Is this a Good Time To Move Back to New Zealand?

The New Zealand Herald recently run a story that New Zealanders abroad were rushing to return home after their banking and finance jobs in the UK were squeezed out.

However, on closer examination it seems that this "rush home" is nothing but a steady stream of enquiries from expat Kiwis who were either uncertain about their present job security or have recently been made unemployed. There is nothing to say that the job market for them in New Zealand would be more secure, nor are there vacancies that can be filled which offer suitable salaries.

The Herald has invited readers to comment on the article, the vast majority of respondents chose to give reasons why they would not return to New Zealand. Their responses may be useful for potential migrants looking for a "safe haven" in the current global credit meltdown.

nb (Wellington City) " If you're ready for NZ & its isolation & insularity, then jump right in, but for those who've spent more than 5 years abroad & have become used to the benefits that large & diverse economies bring, stay put.

NZ can be very over-rated. The UK, US etc fall hard but bounce back equally as strongly. Same can't be said about NZ. Recruitment agencies & their clients (not sure who is more culpable) take a narrow view of what they deem relevant experience & are very risk averse.

Reflects most of them have been recruiting for low level jobs with low wages - more akin to placing people on a production line. Despite best efforts of those who talk up the 'lifestyle', this is, and will remain, a low skills/low wages destination.

Junior Doc leaving (Whangarei) I can't believe there are people returning willingly to NZ. It sounds to me that they are forced to return. As for me, I am leaving for Oz where junior doctors are better supported and valued. I sincerely wish this country well. My husband and I will be leaving for good."

TomG (Canada) "Not a chance - education sucks, prices suck, wages suck, government triple sucks. Here I am closer to the rest of the world - can vacation in the US after a five hour drive, takes less than half the time to fly to Europe.

Nahh might be an ok place to retire but my kids have way more opportunities here.

Weather sucks and crime sucks. I love that you can drive into the rockies and just wander off for the day not worrying about whether your car will have wheels when you return, kids leave brand new bikes on the unfenced lawn overnight and they're still there to put away in the morning."

amian UK (United Kingdom) "We left NZ ten years ago and while we return every two to three years to see family, friends and check on assets held, it is unlikely that we will return permanently.

NZ is a great place for a holiday but 'challenging' both politically and financially. I work in global banking so I find it hard to believe that there would be more jobs in NZ banking than in the UK.

In fact the structure of the NZ banking system as set up by Labour is a disaster waiting to happen. The lack of regulatory framework and 'cowboy mentality' means that the average punter is likely to be hammered even more in the months ahead.

I miss surf beaches where I am the only person out on the waves and seawater warm and clean enough to swim in most of the year without a wetsuit. I also miss the laid back attitude of my friends but don't miss the difficulties of raising money for new business ventures and the opportunities to work on major ideas and projects with global impact.

That and the fact that you kept Graham Henry as All Black coach means that nothing really has changed in the Kiwi psyche. The memories from the east stand at Cardiff will haunt me for a few more years yet."

Clint Heine (United Kingdom) "I've been in the UK for 5 years and am not coming back to live. My wife and I are moving to her native country - The Czech Republic. They have an excellent health system and have Flat tax, so everybody is equal with paying taxes.unlike in NZ where Labour have robbed the population and made higher earners feel like criminals.

NZ will always be nice to go on holiday to, but the country over the last decade has gone backwards. It is scary reading that the PM made cruel jokes about the enormous amount of people leaving each week. She didn't care despite her Govt creating this disaster.

My wife has said NZ is turning into what her country was like under Socialism and when I told her family what we were paying in tax overall, on top of a dodgy healthcare and education system they all agreed they were better off. and NZ thinks it is a lucky place? I feel sad that I am turning my back on the place - but Kiwis let this happen".

British Migrants Robbed

Source:NZ Herald, Monday August 25, 2008

"An English family who came to New Zealand to make a fresh start were left with only the clothes on their backs when their motel was burgled two days after they arrived.

Dawn and Conrad Tutin and their children Stephanie, 14, and Kiel, 12, arrived from Nottingham a week ago to begin a new life in Auckland, where Mr Tutin will work for Fisher & Paykel.

But last Wednesday, while they were out house-hunting, their room at the Takanini Motor Lodge was plundered of virtually everything they had brought with them.

"We were feeling really good because we'd found a house and we came back and felt the air rushing through the room ... The children were the first to realise what had happened," Mrs Tutin said.

The thieves took passports, visas, two laptops and photos as well as clothing.

Even cuddly toys made by friends and gifts for another daughter back in England were taken.

Mrs Tutin valued the loss at more than $25,000.

"It was heartbreaking. We'd just secured a home and then that happened."

The thieves are thought to have got into the motel room through a door that opens onto a busy road.

Some of the Tutins' belongings were found strewn outside, partly in a bedcover that was used to carry items away.

"We were just thinking, 'Why us ... why that particular place?'" Mrs Tutin said.

"Nothing from the motel was stolen, just our stuff - they were intent on stealing everything."

Mrs Tutin suspects their arrival back at the motel disturbed the burglars, and said that was just as disturbing as the theft itself.

They didn't spend another night in the room. Instead, they went to an inner-city hotel where they asked to be in a room off ground level.

"We just felt so vulnerable. The children wouldn't stay [in the motel] another night."

After the theft, the family had to go shopping for replacements - a mission none of them enjoyed.

"You can't go to one place to get everything you've lost," Mrs Tutin said.

They are appealing for anyone who knows anything about the theft to contact police so they can get some of their belongings back.

"We don't care about the clothes and stuff, it's just the sentimental stuff we really want back."

But the theft hasn't put them off living in New Zealand.

"People have been absolutely lovely," said Mrs Tutin. "It was just our bad luck."

"Luck" really didn't come into it, the family were staying in South Auckland, one of Auckland's warmest crime hot spots. Here's hoping that the remainder of their time in the country is more successful

Demolition For House That Leaks Like a Sieve

Source: NZ Herald, Thurs 4 Sept 2008

A migrant family are so disillusioned with their big house in the Auckland suburb of Lynfield that they are demolishing it. The large 1980s seaside place had many defects and faults, including leaks. The family came here from Taiwan last decade but are so disheartened after years of enduring the house that they have decided to start again........

The 255sq m house was badly designed, wet and cold, they said. Problems were so widespread that it was not even worth removing the house from the site for resale.......

They said none of their windows had flashings to keep out rain. Nor were the walls insulated, which meant the place was freezing. The house was oriented towards the seaward side and the prevailing weather so water came into the lounge and the largest bedroom through windows. But because the house was built in the 1980s, the family had no legal redress via the state-funded system which helps leaky-home owners. The house was not eligible for a weathertightness assessment or claim. The Government bans owners of houses built more than a decade ago from using its leaky building service, which offers free house inspections, written reports on defects and dispute negotiation, mediation or adjudication to resolve problems. "It was not built very nicely," said one of the house's residents yesterday, adding that her family did not initially know enough about the system to commission a building inspector's report before they bought it in the 1990s. "We ... just thought it was a nice area," she said. It was only when a family member met a builder that they discovered the extent of the problem. QV has the house listed as being worth $600,000: $310,000 for the house and $290,000 for the large site.

Welcome to Thinking of Emigrating to New Zealand

Welcome to my new blog.

Are you considering a move to New Zealand? perhaps you're thinking of living there long term or just want to sample the lifestyle for a while and then move on.

This is a blog dedicated to giving you as much information as possible to enable you to make an informed choice.

There is a wealth of information on the world wide web about the benefits of New Zealand, this centres mostly around the beautiful landscape, the laid back lifestyle and how great a place it is to raise kids.

There isn't so much information on the realities of life for many newcomers to the country, the problems that migrants face most days and how they manage to overcome them, if indeed they do. Nor is there much about the poverty, the high level of crime and drug abuse and the dissatisfaction that is felt within New Zealand.