[Questor]

Yet another job has materialised in Paraparaumu and I was wondering if anyone lives up that part of the country, and what it's like in terms of house prices and amenities etc as we don't want to have to drive into Welly for the basics!!

Anywhere particularly nice?

[Rabbit]

Yet another job has materialised in Paraparaumu and I was wondering if anyone lives up that part of the country, and what it's like in terms of house prices and amenities etc as we don't want to have to drive into Welly for the basics!!

Anywhere particularly nice?

http://www.tranzmetro.co.nz/maps.aspx#para

http://www.open2view.com/search/?20

We went through there from Wellington, seemed like a good range of shops.

To be honest we would rather live that way as it seems alot more spacious than the other places closer to Welly. The property prices are alot more reasonable, the further you get from Welly, the cheaper it seems to be. Though the daily 49km commute to Welly would eventually turn out to be a drag.

If you can get a job locally there, then sounds like you have got it made.

[StevieD]

From what we saw of Parapara on tv,it looks lovely, although you may have to take up bowls with the aged population for entertainment as it is popular for retirement. No bad thing that though...

[sizzlingbadger]

We've had a day trip up to the Kapiti. A lovely place all the amenities you could wish for. Raumati was nice a bit quiet but as with all the places outside of Wellington improving and getting more popular with commuters. You'll have a fantastic beach on the doorstep.

As Rabbit says have a look at opentoview for housing options. Prices vary enourmously depending on where the house is.

[Questor]

Yeah, we'd noticed that - is there something wrong with Otaki? As prices there seem much lower than everywhere else!

[k-k]

Hi

We're in Paraparaumu Beach and we like it here. Our original idea was to find somewhere to rent in the city but after stopping here on the way to Welly we decided this was the place for us.

There's a good range of shops, Woolworths and a nice Pak n Save for groceries, also the Warehouse, Briscoes, a couple of electrical and furniture shops and the Coastlands shopping centre which has a selection of clothes shops, Farmers store, bookshops, chemists, etc. There's also the usual selection of Pizza Hut, Mcdonalds, Subway, loads of coffee shops, a multi screen cinema, car showrooms, banks, DIY shops and petrol stations.

For an even bigger selection of furniture and electrical shops we go to Porirua which is about 20miles down the road towards Welly. Twice we've gone into the city for shopping and both times we've come away with nothing. Everything we've needed to buy so far we've got in Paraparam.

House prices are cheaper than the city, though you pay top dollar for anything on the sea front, but there's a good choice here and in the surrounding areas. (We're renting a place here that overlooks the golf course and is a 2 minute walk to the beach). The prices do drop abit as you move up the coast towards Otaki. There are some nice places in between, Waikanae, Pekapeka and Te Horo. Prices in Otaki are cheaper because it is that bit further out from Welly, the train service to the city is not very regular and it would be a long drive into the city every day though not too bad if you were working in Paraparaumu. It does have a few shops but no where near the selection at Paraparaumu. (the main street in Otaki seems to have a lot of factory outlet shops for some reason).

For commuting into the city, most of the trains terminate at Paraparaumu. There is one train a day that comes from Palmerston North and stops at Otaki and Waikanae. There are regular trains from Para and alot of people commute by train rather than drive (there's roadworks on the main road that are likely to be ongoing for years). There's a great bus service around Para and Raumati with the buses timed to arrive at the station to meet the departing and arriving trains.

With regards to other amenities, not having children I'm not sure about the schools etc but there seem to be a few. There are alot of retired folk here and a few retirement communities but I wouldn't class it as an old folks place. The beach here is long and flat but you've a choice of about 5 or more other beaches north and south of here and all are nice.

If you managed to find work here and not have to commute, I think you'd find it perfect.

If you want any more info PM me. We've been looking around at houses and keeping an eye on what things are selling for. Many of the estate agents sites don't give prices or as we've discovered they give BBO (buyer budget over) prices and the actual selling price is about 20% more than that.

Hope this helps a bit.
Karen

[Questor]

k-k thank you! that's great info!

I think I am going to go for this job then (as long as they offer it me!) - Parap sounds like it has everything we'll need as we're looking for a reasonably small comunity anyway!
If we need anything else we can just go to Welly.

If it comes off then you'll be able to come see me in the Pharmacy :D

[denisesykes]

Yes we would agree with everything K -K says about the Kapiti Coast.We have been living in Raumati Beach for 4 months and it really is a little piece of paradise.The beaches are superb , we can afford a 5 bedroomed house with enormous pool and spa just 8 mins walk from school.The primary school appears excellent and there is a college , day care and kindy on the same site.The best thing though is the people, I have never ever met some wonderful people, without exception all I have met have surpasssed every expectation.There are also loads of Brits! ( can be a plus or minus point depending on your view!)
Good luck with the job , you won't be disappointed with the place!
Denise

[baboonworld]

Born in Paraparaumu!

Went for holidays every year at Raumati (from UH).

Nice and quiet - but gorgeous place to live (i would love to live there - am moving to Levin).

My dream house would be overlooking the ocean - and there are some massive houses there!

Also - good shopping mall etc as said above

An excellent choice i would say!

[Biddy]

I'd echo all that's been said above re Kapiti - love it!
Been in Waikanae for 6 months and it's just perfect. We're just starting to build a house 5 mins north at Peka Peka.
Everything you'd ever need is here. Further North you go the more you get for your money.

Do it


We really should have an expat meet up somewhere - Lime Bar or Waikanae hotel?

[sarahw]

Paraparaumu - great - love the Kapiti Coast - we're almost on it (just a few miles away from us here in Paremata) - It gets cheaper as you go up the coast away from Welly - Otaki being further up & cheaper. Long sandy beaches up the coast, fabulous views & sunsets & nice & chilled out. If we both didn't work in the city we'd live up there - but there are people prepared for the train journey every day - I work with someone who lives in Otaki and loves it.

Good luck!

[tottefan]

Would you say that many people do the commute into Wellington from the Kapiti coast? If so, how bad is it by train timewise, and are the trains generally regular/reliable?


Tottefan.

[Biddy]

Trains are pretty reliable and take 1hr (give or take) from Paraparaumu. We went in on Sat and there were trains every 1/2 hour - not sure of fequency during week. We paid $20 return for a family of 5 (flippin bargain!!) so costs would be affordable during commuter hours but probably more than this.

Loads of people do the commute and space is becomming a premium as more people look to alternatives due to high (ish) petrol costs.

(much nicer than the car commute in my opinion)

[jonSE]

Paraparam is a lot warmer than Welli. We went there last year stayed at a pals in Paraparam and all went on the train to Welli as some serious drinking was planned (meeting up with other expats over from OZ) . Got the bus to P train station in our Tee Shirts. arrived in Welli and it was freezing. Caught the last train back to P - Welli station was freezing - brass monkeys etc - by the time we got back to P it was a pleasant balmy late evening.

Been there a few times now - looked like a good place to be.

[sarahw]

Its buffered from the wind a bit so it does get warmer the further up the coast you go. (Its usually a couple of degrees warmer up in the Paraparaumu part of the weather forecast compared with the Wellington one). We live facing the Kapiti coast on one side of our house & facing the city on the other side just past Porirua city - its amazing how many days it is blue sky on the Kapiti side and dark clouds on the other!! The weather seems to break (although the wind doesn't!) at Porirua.

[Questor]

Just wanted to post an update for anyone else interested in this part of the world...
It's lovely!!

We're in Waikanae at the minute, and I can't recommend it enough, the beaches are great, and the views the other way are pretty good too!!

Plenty of shops around, and everything you could ever want is in Welly, just 45 minutes away! :D

[Avalon]

I glad you like it. It was where we heading, but then we found this house.

Theres a great cafe on the main road to Te Horo - The Red House. I recommend it!

Hope you continue to settle well - you seem to be doing a great job!

[Smiler]

Hi Jon

We love it up there too. We recently looked at rentals on Waikanae beach (one on Tutere Street I think) and a house to buy in Te Horo. Just walking on the beach outside the house at Te Horo, I thought I died and gone to heaven.

OH can't do the commute right now so we've stayed close to Welly for now but moved closer to the beach. :clap.

Glad to hear you're lovin it. When do you start work?

[Questor]

I started today (Wednesday)!! I'm posting this from a computer in the Dispensary - it all seems a bit unreal so far, with loads of stuff to get used to, but I think it'll be great!

If anyone wants to pop in, gimme an email or PM and I'll give you our address and phone number - be warned though, we have no stuff, and being in our late 20s, the fridge is full of beer and wine!! :D

[Avalon]

Blimey - you started quick! Dont let the grass grow underneath you much do you????

Hope you enjoy working in Pharmacy here. Im glad im out of it - much prefer lugging wood into the garage (Todays "job") :wah

[Questor]

It's the company - they are really short and wanted me to start ASAP - so like an eejit I said yes!

We've got most of the important stuff sorted out though, so that's not too bad, Catie's just at home doing the little bits now - and posibly turning the wood pile (that's also today's "job"!!)

Pharmacy seems OK - just a bit more complicated than in the UK - with the different subsidies that people have to pay, and all the different exemption categories!!
The staffing levels are loads better than in the UK though, so that's good!