Useful links
If you are considering immigrating to New Zealand there are a few websites where you can find useful information.
The best place to start is with the New Zealand immigration website www.immigration.govt.nz.
Another good website to start your information gathering is a general website about New Zealand - http://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/ This has links about New Zealand lifestyle including housing, education, work and culture.
Housing and Rental Accommodation
As Auckland is New Zealand’s largest city, it tends to have more expensive housing and rental rates than other regions in New Zealand. As a guide, shared rental accommodation can cost anywhere between NZ$100 - NZ$300 per bedroom per week, and is based on things like location and standard of accommodation. House prices can range from NZ$200,000 to over NZ$1 million. The following websites are a good place to start to look for houses to rent or buy:
www.propertypress.co.nz
www.barfoot.co.nz
www.ljhooker.co.nz
www.realenz.co.nz
www.trademe.co.nz is New Zealand's version of eBay. Private rentals as well as real estate agents advertise on this site.
Banking Services
Planning your move to New Zealand can be a big step, and most New Zealand banks can set you up with a bank account before you leave home. The websites for some of the largest New Zealand banks are set out below. These websites can provide you with further information on transferring your foreign funds and obtaining a mortgage.
www.bnz.co.nz
www.asb.co.nz/personal/banking-with-asb/moving-to-new-zealand
www.nationalbank.co.nz/movenz
www.anz.com
www.westpac.co.nz
www.kiwibank.co.nz
Some other helpful websites:
www.ird.govt.nz
www.currenciesdirect.com
www.emigratenz.org/moving-pets-to-new-zealand.html
www.teara.govt.nz
www.ssnz.govt.nz/publications/employeesresource.pdf
Education / Childcare
www.barnardos.org.nz
www.plunket.org.nz
On this website (www.tki.org.nz) you can view information about all schools in the Auckland region. Our school grading system in New Zealand is referred to as the "Decile system", and it is a socio-economic grading system. It is based purely on the affluence of the surrounding neighbourhood - 10 being the wealthiest, 1 being the poorest. On this website you can view the government statistics and it also provides a link to each school’s website.
The following New Zealand education websites are another useful source of information:
www.minedu.govt.nz
www.ero.govt.nz