[DanFromCali]

Hi,

I am currently in Redondo Beach, CA and am getting ready to move my family (wife, 2 year old, 3 mo old) to NZ this spring. We will be living North of Auckland towards Algiers Bay/Snells Beach, but i haven't decided exactly where yet. I like Devonport/Takapuna and think my family would enjoy it there, but i'm not sure i want to make that commute - nor does my wife want me to be too far away each day. So chances are we'll be staying closer to my work in Snells. I am coming over for contract work and will be there for at least a few years, probably longer.

We've travelled all over NZ before and love the country but needless to say are a bit stressed by the transition and saddened to be leaving all of our family (my wife and i both grew up in the Los Angeles area and have all of our family there)...

Still haven't decided how or what I'm going to bring over and have lots of things to work out with taxes, immunizations, schools, etc... and hope this forum will shed some light!

Cheers,

Dan :raebanana

[JandM]

Hello, and welcome.:)

[Bruckner]

Hi Dan,

Can't remember about vacs because my kids were 2.5 when them came over but I do remember my ped researching it just to make sure they were up to date. Maybe your ped can do the same.

We're in Devonport as are a few other forumites so you can do a search or post any specific questions about the area.

Welcome to the forum!

Emily

[dusk]

Hello :)

[DanFromCali]

Hi Dan,

Can't remember about vacs because my kids were 2.5 when them came over but I do remember my ped researching it just to make sure they were up to date. Maybe your ped can do the same.

We're in Devonport as are a few other forumites so you can do a search or post any specific questions about the area.

Welcome to the forum!

Emily

thanks.

How do you like Devonport? Are there good public schools? For the most part there doesn't seem to be much culture shock going from the US to NZ, but is there anything that was tough getting used to?

How did you find your place? You find a good agent?

I think my wife and kids would like Devonport better than Snells Beach (so remote), but we're still trying to weigh community vs commute and will probably land close to my work for the first few months and then decide how far we are willing to go. Maybe when that tunnel is finished, it'll help.

I think my 2 year old daughter is up to date on her vacs, but my 3 month old son is going to be interesting.

Did you guys move all your belongings: furniture, etc... or just go over with as little as possible? Sea freight seems to be $$$, but it sounds even more $$$ to buy new stuff there.

[tea drinker]

Can't help with any answers but just wanted to say hi and welcome.
Sure that someone will come along soon with some answers for you:yes

[Bruckner]

thanks.

How do you like Devonport? Are there good public schools? For the most part there doesn't seem to be much culture shock going from the US to NZ, but is there anything that was tough getting used to?

How did you find your place? You find a good agent?

I think my wife and kids would like Devonport better than Snells Beach (so remote), but we're still trying to weigh community vs commute and will probably land close to my work for the first few months and then decide how far we are willing to go. Maybe when that tunnel is finished, it'll help.

I think my 2 year old daughter is up to date on her vacs, but my 3 month old son is going to be interesting.

Did you guys move all your belongings: furniture, etc... or just go over with as little as possible? Sea freight seems to be $$$, but it sounds even more $$$ to buy new stuff there.

We really like Devonport because it’s a walkable town with good amenities and an easy commute to the CDB. My two aren’t in school yet but I’ve heard good things about Devonport Primary and Stanley Bay Primary. Perhaps Tia Maria can comment here.

We found our rental advertised in the local barbershop’s window but you can check trademe or talk to one of the realtors in town. You’ll pay a fee for using a realtor but I can’t remember what it is. One week or two weeks? Personally I didn’t find the agents much help when we started looking. They seemed much more interested in try to sell us a house. You have to be very pro-active when it comes to finding a rental in this area.

We moved our entire household here using Rainier and while some things here are expensive (furniture) I found you can find most household goods at a relatively reasonable price if it’s on sale. I think you have to look harder for a bargain here and sometimes the quality if less than what you’re looking for depending on the item. That said it was easier for us to bring everything than trying to locate replacements upon arrival.

I don’t know much about Snells Beach or that commute but I can see both your points of view. I think your idea of starting out close to work is your best bet. If you have any other questions feel free to PM me.


Emily

[Kiwi-In-Texas]

Hello and welcome.

[DanFromCali]

thanks for the warm welcome. This forum is a plethora of useful info that is helping me with the transition big time. Only problem is that now im spending all day combing posts and ive been checking out cars and houses at trademe and all the other agent sites for the last 5 hours... at this rate i wont get myself out there til about 2020.

[JandM]

LOL - know the feeling!

[DanFromCali]

Well the movers are coming on Wed and i am taking the clan across the ocean on Thursday night (direct LAX ->Auck). Still frantically packing - some stuff is going to have to just stay behind in storage. I have no idea if everything is going to fit in the container or if im going to have ample space... i guess we'll see!

We have an empty house in Scott's Landing (Snells Beach/Warkworth area) waiting for us and our container is going to take atleast weeks so i guess we are just camping indoors for a lil' while. no car, no fridge, no furniture yet - but i got the wife and kids so no matter what its gonna be fun.

can't wait to be there! the transition has been stressful. Wish us luck down the home stretch!

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

[dusk]

aww that's great news, hope you have a very successful and as stress free as possible journey and settling in period :D

[swissmissdesigner]

Well the movers are coming on Wed and i am taking the clan across the ocean on Thursday night (direct LAX ->Auck). Still frantically packing - some stuff is going to have to just stay behind in storage. I have no idea if everything is going to fit in the container or if im going to have ample space... i guess we'll see!

We have an empty house in Scott's Landing (Snells Beach/Warkworth area) waiting for us and our container is going to take atleast weeks so i guess we are just camping indoors for a lil' while. no car, no fridge, no furniture yet - but i got the wife and kids so no matter what its gonna be fun.

can't wait to be there! the transition has been stressful. Wish us luck down the home stretch!

Wow.. that was fast! I wish you and your family all the best!

[Kiwi-In-Texas]

Good luck with the move...Hope all goes well for you.




Suzanne.

[DanFromCali]

made it here finally! my work visas flew thru in a matter of days - the LA New Zealand consulate was awesome. Air New Zealand was fantastic with my family yet again.

bought a used car from Harvey Round Motors in Wanganui who had it shipped up to me at home within days of getting into town - that was a great experience and i loooove the car (2002 Nissan Stagea 250 rs FOUR wagon - which is essentially a skyline wagon, tiptronic and everything - perfect for the winding roads up where we live)... not the most luxury car we've owned, but the most fun car i've ever had!

moved into our house up in Scott's Landing/Snells Beach - saw that a couple of mice had been living in there, but nothing out of th ordinary for a rural spot. Bought a sweet fridge, washer, dryer from Bond and Bond in ALbany. Got my Telecom broadband, phone, and mobile all hooked up - bought some little essentials at the Warehouse, some groceries at New World... now waiting on my EFTPOS card to go buy a little furniture to tie us over until the shipping container gets here.

so far no complaints. Its been less than one week so far and i've jumped right into work and my wife and kids are having a blast.

thanks to you all on the forum for the useful tidbits of info that helped calm our nerves and make the move smoother!

[JandM]

Great news that you're all safely THERE, and all's going well so far. Here's wishing all the very best in your new home and new life.:cheers

[KiwiOfTheFuture]

Hello from Redondo Beach! (Really! What a coincidence!)

I probably won't be starting the whole moving process for several years (I've got to finish up college here in the States), but I wanted to pop in and say congratulations on the move... I may have to ask you some questions when I'm ready to make the big move from our beach city to NZ!

-Briana