Wellington-Lower Hutt

[bungbung]

I regularly do Upper Hutt - Wellington in half an hour or less (35km).

By Wellington standards, that is a long commute. (35km)

[pritch]

but Whitby is in Porirua and there isn't too much wrong with that ...

I stayed in Whitby this last weekend. Nice! Not too far to Avalon over the Haywards and handy to the Paekak Hill and the Rimutakas...

[Fatjim]

Sure, it has its rotten apples but which town hasn't. It's beautiful and has a great community spirit.

Did I mention Tana Umaga lived here?

[/end Wainui ad]

It's got more rotten apples than a cider factory. And Tana moved his ass out of there as soon as he could afford it!

[Juud]

It's got more rotten apples than a cider factory. And Tana moved his ass out of there as soon as he could afford it!

he still keeps coming back though!

[Fatjim]

Where are you from, how many and what age kids?

Some Wellington facts.

Prolly doesn;t matter where you come from in England, Welly will probably be warmer, just, (except Wainui and Karori) most the year round.

When people talk beaches here, don't think Hawaii ok?

Summer is from the 3rd of Feb to the 14th of March.

On a bike you can get anywhere in 30 minutes, unless you Sels, who take 45 min to get down his driveway.

Lower Hutt is quite central, However, I wouldn't bother looking in Welly central or south of. Your better off in Lower/Upper hutt or Kapiti if you want to live with old people. (Like Sels). na just kidding. Kapiti is a beachie place, with a slower pace of life mostly. Most of the weed smoked in Welly is enjoyed up that way.

Avoid Taita, Wingate, Naenae, Wainui (anywhere in the Wainui basin), Timberlea, most of Trentham, Cannons creek,

NZ doesn't have a mandatory minimum rental time so you could rent and start looking for a house straight away.

Housing market has been going up and up over the last 5 years and is overdue to at least flatten out. (they've been saying that for 2 years.)

Banks will loan up to 100%, manly table mortgages, but interest only is popular.

[bert_is_evil]

Avoid Newtown aka Pootown, the rent there is far more than is justifyable and it's actually quite a cr@ppy area, just trendy at the moment.
(IMHO, having lived there for about 18 months)
If you like to be surrounded by native bush but still be relatively close to the city you could try Crofton Downs/Ngaio.

[zadok]

Good to see you Wellingtonians are looking after Andy. Keep up the good work.

[gsp0702]

Thanks for all the replys, some further info for you all, we have three children, a son who is 7 in august, and two daughters, one four years old and the youngest who is two in 5-6 weeks. By profession I am a geophysicist currently working in the UK, and I get the idea that traffic in NZ wont really compare to what it can be like in the UK during rush hour. So looking for places with good primary schools for the kids, and probably to begin with in the Greater Wellington area rather than Kapiti or the other direction to Featherstone/Masterton, as my wife feels that hopefully more amenities such as playgroups etc for the young'uns will give her a chance to make a some friends quicker than maybe some of the smaller towns.

Thanks for all the info so far and keep it coming, the more the better i think.

[Paul in NZ]

Depends on what you are like / interests etc. We moved to kapiti from ChCh for the affordable housing and love it. We live in Raumati South and there is a great live music scene and plenty of local artists etc. My next door neighbour is a goat called Izzy and she likes it too...

Kapiti great family place with good schools and the like particularly if you are a little on the alternative (aged hippy) side of the spectrum. The commute is a prick but I've done worse.

Kapiti is a pain when your kids get older (as in when they want to hit the night clubs) but we really like living there.

[Guitana]

Wainui would be what i would describe as a bad area, has been described as a fighting and drinking kinda place. From the internet Porirua looked quite nice but getting mixed feedback on that. And i would like some idea of good places and schools rather than being in the position of relying on agents input so i can direct my search. But all info gratefully received.

Tawa or Johnsonville they are close to the highway and you will get a clean run to the hutt once you clear the gorge plus you can ride with me if you're game I work in the hutt too!!! Good schools and low violence levels.

[judecatmad]

By Wellington standards, that is a long commute. (35km)

Yes, we're in Upper Hutt too (Totara Park) and it is a long commute - but it's well worth it IMHO.

We love living near the gorgeous river and the mountains (we're not beach bunnies) and the fact that we have to travel an hour each way (if we drive - it's less on the bikes of course) is just something we are prepared to accept.

Whilst there are areas of UH that aren't too flash, there are some that are lovely. It's not as well serviced as Lower Hutt but it is growing rapidly. And let's face it, if you're coming from the UK, NOWHERE in NZ is going to be as well serviced! LOL

I personally couldn't see us living any closer to the city than we do. After all - where else do in Wellington do you get really sheltered, flat sections which bake in full sun in the summer but aren't too dark and damp in the winter?

(can ya tell I like where we live?!)

We lived in Titahi Bay for the first 6 months and I'd say stay as far away from Porirua as you can. But then the friends we were renting off loved it....go figure.....

Johnsonville is probably a nice neutral place to start if you do want somewhere a bit closer to the city.

[Fatjim]

One thing I forgot. Lower Hutt, aka "The Hutt" isn't too sophisticated. Upper Hutt's known to be worse. But there are very nice suburbs of both cities that are very nice.


I strongly suggest you rent for a while then make your mind up.

[Drum]

[QUOTE=Fatjim;956043]One thing I forgot. Lower Hutt, aka "The Hutt" isn't too sophisticated. ........QUOTE]

Not sure what you mean by sophisticated? Cant get tea and scones?

We've got art galleries, pools, libraries, museums, gardens, cafes etc. What more do you want?

Edit: Oh, and bogans!

[bungbung]

Bogans, don't forget the Bogans.

[riffer]

Nought wrong with bogans. Don't listen to the Welly bunch - they're all snobs.

I have four kids - a daughter (9), and three sons (7,6 and 2).

Let me know when you're arriving. Our kids can help yours acclimatise...