Rent was expensive in Auckland, but we'd heard that's where prices were highest and had hopes for more affordable rent in "real New Zealand" (which is apparently anywhere that's not Auckland). Unfortunately we didn't find prices in Christchurch to be much different.
In Auckland we were paying $200/week (not including internet or utilities) for one room in a three bedroom house in a suburb north of the city. Originally were hoping to find a place of our own in Christchurch for somewhere under $280/week; something at least partially furnished, or cheap enough to justify the extra cost of furniture. You wouldn't think it would be too terrible a feat to pull off--I mean, we spent the last six years living in a place within spitting distance of Manhattan and we were paying less than that. (Ok, I exaggerate. But possibly very long tin can phone distance or creepy binocular staring distance, definitely swimming distance. Either way, you'd expect it to be more expensive there than in a small city like Christchurch.) The reason that isn't the case seems complicated, but from what I gathered it's the result of a few factors:
1. Chinese buyers have been coming to New Zealand in droves for investment properties, outbidding locals and driving property costs up. (One reason for the racial tension there, although if you're long time homeowner and selling your place now, well, those Chinese buyers have definitely done those guys a favor!) Most of this is happening in bigger cities like Auckland, Wellington and...dun dad da dum...Christchurch!
2. A lot of properties were destroyed in the big earthquake, and rules of supply and demand being what they are, prices go up.
3. New post-earthquake housing regulations require that new construction meet certain standards, meaning higher building costs, higher rents needed for landlords to make a return on their investment.
Here's another problem: all we wanted was a simple one bedroom apartment, but there just aren't as many of those since the 2011 earthquake. Even finding a two or three bedroom place with flatmates wasn't as easy as I thought it might be. Instead the new big thing is room by room rentals--usually five or six bedrooms with a shared living space and kitchen. Most of the rooms have a private ensuite bathroom, which is nice, but sharing a kitchen with up to twelve people sounds like mealtime chaos. It's a lot like living in a dorm, but with a wider age range. The ones we saw ran between $150-$330/week including utilities and internet access, and in defense of the more expensive ones, some of them were really nice. Just not nice enough for us to feel it was worth paying so much for a shared living situation.
We did find some single apartments at our price point, but in general they tended to be dark, damaged, in bad neighborhoods, and/or smell aggressively of mold.
In Auckland we were paying $200/week (not including internet or utilities) for one room in a three bedroom house in a suburb north of the city. Originally were hoping to find a place of our own in Christchurch for somewhere under $280/week; something at least partially furnished, or cheap enough to justify the extra cost of furniture. You wouldn't think it would be too terrible a feat to pull off--I mean, we spent the last six years living in a place within spitting distance of Manhattan and we were paying less than that. (Ok, I exaggerate. But possibly very long tin can phone distance or creepy binocular staring distance, definitely swimming distance. Either way, you'd expect it to be more expensive there than in a small city like Christchurch.) The reason that isn't the case seems complicated, but from what I gathered it's the result of a few factors:
1. Chinese buyers have been coming to New Zealand in droves for investment properties, outbidding locals and driving property costs up. (One reason for the racial tension there, although if you're long time homeowner and selling your place now, well, those Chinese buyers have definitely done those guys a favor!) Most of this is happening in bigger cities like Auckland, Wellington and...dun dad da dum...Christchurch!
2. A lot of properties were destroyed in the big earthquake, and rules of supply and demand being what they are, prices go up.
3. New post-earthquake housing regulations require that new construction meet certain standards, meaning higher building costs, higher rents needed for landlords to make a return on their investment.
Here's another problem: all we wanted was a simple one bedroom apartment, but there just aren't as many of those since the 2011 earthquake. Even finding a two or three bedroom place with flatmates wasn't as easy as I thought it might be. Instead the new big thing is room by room rentals--usually five or six bedrooms with a shared living space and kitchen. Most of the rooms have a private ensuite bathroom, which is nice, but sharing a kitchen with up to twelve people sounds like mealtime chaos. It's a lot like living in a dorm, but with a wider age range. The ones we saw ran between $150-$330/week including utilities and internet access, and in defense of the more expensive ones, some of them were really nice. Just not nice enough for us to feel it was worth paying so much for a shared living situation.
We did find some single apartments at our price point, but in general they tended to be dark, damaged, in bad neighborhoods, and/or smell aggressively of mold.
This was one of my favorite discoveries. And by favorite, I mean worst. I'm not sure if this would be more accurately described as a bathroom or a dungeon.
Finally, a week before Josh's corporate housing ran out, we found our unicorn: a little three room apartment above a garage. It had just been reduced in price, and it included utilities. I guess the size was a deal-breaker for everyone else who saw it because the agent who showed it to me immediately started making excuses for it. "I know it's quite compact..." But seeing a bed, a kitchen, a bathroom, all with good lighting, all with normal smells, I agreed to rent it on the spot.
We've been sprucing it up over the last couple of weeks and it's getting really cozy. We turned this awkward tiny window space into a bite-sized studio and I've been getting loads of work done. It's the first time I've had a dedicated art space since college and it's very exciting.
Our landlords live in the main house and they seem like nice people. They have a few kids, and sometimes we hear them practicing the violin or yelling at their new puppy, who is appropriately named Happy, and who is not really so much a dog as pure joy stuffed into the tiniest fur coat known to man. He is completely oblivious to their shouting; he's just too excited to be in the world. At first this just increased the yelling, but I think we've moved past that stage now.
Our neighborhood is much too fancy for us, as evidenced by the upscale McDonald's, women with fashionably cool-blonde hair and leather boots, and shops filled with beautiful things we can't afford. The grocery store has a gelato shop, and our bus line has luxurious sounding destinations like "Princess Margaret" and "Cashmere." The only clothes I can afford on our street are at the thrift shop, which I don't mind. It's all very beautiful, and we feel a bit like we've been let into an exclusive club, accidentally. Shhh, don't spoil our cover!
Our landlords live in the main house and they seem like nice people. They have a few kids, and sometimes we hear them practicing the violin or yelling at their new puppy, who is appropriately named Happy, and who is not really so much a dog as pure joy stuffed into the tiniest fur coat known to man. He is completely oblivious to their shouting; he's just too excited to be in the world. At first this just increased the yelling, but I think we've moved past that stage now.
Our neighborhood is much too fancy for us, as evidenced by the upscale McDonald's, women with fashionably cool-blonde hair and leather boots, and shops filled with beautiful things we can't afford. The grocery store has a gelato shop, and our bus line has luxurious sounding destinations like "Princess Margaret" and "Cashmere." The only clothes I can afford on our street are at the thrift shop, which I don't mind. It's all very beautiful, and we feel a bit like we've been let into an exclusive club, accidentally. Shhh, don't spoil our cover!