I’m a kiwi living abroad and you made great points. Most downsides of NZ are about money I think. New build houses (not cheap investment properties) have much better insulation.
I agree, the house prices are a bit nuts for what you get! We're in a new rental now with insulation and it's amazing, such a difference in the chilly nights!
For people looking to move to new Zealand or kiwis still living in nz dont despair.....iv lived in the uk for 7+ years. Everything is relevant.....fuel in the uk is more expensive. Nz minimum wage is more than the uk. Rent is cheaper in nz depending on location Housing again cost all depends on location. Nz has more going for it than the negatives
The UK has more supermarkets and some have cheaper prices than you will find in Australia and New Zealand. Rent is cheaper in the UK unless you want to live in London
Pros and cons of both places. I'm thinking of buying land in the UK but that would be in a rural area. I wanna keep my place in NZ as lots of my toys are illegal in the UK so they can stay in NZ where they are legal
DO NOT COME TO NEW ZEALAND, The Government here takes ASTOUNDING FEE"S and taxes, Its absolutely the WORST place in the world for paying triple to the government with every single transition. GST alone is 15% then they slap you with everything from Import feels Bio security levees every SINGLE time. the cost of living is off the charts. To give you and idea, I paid $1268 for medical capsules, then I had to pay $308.84 ONTOP. That's not even going into the income tax, fux tax, road use tax etc etc. New Zealand government cries that they are an island nation and that's what makes things expensive. Nope it's them with their hands out over and over for every dollar you earn be prepared to give the Gov 80% in various taxes. Disgusting!
As a Kiwi who had lived in Europe for 12yrs and travelled to the US, we moved back to NZ, it’s a beautiful safe place, house prices are crazy but you can build your own (not a Mc Mansion) if you learn how, forget fomo and your ego competing with your friends, and you can build reasonably priced, yeah you earn more in Aussie because they are natural resource rich but you don’t cook(to hot)in summer in NZ goldilocks climate, if you don’t like the outdoors don’t pick NZ move to Seoul, and don’t come here for work if you have no skills, but there’s a reason billionaires buy here and people raise there kids here because it’s safe, beautiful food, and you don’t live to work, when I come home every time after travelling abroad I sigh in relief and thank god I live here.
Nevertheless myopic view. You're in for drought and increasing import costs not to mention the hard-right asylum policies as horrifying as Texas but you never have to actually face it since you're surrounded by a thousand miles of ocean.
Indeed..👏👏👏...!!!!!! Amazing point of view...I was born overseas, and I am very grateful to have NZ citizenship...I have been travelling and living abroad, and honestly, the life quality in NZ is good, and the safety as well, NZ is beautiful......I have returned from a trip, and I was so happy to be in NZ again...People have no idea what is going on abroad, war everywhere, high inflation, crazy immigration numbers, illegals, violent gangs, air pollution, etc...regarding the house, just build a tiny/simple house and be happy....!! and Do you think Canada is good ??? 🤣🤣🤣hahhahahahahaha......Trash and ridiculous expensive (horrible house market)..just go to Vancouver...hahahahah....worst than NZ, AUS, U.S, etc...I am tired of hypocrite people....Most of those people are frustrated to not get an opportunity to stay longer or reside in NZ...the truth is painful...yes NZ has problems, but the NZ problems are small compared to other countries...and by the way, I was living in Thailand and Vietnam, I was in shock about the high number of Kiwis/Australian staying there as you said Australia is rich in mineral resources, but the economy is going down with an "INSANE" housing crisis, crazy climate change, very hot, fast flooding, etc , and when the kiwis are facing the painful reality there, they are just moving out of Australia as well....So the western media will never show the deep recession in Australia now like everywhere...I met so many Canadians, Americans, Germans, French, Japanese backpackers there telling me how I was so luck to have NZ citizenship...So stop this to undermine NZ...be grateful and happy to be here...🙏🙏🙏 Life is tougher abroad....Period...!!!
My Japanese friend managed to find a sponsor for her work visa. Her employer owned hotels all over NZ and he gave her a job in his large Queenstown hotel where she had her own room. She had to work there for a year. She had enough leisure time to explore and socialize. When that year was up she moved to Auckland and got a job running a boarding house for overseas students. She helped them with their English and home work. She eventually got NZ citizenship and had numerous jobs and got her real estate license/ She ended up marrying a Kiwi and they had son and now own their own home in Auckland.
I was born in Auckland you are so right. New Zealand is crazy expensive it's simply not worth it anymore to live and just rent so many problems are getting worse like gangs and crime. So happy I'm out of there.
Gangs and Crime are not the monstrous boogey man the media and Politicians make out it is. It's the typical scaremongerinbg you get from a right wing Political Government and their support mechanism called the right wing media. Don't believe what you read. Crime is present in most Western countries but on the scale described in the New Zealand mainstrem media it sounds like its around every corner of every street in every urban and rural town. Wrong. Aotearoa is a peaceful country where you can raise your kids and live a peaceful life if that;s what you're after.
In New Zealand, my home is fully insulated, heated, and equipped with solar panels, meaning I don't even pay for electricity. It's a 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom house built 12 years ago, purchased for $500,000 three years back. While groceries are pricey, my profession earns me more than my American and Canadian counterparts. Driving on the South Island is excellent. I was hired from the UK before moving here. Essentially, what you're saying is that if you lack a career in a sought-after field or financial stability, you'll face challenges. But isn't that true everywhere?
"...my profession earns me more than my American and Canadian counterparts." "Professionals" can expect to have half the disposable salary in NZ compared to Canada, and less than half compared to the USA.
Exactly, if you live smart then NZ is very affordable. I almost wet myself when they said one of their 5 reasons not to move to NZ was because craft beer was too expensive. Oh the disappointment when they found out New Zealand wasn't designed around their specific set of needs.
Insulation is compulsory for new builds here...older houses from the 1920's (victorian, colonial, bungalow homes) may not have had insulation but with so many people renovating older homes, they certainly are insulated including under floor heating and heat pumps etc. Rental properties need to be insulated to meet building codes now too.
I’m a Kiwi who lived in the UK for 17 years and then came back home to NZ during Covid. While there are positives and negatives about every country, I feel NZ has gone downhill in many ways and is heading in the wrong direction. Here are a few of my gripes. 1. The cost of living in general and the cost of housing compared to salaries and wages in particular. Before I left NZ to live in the UK, I felt I was moving from a cheap country (NZ) to an expensive country (UK). Now I’ve moved back, it’s the other way around. 2. It’s a country for the rich and we have a government that only cares about the rich. An example of this is the current government when they came into power giving massive tax cuts to landlords on their passive incomes and capital gains while taxes on salary earners remain relatively high. At a time when the average person is struggling with a cost of living crisis, the government prioritises landlords and their rich mates, while families are taxed like cash cows. 3. We have a disabled daughter, and one of the first things the government cuts back on when they come to power is support for disabilities. I’m on quite a high salary and pay more than my fair share of tax, but we get very little back from a system we are paying into, while landlords, and older generations pay less than their fair share of tax on their unearned income. 4. It doesn’t have to be this way, the opposition Labour Party had the mandate when they were in power to introduce a capital gains tax on property investments but didn’t have the guts. 5. It’s impossible to live comfortably here on a single salary, I earn close to 200k and we struggle with a young family. 6. We are letting in too many low quality immigrants from 3rd world countries to try and prop up our economy because we have become too expensive for immigrants from 1st world countries who can do much better elsewhere. This just places even more strain on our stretched resources and housing supply for little gain. 7. Our best and brightest young people are leaving in their droves and I don’t blame them. There’s little here to offer if you’re young and ambitious.
Trouble is I hear all the same points from people from other countries, every country at the moment claims everyone is leaving, so I don't know where they're all going, people struggling to get by seems to be increasing in every country even Aussie, however I think we probably have one of the most generous welfare systems in the world. Also we already have a capital gains tax on property , it's called the brightline test. Our young have traditionally gone overseas to travel and work , most come back, but there's just more opportunity overseas due to our remoteness to markets and tech industries for specialists.
I immigrated to Australia from the UK a few years ago, and visited NZ for a conference a few months ago. Honestly, the natural beauty was amazing and it was a great place to visit. The funny thing was even as a Brit, I was granted an Australian Resident Visa upon arrival which technically allowed me to live and work indefinitely in NZ if I wanted to. However, petrol was crazy expensive (it is in the UK too, but public transport is more available there and I've also got used to the cheap prices in Australia...). Property prices in Australia are pretty bad and have got worse in the UK (London is on another level ofc) but when I had a look at NZ, it was insane. I couldn't find anything decent in the town I was in (Wellington) for less than $1 million. The salaries in NZ do not reflect this. Even at the conference I attended, my counterparts from NZ were prob on 30-40% less than what I'm on but with much higher living costs compared to Australia. I'd consider moving to NZ one day, but only if I had a ton of money and enough to not struggle. Otherwise, it's a holiday destination for me.
HOW COLD ? One winter morning we woke up with a layer of frost on top of 3 Duvets from my breath during the night. When we looked at the temp gauge it had been -2.5 C. Shitty houses and new ones are made of cheap poor materials so don't expect Quality just like the roads, they have started to erect permanent Road Works signs and never come back. Potholes will destroy a alloy rim and your wallet. CANADA is my new home and thinks @brittanymorgan09 will be back soon.
Oh wow that is horrible!! Yes, we'll be back to Canada in a few months and despite the crazy cold winters, I'm really looking forward to returning home!
As a Kiwi lawyer / investment banker who has been living in London for almost 30 years - I think you really need to consider what it is that you seek in terms of work / life balance & decide if NZ is a fit for you. Growing-up in NZ I flew light aircraft in the Southern Alps, was a Ski-Patroller, keen sailor, loved off-roading, hiking & enjoyed solitude and getting away from the crowds.These things are more difficult to do in Europe. NZ is not for everyone, but if sports, nature & the outdoors are your priorities then it may make your shortlist. It's a difficult place in which to build financial independence as it's really an economy built around small businesses. If you have the skills to start your own business or are a highly skilled professional then it may suit you. In my experience our most skilled professionals either make their life in NZ or move to UK or the US. Australia is more of a draw for our trades people and semi-skilled workers because that economy can support higher pay for non-professionals.
Very interesting perspective! Thank you for sharing. Great point, if you're an outdoor enthusiast and want to work in that industry, this is a great country to be in.
@@Penguinracer Here we go again - another “Raising the IQ of both countries” reference from a Kiwi. Approx 800,000 New Zealanders live in Australia - are you seriously suggesting that they’re ALL trades people or people with limited skill set?
Weve been here for 20 years. By the time I fully realised how much I did not want to be here anymore, ( all the reasons you mention and more), it was too late as my kids have grown up here and now I have a granddaughter here too. They feel they belong here and want to stay while I would LOVE to go home. This is a problem for many people who immigrate to NZ who feel they dont belong but get trapped due to family and halso by ow hard and costly it is to emigrate again tback home or to another country. '
I'm so sorry, that is definitely a tough situation. I totally get what you mean by feeling like you don't belong. I've never felt like more of an outsider in my life! Thankfully, we've made a few great friends from here but it's the exception. I hope you get to return home one day 😊
@@Natp571try and find other ex pats or get in contact with some of the maori or islanders as tbey are pretty cool and friendly folks and they have a great laugh
@@StephanParry then globalism came along and NZ started to buy most of its goods from overseas causing the prices to skyrocket due to the fact that it is a tiny island with very few people with no buying power, soooo…
depends on where you live in Canada. I live in Vancouver which is super expensive and i compared the NZ prices with Vancouver and it is cheaper in NZ while the minimum wage is $6 higher. So for anyone living in an expensive city in Vancouver can easily live in New Zealand. Also Canada is seeing massive wildfires now whereas New Zealand is not and that clean air is very alluring.
For sure, Vancouver is far more expensive. NZ prices have calmed down a lot since I made this video though. Minimum wage is more but if you've got good experience it can be quite hard to find a salary that is comparable to Canada or places like the US & Australia. All depends on what you value in life too. This video is just my personal reasons why I wouldn't live here long term, not a basis for everyone considering moving here. I've just heard stories of heli pilots going to BC for the fire season to make a bunch of money before coming back here too!
Australia has higher wages, cheaper retail items, lower GST, friendlier people, better beaches, better parks, double decker trains, driverless trains, and more light rail; compared with NZ. Thats why so many New Zealanders who have the money to cover the upfront costs to settle in Australia, are moving there. Average median hourly rate in NZ is only around NZ$29/hour compared to Australia's AU$40/hour. You get more value for money in Australia than in NZ. Plus average temperatures during winter in Australia are a high 20'C compared to a much more colder 10'C in Wellington.
A working holiday visa is just that, youve primarily come here to holiday and you are allowed to do some casual work to fund your holiday for 12 or 24 months. The working holiday visa is not to give people the chance to take permanent work off locals and to settle permanently in NZ.
Correct. However lots of immigrants will give New Zealand a try through a working holiday visa before taking the necessary steps to settle permanently if they want to. My point was that it can be difficult to find a job on any visa if you aren't already in NZ and have the right to work or have residency.
@@klle3419 Yes, to some extent. But we are a warmer country than the UK and Germany, Netherlands, etc. Houses are gradually being retrofitted, as costs have come down somewhat, and as the country has become more wealthy.
2024 and you don't have standard insulation in homes!!!!???? Everything I've learned about NZ it looks worse and worse AND you're under the boot of China.
Rubbish. I am living in a 90 year old home. 4 years ago the govt paid 100% for the cost of under floor insulation, ceiling insulation and for and ground under-house moisture barrier. If I didn't already have a heat pump they would have paid 80% of that.
I'm originally from the UK, and while I don't disagree that the cost of living is high in NZ, the minimum wage is higher than in the UK, there is not a hugely different, and from what I can gather speaking with friends and family in the UK the cost of living is roughly comparable. It seems that Canada must be a less expensive place to live by comparison.
Definitely depends on where in Canada you live (like all other countries ie. London in the UK). Toronto and Vancouver are comparable/more expensive but where we're from (Calgary) it's cheaper there. Prices in NZ have come down a LOT in the past few months though (specifically groceries) but it's the higher cost of living paired with low wages that really makes in difficult to live here. When I say low wages I'm not talking about minimum wage, I mean you would make $20-30K less/year doing the same job here than in Canada.
@@brittanymorgan09 my partner and I have (maybe we have been lucky) found that our salaries in NZ have been better than what we were able to achieve in the UK. But more importantly we have had more consistent periods of employment. Between 1999 and 2009 my partner found herself in 6 different roles, none of them lasting 2 years and within that time making the most of being unemployed to complete her masters degree. I also changed jobs 5 times and had to develop a side line in order to keep money coming in. That was a rough 10 years in the UK and I'm not sure things have improved in the past 14 years.
@@iallso1 I've read other comments that said the same thing about making more in NZ than the UK! I didn't know the UK pay was so bad. I know for sure the pay is a lot less than in Calgary at least for our roles. Comparisons are all about where you come from/relativity. I'm glad you are able to make a nice living here!
Going by vids I have watched recently I can assure you almost everything in the UK is cheaper than in NZ, especially food and drink even Petrol is now cheaper here at $2.40 (£1.40) a litre.
Any kiwis reading this. Brittany comes from Alberta in Canada and she complains about the insulation because in Alberta they regularly get temps dropping down between -40 and -50 degrees celcius in the winter. Some of that can probably be blamed in climate change but this is why she is complaining so much about how the older houses in NZ dont have sufficient insulation!! 100+ years ago the climate in NZ was warmer and insulation was not needed, and it also was not available either. Older houses in NZ are cheaper to rent, because they dont have insulation and the renter has to pay the power bills. Now that the climate is changing, insulation is a neccesity and it takes time to insulate all the older houses around the country.
@@francescathomas3502 thanks for adding some context to this. We're now in our first insulated place and it's been amazing! Energy bills are insanely high though (nearly $300/mo) so I would be horrified to see an energy bill from a low-insulation home in the winter. I think a lot of people choose not to run heaters because of the price. Wild!
I was born in NZ but I have not been back for more than a decade and the depressing fact is that I cannot afford to buy a house in the country I was born in. The failure of every government for many years has ruined quality of life there, as they have in many western nations
moved back from Aus to NZ about 12 years ago with my partner and we had nothing but debt.. her 20k student loan, me 15k credit card debit, we both got decent jobs not even super high earning.. in that 12 years we paid off all debt, brought a house (yes its not in auckland, its in a cheaper region) and are now living pretty well, while still chipping away at the mortgage.. oh and managed to save for a deposit while paying stupidly high auckland rent (we did however also use our kiwisaver for the deposit along with savings)
Yes, New Zealand is one of the underpopulated western countries that started seeing the effect of the rapidly aging baby-boomer population. The economics of it just don't add up. I believe the same symptoms will soon be across all the western countries. New Zealand is at the front of it because of the small population and the distance from the rest of the world.
That makes sense - all the young' uns are moving away from NZ leaving the parents and grandparents behind. I'm one of those young 'uns who left NZ 20+ years ago. My folks still live in NZ. Ironically i now live in Canada. I left NZ because I felt it to be too parochial. To slow. To far behind what I was seeing on TV with regards to what was happening elsewhere in the world. The variety of clothing and food products in NZ was not terribly wide. Every week when I went shopping it was often "same old, same old", every week. Movies took forever to arrive in NZ for their first runs. I married a Canadian and moved to Canada. So much more variety. In scenery, in foods, in clothing, and in other products. Of course I did have to get used to the extreme cold winters and the extreme hot summers, but I think I am ok with them now. I promptly stopped driving when I moved to Canada. I did not think I could be safe while driving on the "wrong side" of the road. Not in the middle of a huge city (GTA). Now I just use Public Transit. As for the outdoors. NZ is beautiful hence the Godzone attitude. The NZ economy is probably suited much better for Tourism and not necessarily for Permanency.
Aotearoa/NZ isn't underpopulated -it just has less people than some overpopulated countries. Part of what's great about living here is that there are fewer people. I would not want that to change- it's a major advantage. Yes its expensive so i have to live within a lower income, I'm Ok with that
@@grahambarnes7325Large proportion of young kiwis today cannot afford low income because of the high rent prices. Many leave for Australia because of that. Older generations os New Zealand will have to start paying with their overvalued assets for their care. In other words, to sell the land for food and a change of diapers.
Yep. Kiwi here. Only reason I'm still here is my kids (shared with ex wife) and parents who are getting older. I'd be gone otherwise. I hate driving here (I drive a lot for work, all over the Waikato and Bay of Plenty) due to the massive amount of trucks and the weather which combined are ripping our roads to pieces. I'm on a good salary here but I spend 50% of my income on rent, and live pay to pay. I'm looking to move to either Australia (more likely) or the States due to population size which means more opportunity and lower costs for food etc. NZ once was amazing, but now its a low wage, poor, isolated, high cost country. It might be beautiful, but unless you're wealthy you can't enjoy it. The aging population is draining NZ as well, so by the time I retire there might not even be a Superannuation.
Our value added production has declined over the decades. That is part of the reason why we are poorer now. We don't make our own paper and we produce a lot less furniture. Instead we export wood chips so paper can be mode overseas, (less paper needed everywhere now because of computers and smart phones). We used to make some electronic and appliance gear here but radio factory shutdown and Fisher & Paykel now make there appliances in USA. We don't make locomotives or a lot of railway equipment. It is manufactured overseas and I think assembled in New Zealand. We used to have car factory assembly here but now it is all done overseas. We have most of our economic investment in one basket: farming and horticulture. That makes less safety for us if a disease or natural disaster wipes out crops or milk/meat production. That is becoming more likely with climate change. One of the problems of production here is shipping for export because of our isolation. There are at least some industries where shipping would not be a concern. Industries like computer programming. That industry was crying out for government support but did not get it. If there is no prospect for anyone that might want to do a certain field they won't study for it. They will go overseas or do something else. Another thing affecting younger people more now, is that there is less of them than previous generations, (that affects many western countries). That means there are/will be less of working age compared to elderly. Part of the reason for that is women have to work for enough income, (also because of security because of higher divorce rates). Inflation has caused the cost of living to go to high for single family income. If there was enough income originally for single family income, that went away at least partly because women all suddenly wanted to work. If both men and women worked but still the general economic production of goods stay the same or near the same because of extra currency in the system inflation goes up. I realize that with technology there are a lot more opportunities for women than there use to be say in 1800's. Women wanted to get a better life the same as men with new technologies and also the new value of been independent. Things have not worked out terribly well because of these conflicting wants/necessities. Not worked out well not just in New Zealand but quite a lot of western countries.
NZ is not as bad as Australia. People here drive 20 to 30km/hr over the speed limit and expect you to do the same. I’ve been verbally abused several times for driving at the speed limit in residential areas🤦🏻♀️
Hey I think you are out off touch mate, check the Canadian news, then you know what's going on in Canada. The house prices, food prices are out off control
I am in the States and I want to move to NZ! Haha....seriously, it's expensive in the US now and full of people super crowded. We always want the opposite of what we have. I will trade you Jacob. You can live in California for a bit it's nuts.
Very valid reasons, I live in the south and we only heat the living room and have electric blankets on the beds to take of the chill before going to bed. I guess we are used to the cold here as it does not seem to bother me.
We lived in a house that was heated that way and we eventually got used to it but it was definitely a shock coming from a country with central heating!
Same, I have a log fire and don't turn on the electric heaters , and turn my E blanket on low overnight, For a laugh I put a temp gauge in my bedroom one night in middle of winter and my bedroom was colder than the inside of the fridge, about 3 degrees.
Very good video. You are so right about the driving problem here in New Zealand. I have lived in New Zealand most of my life and I can confirm it can be very dangerous driving in this country. Some New Zealanders become very impatient when they are driving and tend to close follow your vehicle. They try to put pressure on you to either speed up or get out of the way. As you point out, the safest thing you can do is to pull over to the side of the road when you can and let them pass. On long trips and in some rural areas you can find yourself very frequently having to pull over to avoid stressful driving where you feel it is becoming dangerous when you are driving.
I lived outside NZ for 40 years and came back a couple of years ago. Yes, it is very expensive here and you need a lot to set yourself up. Comparing to all the continents I have lived on, I would still say, NZ is the most beautifulness, quietest and friendly. What has changed so much are the diversity of cultures...something that was missing when growing up, back in the day. I love the different cultures that have emerged in NZ and now a good range of available foods. For instance, I can now buy kimchi or large variety of spices or sushi...all something that was not available decades back. If you are a Kiwi, living abroad and you see your Gold Card hanging Infront of you...come home. It will be the best decision of the rest of your life.
Yeah I bounce between uk and the Balearic Islands now... A sweet spot..... Although I kept the kiwi partner, but he is aware of how nz isn't for everyone!
Agreed same with me. They are not very welcoming here and I am leaving as well soon. Going back to the UAE where I was happy, in a job and earning good money all of which is impossible in this country.
I lived in New Zealand (Auckland and Tauranga) for roughly 3 years and it's safe to say I didn't really like it at all. I agree with many of your points. People have this weird picture that NZ is a paradise utopia but NZ does a great job at hiding the problems while projecting to the world this "100% Pure" myth. Disclaimer - I left NZ just before Covid so I don't know if some of my points have changed or gotten worse. - Housing quality is horrendous, Kiwis pay astronomical amounts of $$ for glorified shacks with little to no heating that gets damp and mouldy very easily. Think of it as paying Swiss prices for Bulgarian quality. For a country that knows it's mild, windy and rainy for a lot of the year this is unfathomable. - This is connected to the first point. Quite often people take the easy way out and use band aid solutions for issues that need proper maintenance. When I told my Kiwi coworkers and friends about how cold the houses are a lot of them say "just rug up, use more blankets, wear thick clothing etc." You'd think they'd say build better homes but no. - Public transport is unreliable. Trains to and from Britomart were often extremely late and infrequent. Coverage is also not extensive. - Kiwis while overall friendly I found to be very small minded and take any criticism of their country as a personal attack. - Food in NZ is good, but I missed the sheer variety of ethnic cuisines. There's plenty of Asian food but NZ really lacks in Continental European, Middle Eastern, Latin American and African food. - NZ was a lot more racist than I was expecting, the casual racism towards Asian people in particular was shocking. - I found there to be quite a toxic attitude towards Australia (where I'm now living), almost bordering an obsessive inferiority complex. I'm in Australia now and nobody here seems to say anything bad about NZ or most people don't really care at all. It's very one sided. - New Zealand is not an ideal place if you want to go far in life. Career opportunities are limited. - There is zero in the way of nightlife even in Auckland. It feels like one massive retirement village, whenever I mention this to Kiwis they say it's because they have a small population but similar sized and smaller cities in Asia and Europe have more going on than Auckland. It's dead when the sun goes down. I'm currently in Australia now and it's definitely not perfect but I'm happier here than I was in NZ. I have two coworkers from Brazil and Thailand who like me moved to New Zealand first and didn't like it before moving on to Australia.
This is a great write up, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I agree with a lot of them and I'm really curious how Aussie compares. I'm looking forward to visiting to see for myself but there's definitely good reasons why so many Kiwis move there. The racism/closed minded thing still gets me. I had such an idealistic view of NZ before moving here that has been shattered. It's been a privilege and a real treat to live and travel here but I'm looking forward to going back to Canada.
@@biggiedii4889 Load of rubbish. Cities are cities the world over. NZ has many late night bars and dance clubs if that is your thing, especially in Auckland. You must have been living under a rock. Outside of the cities you have the wonder of nature second to none in the world. Australia? Give me a break. One of the most racist bigoted countries in the world full of wannabe Yanks. That is the main problem with Australia - it's full of Australians.
Pockets of Racism is in all ethnicities, and in all continents, I have experienced racism towards me in Arabic countries Asian countries, in the US from African Americans and not mild either full blown in your face and snarky behind your back, but if you were to compare countries just look at how Australia treats it’s original owners compared to the Maori in NZ, you don’t come to NZ with a very small population to get rich or nightlife
@chloeclout6897 I know that but New Zealand actively promotes itself as a racism free utopia when the reality is very different. A lot of my Kiwi acquaintances were quick to point out racism in other countries but then say racist things about Asians. It's the double standards for me.
Historically the settlers to NZ came from UK. To them it was hot here, so they built homes to stay cool. And we had a massive supply of cheap wood and coal, so didn’t need worry about out heating. As a Canadian, have you ever been to Vancouver. You want o talk about expensive house - check out Vancouver.
Yes, I've read some articles about the British influence on housing indeed. Vancouver & Toronto are just about as expensive as Auckland 🙂 I've been to Vancouver a few times and my partner lived there for 2 years. I would never be able to afford to live in either city!
Australias temperatures are much hotter than NZ's, like 45°C + in summer so you'd need to earn 30K more to make it worth putting up with the heat, lack of drinking water, and bush fires.
As a kiwi living in Toronto, I lived in a mid 1950's home with no insulation in the walls and single glazing. North Americans are used to central heating and A/C of their whole living space and so the per capita energy consumption and CO2 emissions is very high and kiwis might say wasteful. Petrol is cheaper as there's plenty of oil and vehicles on average are up to half the efficiency of NZ. Food and beer prices don't seem all that much better IMO. Driving behaviour is not safe, however most high speed driving is on divided highways so less deaths per km.
Driving in NZ is the most chill driving i have EVER done in my life. If you are from europe you will be more than just fine. Kiwis do tend to drive quite slow in the cities though. Can be tough to remain calm there. Once you get to the rural parts its fine though.
@@peterfokinpan8063 Driving in New Zealand is a pleasure. Drivers are patient and courteous to the extreme. Death toll on roads is actually very low. Try driving in any given African country or any other 3rd world country for that matter. Even the middle east has wild traffic. Over Easter the NZ death toll was like 7? In South Africa, as example, it was 700. New Zealand is lekker.
I’m a kiwi immigrated to UK 2010. Yep I freezes my but off in nz as a kid . Sleep in thick clothes It’s too dear for housing and food compared to UK But electricity is cheaper in NZ because of water dams
@@kiwitrainguy You can if you want, I don't think most people do though, although I'm sure people are becoming more conscious to wastage especially because of the insane cost of energy and climate education now.
All 5 of your points are so... on point. These and the isolation (it takes long to fly anywhere remotely different to NZ) are my reasons for having no desire whatsoever to return to the 'country of my birth'.
I am from New Zealand I don't really know what it's like in Canada but what I do know as a rental property owner it has to be up to a very high standard and has to pass the healthy home standard to legally rent which includes insulation in the roof and walls and the floor if it is an older home without concrete floor it also needs a certain amount of kilowatts of heating depending on how big the houses
I have heard of this landlord minimum requirement thing, unfortunately I think a lot of people are still not following the law. It definitely isn't being applied to Airbnb's here.
It is Fucking cold in Canada - especially in Alberta where she comes from. Temps can down to -40 degrees celsius. Which is why insulation is her number reason to hate NZ!!!
@@francescathomas3502 I don't hate NZ. Living in a non-insulated home is an inconvenience coming from a country with central heating but we got used to it. It's a reason I wouldn't immigrate to NZ long term because the cost to buy and retrofit an older home to get it up to current code would be a nightmare. The alternative is buying a newer home or already well insulated one which will cost you $$$.
You're on to it. NZ has always built to a minimum standard and has the mis placed opinion of itself as being sud-tropical. Even new standards are too low, but your best bet is a new home. NZ never recovered from deregulation and Rogernomics = low wage economy@@brittanymorgan09
I am an old kiwi who travels a lot, so just to add my 2cents. We call Nelson $20hr paradise, everyone wants to live there and that keeps the wages low. Food, fresh food is expensive, frozen food is cheap. Chicken and Pork is cheap Lamb and Beef expensive. Eating out is expensive but going for a drink varies on where you drink, club and local bars are cheap but yuppie bars are expensive I pay $20 to $30 for a dozen of beer from the supermarket. NZ is an outdoor persons paradise, but if you like nightclubs, fine dining etc go somewhere else. If you are white, you need to be careful where you go at nighttime, some areas of NZ can be quite violent, and the police are pretty useless except for giving out traffic fines. But you are right about our houses
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! We've found fresh produce to be quite inexpensive now that so much is in season and great deals at local farmers markets. It was crazy expensive when we first moved here at the beginning of 2023 though!
Yep, don't come here. Too expensive. Too cold. If you were not BORN here, there's no reason to stay. Too many wingeing Poms & Canadians cluttering up the place -- the whining is deafening. Go home, you'll love living under Trudeau (we dumped his WEF Young Global Leaders cohort Ardern).
Speaking as a Brit, its a shame that NZ, Australia, Canada and the UK don't have better employment rules, allowing citizens to move between these countries. After all we have similar language and culture. Canada is not good at allowing other citizens from those other 3 countries (that share the same King and have similar constitutions) to move about freely either. Its called CANZUK and was a nice idea that never happened. Another empty Brexit promise; we should have stuck with the EU. The roads are actually more similar to those in the UK; well, northern England, Wales and Scotland, to those of Canada and the USA. But yes, because I wanted to see the stunning scenery in NZ I was always pulling over to let a farmer in a UTE overtake at 100+ kmh.
That would be so amazing, I would definitely be more open to living and travelling in Aussie, NZ & UK if some agreement was made between our countries. I'd love to experience life in London, even for a short time! Perhaps it will develop down the road 🤞
NZ has free movement in Australia and that’s the problem! We get their criminals their homeless and everyone who wants to leach of Australian job market. Stop the free boarder with NZ Bcse Australians have not got any thing from a free boarder with NZ. It’s a one way highway
I am genuinely curious is it actually cold indoors or was that just an ad plug, another question I saw somewhere that rent was week by week and somewhere else someone said that doctors visits were $50 for x amount of time. This has me wonder if everything else in nz has me spending money more frequently. Is that the case in your experience?
@@jaydencohen7700 it was legitimately really cold in a few of the places I lived in while in NZ. There are laws that say rentals need to be insulated but I stayed in a lot of Airbnb's which I guess don't fall into that category. It's something to keep in mind, especially with older properties. Now that I'm back in Canada I can say I definitely took proper heat & insulation for granted. My apartment is never cold and I haven't had to turn the heat on yet, even though it's below zero at night. I paid $90 I think to speak to a doctor in the phone in NZ. My ex had stitches and some checkups at a private hospital and that cost $140. Hope that helps.
Yeah I will agree that New Zealand is insanely expensive hence why there are over one million kiwis that have moved overseas. Love it here but it's hard to survive. I am a New Zealand citizen and I think that the working holiday visas should be changed so you can apply for permanent jobs.
We have no enemies and are not war mongers. We are laid back down to earth people who believe in giving everyone a fair go. We are friendly and helpful to visitors and neighbours alike. We work fewer hours than Americans do.....the ones who vlog on here can't believe they have so much time off, long weekends and holidays etc.
You seem to be a bright, intelligent and positive person. Why on earth would you live in NZ? Great place to visit, but definitely not a place to live in.
Crime rate high,high property prices, groceries too expensive,insurance every year more and more expensive,petrol too expensive. Time to move to Australia.
So, here's the thing, whenever a country (any country) gets too expensive or hard to settle, crime can go up. Back then, we were pretty good, so that wasn't a problem. As of now, this is a global thing, not only nz.
Sad to hear about the crime. We haven't experienced any yet ourselves but have heard a few first hand accounts from locals. Scary stuff! The area we're from in Canada (Calgary) has really high crime since the pandemic too so you're right, it's a global issue for sure.
The insulation comment struck me as a bit weird, we live in New Plymouth and have windows open 24/7 all year round, what would be the point of insulation it's not that cold.
I think the big pull is a great work/life balance, weather and the scenery/outdoors. That's what would draw me anyway! I'll have a video coming out soon that will cover all the reasons why people should move here!
Out door lifestyle, friendly people or they're cashed up. Sone jobs pay well. Brittany doesn't have a good visa. The hig cost is housing but if you sell up in London move here get residency and buy here you don't need to worry about high rent for example. The reason it's expensive 1 million people moved here in 17 years (population 4 to 5 million).
I watched your vlogs because your from my hometown Calgary where I grew up, I moved to nz when I was 21 so I’ve been here 20yrs now & I love it here…..is nz over hyped? Maybe but there’s more pros living here than there are living in Canada…but haven’t got all day to list them….I just think when you landed here it came across like you had an agenda on what your talking about now in my opinion….5 months isnt long enough when your making judgement on a place to live in especially when your moving around and not settled in a particular area, I just think it’s nit picking…insulation in the buildings ? cmon….what you do is install it if you have a place or make do and find a way to stay warm with what you have which is one thing I learnt from kiwis when I first arrived. I Love Canada but I Love it here, would never go back to Canada.
Everyone has their own opinion and I'm not looking for others to agree with it. I came to New Zealand expecting to fall in love with it actually and was surprised when I didn't. There are downsides to emigrating to any country and the reasons I listed in this video are mine. You can assume whatever you want but that doesn't make it true. Insulation in New Zealand is a legitimate problem and extremely expensive to retrofit into a home that doesn't already have it. I'm glad you prefer New Zealand over Canada, I'm sure lots of people agree with you. I prefer Canada and I'm sure lots of people agree with me too. Thanks for sharing your perspective.
Thank you for speaking about the cost of living being high. I have mentioned this a number of times. To so many people. We have a government who is unrealistic about this issue. Also, I invest and our tax laws suck. They make it hard for people who want to invest for their retirement. Because the reality is because of the cost of living here. I know the pension will not be enough for me. This is the thing to I feel sorry for people who are starting up a business the amount of tax you have to pay is ridiculous and if you are paying rent for your business, it makes it harder.(This is why our businesses are getting taken over by the Aussies) Plus, the council here in Wellington are pathetic they built cycle lanes taking up parking spaces both for Wellington Hospital and businesses operating shops. Are there cycle lanes taking up business's parks in other countries that anyone knows about? Here's something else you could do a segment on.
I lived here all my life. Food quality is very bad. Cost of living is expensive. Entertainment lacks, except in major cities, but outside these city turns bad. Beaches are great, but most beaches are.
New Zealand is the place to come too, if you have money to spend. It is not the place to come to if you have children and cannot afford to buy your first home and little to no savings. Dual income couples with no children or rich retirees will find this place amazing. Their are bonuses for New Zealand but again you must have the money, the job and the credentials to make your life situation work here. Food, Rent, Mortgages, Petrol are beyound expensive. Education unless private is sub par, violence is going through the roof - especially youth crime - ram raids, knife attacks on business owners, drug abuse and theft. The Police force are slow to react, Ambulance services are a user pay system, Healthcare waiting lists {public sector} are a joke and gang crime is everywhere. So yup New Zealand is the place to be if you can afford to live in a safe neighbourhood, have a decent paying job $80,000 a year and a partner who earns $90,000 a year, no kids and can move up the corporate ladder or work remotely.
Same with all white nations, they are under attack. USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, South Africa. They are going in hard to break us. Won't happen though. New Zealand people are strong, you have warrior blood, unbreakable. Don't sit around waiting for them to make their next move, stop relying on these corrupt rulers to change, they won't. Get organised, get local, change it from within. Big love from Ireland
Low education standards in public schools, woke agenda infiltrating with sexualization and LGBTQ+ being pushed, significant drugs exposure are amongst some of the challenges - although the current coalition gov't has 'committed' to addressing these🤷
@@bitsnz1837valid concerns for most parents. The current government won't be able to undo most of these things, the virus has infected all the organs unfortunately. And since they inherited a falling economy, they will be blamed for it and come next election, the sheeples Will vote in back Labour and Co and they will come with vengeance and undo any progress made. 😢
I'm from the UK and moved to NZ 13 years ago. I live in Northland and I'm very happy here. I've not been back to the UK since I arrived. Most of the things mentioned in the video are applicable, but I love it here.
The insulation thing comes down to the age of the building. If it was built before 1970 then insulation would not have been included at the time of construction. The insulation of ceilings came in only at the end of the 1960s and I think it was voluntary at first. Insulating walls and then floors came in only about 1980 or so. My house was built just before WW1 so when I bought it in 1980 it had no insulation whatsoever. Starting in 1981 and finally finishing the job in 2008 it is now completely insulated-ceiling & walls but not the floor downstairs, I have to admit (although half of it is concrete and for the other half I had an extra layer of floorboards put down). The walls were insulated by having wool pumped in in 1995 and followed up by polyurethane foam pumped in in 2008. Rental propertied are required by law (as I understand it) to be adequately insulated.
Insulating your home must have been quite the project eh! I imagine it was expensive if it took that long? We're in a pretty new building now and it's insulated but so much heat escapes through the thin windows (thick curtains are helping a lot), crazy that they can still get away with that in new construction.
The insulation of my house was done in several stages quite a few years apart: 1981, 1995, 2004 & 2008. It wasn't that expensive but I was getting all sorts of other things done to my house over the same period and I also went on a six month trip overseas in 1987 so the insulation took a back seat at times. The one thing about the insulation that I forgot to mention was the double glazing on my windows in 2004. Glad to hear that you are in a better insulated dwelling now.@@brittanymorgan09
I love in New Zealand.. Auckland.. it doesn't get really cold here at all, never under 0 Celsius during the day... My house doesn't have insulation, don't need it..
There are no houses under a million bux and they are ugly, and not worth it, food prices are unbelievably high. Company's and businesses here are having a competition to see who's Best at ripping off
It's actually a legal requirement for landlords to provide a heat pump in their rentals now... you should have looked into that, as it has been legally deemed an essential need for some time, due to, as you pointed out, the poor insulation in, particular, the older dwellings. However, we are used to it here and it is not considered problematic...
Not so. A landlord has to provide a form of heating (not necessarily a heat pump). My daughter has an enclosed log burner in her rental - perfectly legal. I am also a landlord and my rental property, while insulated, only has a wood burner (that heats the whole house).
As an expat Kiwi I always tell people how amazing NZ is however ..it is a place to spend money not make money!, hence why many Kiwis travel to Oz for higher wages and compulsory superannuation. Thankfully though many return to NZ to live out their older years and contribute to the economy 😁
That makes total sense! NZ is the perfect wealthy retirement country haha. So many things to do outdoors and a quieter lifestyle than most countries. Fantastic!
I live in the south island. But I really do think if your new to nz it's better to start in the north island where it's warmer if your not use to the cold. Cost of living does suck here .but maternity care ,midwifery is free within and that's for everyone even if your just visiting
@@brittanymorgan09if they are not insulated, then they will be breaching NZ healthy homes standards, which a lot landlords are a bit slummy and do breach the laws.
@@Metarig you don't really need more energy. You still have to heat homes in NZ over winter so it works out to about the same. And fully insulated homes are the norm and have been for much longer in Canada so homes here have better heat retention overall.
NZ winters are quite cold compared with Australia. And due to a lack of supply and increasing demand during the winter months, that makes the cost of living crisis in NZ even more worse. Especially when power companies can charge whatever they like for energy due to a lack of legislation around that, which is one of the cons inherent with capitalism.
Hi I was a bit skeptical about your video at first glance . But glad I checked it out the drivers here are just as you described I thought I was getting old and paranoid, I don't like driving here and avoid it as much as possible and often I will pull over up to 3 times on a 6km suburban drive into work to stay safe. The last few years I have started e biking which is a welcome relief useing the cycle lanes .
Thanks for the kind comment! This video wasn't meant to offend anyone, just giving my own personal reasons why I wouldn't go through the hassle of full immigration in NZ. I would also like to drive as little as possible, not just in NZ but everywhere. Road rage is very scary and driving is super stressful with crazy speeding drivers everywhere! Cycle lanes are fantastic.
Here in the USA they are running constant ads and commercials begging to "move to New Zealand" they are linking the ads with listed career opportunities i. NZ.. The wages for some of theae skilled jobs are around 50k or 60k a year, which that is equal to what is happening in The USA, we have high costs of living but skilled wages are low. But it sounds like NZ costs are even higher, especially the food. Wow
Wow that's really interesting! I can see the appeal to move from the US to NZ for sure; a lot safer here, free healthcare and work/life balance is great. But yes, pay is low and the cost of living is high. It's a balance for sure!
Just a comment on the price of food: I’m a kiwi currently living in the States and I definitely pay more for groceries over here. The numerical value is higher to start with, eg I’ll pay $6 for a loaf of bread I’d spend $4 on in NZ) and then you factor in the exchange rate. It’s a shock doing the conversion into NZD on most food items over here.
Food prices definitely came waaaay down in NZ a few months after making this video. I found the deals for fresh produce especially were great at the farmers markets. Later into our move, we were paying about the same for groceries as we did in Canada.
Living anywhere different has its challenges. I lived in South Korea for a few years and it was a challenge, at least here we speak the same language. If you are thinking of moving here permanently there are others on UA-cam that give great advice. Especially one English couple. Also think about moving to a smaller town or the South Island.
Thanks for the tips! We lived in Nelson for 7 months and quite enjoyed it but ultimately we are returning to Canada since moving here permanently would be such a hassle (and we'd miss friends/family of course!).
these issues seem very minor. nz rentals do legally need to have insulation, the north is much warmer than the south, it's all much milder than canada so nz homes don't need as much insulation. people are outside more, so most houses are built to have indoor/outdoor living. inflation is not different than anywhere else and is coming down. the cost of living is high but come on it's new zealand. craft beer price seriously affects your choice of which country to live in? for road safety nz is somewhere between canada and the us, not any kind of outlier. nz's immigration/entry is quite tightly controlled because lots of people want to move there. overall people can probably see that if these are the worst things about nz it's probably a great place to live :) if you like the warmth in winter, there are a ton of tropical islands just 3 hours' flight away.
I wet myself when I read the craft beer price being a reason not to move to NZ. Another person who thinks New Zealand should be designed around their specific set of needs.
Interesting secrets to how to live in NZ. From a Kiwi. Everything you say is correct, from a Canadian point of view.... Rule 1: Full length thermal draps. (Curtains) Go to an OP Shop, Don't need to cost full price, but it sort's out draughts. Rule 2: Don't have a house on clay, it will be cold and damp. Rule 3: The place is cool, just enjoy where you are and get with the locals. Rule 3.1:, Try Stoke Beer, seriously, check out their history.... Rule 4: Heat Pumps suck, waste of money and power, we use gas, our 1913 house with sash windows actually stays nicely warm so there you go. Rule 5: At least, unlike Aust, all the wildlife doesn't want to kill you. Mind you, Kākāpō may want to be intimate in a slightly disturbing manner. (Google)
Thanks for all the info! We've now found a place that's properly insulated and don't have to use the heat pumps much! Our energy bill is quite reasonable too 👍 on Stoke beer, we've had it a few times now! We live in Nelson & have been to the McCashins brewery too, lots of interesting history indeed 😊🍻
We do pay very high taxes in NZ but this goes to cover free hospital treatment, free CP visits for children 5 and under, and special rates for senior citizens. As a pensioner I pay $19 per GP visit and I have free prescriptions
I've lived here for over 50 years and this is my perspective. Everything is expensive, wages are low, houses are ridiculously expensive, there are lots of older poorly insulated houses which are cold and make u sick, driving is an issue (it's getting better !) however you need a car because public transport is terrible. I live in Auckland which has a pretty good climate although it definately rains too much. We have access to a beautiful harbour which I sail on all year around and some pretty decent beaches. The South Island where you live is much colder but no where near as cold as Canada and doesn't Vanouver have some of the highest rents in the world? Some of these problems are world wide but NZ has a very small population (only 5 million) so we have a small market, we don't have money to build the infrastructure required and we're is a long way from everywhere so things are going to be expensive and we're a young country and just getting started really. However having a small population also has some benefits, once you're out of the city there's lots of space, the South Island is stunning and the skiing/boarding pretty good. Less people = less problems, compared to somewere like England which is slightly smaller than NZ but colder and more crowded and just depressing. Of course comparing to Canada is not really fair as it has lots of space and lots of amazing mountains and isn't it one of the best places in world to live? So what are you doing down here in the first place? Australia is probably a better choice if you want a better wage and standard of living, a lot of Aussies come over here as tourists so we must have something worth looking at. Enjoy the rest of your stay!
Thank you for sharing your detailed perspective! I agree on a lot of points. The reason I came here is because I've always been enthralled with NZ and dreamed of living here since childhood. So I had a very "perfect" view of it before moving and really thought I'd never want to leave! Canada is one of the best places to live but so is NZ, I made a whole video about the reasons I would live here long term too. This video is to help people who are on the fence about moving here. I touch on some of the negative points which are obvious to some but not so much to people who have never been. It's still an incredible country to live in! Haven't been to Aussie yet but I'm excited to travel there and see the differences for myself. It's too hot and too many things that can kill you for me to ever consider it a long term home though.
Shit if these are the negatives of New Zealand I’d live there asap… at least I don’t have to worry about being shot by a cop for driving 5 miles over the speed limit or being robbed at a gas station at night
@@brittanymorgan09 You so hypocrite. You just replied to one, who live's in California, That you said you like to live it there too. Waa haha. That's USA too.
@@pearl-rl1yt parts of California are VERYYYYY different from the rest of the USA. I'd love to live there if safety wasn't an issue and I could afford it but it's more of a pipe dream than anything. Not realistic. Weird that you are reading through all my replies though, obsessed much?
Yeah New Zealand is pretty hyped up, its like when seeing a beautiful ad for a Big Mac sandwich and you see how delicious and juicy it is, then when you actually get it , its stale/old, expensive, cold and not as advertised. Dont be fooled 😅 by NZ governement and tourism.
Is it really that bad. I mean the UK is so depressing and cold and rains all summer. Cost of living in the UK is ridiculous now and not going to get any cheaper. I am really thinking of moving my young family there
@@EBB505 have a go, but visit first. i've lived in the UK, NZ wins hands down. However, most poms that were disappointed were those that believed the 100% Pure tourist nonsense and expected the entire country to be one big advertisement. It's not, it's a modern country and the rubbish has to go somewhere. There's crap bits. But it's empty. Bigger than the UK and only 5m people. Just by-pass Auckland and you'll find your slice of paradise somewhere. Maybe you'll end up owning and orchard, or milking goas, who knows? The best way to make it in NZ is to forget the idea of a "career" and embrace kiwi ingenuity. Do whatever you need to do to make it work
If you have a median NZ income and above, introverted, like pets, cycling, reading, jogging and not interested in dining out or food in general, then yes, NZ is paradise. Other than that, living in Auckland felt so restricting.
Lived here for 20 years and can say without any doubt that I do hate living here. Hated it the moment I landed as a 17 year old with my parents. I think what I detest the most is the idea that NZ is paradise and that you cannot have any frank and free discussions with a lot of Kiwis (my ex husband included) about what is wrong with this place. It’s like they are brainwashed from birth that this is Godzone - I almost feel like I’m talking with a bunch of cult members whenever I try to discuss the cons. In the UK, if someone starts talking about all the cons of the place, we don’t get all high and mighty about it. We most likely join in and list our cons. I have yet to meet one Kiwi who does the same about NZ. Instead of a mature and intelligent discussion, you just get the ever favourite “well bugger off back home then” thrown in your face. If that’s not turning a blind eye to your country’s problems, you deserve all the crap this country gives. It is bloody scary and I am terrified my children are being brainwashed into the “NZ is heaven on earth” crap. To anyone who also gets roped in to this cultish behaviour, please be careful. It is scary and disturbing.
Thank you for sharing this perspective! I honestly thought NZ was the best country on earth before I moved here because of all the positive feedback - seems like the negatives are shoved down and just not talked about. It was a huge shock to me moving here and while I don't hate it, I don't think I could ever live here long term. Definitely eye opening. I agree with what you said about discussing the issues here, back in Canada we are similar to the UK where we join in to discuss our country's problems and are happy to protest and vote our way to a better future.
@@brittanymorgan09 I think a lot of migrants have the same feelings, they’re just too scared to voice them for fear of being lynched! I know a lot of migrants who either have left or plan to leave to either their home country or elsewhere after feeling bitter disappointment at the realities of living here. I will say one thing about NZ, they sure know how to market themselves!!
I am a new zealander and I'm 41 now. I've become so afraid of this country! I used to be brainwashed. I finally woke up in my 30's . Full of dark people who are sick minded
I'm sure that what you say about people thinking their own country is perfect applies to other countries as well. Have you tried saying to someone in the US that they are too obsessed with their military, and all this "Thank you for your service" BS? I am a New Zealander and our family get-togethers inevitably include discussions about how various aspects of our country could, and should, be improved. Maybe it's because we are all boomers lol.
@@kiwitrainguy interesting perspective! I don't think I've met an American who doesn't trash their own country haha and most Canadians I know are very open about the problems and politics. Generational and political thing I think, people who are stuck in their ways and don't like change are usually the brainwashed patriots.
All rental houses and flats now must be insulated, as must all new builds, so that has changed now. New places also have good wall heating in the bathrooms.
Finally, a lady who explains the reality of present day life in New Zealand and it is not "pretty" considering how far away and cut off it is. Unless you really want to immigrate, have at least, say, 250,000$ cash reserves, enough to buy a decent well constructed & insulated home of at least 700,000$ and a excellent paying secure job think twice or more before you embark on your journey.
I agree :( Been here for 4.5 years now and I do not like it still... I am originally from Mauritius and I miss my island everyday After moving to this "developed country", I can say that my island is way more developed than NZ.
@@elisatravailleur4804 Interesting slant. Not sure many will agree including me. My month's visit to Mauritius in 2019 with the benefit of a car allowed me to travel quite extensively. The infrastructure was mostly 3rd World. Living conditions for many were below the West.
nz is ok if you have a lot of money and don't need work. if you don't have a lot of money and rely on work, then, like most nz'rs, you'll struggle. it's just like being inside a house and freezing at the same time.
I 100 percent agree. I have lived in New Zealand for 90 percent of my life and honestly cannot wait to leave forever. Everything is so damn expensive, the education system is horrible and the public schools are just awful, theres been a housing crisis for over 20 years with no sign of improvement and theres barely anything fun to do outside home.
Sorry to hear it's been such a bad experience for you here! I hope you get to move abroad and experience life in another country, it can be very eye opening. I would love to live somewhere in Europe one day and try that part of the world out!
If your rental house has no insulation then your landlord is breaking the law, all rental houses must be insulated in NZ. Every house buiilt since 1978 has insulation installed, so only houses older than that may not have any (though many have been retrofitted). Christchurch is one of the coldest parts of NZ in the winter, I wouldn't want to be living there in a house with no insulation. I can easily keep my home (on the the other side of the south island) at 20-22c during winter with a small log burner, it's an old house but it is now insulated.
I think the issue was with our Airbnbs, people must get away with not insulating their units because they're not long term rentals. Even though we stayed in some for over a month! Now we're in a proper rental apartment and it's lovely and insulated. It's made a huge difference to everyday life.
The drinking thing I was not expecting! We've seen a lot of alcohol abuse in public in this country and I'm concerned drinking and driving is commonplace. It's a problem back home in Alberta too. Really unfortunate.
rampant promiscuity! lol please tell me where that is so I can check it out. We didn't have that back in the day! I think what you're talking about happens a lot worse in a lot of other countries
Brittany we are originally from the UK but live in BC Canada now. New Zealand is exactly like BC, expensive etc etc. But the lifestyle is worth it. Living in heaven costs more. BC NZ are heaven.
@@andycommonsincanada I actually find NZ quite affordable now compared to where I live in Canada (Calgary) so the whole expensive thing doesn't really apply anymore! Wild inflation/cost of living in Canada these days
Ironically, the worst drivers on NZ roads are the overseas tourists who can't seem to stay on the left side of the road.. Many crashes in the south island involve camper vans driven by tourists who have never driven a large vehicle before...
No thanks haha. I'm from Canada which is where my bias and comparisons come from. Obviously NZ is better than many countries in the world but it has its downsides just like everywhere else. If you think otherwise you are kidding yourself 😂
I am planning to move to New Zealand , but I'll be alone I am Australian , so ,I don't have problems with work or Visa , but not sure if by myself I am gonna make it...... I don't mind living in the country , actually , better than live in big cities. Will se!
I thought beer was expensive here in England but those prices are crazy, that large beer is not even a pint and at $14 means it works out to around $18 for a pint, which's £10, it would be between £4 and £5 here, yesterday I bought on offer 30 440ml cans of 5% lager for £22 that's $40NZ, I think I would become teetotal if I lived there, lol.
It is totally out of control here when it comes to "pint" sizes. It's not regulated at all so it's just all over the place! My friend paid $18 NZD for a 20oz pint over the weekend. Insanity. Lol
Ever thought about having a go at brewing your own beer? I bet it's quite a popular thing to do over there at those prices, as you say $18 a pint insanity. I still think overall the good things about living there do outway the bad.@@brittanymorgan09
You think beer is expensive in New Zealand just wait till you see the price in Aussie. A carton of VB was $71 and a carton of great northern was $62 when I left Australia in Feb 2024 and that was the day before the excise kicked in. You ain't seen nothing yet in Australia
Blimey Chris, I shall never complain about our prices here in England again that is taking the P, how can ordinary Aussies afford those prices? @@chrisheffernan3998
@@brittanymorgan09 that's because NZ is metric and "pint" isn't a legal measure. and I guess you've never been to Norway then? Lol!!! Over $30 for a stubbie and that was 15 years ago. I doubt it's got any cheaper. A pizza and a bottle of wine in Oslo was over $100. Craft beer is an absolute scam anyway. Just a few pretentious bell ends trying to come up with a way to charge twice as much for the same thing. Barley, hops, water and yeast. It doesn't cost much to make, and the "craft" is lobbing different hops in. There's nothing to it.
We're considering on moving to new zealand and one of the things that we are curious about is the safety. We heard there are gangs in auckland and we're wondering if gangs are a real problem to new zealand.
there's lots of gangs but generally they keep their nonsense to themselves as harming innocent bystanders brings the cops down on them. Guns are getting restricted so you don't get shoot outs in the streets or anything. It's also a North Island thing. Christchurch has a few in the South Is, but you don't really see them. Safety is relative. On the whole it's low crime, but if you're the unlucky victim it's probably little comfort to know you're the only one. Mostly its petty crime like theft, so don't look like a tourist and don't leave valuables in your car. Same rules as anywhere else in the world. Having said that, I'm from the deep south and in some towns you can leave your house unlocked. I've even left my keys in the ute while I was in the pub and nobody stole it. On the other hand, another guy left his gumboots at the door of the pub and somebody stole them so he had to walk home in his socks lol
Kia Ora to you and your family. I'm just gonna be brutally honest with you. Auckland has the worst gang crime rate here in New Zealand, everyday someone's either been shot, stabbed or beaten into submission. There are also a lot of teen wannabe gangsters here that have no respect for anyone or anything. They think that beating up little kids is cool. Sad thing about this is the majority of these gangs don't even come from NZ. PLEASE think twice before you move here. God Bless
You won't see the gangs everywhere hanging about places. They like to lay low and hidden, i'm also talking about the traditional older gangs like Mongrel Mob, Black Power etc. It's more the youth gangs you'd need to be careful and vigilant about. They are responsible for many robberies, shootings, house burglaries and ram-raids. It's ramped up since COVID and most of us don't see a solution or an end to it, sadly. So if you pick Auckland, you'll be fine. Other smaller towns have a big gang presence like Hastings, Gisborne, Whakatane.
On an island at the bottom of the world a Canadian from the land of 40 below zero complains about the cold AND the price of "craft beer". Did you ever stop to think part of the reason housing costs so much and wages are low is Canadians on work visas renting out limited housing stock? Buy a crate of Tui big boys and double up on socks
I’m a kiwi living abroad and you made great points. Most downsides of NZ are about money I think. New build houses (not cheap investment properties) have much better insulation.
I agree, the house prices are a bit nuts for what you get! We're in a new rental now with insulation and it's amazing, such a difference in the chilly nights!
did NZ being a nanny state make the list?
@@murph1329 how is NZ a nanny state?
@@murph1329 talking out your axx
For people looking to move to new Zealand or kiwis still living in nz dont despair.....iv lived in the uk for 7+ years. Everything is relevant.....fuel in the uk is more expensive. Nz minimum wage is more than the uk.
Rent is cheaper in nz depending on location
Housing again cost all depends on location.
Nz has more going for it than the negatives
The UK has more supermarkets and some have cheaper prices than you will find in Australia and New Zealand. Rent is cheaper in the UK unless you want to live in London
Pros and cons of both places. I'm thinking of buying land in the UK but that would be in a rural area. I wanna keep my place in NZ as lots of my toys are illegal in the UK so they can stay in NZ where they are legal
DO NOT COME TO NEW ZEALAND, The Government here takes ASTOUNDING FEE"S and taxes, Its absolutely the WORST place in the world for paying triple to the government with every single transition. GST alone is 15% then they slap you with everything from Import feels Bio security levees every SINGLE time. the cost of living is off the charts. To give you and idea, I paid $1268 for medical capsules, then I had to pay $308.84 ONTOP. That's not even going into the income tax, fux tax, road use tax etc etc. New Zealand government cries that they are an island nation and that's what makes things expensive. Nope it's them with their hands out over and over for every dollar you earn be prepared to give the Gov 80% in various taxes. Disgusting!
@@maxfuller7479 yes, looking at all the problems with muslims...I wouldn't want to live there
As a Kiwi who had lived in Europe for 12yrs and travelled to the US, we moved back to NZ, it’s a beautiful safe place, house prices are crazy but you can build your own (not a Mc Mansion) if you learn how, forget fomo and your ego competing with your friends, and you can build reasonably priced, yeah you earn more in Aussie because they are natural resource rich but you don’t cook(to hot)in summer in NZ goldilocks climate, if you don’t like the outdoors don’t pick NZ move to Seoul, and don’t come here for work if you have no skills, but there’s a reason billionaires buy here and people raise there kids here because it’s safe, beautiful food, and you don’t live to work, when I come home every time after travelling abroad I sigh in relief and thank god I live here.
Exactly
Then stay there on you island and leave us alone
Nevertheless myopic view. You're in for drought and increasing import costs not to mention the hard-right asylum policies as horrifying as Texas but you never have to actually face it since you're surrounded by a thousand miles of ocean.
If was that great why you lived abroad for twelve years 🤣😂🤣
Indeed..👏👏👏...!!!!!! Amazing point of view...I was born overseas, and I am very grateful to have NZ citizenship...I have been travelling and living abroad, and honestly, the life quality in NZ is good, and the safety as well, NZ is beautiful......I have returned from a trip, and I was so happy to be in NZ again...People have no idea what is going on abroad, war everywhere, high inflation, crazy immigration numbers, illegals, violent gangs, air pollution, etc...regarding the house, just build a tiny/simple house and be happy....!! and Do you think Canada is good ??? 🤣🤣🤣hahhahahahahaha......Trash and ridiculous expensive (horrible house market)..just go to Vancouver...hahahahah....worst than NZ, AUS, U.S, etc...I am tired of hypocrite people....Most of those people are frustrated to not get an opportunity to stay longer or reside in NZ...the truth is painful...yes NZ has problems, but the NZ problems are small compared to other countries...and by the way, I was living in Thailand and Vietnam, I was in shock about the high number of Kiwis/Australian staying there as you said Australia is rich in mineral resources, but the economy is going down with an "INSANE" housing crisis, crazy climate change, very hot, fast flooding, etc , and when the kiwis are facing the painful reality there, they are just moving out of Australia as well....So the western media will never show the deep recession in Australia now like everywhere...I met so many Canadians, Americans, Germans, French, Japanese backpackers there telling me how I was so luck to have NZ citizenship...So stop this to undermine NZ...be grateful and happy to be here...🙏🙏🙏 Life is tougher abroad....Period...!!!
My Japanese friend managed to find a sponsor for her work visa. Her employer owned hotels all over NZ and he gave her a job in his large Queenstown hotel where she had her own room. She had to work there for a year. She had enough leisure time to explore and socialize. When that year was up she moved to Auckland and got a job running a boarding house for overseas students. She helped them with their English and home work. She eventually got NZ citizenship and had numerous jobs and got her real estate license/ She ended up marrying a Kiwi and they had son and now own their own home in Auckland.
I was born in Auckland you are so right. New Zealand is crazy expensive it's simply not worth it anymore to live and just rent so many problems are getting worse like gangs and crime. So happy I'm out of there.
Where did you move ? Me Idiot moved from Berlin to Christchurch :/
Let's just say over 100,000 kiwis left for Australia in the last year! It's a record....
Sorry to hear Gavin, Auckland is the worst place in NZ, doesn't feel like NZ anymore.
@RubenWalsh-iv5ik nah. gangs are non existent. if you see them you're in the wrong place. 🤔
Gangs and Crime are not the monstrous boogey man the media and Politicians make out it is. It's the typical scaremongerinbg you get from a right wing Political Government and their support mechanism called the right wing media. Don't believe what you read. Crime is present in most Western countries but on the scale described in the New Zealand mainstrem media it sounds like its around every corner of every street in every urban and rural town. Wrong. Aotearoa is a peaceful country where you can raise your kids and live a peaceful life if that;s what you're after.
In New Zealand, my home is fully insulated, heated, and equipped with solar panels, meaning I don't even pay for electricity. It's a 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom house built 12 years ago, purchased for $500,000 three years back. While groceries are pricey, my profession earns me more than my American and Canadian counterparts. Driving on the South Island is excellent. I was hired from the UK before moving here. Essentially, what you're saying is that if you lack a career in a sought-after field or financial stability, you'll face challenges. But isn't that true everywhere?
"12 years ago" yeah no wonder.
@@GumballEdits no the house was built 12 years ago ... I bought it in june 2022
"...my profession earns me more than my American and Canadian counterparts."
"Professionals" can expect to have half the disposable salary in NZ compared to Canada, and less than half compared to the USA.
Exactly, if you live smart then NZ is very affordable. I almost wet myself when they said one of their 5 reasons not to move to NZ was because craft beer was too expensive. Oh the disappointment when they found out New Zealand wasn't designed around their specific set of needs.
Euphoric and spurious , anecdotal. And how small is your world actually .
Insulation is compulsory for new builds here...older houses from the 1920's (victorian, colonial, bungalow homes) may not have had insulation but with so many people renovating older homes, they certainly are insulated including under floor heating and heat pumps etc. Rental properties need to be insulated to meet building codes now too.
I’m a Kiwi who lived in the UK for 17 years and then came back home to NZ during Covid. While there are positives and negatives about every country, I feel NZ has gone downhill in many ways and is heading in the wrong direction. Here are a few of my gripes.
1. The cost of living in general and the cost of housing compared to salaries and wages in particular. Before I left NZ to live in the UK, I felt I was moving from a cheap country (NZ) to an expensive country (UK). Now I’ve moved back, it’s the other way around.
2. It’s a country for the rich and we have a government that only cares about the rich. An example of this is the current government when they came into power giving massive tax cuts to landlords on their passive incomes and capital gains while taxes on salary earners remain relatively high. At a time when the average person is struggling with a cost of living crisis, the government prioritises landlords and their rich mates, while families are taxed like cash cows.
3. We have a disabled daughter, and one of the first things the government cuts back on when they come to power is support for disabilities. I’m on quite a high salary and pay more than my fair share of tax, but we get very little back from a system we are paying into, while landlords, and older generations pay less than their fair share of tax on their unearned income.
4. It doesn’t have to be this way, the opposition Labour Party had the mandate when they were in power to introduce a capital gains tax on property investments but didn’t have the guts.
5. It’s impossible to live comfortably here on a single salary, I earn close to 200k and we struggle with a young family.
6. We are letting in too many low quality immigrants from 3rd world countries to try and prop up our economy because we have become too expensive for immigrants from 1st world countries who can do much better elsewhere. This just places even more strain on our stretched resources and housing supply for little gain.
7. Our best and brightest young people are leaving in their droves and I don’t blame them. There’s little here to offer if you’re young and ambitious.
Trouble is I hear all the same points from people from other countries, every country at the moment claims everyone is leaving, so I don't know where they're all going, people struggling to get by seems to be increasing in every country even Aussie, however I think we probably have one of the most generous welfare systems in the world. Also we already have a capital gains tax on property , it's called the brightline test. Our young have traditionally gone overseas to travel and work , most come back, but there's just more opportunity overseas due to our remoteness to markets and tech industries for specialists.
I immigrated to Australia from the UK a few years ago, and visited NZ for a conference a few months ago. Honestly, the natural beauty was amazing and it was a great place to visit. The funny thing was even as a Brit, I was granted an Australian Resident Visa upon arrival which technically allowed me to live and work indefinitely in NZ if I wanted to. However, petrol was crazy expensive (it is in the UK too, but public transport is more available there and I've also got used to the cheap prices in Australia...). Property prices in Australia are pretty bad and have got worse in the UK (London is on another level ofc) but when I had a look at NZ, it was insane. I couldn't find anything decent in the town I was in (Wellington) for less than $1 million. The salaries in NZ do not reflect this. Even at the conference I attended, my counterparts from NZ were prob on 30-40% less than what I'm on but with much higher living costs compared to Australia. I'd consider moving to NZ one day, but only if I had a ton of money and enough to not struggle. Otherwise, it's a holiday destination for me.
Absolutely! The cost of living compared to the wages in NZ is wild. It would be a great place to live if you had a ton of money for sure though.
HOW COLD ? One winter morning we woke up with a layer of frost on top of 3 Duvets from my breath during the night. When we looked at the temp gauge it had been -2.5 C. Shitty houses and new ones are made of cheap poor materials so don't expect Quality just like the roads, they have started to erect permanent Road Works signs and never come back. Potholes will destroy a alloy rim and your wallet. CANADA is my new home and thinks @brittanymorgan09 will be back soon.
Oh wow that is horrible!! Yes, we'll be back to Canada in a few months and despite the crazy cold winters, I'm really looking forward to returning home!
As a Kiwi lawyer / investment banker who has been living in London for almost 30 years - I think you really need to consider what it is that you seek in terms of work / life balance & decide if NZ is a fit for you. Growing-up in NZ I flew light aircraft in the Southern Alps, was a Ski-Patroller, keen sailor, loved off-roading, hiking & enjoyed solitude and getting away from the crowds.These things are more difficult to do in Europe. NZ is not for everyone, but if sports, nature & the outdoors are your priorities then it may make your shortlist. It's a difficult place in which to build financial independence as it's really an economy built around small businesses. If you have the skills to start your own business or are a highly skilled professional then it may suit you. In my experience our most skilled professionals either make their life in NZ or move to UK or the US. Australia is more of a draw for our trades people and semi-skilled workers because that economy can support higher pay for non-professionals.
Very interesting perspective! Thank you for sharing. Great point, if you're an outdoor enthusiast and want to work in that industry, this is a great country to be in.
So, when are you coming home?
If you get paid to do a job you are a professional not just because you sit at a desk or are university educated.
It has changed a lot lately. But if you been on a high income, you will do okay.
@@Penguinracer Here we go again - another “Raising the IQ of both countries” reference from a Kiwi.
Approx 800,000 New Zealanders live in Australia - are you seriously suggesting that they’re ALL
trades people or people with limited skill set?
Living overseas definitely made me appreciate NZ more. Sure we aren't perfect but we have it pretty good compared to most countries.
@@beazjohnson9865 I felt exactly the same way about Canada, moving away made me appreciate it more despite its many flaws!
Non substantiated typical wire number six drivvel.
yeah most of the world is pretty tough aside from a few countries.
Weve been here for 20 years. By the time I fully realised how much I did not want to be here anymore, ( all the reasons you mention and more), it was too late as my kids have grown up here and now I have a granddaughter here too. They feel they belong here and want to stay while I would LOVE to go home. This is a problem for many people who immigrate to NZ who feel they dont belong but get trapped due to family and halso by ow hard and costly it is to emigrate again tback home or to another country. '
I'm so sorry, that is definitely a tough situation. I totally get what you mean by feeling like you don't belong. I've never felt like more of an outsider in my life! Thankfully, we've made a few great friends from here but it's the exception. I hope you get to return home one day 😊
Thanks me too ! @@brittanymorgan09
Same here, so desperate to go back home and can't afford it
@@Natp571try and find other ex pats or get in contact with some of the maori or islanders as tbey are pretty cool and friendly folks and they have a great laugh
go home where?
The houses. Swiss Prices, Albanian Quality.
like australia
How is the house quality in Albania?
@@AQuestioner I’m guessing Albania was listed for a reason, and a neg reason
Take put the trash. Please.go home
@@mkf628 Australian cardboard houses
You have to remember that New Zealand is a tiny county with a tiny population compared to Canada. It doesn’t have the buying power for cheap goods.
Superficial
@@erickborling1302 ?
We are also an island, Canada is part of a huge continent.
It was very cheap to live here in the 90s's and comparatively well paid, and had far less people then, soooo....
@@StephanParry then globalism came along and NZ started to buy most of its goods from overseas causing the prices to skyrocket due to the fact that it is a tiny island with very few people with no buying power, soooo…
depends on where you live in Canada. I live in Vancouver which is super expensive and i compared the NZ prices with Vancouver and it is cheaper in NZ while the minimum wage is $6 higher. So for anyone living in an expensive city in Vancouver can easily live in New Zealand.
Also Canada is seeing massive wildfires now whereas New Zealand is not and that clean air is very alluring.
For sure, Vancouver is far more expensive. NZ prices have calmed down a lot since I made this video though. Minimum wage is more but if you've got good experience it can be quite hard to find a salary that is comparable to Canada or places like the US & Australia. All depends on what you value in life too. This video is just my personal reasons why I wouldn't live here long term, not a basis for everyone considering moving here. I've just heard stories of heli pilots going to BC for the fire season to make a bunch of money before coming back here too!
NZ used to treat skilled migrants a lot better. Most of them move out after a few years.
That's quite sad to hear. So many migrant workers do the "tough" jobs and work really hard. They definitely deserve better.
Most of our "skilled migrants" are uber drivers
What "skilled migrants", they're all Uber and DoorDash drivers
@@fartexplosion4480 they wouldn't be if it wasn't a demand for that
Australia has higher wages, cheaper retail items, lower GST, friendlier people, better beaches, better parks, double decker trains, driverless trains, and more light rail; compared with NZ. Thats why so many New Zealanders who have the money to cover the upfront costs to settle in Australia, are moving there. Average median hourly rate in NZ is only around NZ$29/hour compared to Australia's AU$40/hour. You get more value for money in Australia than in NZ. Plus average temperatures during winter in Australia are a high 20'C compared to a much more colder 10'C in Wellington.
A working holiday visa is just that, youve primarily come here to holiday and you are allowed to do some casual work to fund your holiday for 12 or 24 months. The working holiday visa is not to give people the chance to take permanent work off locals and to settle permanently in NZ.
Correct. However lots of immigrants will give New Zealand a try through a working holiday visa before taking the necessary steps to settle permanently if they want to. My point was that it can be difficult to find a job on any visa if you aren't already in NZ and have the right to work or have residency.
Insulation: we are a lot poorer than many other western nations, so for years, houses only had to keep the water out.
can you buy /rent homes in higher end areas of maybe cities with insulation? new developments!
@@klle3419 Yes, to some extent. But we are a warmer country than the UK and Germany, Netherlands, etc. Houses are gradually being retrofitted, as costs have come down somewhat, and as the country has become more wealthy.
2024 and you don't have standard insulation in homes!!!!???? Everything I've learned about NZ it looks worse and worse AND you're under the boot of China.
Rubbish. I am living in a 90 year old home. 4 years ago the govt paid 100% for the cost of under floor insulation, ceiling insulation and for and ground under-house moisture barrier. If I didn't already have a heat pump they would have paid 80% of that.
@@brettchapmankiwi Rubbish? You (and we too) have retrofitted insulation. Many 30 yr old homes were built without it. That was my point.
I'm originally from the UK, and while I don't disagree that the cost of living is high in NZ, the minimum wage is higher than in the UK, there is not a hugely different, and from what I can gather speaking with friends and family in the UK the cost of living is roughly comparable. It seems that Canada must be a less expensive place to live by comparison.
Definitely depends on where in Canada you live (like all other countries ie. London in the UK). Toronto and Vancouver are comparable/more expensive but where we're from (Calgary) it's cheaper there. Prices in NZ have come down a LOT in the past few months though (specifically groceries) but it's the higher cost of living paired with low wages that really makes in difficult to live here. When I say low wages I'm not talking about minimum wage, I mean you would make $20-30K less/year doing the same job here than in Canada.
@@brittanymorgan09 my partner and I have (maybe we have been lucky) found that our salaries in NZ have been better than what we were able to achieve in the UK. But more importantly we have had more consistent periods of employment. Between 1999 and 2009 my partner found herself in 6 different roles, none of them lasting 2 years and within that time making the most of being unemployed to complete her masters degree. I also changed jobs 5 times and had to develop a side line in order to keep money coming in. That was a rough 10 years in the UK and I'm not sure things have improved in the past 14 years.
@@iallso1 I've read other comments that said the same thing about making more in NZ than the UK! I didn't know the UK pay was so bad. I know for sure the pay is a lot less than in Calgary at least for our roles. Comparisons are all about where you come from/relativity. I'm glad you are able to make a nice living here!
@@brittanymorgan09 I'm sure there are plenty of situations where Brits don't earn as much as in the UK, but I can only speak for my own experience.
Going by vids I have watched recently I can assure you almost everything in the UK is cheaper than in NZ, especially food and drink even Petrol is now cheaper here at $2.40 (£1.40) a litre.
Considering yourve been living there for 5 months you haven’t expencried it all I’ve lived 10+ years no problems at all.
Good for you. We all have different experiences 🙂
@@brittanymorgan09 💗💗 I guess it depends the place you stay at etc.
@@ItsIvy11 totally! And where you came from, what you enjoy, etc. I made a whole video about all the amazing reasons to move to NZ too ☺️
Any kiwis reading this.
Brittany comes from Alberta in Canada and she complains about the insulation because in Alberta they regularly get temps dropping down between -40 and -50 degrees celcius in the winter. Some of that can probably be blamed in climate change but this is why she is complaining so much about how the older houses in NZ dont have sufficient insulation!!
100+ years ago the climate in NZ was warmer and insulation was not needed, and it also was not available either. Older houses in NZ are cheaper to rent, because they dont have insulation and the renter has to pay the power bills. Now that the climate is changing, insulation is a neccesity and it takes time to insulate all the older houses around the country.
@@francescathomas3502 thanks for adding some context to this. We're now in our first insulated place and it's been amazing! Energy bills are insanely high though (nearly $300/mo) so I would be horrified to see an energy bill from a low-insulation home in the winter. I think a lot of people choose not to run heaters because of the price. Wild!
I was born in NZ but I have not been back for more than a decade and the depressing fact is that I cannot afford to buy a house in the country I was born in. The failure of every government for many years has ruined quality of life there, as they have in many western nations
Did you ever save money? Save 20% deposit, buy a house, and pay it off way before you retire. You’re looking at NZ glass half empty.
moved back from Aus to NZ about 12 years ago with my partner and we had nothing but debt.. her 20k student loan, me 15k credit card debit, we both got decent jobs not even super high earning.. in that 12 years we paid off all debt, brought a house (yes its not in auckland, its in a cheaper region) and are now living pretty well, while still chipping away at the mortgage.. oh and managed to save for a deposit while paying stupidly high auckland rent (we did however also use our kiwisaver for the deposit along with savings)
Yes, New Zealand is one of the underpopulated western countries that started seeing the effect of the rapidly aging baby-boomer population. The economics of it just don't add up. I believe the same symptoms will soon be across all the western countries. New Zealand is at the front of it because of the small population and the distance from the rest of the world.
That makes sense - all the young' uns are moving away from NZ leaving the parents and grandparents behind. I'm one of those young 'uns who left NZ 20+ years ago. My folks still live in NZ.
Ironically i now live in Canada. I left NZ because I felt it to be too parochial. To slow. To far behind what I was seeing on TV with regards to what was happening elsewhere in the world. The variety of clothing and food products in NZ was not terribly wide. Every week when I went shopping it was often "same old, same old", every week. Movies took forever to arrive in NZ for their first runs.
I married a Canadian and moved to Canada. So much more variety. In scenery, in foods, in clothing, and in other products. Of course I did have to get used to the extreme cold winters and the extreme hot summers, but I think I am ok with them now. I promptly stopped driving when I moved to Canada. I did not think I could be safe while driving on the "wrong side" of the road. Not in the middle of a huge city (GTA). Now I just use Public Transit.
As for the outdoors. NZ is beautiful hence the Godzone attitude. The NZ economy is probably suited much better for Tourism and not necessarily for Permanency.
Aotearoa/NZ isn't underpopulated -it just has less people than some overpopulated countries. Part of what's great about living here is that there are fewer people. I would not want that to change- it's a major advantage. Yes its expensive so i have to live within a lower income, I'm Ok with that
@@grahambarnes7325Large proportion of young kiwis today cannot afford low income because of the high rent prices. Many leave for Australia because of that. Older generations os New Zealand will have to start paying with their overvalued assets for their care. In other words, to sell the land for food and a change of diapers.
Most boomers have no clue. I was chatting to one of those in Hamilton and he told me he hasn't noticed any difference over the last many years. 😂
@grahambarnes7325 Don't worry mate they are working full speed to bring in as many people as possible.
Yep. Kiwi here. Only reason I'm still here is my kids (shared with ex wife) and parents who are getting older. I'd be gone otherwise. I hate driving here (I drive a lot for work, all over the Waikato and Bay of Plenty) due to the massive amount of trucks and the weather which combined are ripping our roads to pieces. I'm on a good salary here but I spend 50% of my income on rent, and live pay to pay. I'm looking to move to either Australia (more likely) or the States due to population size which means more opportunity and lower costs for food etc. NZ once was amazing, but now its a low wage, poor, isolated, high cost country. It might be beautiful, but unless you're wealthy you can't enjoy it. The aging population is draining NZ as well, so by the time I retire there might not even be a Superannuation.
That is a bleak outlook indeed. It's definitely a great place to live if you're wealthy.
Our value added production has declined over the decades. That is part of the reason why we are poorer now. We don't make our own paper and we produce a lot less furniture. Instead we export wood chips so paper can be mode overseas, (less paper needed everywhere now because of computers and smart phones). We used to make some electronic and appliance gear here but radio factory shutdown and Fisher & Paykel now make there appliances in USA. We don't make locomotives or a lot of railway equipment. It is manufactured overseas and I think assembled in New Zealand. We used to have car factory assembly here but now it is all done overseas. We have most of our economic investment in one basket: farming and horticulture. That makes less safety for us if a disease or natural disaster wipes out crops or milk/meat production. That is becoming more likely with climate change. One of the problems of production here is shipping for export because of our isolation. There are at least some industries where shipping would not be a concern. Industries like computer programming. That industry was crying out for government support but did not get it. If there is no prospect for anyone that might want to do a certain field they won't study for it. They will go overseas or do something else. Another thing affecting younger people more now, is that there is less of them than previous generations, (that affects many western countries). That means there are/will be less of working age compared to elderly. Part of the reason for that is women have to work for enough income, (also because of security because of higher divorce rates). Inflation has caused the cost of living to go to high for single family income. If there was enough income originally for single family income, that went away at least partly because women all suddenly wanted to work. If both men and women worked but still the general economic production of goods stay the same or near the same because of extra currency in the system inflation goes up. I realize that with technology there are a lot more opportunities for women than there use to be say in 1800's. Women wanted to get a better life the same as men with new technologies and also the new value of been independent. Things have not worked out terribly well because of these conflicting wants/necessities. Not worked out well not just in New Zealand but quite a lot of western countries.
NZ is not as bad as Australia. People here drive 20 to 30km/hr over the speed limit and expect you to do the same.
I’ve been verbally abused several times for driving at the speed limit in residential areas🤦🏻♀️
Hey I think you are out off touch mate, check the Canadian news, then you know what's going on in Canada. The house prices, food prices are out off control
I am in the States and I want to move to NZ! Haha....seriously, it's expensive in the US now and full of people super crowded. We always want the opposite of what we have. I will trade you Jacob. You can live in California for a bit it's nuts.
Very valid reasons, I live in the south and we only heat the living room and have electric blankets on the beds to take of the chill before going to bed. I guess we are used to the cold here as it does not seem to bother me.
We lived in a house that was heated that way and we eventually got used to it but it was definitely a shock coming from a country with central heating!
yes, also only having one heating source on saves a on the power bill as they are nor cheap either@@brittanymorgan09
@@brittanymorgan09It is also very unhealthy.
That's not good, especially on frosty nights or damp.
Same, I have a log fire and don't turn on the electric heaters , and turn my E blanket on low overnight, For a laugh I put a temp gauge in my bedroom one night in middle of winter and my bedroom was colder than the inside of the fridge, about 3 degrees.
Very good video. You are so right about the driving problem here in New Zealand. I have lived in New Zealand most of my life and I can confirm it can be very dangerous driving in this country. Some New Zealanders become very impatient when they are driving and tend to close follow your vehicle. They try to put pressure on you to either speed up or get out of the way. As you point out, the safest thing you can do is to pull over to the side of the road when you can and let them pass. On long trips and in some rural areas you can find yourself very frequently having to pull over to avoid stressful driving where you feel it is becoming dangerous when you are driving.
Very true! What gets me is when they tailgate and act aggressive where there is nowhere safe to pull over. Very very frustrating.
Yeah its bad. Even with a fast bmw they still try and stay on your bumper
One thing I found alarming was that some rural bridges are one lane only, so that traffic waits for its turn to cross that bridge.
I lived outside NZ for 40 years and came back a couple of years ago. Yes, it is very expensive here and you need a lot to set yourself up. Comparing to all the continents I have lived on, I would still say, NZ is the most beautifulness, quietest and friendly. What has changed so much are the diversity of cultures...something that was missing when growing up, back in the day. I love the different cultures that have emerged in NZ and now a good range of available foods. For instance, I can now buy kimchi or large variety of spices or sushi...all something that was not available decades back. If you are a Kiwi, living abroad and you see your Gold Card hanging Infront of you...come home. It will be the best decision of the rest of your life.
Yeah NZ made me feel like a total outsider and very lonely on the edge of the earth. Back in Europe now.
That sucks 😔 I hope things are better in Europe for you! I definitely feel more at home in Canada
Yeah I bounce between uk and the Balearic Islands now... A sweet spot..... Although I kept the kiwi partner, but he is aware of how nz isn't for everyone!
Agreed same with me. They are not very welcoming here and I am leaving as well soon. Going back to the UAE where I was happy, in a job and earning good money all of which is impossible in this country.
@@PhilWilliam-hx6xh hoping the path is clear for you to get back to civilisation
I lived in New Zealand (Auckland and Tauranga) for roughly 3 years and it's safe to say I didn't really like it at all. I agree with many of your points. People have this weird picture that NZ is a paradise utopia but NZ does a great job at hiding the problems while projecting to the world this "100% Pure" myth. Disclaimer - I left NZ just before Covid so I don't know if some of my points have changed or gotten worse.
- Housing quality is horrendous, Kiwis pay astronomical amounts of $$ for glorified shacks with little to no heating that gets damp and mouldy very easily. Think of it as paying Swiss prices for Bulgarian quality. For a country that knows it's mild, windy and rainy for a lot of the year this is unfathomable.
- This is connected to the first point. Quite often people take the easy way out and use band aid solutions for issues that need proper maintenance. When I told my Kiwi coworkers and friends about how cold the houses are a lot of them say "just rug up, use more blankets, wear thick clothing etc." You'd think they'd say build better homes but no.
- Public transport is unreliable. Trains to and from Britomart were often extremely late and infrequent. Coverage is also not extensive.
- Kiwis while overall friendly I found to be very small minded and take any criticism of their country as a personal attack.
- Food in NZ is good, but I missed the sheer variety of ethnic cuisines. There's plenty of Asian food but NZ really lacks in Continental European, Middle Eastern, Latin American and African food.
- NZ was a lot more racist than I was expecting, the casual racism towards Asian people in particular was shocking.
- I found there to be quite a toxic attitude towards Australia (where I'm now living), almost bordering an obsessive inferiority complex. I'm in Australia now and nobody here seems to say anything bad about NZ or most people don't really care at all. It's very one sided.
- New Zealand is not an ideal place if you want to go far in life. Career opportunities are limited.
- There is zero in the way of nightlife even in Auckland. It feels like one massive retirement village, whenever I mention this to Kiwis they say it's because they have a small population but similar sized and smaller cities in Asia and Europe have more going on than Auckland. It's dead when the sun goes down.
I'm currently in Australia now and it's definitely not perfect but I'm happier here than I was in NZ. I have two coworkers from Brazil and Thailand who like me moved to New Zealand first and didn't like it before moving on to Australia.
This is a great write up, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I agree with a lot of them and I'm really curious how Aussie compares. I'm looking forward to visiting to see for myself but there's definitely good reasons why so many Kiwis move there. The racism/closed minded thing still gets me. I had such an idealistic view of NZ before moving here that has been shattered. It's been a privilege and a real treat to live and travel here but I'm looking forward to going back to Canada.
@@biggiedii4889 Load of rubbish. Cities are cities the world over. NZ has many late night bars and dance clubs if that is your thing, especially in Auckland. You must have been living under a rock. Outside of the cities you have the wonder of nature second to none in the world. Australia? Give me a break. One of the most racist bigoted countries in the world full of wannabe Yanks. That is the main problem with Australia - it's full of Australians.
Pockets of Racism is in all ethnicities, and in all continents, I have experienced racism towards me in Arabic countries Asian countries, in the US from African Americans and not mild either full blown in your face and snarky behind your back, but if you were to compare countries just look at how Australia treats it’s original owners compared to the Maori in NZ, you don’t come to NZ with a very small population to get rich or nightlife
@chloeclout6897 I know that but New Zealand actively promotes itself as a racism free utopia when the reality is very different. A lot of my Kiwi acquaintances were quick to point out racism in other countries but then say racist things about Asians. It's the double standards for me.
Thanks. Don't mind if I ask- Did your Brazilian and Thai coworkers got citizenship first before moving?
Historically the settlers to NZ came from UK. To them it was hot here, so they built homes to stay cool. And we had a massive supply of cheap wood and coal, so didn’t need worry about out heating.
As a Canadian, have you ever been to Vancouver. You want o talk about expensive house - check out Vancouver.
Yes, I've read some articles about the British influence on housing indeed. Vancouver & Toronto are just about as expensive as Auckland 🙂 I've been to Vancouver a few times and my partner lived there for 2 years. I would never be able to afford to live in either city!
Australias temperatures are much hotter than NZ's, like 45°C + in summer so you'd need to earn 30K more to make it worth putting up with the heat, lack of drinking water, and bush fires.
Hilarious
As a kiwi living in Toronto, I lived in a mid 1950's home with no insulation in the walls and single glazing. North Americans are used to central heating and A/C of their whole living space and so the per capita energy consumption and CO2 emissions is very high and kiwis might say wasteful. Petrol is cheaper as there's plenty of oil and vehicles on average are up to half the efficiency of NZ. Food and beer prices don't seem all that much better IMO. Driving behaviour is not safe, however most high speed driving is on divided highways so less deaths per km.
Driving in NZ is the most chill driving i have EVER done in my life. If you are from europe you will be more than just fine. Kiwis do tend to drive quite slow in the cities though. Can be tough to remain calm there. Once you get to the rural parts its fine though.
@@peterfokinpan8063 Driving in New Zealand is a pleasure.
Drivers are patient and courteous to the extreme.
Death toll on roads is actually very low.
Try driving in any given African country or any other 3rd world country for that matter.
Even the middle east has wild traffic.
Over Easter the NZ death toll was like 7?
In South Africa, as example, it was 700.
New Zealand is lekker.
I’m a kiwi immigrated to UK 2010. Yep I freezes my but off in nz as a kid . Sleep in thick clothes
It’s too dear for housing and food compared to UK
But electricity is cheaper in NZ because of water dams
Good to know! I imagine the UK is more expensive to live in too? At least London!
In the UK do people still only turn their hot water on when they need it (ie when they want to take a shower/bath)? That's what it was like in 1987.
@@kiwitrainguy You can if you want, I don't think most people do though, although I'm sure people are becoming more conscious to wastage especially because of the insane cost of energy and climate education now.
All 5 of your points are so... on point. These and the isolation (it takes long to fly anywhere remotely different to NZ) are my reasons for having no desire whatsoever to return to the 'country of my birth'.
I am from New Zealand I don't really know what it's like in Canada but what I do know as a rental property owner it has to be up to a very high standard and has to pass the healthy home standard to legally rent which includes insulation in the roof and walls and the floor if it is an older home without concrete floor it also needs a certain amount of kilowatts of heating depending on how big the houses
I have heard of this landlord minimum requirement thing, unfortunately I think a lot of people are still not following the law. It definitely isn't being applied to Airbnb's here.
It is Fucking cold in Canada - especially in Alberta where she comes from. Temps can down to -40 degrees celsius. Which is why insulation is her number reason to hate NZ!!!
@@francescathomas3502 I don't hate NZ. Living in a non-insulated home is an inconvenience coming from a country with central heating but we got used to it. It's a reason I wouldn't immigrate to NZ long term because the cost to buy and retrofit an older home to get it up to current code would be a nightmare. The alternative is buying a newer home or already well insulated one which will cost you $$$.
You're on to it. NZ has always built to a minimum standard and has the mis placed opinion of itself as being sud-tropical. Even new standards are too low, but your best bet is a new home. NZ never recovered from deregulation and Rogernomics = low wage economy@@brittanymorgan09
And you never will (know what it's like in Canada), since you cannot compete with the rich Chinese buying property there.
I am an old kiwi who travels a lot, so just to add my 2cents. We call Nelson $20hr paradise, everyone wants to live there and that keeps the wages low. Food, fresh food is expensive, frozen food is cheap. Chicken and Pork is cheap Lamb and Beef expensive. Eating out is expensive but going for a drink varies on where you drink, club and local bars are cheap but yuppie bars are expensive I pay $20 to $30 for a dozen of beer from the supermarket.
NZ is an outdoor persons paradise, but if you like nightclubs, fine dining etc go somewhere else. If you are white, you need to be careful where you go at nighttime, some areas of NZ can be quite violent, and the police are pretty useless except for giving out traffic fines. But you are right about our houses
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! We've found fresh produce to be quite inexpensive now that so much is in season and great deals at local farmers markets. It was crazy expensive when we first moved here at the beginning of 2023 though!
That's a new one. Sure there are some violent areas but they don't target white people specifically.
The best thing to do about NZ is don't do anything' go somewhere else,less expensive,warmer,and, easier to get to and from,
Yep, don't come here. Too expensive. Too cold. If you were not BORN here, there's no reason to stay. Too many wingeing Poms & Canadians cluttering up the place -- the whining is deafening. Go home, you'll love living under Trudeau (we dumped his WEF Young Global Leaders cohort Ardern).
I wish UA-camrs would clarify, NZD OR USD?
Speaking as a Brit, its a shame that NZ, Australia, Canada and the UK don't have better employment rules, allowing citizens to move between these countries. After all we have similar language and culture. Canada is not good at allowing other citizens from those other 3 countries (that share the same King and have similar constitutions) to move about freely either. Its called CANZUK and was a nice idea that never happened. Another empty Brexit promise; we should have stuck with the EU. The roads are actually more similar to those in the UK; well, northern England, Wales and Scotland, to those of Canada and the USA. But yes, because I wanted to see the stunning scenery in NZ I was always pulling over to let a farmer in a UTE overtake at 100+ kmh.
That would be so amazing, I would definitely be more open to living and travelling in Aussie, NZ & UK if some agreement was made between our countries. I'd love to experience life in London, even for a short time! Perhaps it will develop down the road 🤞
NZ has free movement in Australia and that’s the problem! We get their criminals their homeless and everyone who wants to leach of Australian job market. Stop the free boarder with NZ Bcse Australians have not got any thing from a free boarder with NZ. It’s a one way highway
I am genuinely curious is it actually cold indoors or was that just an ad plug, another question I saw somewhere that rent was week by week and somewhere else someone said that doctors visits were $50 for x amount of time. This has me wonder if everything else in nz has me spending money more frequently. Is that the case in your experience?
@@jaydencohen7700 it was legitimately really cold in a few of the places I lived in while in NZ. There are laws that say rentals need to be insulated but I stayed in a lot of Airbnb's which I guess don't fall into that category. It's something to keep in mind, especially with older properties. Now that I'm back in Canada I can say I definitely took proper heat & insulation for granted. My apartment is never cold and I haven't had to turn the heat on yet, even though it's below zero at night. I paid $90 I think to speak to a doctor in the phone in NZ. My ex had stitches and some checkups at a private hospital and that cost $140. Hope that helps.
Yeah I will agree that New Zealand is insanely expensive hence why there are over one million kiwis that have moved overseas. Love it here but it's hard to survive. I am a New Zealand citizen and I think that the working holiday visas should be changed so you can apply for permanent jobs.
We have no enemies and are not war mongers. We are laid back down to earth people who believe in giving everyone a fair go. We are friendly and helpful to visitors and neighbours alike. We work fewer hours than Americans do.....the ones who vlog on here can't believe they have so much time off, long weekends and holidays etc.
You seem to be a bright, intelligent and positive person. Why on earth would you live in NZ? Great place to visit, but definitely not a place to live in.
We're moving back to Canada in two months 🙂
Same price for fuel as in Eastern Europe? That's impressive. I imagined it'd be 5 NZD for 1 liter
Crime rate high,high property prices, groceries too expensive,insurance every year more and more expensive,petrol too expensive.
Time to move to Australia.
Crime rate high?
@@griffintroster5229 yes as a kiwi I can confirm it
So why did you move their if it's not as good as Canada?
So, here's the thing, whenever a country (any country) gets too expensive or hard to settle, crime can go up. Back then, we were pretty good, so that wasn't a problem. As of now, this is a global thing, not only nz.
Sad to hear about the crime. We haven't experienced any yet ourselves but have heard a few first hand accounts from locals. Scary stuff! The area we're from in Canada (Calgary) has really high crime since the pandemic too so you're right, it's a global issue for sure.
The insulation comment struck me as a bit weird, we live in New Plymouth and have windows open 24/7 all year round, what would be the point of insulation it's not that cold.
High cost of living, low wages, so why do some people move there eg.from the UK?
I think the big pull is a great work/life balance, weather and the scenery/outdoors. That's what would draw me anyway! I'll have a video coming out soon that will cover all the reasons why people should move here!
@@brittanymorgan09 Thank you
Out door lifestyle, friendly people or they're cashed up. Sone jobs pay well.
Brittany doesn't have a good visa. The hig cost is housing but if you sell up in London move here get residency and buy here you don't need to worry about high rent for example.
The reason it's expensive 1 million people moved here in 17 years (population 4 to 5 million).
Are you in the UK? Do people still leave their hot water off when they don't need it? That's what it was like in 1987.
Hello, can we have business cooperation? If yes, how can I contact you?
I watched your vlogs because your from my hometown Calgary where I grew up, I moved to nz when I was 21 so I’ve been here 20yrs now & I love it here…..is nz over hyped? Maybe but there’s more pros living here than there are living in Canada…but haven’t got all day to list them….I just think when you landed here it came across like you had an agenda on what your talking about now in my opinion….5 months isnt long enough when your making judgement on a place to live in especially when your moving around and not settled in a particular area, I just think it’s nit picking…insulation in the buildings ? cmon….what you do is install it if you have a place or make do and find a way to stay warm with what you have which is one thing I learnt from kiwis when I first arrived. I Love Canada but I Love it here, would never go back to Canada.
Everyone has their own opinion and I'm not looking for others to agree with it. I came to New Zealand expecting to fall in love with it actually and was surprised when I didn't. There are downsides to emigrating to any country and the reasons I listed in this video are mine. You can assume whatever you want but that doesn't make it true. Insulation in New Zealand is a legitimate problem and extremely expensive to retrofit into a home that doesn't already have it. I'm glad you prefer New Zealand over Canada, I'm sure lots of people agree with you. I prefer Canada and I'm sure lots of people agree with me too.
Thanks for sharing your perspective.
Well said!! @@brittanymorgan09
Are those figures mentioned in icicle dollars or freedom dollars?
Thank you for speaking about the cost of living being high. I have mentioned this a number of times. To so many people. We have a government who is unrealistic about this issue. Also, I invest and our tax laws suck. They make it hard for people who want to invest for their retirement. Because the reality is because of the cost of living here. I know the pension will not be enough for me. This is the thing to I feel sorry for people who are starting up a business the amount of tax you have to pay is ridiculous and if you are paying rent for your business, it makes it harder.(This is why our businesses are getting taken over by the Aussies) Plus, the council here in Wellington are pathetic they built cycle lanes taking up parking spaces both for Wellington Hospital and businesses operating shops. Are there cycle lanes taking up business's parks in other countries that anyone knows about? Here's something else you could do a segment on.
Yes cycle lanes just been built here in one of the main streets of Tauranga and hardly anyone uses them
I lived here all my life. Food quality is very bad. Cost of living is expensive. Entertainment lacks, except in major cities, but outside these city turns bad. Beaches are great, but most beaches are.
New Zealand is the place to come too, if you have money to spend. It is not the place to come to if you have children and cannot afford to buy your first home and little to no savings. Dual income couples with no children or rich retirees will find this place amazing. Their are bonuses for New Zealand but again you must have the money, the job and the credentials to make your life situation work here. Food, Rent, Mortgages, Petrol are beyound expensive. Education unless private is sub par, violence is going through the roof - especially youth crime - ram raids, knife attacks on business owners, drug abuse and theft. The Police force are slow to react, Ambulance services are a user pay system, Healthcare waiting lists {public sector} are a joke and gang crime is everywhere. So yup New Zealand is the place to be if you can afford to live in a safe neighbourhood, have a decent paying job $80,000 a year and a partner who earns $90,000 a year, no kids and can move up the corporate ladder or work remotely.
Totally agree! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
Don't you think sunburn from high UV rays or the must use of sunscree everyday also a good reason?
@@prasad2716 unfortunately I burn/need to wear sunscreen no matter where I live 😭
@@brittanymorgan09 🥲🫡
The beauty of New Zealand..is undeniable.
The system though is not good currently, i do fear for my children growing up here.
That is really unfortunate. I hope the system here changes for the better!
Same with all white nations, they are under attack.
USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, South Africa. They are going in hard to break us. Won't happen though.
New Zealand people are strong, you have warrior blood, unbreakable. Don't sit around waiting for them to make their next move, stop relying on these corrupt rulers to change, they won't.
Get organised, get local, change it from within. Big love from Ireland
how do you fear for your children? financially I understand, anything else?
Low education standards in public schools, woke agenda infiltrating with sexualization and LGBTQ+ being pushed, significant drugs exposure are amongst some of the challenges - although the current coalition gov't has 'committed' to addressing these🤷
@@bitsnz1837valid concerns for most parents. The current government won't be able to undo most of these things, the virus has infected all the organs unfortunately. And since they inherited a falling economy, they will be blamed for it and come next election, the sheeples Will vote in back Labour and Co and they will come with vengeance and undo any progress made. 😢
I'm from the UK and moved to NZ 13 years ago. I live in Northland and I'm very happy here. I've not been back to the UK since I arrived. Most of the things mentioned in the video are applicable, but I love it here.
The insulation thing comes down to the age of the building. If it was built before 1970 then insulation would not have been included at the time of construction. The insulation of ceilings came in only at the end of the 1960s and I think it was voluntary at first. Insulating walls and then floors came in only about 1980 or so. My house was built just before WW1 so when I bought it in 1980 it had no insulation whatsoever. Starting in 1981 and finally finishing the job in 2008 it is now completely insulated-ceiling & walls but not the floor downstairs, I have to admit (although half of it is concrete and for the other half I had an extra layer of floorboards put down). The walls were insulated by having wool pumped in in 1995 and followed up by polyurethane foam pumped in in 2008.
Rental propertied are required by law (as I understand it) to be adequately insulated.
Insulating your home must have been quite the project eh! I imagine it was expensive if it took that long? We're in a pretty new building now and it's insulated but so much heat escapes through the thin windows (thick curtains are helping a lot), crazy that they can still get away with that in new construction.
The insulation of my house was done in several stages quite a few years apart: 1981, 1995, 2004 & 2008. It wasn't that expensive but I was getting all sorts of other things done to my house over the same period and I also went on a six month trip overseas in 1987 so the insulation took a back seat at times. The one thing about the insulation that I forgot to mention was the double glazing on my windows in 2004. Glad to hear that you are in a better insulated dwelling now.@@brittanymorgan09
I love in New Zealand.. Auckland.. it doesn't get really cold here at all, never under 0 Celsius during the day... My house doesn't have insulation, don't need it..
There are no houses under a million bux and they are ugly, and not worth it, food prices are unbelievably high. Company's and businesses here are having a competition to see who's Best at ripping off
What's the difference between a Company and a Business?
@@kiwitrainguy they both rip people off
Is all the fault of those darned Aussies
It's actually a legal requirement for landlords to provide a heat pump in their rentals now... you should have looked into that, as it has been legally deemed an essential need for some time, due to, as you pointed out, the poor insulation in, particular, the older dwellings. However, we are used to it here and it is not considered problematic...
Not so. A landlord has to provide a form of heating (not necessarily a heat pump). My daughter has an enclosed log burner in her rental - perfectly legal. I am also a landlord and my rental property, while insulated, only has a wood burner (that heats the whole house).
As an expat Kiwi I always tell people how amazing NZ is however ..it is a place to spend money not make money!, hence why many Kiwis travel to Oz for higher wages and compulsory superannuation. Thankfully though many return to NZ to live out their older years and contribute to the economy 😁
That makes total sense! NZ is the perfect wealthy retirement country haha. So many things to do outdoors and a quieter lifestyle than most countries. Fantastic!
Would be hectic if they let us use the money earned in Aus transferred back to Kiwisaver towards a first house.
I live in the south island. But I really do think if your new to nz it's better to start in the north island where it's warmer if your not use to the cold. Cost of living does suck here .but maternity care ,midwifery is free within and that's for everyone even if your just visiting
Houses are insulated in NZ, just not up to Canadian standards 😆
Some are, older ones sometimes aren't. We lived in a house in Roxburgh and it wasn't insulated, freezing cold at night!
@@brittanymorgan09if they are not insulated, then they will be breaching NZ healthy homes standards, which a lot landlords are a bit slummy and do breach the laws.
Since you need to use a lot more energy to keep your house warm in Canada, doesn't that actually make New Zealand (NZ) less expensive to live in?
@@Metarig you don't really need more energy. You still have to heat homes in NZ over winter so it works out to about the same. And fully insulated homes are the norm and have been for much longer in Canada so homes here have better heat retention overall.
NZ winters are quite cold compared with Australia. And due to a lack of supply and increasing demand during the winter months, that makes the cost of living crisis in NZ even more worse. Especially when power companies can charge whatever they like for energy due to a lack of legislation around that, which is one of the cons inherent with capitalism.
Hi I was a bit skeptical about your video at first glance .
But glad I checked it out the drivers here are just as you described I thought I was getting old and paranoid, I don't like driving here and avoid it as much as possible and often I will pull over up to 3 times on a 6km suburban drive into work to stay safe.
The last few years I have started e biking which is a welcome relief useing the cycle lanes .
Thanks for the kind comment! This video wasn't meant to offend anyone, just giving my own personal reasons why I wouldn't go through the hassle of full immigration in NZ. I would also like to drive as little as possible, not just in NZ but everywhere. Road rage is very scary and driving is super stressful with crazy speeding drivers everywhere! Cycle lanes are fantastic.
Here in the USA they are running constant ads and commercials begging to "move to New Zealand" they are linking the ads with listed career opportunities i. NZ.. The wages for some of theae skilled jobs are around 50k or 60k a year, which that is equal to what is happening in The USA, we have high costs of living but skilled wages are low. But it sounds like NZ costs are even higher, especially the food. Wow
Wow that's really interesting! I can see the appeal to move from the US to NZ for sure; a lot safer here, free healthcare and work/life balance is great. But yes, pay is low and the cost of living is high. It's a balance for sure!
This video is absolutely spot on
Thank you ❤️❤️
Just a comment on the price of food: I’m a kiwi currently living in the States and I definitely pay more for groceries over here. The numerical value is higher to start with, eg I’ll pay $6 for a loaf of bread I’d spend $4 on in NZ) and then you factor in the exchange rate. It’s a shock doing the conversion into NZD on most food items over here.
Food prices definitely came waaaay down in NZ a few months after making this video. I found the deals for fresh produce especially were great at the farmers markets. Later into our move, we were paying about the same for groceries as we did in Canada.
Living anywhere different has its challenges. I lived in South Korea for a few years and it was a challenge, at least here we speak the same language. If you are thinking of moving here permanently there are others on UA-cam that give great advice. Especially one English couple. Also think about moving to a smaller town or the South Island.
Thanks for the tips! We lived in Nelson for 7 months and quite enjoyed it but ultimately we are returning to Canada since moving here permanently would be such a hassle (and we'd miss friends/family of course!).
Petrol prices is now $3.40 per litre .
Yeah it's about $3.03 in Nelson where we live, wild!!
these issues seem very minor. nz rentals do legally need to have insulation, the north is much warmer than the south, it's all much milder than canada so nz homes don't need as much insulation. people are outside more, so most houses are built to have indoor/outdoor living. inflation is not different than anywhere else and is coming down. the cost of living is high but come on it's new zealand. craft beer price seriously affects your choice of which country to live in? for road safety nz is somewhere between canada and the us, not any kind of outlier. nz's immigration/entry is quite tightly controlled because lots of people want to move there. overall people can probably see that if these are the worst things about nz it's probably a great place to live :) if you like the warmth in winter, there are a ton of tropical islands just 3 hours' flight away.
Yes I'll sell my parent's house to be able to afford that flight. Fucking aristocrat.
I wet myself when I read the craft beer price being a reason not to move to NZ. Another person who thinks New Zealand should be designed around their specific set of needs.
Interesting secrets to how to live in NZ. From a Kiwi.
Everything you say is correct, from a Canadian point of view....
Rule 1: Full length thermal draps. (Curtains) Go to an OP Shop, Don't need to cost full price, but it sort's out draughts.
Rule 2: Don't have a house on clay, it will be cold and damp.
Rule 3: The place is cool, just enjoy where you are and get with the locals.
Rule 3.1:, Try Stoke Beer, seriously, check out their history....
Rule 4: Heat Pumps suck, waste of money and power, we use gas, our 1913 house with sash windows actually stays nicely warm so there you go.
Rule 5: At least, unlike Aust, all the wildlife doesn't want to kill you. Mind you, Kākāpō may want to be intimate in a slightly disturbing manner. (Google)
Thanks for all the info! We've now found a place that's properly insulated and don't have to use the heat pumps much! Our energy bill is quite reasonable too 👍 on Stoke beer, we've had it a few times now! We live in Nelson & have been to the McCashins brewery too, lots of interesting history indeed 😊🍻
We do pay very high taxes in NZ but this goes to cover free hospital treatment, free CP visits for children 5 and under, and special rates for senior citizens. As a pensioner I pay $19 per GP visit and I have free prescriptions
I've lived here for over 50 years and this is my perspective. Everything is expensive, wages are low, houses are ridiculously expensive, there are lots of older poorly insulated houses which are cold and make u sick, driving is an issue (it's getting better !) however you need a car because public transport is terrible. I live in Auckland which has a pretty good climate although it definately rains too much. We have access to a beautiful harbour which I sail on all year around and some pretty decent beaches. The South Island where you live is much colder but no where near as cold as Canada and doesn't Vanouver have some of the highest rents in the world?
Some of these problems are world wide but NZ has a very small population (only 5 million) so we have a small market, we don't have money to build the infrastructure required and we're is a long way from everywhere so things are going to be expensive and we're a young country and just getting started really. However having a small population also has some benefits, once you're out of the city there's lots of space, the South Island is stunning and the skiing/boarding pretty good. Less people = less problems, compared to somewere like England which is slightly smaller than NZ but colder and more crowded and just depressing. Of course comparing to Canada is not really fair as it has lots of space and lots of amazing mountains and isn't it one of the best places in world to live? So what are you doing down here in the first place?
Australia is probably a better choice if you want a better wage and standard of living, a lot of Aussies come over here as tourists so we must have something worth looking at. Enjoy the rest of your stay!
Thank you for sharing your detailed perspective! I agree on a lot of points. The reason I came here is because I've always been enthralled with NZ and dreamed of living here since childhood. So I had a very "perfect" view of it before moving and really thought I'd never want to leave! Canada is one of the best places to live but so is NZ, I made a whole video about the reasons I would live here long term too.
This video is to help people who are on the fence about moving here. I touch on some of the negative points which are obvious to some but not so much to people who have never been. It's still an incredible country to live in!
Haven't been to Aussie yet but I'm excited to travel there and see the differences for myself. It's too hot and too many things that can kill you for me to ever consider it a long term home though.
@@brittanymorgan09Go to Western Australia...you will never look back on nz
@@neversayneveragain3748 no thanks! There are LOTS of far, far worse off places than NZ but that doesn't make this country perfect or without flaws.
Thank you for the video, very informative
Shit if these are the negatives of New Zealand I’d live there asap… at least I don’t have to worry about being shot by a cop for driving 5 miles over the speed limit or being robbed at a gas station at night
Yeah, USA sucks. I would never live there for safety reasons alone.
@@brittanymorgan09 You so hypocrite. You just replied to one, who live's in California, That you said you like to live it there too. Waa haha. That's USA too.
@@pearl-rl1yt parts of California are VERYYYYY different from the rest of the USA. I'd love to live there if safety wasn't an issue and I could afford it but it's more of a pipe dream than anything. Not realistic.
Weird that you are reading through all my replies though, obsessed much?
@@brittanymorgan09 That's Why, You get caught up, your hypocrisy lol
Yeah New Zealand is pretty hyped up, its like when seeing a beautiful ad for a Big Mac sandwich and you see how delicious and juicy it is, then when you actually get it , its stale/old, expensive, cold and not as advertised. Dont be fooled 😅 by NZ governement and tourism.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, I agree it's very overhyped here!
Is it really that bad. I mean the UK is so depressing and cold and rains all summer. Cost of living in the UK is ridiculous now and not going to get any cheaper. I am really thinking of moving my young family there
@@EBB505 have a go, but visit first. i've lived in the UK, NZ wins hands down. However, most poms that were disappointed were those that believed the 100% Pure tourist nonsense and expected the entire country to be one big advertisement. It's not, it's a modern country and the rubbish has to go somewhere. There's crap bits.
But it's empty. Bigger than the UK and only 5m people. Just by-pass Auckland and you'll find your slice of paradise somewhere. Maybe you'll end up owning and orchard, or milking goas, who knows? The best way to make it in NZ is to forget the idea of a "career" and embrace kiwi ingenuity. Do whatever you need to do to make it work
@@EBB505 yes be alot warmer in NZ especially in the north island
If you have a median NZ income and above, introverted, like pets, cycling, reading, jogging and not interested in dining out or food in general, then yes, NZ is paradise. Other than that, living in Auckland felt so restricting.
Lived here for 20 years and can say without any doubt that I do hate living here. Hated it the moment I landed as a 17 year old with my parents. I think what I detest the most is the idea that NZ is paradise and that you cannot have any frank and free discussions with a lot of Kiwis (my ex husband included) about what is wrong with this place. It’s like they are brainwashed from birth that this is Godzone - I almost feel like I’m talking with a bunch of cult members whenever I try to discuss the cons. In the UK, if someone starts talking about all the cons of the place, we don’t get all high and mighty about it. We most likely join in and list our cons. I have yet to meet one Kiwi who does the same about NZ. Instead of a mature and intelligent discussion, you just get the ever favourite “well bugger off back home then” thrown in your face. If that’s not turning a blind eye to your country’s problems, you deserve all the crap this country gives. It is bloody scary and I am terrified my children are being brainwashed into the “NZ is heaven on earth” crap. To anyone who also gets roped in to this cultish behaviour, please be careful. It is scary and disturbing.
Thank you for sharing this perspective! I honestly thought NZ was the best country on earth before I moved here because of all the positive feedback - seems like the negatives are shoved down and just not talked about. It was a huge shock to me moving here and while I don't hate it, I don't think I could ever live here long term. Definitely eye opening. I agree with what you said about discussing the issues here, back in Canada we are similar to the UK where we join in to discuss our country's problems and are happy to protest and vote our way to a better future.
@@brittanymorgan09 I think a lot of migrants have the same feelings, they’re just too scared to voice them for fear of being lynched! I know a lot of migrants who either have left or plan to leave to either their home country or elsewhere after feeling bitter disappointment at the realities of living here. I will say one thing about NZ, they sure know how to market themselves!!
I am a new zealander and I'm 41 now.
I've become so afraid of this country! I used to be brainwashed. I finally woke up in my 30's . Full of dark people who are sick minded
I'm sure that what you say about people thinking their own country is perfect applies to other countries as well. Have you tried saying to someone in the US that they are too obsessed with their military, and all this "Thank you for your service" BS? I am a New Zealander and our family get-togethers inevitably include discussions about how various aspects of our country could, and should, be improved. Maybe it's because we are all boomers lol.
@@kiwitrainguy interesting perspective! I don't think I've met an American who doesn't trash their own country haha and most Canadians I know are very open about the problems and politics. Generational and political thing I think, people who are stuck in their ways and don't like change are usually the brainwashed patriots.
All rental houses and flats now must be insulated, as must all new builds, so that has changed now. New places also have good wall heating in the bathrooms.
Finally, a lady who explains the reality of present day life in New Zealand and it is not "pretty" considering how far away and cut off it is. Unless you really want to immigrate, have at least, say, 250,000$ cash reserves, enough to buy a decent well constructed & insulated home of at least 700,000$ and a excellent paying secure job think twice or more before you embark on your journey.
I totally agree, the risk is pretty high if you don't have ample savings, a job here and a real reason to move.
I agree :( Been here for 4.5 years now and I do not like it still... I am originally from Mauritius and I miss my island everyday
After moving to this "developed country", I can say that my island is way more developed than NZ.
@@elisatravailleur4804 Interesting slant. Not sure many will agree including me. My month's visit to Mauritius in 2019 with the benefit of a car allowed me to travel quite extensively. The infrastructure was mostly 3rd World. Living conditions for many were below the West.
In other words a 💩🕳
In Auckland 700k will buy you maybe a townhouse, not a standalone home.
Rental properties have to legally have insulation now
nz is ok if you have a lot of money and don't need work. if you don't have a lot of money and rely on work, then, like most nz'rs, you'll struggle.
it's just like being inside a house and freezing at the same time.
I totally agree. It's a nice life here if you're rich!
I think it's a bit expensive....I would prefer Philippines in a long term a bit cheaper if it's housing and food...Gas a bit high diesel cheaper
I 100 percent agree. I have lived in New Zealand for 90 percent of my life and honestly cannot wait to leave forever. Everything is so damn expensive, the education system is horrible and the public schools are just awful, theres been a housing crisis for over 20 years with no sign of improvement and theres barely anything fun to do outside home.
Sorry to hear it's been such a bad experience for you here! I hope you get to move abroad and experience life in another country, it can be very eye opening. I would love to live somewhere in Europe one day and try that part of the world out!
I am torn between buying a poor house here and keeping my deposit and rent until my kids are in college and gtfo here😂
If your rental house has no insulation then your landlord is breaking the law, all rental houses must be insulated in NZ. Every house buiilt since 1978 has insulation installed, so only houses older than that may not have any (though many have been retrofitted).
Christchurch is one of the coldest parts of NZ in the winter, I wouldn't want to be living there in a house with no insulation.
I can easily keep my home (on the the other side of the south island) at 20-22c during winter with a small log burner, it's an old house but it is now insulated.
I think the issue was with our Airbnbs, people must get away with not insulating their units because they're not long term rentals. Even though we stayed in some for over a month! Now we're in a proper rental apartment and it's lovely and insulated. It's made a huge difference to everyday life.
High crime, binge drinking, rampant promiscuity, poor education standards... New Zealand has a long list of issues, and it's heading down hill fast.
The drinking thing I was not expecting! We've seen a lot of alcohol abuse in public in this country and I'm concerned drinking and driving is commonplace. It's a problem back home in Alberta too. Really unfortunate.
rampant promiscuity! lol please tell me where that is so I can check it out. We didn't have that back in the day! I think what you're talking about happens a lot worse in a lot of other countries
@@jeremyandsharoncope8508 Dunedin
You've described Townsville with impeccable detail
Promiscuity ? Why aren't I getting any?😂. Kidding I am married to an Asian spinner 😂😂😂
Brittany we are originally from the UK but live in BC Canada now. New Zealand is exactly like BC, expensive etc etc. But the lifestyle is worth it. Living in heaven costs more. BC NZ are heaven.
@@andycommonsincanada I actually find NZ quite affordable now compared to where I live in Canada (Calgary) so the whole expensive thing doesn't really apply anymore! Wild inflation/cost of living in Canada these days
The local Māori people are some of the most trust worthy people I’ve met
Haha, get real,😂😂😂😂..theifs and criminals most of them, never trust a Maori 😂😂😂😂
Ironically, the worst drivers on NZ roads are the overseas tourists who can't seem to stay on the left side of the road.. Many crashes in the south island involve camper vans driven by tourists who have never driven a large vehicle before...
@@tazman8697 haha not in my experience! The worst drivers were locals who lived rurally. The tourists are just too slow 😂
come and live in South Africa New Zealand is an Haven
No thanks haha. I'm from Canada which is where my bias and comparisons come from. Obviously NZ is better than many countries in the world but it has its downsides just like everywhere else. If you think otherwise you are kidding yourself 😂
Brittany is Canadian. She's full of amazing insights and knowledge Haha...go back please. The roads are narrow! 😅
I am planning to move to New Zealand , but I'll be alone I am Australian , so ,I don't have problems with work or Visa , but not sure if by myself I am gonna make it...... I don't mind living in the country , actually , better than live in big cities. Will se!
@@cerico76 best of luck to you!
I thought beer was expensive here in England but those prices are crazy, that large beer is not even a pint and at $14 means it works out to around $18 for a pint, which's £10, it would be between £4 and £5 here, yesterday I bought on offer 30 440ml cans of 5% lager for £22 that's $40NZ, I think I would become teetotal if I lived there, lol.
It is totally out of control here when it comes to "pint" sizes. It's not regulated at all so it's just all over the place! My friend paid $18 NZD for a 20oz pint over the weekend. Insanity. Lol
Ever thought about having a go at brewing your own beer? I bet it's quite a popular thing to do over there at those prices, as you say $18 a pint insanity. I still think overall the good things about living there do outway the bad.@@brittanymorgan09
You think beer is expensive in New Zealand just wait till you see the price in Aussie. A carton of VB was $71 and a carton of great northern was $62 when I left Australia in Feb 2024 and that was the day before the excise kicked in. You ain't seen nothing yet in Australia
Blimey Chris, I shall never complain about our prices here in England again that is taking the P, how can ordinary Aussies afford those prices? @@chrisheffernan3998
@@brittanymorgan09 that's because NZ is metric and "pint" isn't a legal measure.
and I guess you've never been to Norway then? Lol!!! Over $30 for a stubbie and that was 15 years ago. I doubt it's got any cheaper. A pizza and a bottle of wine in Oslo was over $100.
Craft beer is an absolute scam anyway. Just a few pretentious bell ends trying to come up with a way to charge twice as much for the same thing. Barley, hops, water and yeast. It doesn't cost much to make, and the "craft" is lobbing different hops in. There's nothing to it.
We're considering on moving to new zealand and one of the things that we are curious about is the safety. We heard there are gangs in auckland and we're wondering if gangs are a real problem to new zealand.
there's lots of gangs but generally they keep their nonsense to themselves as harming innocent bystanders brings the cops down on them. Guns are getting restricted so you don't get shoot outs in the streets or anything.
It's also a North Island thing. Christchurch has a few in the South Is, but you don't really see them.
Safety is relative. On the whole it's low crime, but if you're the unlucky victim it's probably little comfort to know you're the only one.
Mostly its petty crime like theft, so don't look like a tourist and don't leave valuables in your car. Same rules as anywhere else in the world.
Having said that, I'm from the deep south and in some towns you can leave your house unlocked. I've even left my keys in the ute while I was in the pub and nobody stole it. On the other hand, another guy left his gumboots at the door of the pub and somebody stole them so he had to walk home in his socks lol
Kind of. Just look it up , this week a guy was shot by a gang member in Ponsonby, central Auckland. Not sure of motives
Kia Ora to you and your family. I'm just gonna be brutally honest with you. Auckland has the worst gang crime rate here in New Zealand, everyday someone's either been shot, stabbed or beaten into submission. There are also a lot of teen wannabe gangsters here that have no respect for anyone or anything. They think that beating up little kids is cool. Sad thing about this is the majority of these gangs don't even come from NZ. PLEASE think twice before you move here. God Bless
@@EdieDatonlived in Auckland, New York and London and I’d say Auckland was by far the safest
You won't see the gangs everywhere hanging about places. They like to lay low and hidden, i'm also talking about the traditional older gangs like Mongrel Mob, Black Power etc.
It's more the youth gangs you'd need to be careful and vigilant about. They are responsible for many robberies, shootings, house burglaries and ram-raids.
It's ramped up since COVID and most of us don't see a solution or an end to it, sadly.
So if you pick Auckland, you'll be fine. Other smaller towns have a big gang presence like Hastings, Gisborne, Whakatane.
I believe every country has good sides and bad sides. I lived in NZ for 1.5 years, but it's really not for me. I agree with all you said.
On an island at the bottom of the world a Canadian from the land of 40 below zero complains about the cold AND the price of "craft beer".
Did you ever stop to think part of the reason housing costs so much and wages are low is Canadians on work visas renting out limited housing stock?
Buy a crate of Tui big boys and double up on socks