[Chaz]

I will be working near Auckland city, currently looking at options for accommodation. Budget stretches up to $400 per week, $350 (or less) ideally.

Looking for 3/4 bedroom, ideally with at least a single garage.

I dont want a massive commute into the city for work, although would like to live 'outside' of the city as far possible to avail of more options, rural setting (if possible) etc. I need to have access to broadband, this is a have to.

We also then need to look at schools for a 9 year old and a 3.5 year old that will be going in the future.

Ive made a list of areas on looking at trademe.co.nz rentals that look 'ok', but I cant vouch for the areas, commuting time or anything. Perhaps some of you that know the areas can give some feedback?

Thanks

In no order of priority (I hope this pastes correctly from my spreadsheet):

Area Comments Rooms Price

Panmure 4
Gulf Harbour Too far? 3
Takanini Too far? 4
West Harbour 3 360
Birkdale, North Shore City Traffic? 3 370
Papatoetoe Too far? 4 400
New Lynn 3 330
Avondale 3 380
Glenfield, North Shore City 3 400
Palm Beach Ferry? 4 310
Westharbour 4 400
Beach Haven 3 400
Massey West 4 400 Nice?
Massey East 3 360
Whangaparaoa Way too far? 3 400 Nice
Woodlands Park Too far? 3 395
Mount Albert 3 360

[jubjub]

I can probably rule out a couple for you...

Takanini would prob be too far, may well take up to an hour in rush hour to get to CBD,and i wouldnt want to live in Papatoetoe... its quite a rough area with a bit of a reputation, although thats not to say there are not nice streets, but it would be a minefield for a newbie to find that nice street..

Panmure would be worth consideration though, prob about 30 mins to CBD in rush hour or there is a train station there, not a bad area for the most part, although I have no idea about the schools there.

I dont know the other areas as they are the other end of the city from me....

[Chaz]

I can probably rule out a couple for you...

Takanini would prob be too far, may well take up to an hour in rush hour to get to CBD,and i wouldnt want to live in Papatoetoe... its quite a rough area with a bit of a reputation, although thats not to say there are not nice streets, but it would be a minefield for a newbie to find that nice street..

Panmure would be worth consideration though, prob about 30 mins to CBD in rush hour or there is a train station there, not a bad area for the most part, although I have no idea about the schools there.

I dont know the other areas as they are the other end of the city from me....

Thanks for the info. Massey East / West also comes up often, anyone know that area?

[Nienke]

Woodlands Park (in Titirangi) is very nice , commute would be around 40 minutes or less in rush hour. Very good primary schools and 1 good intermediate school in the area. Secondary school might be a bit of a problem, you would have to get enrolled out of zone to get a good one.
New Lynn is also good, but take care where you rent the house, as there are very very busy streets there. Commute would be around 5 to 10 minutes less than Titirangi, depending on where you rent.
There are some nice areas in massey west/east, but you would have to be careful.

[dharder]

Woodlands Park (in Titirangi) is very nice , commute would be around 40 minutes or less in rush hour. Very good primary schools and 1 good intermediate school in the area. Secondary school might be a bit of a problem, you would have to get enrolled out of zone to get a good one.


We have friends in Woodlands Park, and it seems really nice indeed! There is a bus into town, about 40 minutes as well, I believe.

The secondary school shortage is what put me off the Titirangi area (which otherwise would have been my preferred option in Auckland), even though our kids are nowhere near that yet.

Panmure might be tricky with schools, at least if you live towards the Glen Innes (they're not terribly good there) direction, maybe different further East?

Personally, I would think Gulf Harbour and Whangaparoa too far, but I have colleagues who do that as a commute, so it isn't impossible. You might have to add considerable petrol costs though, as I think it takes them around 1 hour, depending on when they drive.

Birkdale is nice, but I only know one primary school there, and that is nice, couldn't comment on the others (though being on the North Shore, probably alright).

We also have friends living in Glenfield, and they are fine there, schools seem okay, kindy is okay where they are.

Good luck looking at areas :)

Daniela

[andrewandjane]

notice you had palm beach down on your list.

We live there. schools are great, you have a choice of secondary schools. waiheke secondary or takapuna grammar (have to commute to takapuna obviously)

primary schools are good too, choice of two, Waiheke primary of te hurihi.

before we bought our own we had a large 3 bed place with garage and really nice sea views for 370 a week.

commute is a painless 35 mins by ferry direct to CBD. a monthly pass is $300 that includes unlimited ferries, and buses on Waiheke and in Auckland too so wouold cover buses to anywhere else in Auckland you may be working.

Its a great place to live, loads of nice beaches and although its only 35 mins into the city its completely different, with a laid back island feel to the place.

good luck

Andrew

[JoHnH]

"Panmure would be worth consideration though, prob about 30 mins to CBD in rush hour or there is a train station there, not a bad area for the most part..."
I know Panmure quite well, would tend to disagree with jubjub here. It's more a 'working class' district, with a lot of recent asian immigrants too. Might not be your cup of tea, and I doubt the schools are anything special.
In the 'Eastern Suburbs' close to Panmure, if you found anything in your price bracket in Glendowie (not Glen Innes), Meadowbank, Kohimarama/Orakei, or slightly more 'low rent' in St Johns, you might find this preferable, and the schools are very good.
Commuting to the CBD would be no great distance, but not much fun in the rush hour.
















'

[Chaz]

Thanks for all the info. I dont need to go right into the CBD, will be based out of the Mt Albert area as far as I can tell - so not too concerned about central CBD - then again - that affects what side of the CBD would be better to stay in.

[JoHnH]

Too right. You don't want to be crossing the centre of the Auckland isthmus in rush hour if you can avoid it, so you'd better forget the Eastern area.
Go West young man.

[Chaz]

This is perhaps a large area, but the Waitakere City area seems to be appealing to us at the moment. Need to narrow it down somewhat though.

[Chaz]

Perhaps slightly off topic - how do I know if a prospective rental house can get ADSL or some form of broadband before moving in?

[IanW99]

Perhaps slightly off topic - how do I know if a prospective rental house can get ADSL or some form of broadband before moving in?

The major supplier of broadband in NZ is Telecom, even most other companies use their network.

From their website they state that broadband is normally available on all telecom numbers.

If you can get the phone number for the house then you can enter it at Check Telecom broadband is available in your area (http://www.telecom.co.nz/tools/1,8752,100551-201730,00.html) and it will tell you if you can or can't get broadband.

Ian

[Silverwing86]

Hi Chaz,

Personal (and, I admit, biased :D) opinion of course but...

The Whangaparaoa Peninsula (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/) may be a bit further out, but it does have a lot going for it like great schools, a decent shopping mall (http://www.the-plaza.co.nz/default.asp?action=home.home), entertainment (great restaurants, cinema, theatre, good library and more !), 14 (!) beaches at your doorstep, an excellent regional park (Shakespear (http://www.arc.govt.nz/parks/our-parks/parks-in-the-region/shakespear/)), generally better weather than the CBD/surrounding areas and Gulf Harbour (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/html/gulf_harbour.html) has a ferry service (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/html/ferries.html) into the CBD as well.

Once the Penlink (http://www.rodney.govt.nz/services/penlink/penlink.htm#What is PENLINK) finally happens, it will not only shorten the journey into the CBD considerably, but it will also have a positive influence on the value of property, a sound investment should you want to buy sometime down the line.

We live in Gulf Harbour and what we love most about it is that it still has a bit of a 'holiday' feel about it, if you know what I mean ? We've visited many of the Auckland areas, but none of them have the same kind of feel for us.

Good luck with your search !

Cheers,
Silver

[LisaandPaul]

hi Chaz,

I live in Mt. Albert, moved here only about 3 weeks ago. Its a good area to live with good high school and primary school. Takes 10 minutes by bus into and out of city and is far enough out.

Lisa and Paul

[Alan]

I stayed in Gulf Harbour for my reccie recently and if you are able to align your working day with the ferries I can vouch for it being very relaxing and also a very sociable way in and out of the city. Driving from there in my mind would take too long in peak times, but it certainly does have a relaxed feel being further out and housing is currently very good value, and as above Whangaparaoa has pretty much all the day to day facilities you would need including a cinema etc.

[Chaz]

hi Chaz,

I live in Mt. Albert, moved here only about 3 weeks ago. Its a good area to live with good high school and primary school. Takes 10 minutes by bus into and out of city and is far enough out.

Lisa and Paul

Agreed, just a bit expensive it seems for what you get in terms of cost per size / per bedroom. Then again, we havent been there even once - so all of it is vague at the moment.

Does anyone know how long it would take to drive all the way from Pila to Mt Albert? Roads look dodgy at best.

[Chaz]

Hi Chaz,

Personal (and, I admit, biased :D) opinion of course but...

The Whangaparaoa Peninsula (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/) may be a bit further out, but it does have a lot going for it like great schools, a decent shopping mall (http://www.the-plaza.co.nz/default.asp?action=home.home), entertainment (great restaurants, cinema, theatre, good library and more !), 14 (!) beaches at your doorstep, an excellent regional park (Shakespear (http://www.arc.govt.nz/parks/our-parks/parks-in-the-region/shakespear/)), generally better weather than the CBD/surrounding areas and Gulf Harbour (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/html/gulf_harbour.html) has a ferry service (http://www.whangaparaoanz.com/html/ferries.html) into the CBD as well.

Once the Penlink (http://www.rodney.govt.nz/services/penlink/penlink.htm#What is PENLINK) finally happens, it will not only shorten the journey into the CBD considerably, but it will also have a positive influence on the value of property, a sound investment should you want to buy sometime down the line.

We live in Gulf Harbour and what we love most about it is that it still has a bit of a 'holiday' feel about it, if you know what I mean ? We've visited many of the Auckland areas, but none of them have the same kind of feel for us.

Good luck with your search !

Cheers,
Silver

Thanks, very informative post and helpful. Will most definately look at that.

[JandM]

About Whangaparoa - we have relatives-by-marriage there, and quite agree about the good facilites and pleasant 'feel' of the area. (Avatar pic taken not far away.)

[Silverwing86]

You're welcome Chaz, just glad the information is useful to you.

I also had another thought, if you feel the peninsula is too far a drive and you'd like to cut your commute by not having to drive the length of the Peninsula, you might consider Orewa (http://www.orewa-beach.co.nz/) ? Also, more rural, Silverdale or Dairy Flat (couldn't find any decent sites for these) or, even closer to the CBD, Albany (http://albanynz.com/portal/) (sorry, not a great site, but couldn't find a better one) which is very up and coming and boasts the very new and fancy shopping mall Westfield Albany (http://westfield.co.nz/albany/) ?

Although, biased as I am, I still believe none of these are half as nice as the Peninsula :D ?


Driving from there in my mind would take too long in peak times...

I guess it also depends on what flexibility you have with your employer. OH tends to leave very early in the morning, between 05.30 and 06.00 AM (yes I know, shockingly early :eek: !) so that he has pretty much a straight run through with the traffic, and on the other side leaves work around 03.00 PM which gives him ample time to do other stuff that he otherwise wouldn't be able to because of the time (after closing time for shops, banks etc.). It's a great compromise if it works for both employer and employee.

He also has work mates who work longer days, i.e.; 10 hour days, and subsequently work a 4 day week. OH's current tasks don't really allow for that at this time as it is important that he's there every day, but when that changes he will definitely be making use of this option as well.

I suppose it also depends a bit on what you were used to. What is considered terrible congestion here is nothing compared to what he was used to in The Netherlands. He would travel less than half the distance in more than double the time ! He says that mostly it may be slow, but at least it's still moving, which he feels makes a nice change from complete gridlock :yes...

Cheers,
Silver

PS Nice to see others recommending the Peninsula as well, :cool: !

[Alan]

I believe Silverdale is scheduled to see a huge expansion as they are just selling off large swathes of land for building. Orewa is lovely and again has all the shops you'll need and a fantastic beach, although you'll have to put up with lots of comments about the population and their zimmer frames!

[Norwegian Blue]

We are going through the same thing. We found this link useful in eliminating some areas and shortlisting others.

Auckland suburb guide (http://www.auckland-suburb-guide.co.nz/)

Pete

[Chaz]

Thanks to all once again. Just wish our CO would get back to us with good news so that this can start to become reality. Seen some nice places on the peninsula ....

My work arrangements might be flexible, so I think some options exist.

[Chaz]

Can anyone tell me if living in Piha is feasible if working in Mt Albert area of Auckland? How long is the commute during peak and off peak times?

Thanks !

[JandM]

The road in from Piha is narrow and twisty - it's never going to be an easy drive. Even Scenic Drive (the main road till you get to the edge of suburbs proper) has rainwater gullies right at the edge of the tarmac that you wouldn't get away with dropping a wheel in. So the commute isn't one for the easiest life. But on the other hand, Piha is stunningly beautiful, and the drive itself, through fabulous bush, over the Waitakere ridge, is a delight. I can't tell you a journey time, as whenever we went out there, it was part of the holiday, we weren't on working hours, and we weren't thinking of A to B, but our son, who lives in South Titirangi and works all over Auckland, told us plenty of people who work in the city do live out at Piha.

[dharder]

Can anyone tell me if living in Piha is feasible if working in Mt Albert area of Auckland? How long is the commute during peak and off peak times?

Know someone who used to do it, but has moved now because it took too long and was getting too expensive (petrol wise).

It is a nice place, and quite a scenic drive, but a long and winding road. Personally, I wouldn't do it every day.

Daniela

[Chaz]

Know someone who used to do it, but has moved now because it took too long and was getting too expensive (petrol wise).

It is a nice place, and quite a scenic drive, but a long and winding road. Personally, I wouldn't do it every day.

Daniela

Thanks. As presumed. Pity, looks real nice. Perhaps need to find something in between or some form of compromise.

Then again, North Shore City beckons (if we can afford it) - so to do a few other areas.

[Nienke]

If you like the Waitakeres, you can also try Oratia, Laingholm, Waiatarua or Swanson.
Oratia and Laingholm are just off Titirangi, so commute wouldn't be that much longer.