently, but I don't think it will realize just jet (in the next couple of months due to me not knowing too much about bonds here yet and not having the time to commit to researching it now - money for deposit still in SA too). On top of that for as long as I can remember I have wanted to fly a helicopter. In the last few weeks I kept on hearing that add on the radio for that helicopter school open day (yeah, a sign right) and then I went to go do some research about it etc and I think I am going to get into it in the new year for sure (not now because I have other Universities studies starting in a couple of weeks)........ somehow what was life long dreams are becoming actual goals with time stamps next to them.     In a way it feels like I was prepped my whole life for now/moving here (if that makes any sense).      

 

 

 

 

[patches]

I applied for an Aussie tourist visa yesterday...

 

What a mission! Way more involved than a French Schengen or any other tourist/business visa I've ever applied for.

 

For Brits, Yanks, and a number of other countries, an Aussie tourist visa is a quick and free online application.

 

For South African passport holders, it's AUS$135 as well as providing the following (along with other information):

 

• Family composition forms
• Payslips & bank statements,
• Lists of assets
• Letters of invitation
• Proof of employment

 

So as much as I love SA, it seems our passports are only really good for SADAC countries, and a few places in the far east.

 

Definitely going to be a perk of Kiwi citizenship one day.

 

Edited August 10, 2016 by patches

[droenn]

I applied for an Aussie tourist visa yesterday...

 

What a mission! Way more involved than a French Schengen or any other tourist/business visa I've ever applied for.

 

For Brits, Yanks, and a number of other countries, an Aussie tourist visa is a quick and free online application.

 

For South African passport holders, it's AUS$135 as well as providing the following (along with other information):

 

• Family composition forms
• Payslips & bank statements,
• Lists of assets
• Letters of invitation
• Proof of employment

 

So as much as I love SA, it seems our passports are only really good for SADAC countries, and a few places in the far east.

 

Definitely going to be a perk of Kiwi citizenship one day.

 

 

 

Yep, its a ridiculous amount of strife we put on South Africans for coming here, where NZ is much more chill about it.

 

Going through it all with my SA partner now, but we're almost there (and for permanent residence visa).

 

I'm starting to suggest to South African friends planning the Aus move to really consider NZ now, get your citizenship there and then decide.

 

So, apologies for the Australian visa and migration system - it reflects badly on us. Or maybe its a good example of the difference between Aussies and Kiwis!

[Blaze]

Morning All,

 

Where to begin? I will hopefully hear if my application for a position in Auckland at my current company will be successful somewhere during the course of the next week or so.

Current package offered is NZ$90k + vehicle. We are looking to settle in the Browns Bay, Torbay or Rosedale area.

The main question is: Will I be able to support my wife and two kids (6yrs + 3yrs) on that income without the need to live on two meals a day? 

I know there is lots of variables to consider, but I am prepared to make the necessary sacrifices for at least the first year.

 

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[HowellingWulf]

I applied for an Aussie tourist visa yesterday...

 

What a mission! Way more involved than a French Schengen or any other tourist/business visa I've ever applied for.

 

For Brits, Yanks, and a number of other countries, an Aussie tourist visa is a quick and free online application.

 

For South African passport holders, it's AUS$135 as well as providing the following (along with other information):

 

• Family composition forms
• Payslips & bank statements,
• Lists of assets
• Letters of invitation
• Proof of employment

 

So as much as I love SA, it seems our passports are only really good for SADAC countries, and a few places in the far east.

 

Definitely going to be a perk of Kiwi citizenship one day.

 

 

...then try applying for permanent residency... Took me months & cost me an arm and a leg and then some...

[hayleyearth]

Morning All,

 

Where to begin? I will hopefully hear if my application for a position in Auckland at my current company will be successful somewhere during the course of the next week or so.

Current package offered is NZ$90k + vehicle. We are looking to settle in the Browns Bay, Torbay or Rosedale area.

The main question is: Will I be able to support my wife and two kids (6yrs + 3yrs) on that income without the need to live on two meals a day? 

I know there is lots of variables to consider, but I am prepared to make the necessary sacrifices for at least the first year.

 

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Unfortunately not. Well that's my opinion by just being one person and comparing my salary to that. If your wife can work and maybe cover the house (rent) or your company can, then yes, but unfortunately food is just too expensive here (on top of everything else). I can't imagine what a families expenses are here (I'm still getting over the shock of what mine is only).

[Wayne Potgieter]

Morning All,

 

Where to begin? I will hopefully hear if my application for a position in Auckland at my current company will be successful somewhere during the course of the next week or so.

Current package offered is NZ$90k + vehicle. We are looking to settle in the Browns Bay, Torbay or Rosedale area.

The main question is: Will I be able to support my wife and two kids (6yrs + 3yrs) on that income without the need to live on two meals a day? 

I know there is lots of variables to consider, but I am prepared to make the necessary sacrifices for at least the first year.

 

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Blaze.

 

Ok, to help you out I am going to make a few assumptions.

 

1.    When you arrive that you buy your wife a cheap Japanese import car and thus have no car payments as you will have a company car with fuel.

2.    That your salary will be paid monthly. Some companies pay weekly or fortnightly.

3.    That you have no debt

4.    That you pay the MINIMUM amount on Kiwi saver (state pension fund). Bear in mind that you can only pay this once you have residency, but as I assume that is your end goal so I will factor that in.

5.    I will also assume that as your intention is for Mrs Blaze to fetch the kiddos every day after school, so you won’t have any aftercare bills.

6.    You move here with all your furniture and don’t really need to purchase anything to live

7.    You have a small savings that you convert from rands to be able to pay rent deposits etc.

8.    The weekly rental used here is $700 per week. This will get you a real basic three bedroom, one bathroom kind of property.

 

 

On an annual salary of $90k your take home pay per month will be $5,452.00. This factors in all mandatory deductions including a 3% kiwi saver contribution. (You can opt out of kiwi saver but it is not a wise move)

 

Now, this budget is essentially a bare bones sort of budget. It’s a real squeeze to make this work. But I believe it can work.

 

On the subject of food. Hayley raises a great point. When we moved we thought rent would be our biggest expense. It isn’t. Food is. Countdown has this “Feed 4 for $15” promotion. I have based my calculations on using that. Plus an additional few $ per day for bread and milks and so on.

 

I will say it again…this budget is a real stretch. It makes no allowance for spending or holidays or toys for the kids.

 

Blaze Budget    

 

Rent  $        3,035.00

Food  $        1,300.00

Fuel for Mrs Blaze  $            280.00

Cellphones  $              60.00

Cleaning consumable  $            100.00

Electricity  $            150.00

Water  $              35.00

Car insurance  $              85.00  

TOTAL $        5,045.00

 

 

 

Personally, I don’t think only one of you working is wise (at least on a permanent level) eventually you are going to think of buying a house and investing some money. So having that second income is pretty important. I realise that your costs would also increase with aftercare and kindergarten, but so does your liquidity and thus you are able to experience more of the country. This also makes no allowances for insurances or any such policies.

Hope it helps.

Wayne

Edited August 11, 2016 by Wayne Potgieter

[Ramrod]

Morning All,

 

Where to begin? I will hopefully hear if my application for a position in Auckland at my current company will be successful somewhere during the course of the next week or so.

Current package offered is NZ$90k + vehicle. We are looking to settle in the Browns Bay, Torbay or Rosedale area.

The main question is: Will I be able to support my wife and two kids (6yrs + 3yrs) on that income without the need to live on two meals a day? 

I know there is lots of variables to consider, but I am prepared to make the necessary sacrifices for at least the first year.

 

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Yay I will have a neighbour!!!

[Ramrod]

Hi Blaze.

 

Ok, to help you out I am going to make a few assumptions.

 

1.    When you arrive that you buy your wife a cheap Japanese import car and thus have no car payments as you will have a company car with fuel.

2.    That your salary will be paid monthly. Some companies pay weekly or fortnightly.

3.    That you have no debt

4.    That you pay the MINIMUM amount on Kiwi saver (state pension fund). Bear in mind that you can only pay this once you have residency, but as I assume that is your end goal so I will factor that in.

5.    I will also assume that as your intention is for Mrs Blaze to fetch the kiddos every day after school, so you won’t have any aftercare bills.

6.    You move here with all your furniture and don’t really need to purchase anything to live

7.    You have a small savings that you convert from rands to be able to pay rent deposits etc.

8.    The weekly rental used here is $700 per week. This will get you a real basic three bedroom, one bathroom kind of property.

 

 

On an annual salary of $90k your take home pay per month will be $5,452.00. This factors in all mandatory deductions including a 3% kiwi saver contribution. (You can opt out of kiwi saver but it is not a wise move)

 

Now, this budget is essentially a bare bones sort of budget. It’s a real squeeze to make this work. But I believe it can work.

 

On the subject of food. Hayley raises a great point. When we moved we thought rent would be our biggest expense. It isn’t. Food is. Countdown has this “Feed 4 for $15” promotion. I have based my calculations on using that. Plus an additional few $ per day for bread and milks and so on.

 

I will say it again…this budget is a real stretch. It makes no allowance for spending or holidays or toys for the kids.

 

 

Blaze Budget

 

 

Rent

 $        3,035.00

Food

 $        1,300.00

Fuel for Mrs Blaze

 $            280.00

Cell phones

 $              60.00

Cleaning consumable

 $            100.00

Electricity

 $            150.00

Water

 $              35.00

Car insurance

 $              85.00

 

 $        5,045.00

 

 

Personally, I don’t think only one of you working is wise (at least on a permanent level) eventually you are going to think of buying a house and investing some money. So having that second income is pretty important. I realise that your costs would also increase with aftercare and kindergarten, but so does your liquidity and thus you are able to experience more of the country. This also makes no allowances for insurances or any such policies.

Hope it helps.

Wayne

 

Also remember that rent is paid weekly so some months you are hit with a 5 week month. those ones are the ones that hurt.

 

Out of interest. What industry are you in?

Edited August 11, 2016 by Ramrod

[hayleyearth]

Also remember that rent is paid weekly so some months you are hit with a 5 week month. those ones are the ones that hurt.

 

Out of interest. What industry are you in?

 

Ya, very important point...hence why I used the "x52/12" calculation rather everywhere when working out monthly expenses...

[Wayne Potgieter]

Ya, very important point...hence why I used the "x52/12" calculation rather everywhere when working out monthly expenses...

We use the "every month has 5 weeks" philosophy.

 

That way, at the end of the year, we have a little bit of savings left over.