# Where to live in wellington please??? Help!!



## irishinwelly

Hi guys and Girls,

We are moving to wellington at the end of september. I have a job in Upper Hutt and was hoping you could offer me some valuable advice. We are currently looking on the internet for houses to rent but was wondering where the best area would be? I will be working but my wife wont be and she will be at home with our 2 year old for the first year or so so its important we are right in the hub of things. Wellington city is too far away from my job so whats the next best city? Would love somewhere busy with alot of shops and all the usual amenities within walking distance. Also would be great to be 10-15 mins away from a beach if the weather was to be nice. Any advice you could give me would be really really appreciated.

Thanks in advance!!


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## inhamilton

Have you looked at the Lower Hutt area? It's really the only other area of Wellington approaching city status I think. I lived in Wellington for a year, once upon a time.


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## irishinwelly

Hi yeah we have looked at lower hutt it seems to be the best option. Is there anywhere in particular in lower hutt anyone could recommend. ? Thanks


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## escapedtonz

irishinwelly said:


> Hi yeah we have looked at lower hutt it seems to be the best option. Is there anywhere in particular in lower hutt anyone could recommend. ? Thanks


Hi irishinwelly,
You've only got Upper Hutt city or Lower Hutt city to choose from.
As you say Wellington is too far for you - approx 35-40 mins easy drive and rental prices also more expensive there. 
There's also Porirua on the West coast but that's a decent 30 mins drive away through the hills over Haywards and through Whitby.

Lower Hutt city is the larger of the two for sure with a very good shopping centre "Westfield Queensgate".
We would recommend living in Woburn which is a 10 minute stroll away from Lower Hutt centre. Really nice leafy established suburb with railway link to Wellington and Upper Hutt.
Woburn also has good schools, a recreation ground, swimming/splash complex & a lovely park close by and is near to the Hutt River for sunny day walks or rides up and down the Hutt River trail which ends at Upper Hutt one way or Petone the other.
I'd forget the beach as you can't have everything!!! 
Petone will be the closest from Woburn but not walking distance and it is a bit windswept. Good for walking the dog but not for making sandcastles. There is a good park area and golf course - Shandon between Woburn and Petone and both at the side of the Hutt River.
The nearest good sunbathing sandy beach will probably be Scorching Bay which is on the other side of Wellington CBD and round the headland although there is Oriental bay but it is man made and only small but nice all the same. Its just the "sand" is a bit rough - more crushed shells!!!
There's also bays on the opposite side of Wellington harbour accessed by driving through Petone or via a ferry - ie Eastbourne, however not really spent that much time in these places yet other than a drive through and a coffee or two.

We lived in Woburn, Lower Hutt for our first 8 weeks - now live at Churton Park but we still shop down in Lower Hutt and are registered at the doctors there.
Other than Wellington CBD, Lower Hutt is still the best for shopping IMO.
I'm also still a member of Te Marua Golf Club, Upper Hutt which is a gorg part of the country.


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## escapedtonz

........oh and we have an 18 month old boy & my wife is a stay at home mum too so I'm sure she'll be on the thread soon to help you out with things for your Mrs to do, advice on toddler groups, places to meet up for lunch/coffee where the kids can play whilst we play golf ha ha!!!
Cheers


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## bdl123

Hi,
I'm esacapedtonz's wife..the stay at home mummy!! 
If ur wife wants any info re toddler groups or cafes with play areas please ask her to PM me & I'll send my email. I go to a toddler group in Silverstream every Thursday & would be happy to help her meet people
X

Sent from my iPhone using ExpatForum


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## irishinwelly

escapedtonz said:


> ........oh and we have an 18 month old boy & my wife is a stay at home mum too so I'm sure she'll be on the thread soon to help you out with things for your Mrs to do, advice on toddler groups, places to meet up for lunch/coffee where the kids can play whilst we play golf ha ha!!!
> Cheers


Hi escapedtonz thanks for the reply its very helpful. Ive been in touch witha couple of estate agents this week so we have decided to look for places in lower hutt. Handing in our notice in work next week so all moving ahead very fast. Cant wait to get out there and sample life in NZ. As for the golf seems like a great idea, i wouldnt be the best but hopefully will have plenty of time out there to practice!! I am going to send your wife a PM with my wifes email address she was delighted with her post and its really put her at ease that she can meet people out there and wont be on here own all the time.

thanks alot and hopefully be out there soon!!!


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## irishinwelly

Hi bdl123,

Thanks so much for the reply. You really put my wifes mind at ease. I tried to send you a pm with her email address but unfortunately being new to this i couldnt figure out how to do it!!!!! If you could send me yours or tell me how to do it lol that would be great.

Thanks again


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## bdl123

Hi,
I've tried to send you a PM with my email address on but it says you can't except them. I think there is a minimum 5 post rule before you can send or except. Not sure if I can put my email on here but I'll try! It may get deleted, in which case you need to add some posts...just reply to this one a few more times ;-)))
It's _[sorry - no personal emails on the post! But look at your private messages]_

Sent from my iPhone using ExpatForum


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## escapedtonz

irishinwelly said:


> Hi escapedtonz thanks for the reply its very helpful. Ive been in touch witha couple of estate agents this week so we have decided to look for places in lower hutt. Handing in our notice in work next week so all moving ahead very fast. Cant wait to get out there and sample life in NZ. As for the golf seems like a great idea, i wouldnt be the best but hopefully will have plenty of time out there to practice!! I am going to send your wife a PM with my wifes email address she was delighted with her post and its really put her at ease that she can meet people out there and wont be on here own all the time.
> 
> thanks alot and hopefully be out there soon!!!


Hey no problem,
We know how hard it can be to find the ideal place and to settle into that and life here so all you have to do is ask and we'll give you the best advice we can. 
We also registered with a couple of estate agents but didn't really find them that helpful so found our rental properties ourselves using TradeMe etc and ringing or emailing the owners/landlords directly.
PM you soon and hope to catch up with you when your here.
Cheers


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## iamkim330

I'm moving to Wellington in a month's time so I looked into a few areas while I was up there for the weekend visit.
I went to see Lyall Bay and Kilbirnie, it was okay. Petone was rather cool though! They had a petone carnival during the weekend with fireworks!


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## Song_Si

iamkim330 said:


> I'm moving to Wellington in a month's time so I looked into a few areas while I was up there for the weekend visit.
> I went to see Lyall Bay and Kilbirnie, it was okay. Petone was rather cool though! They had a petone carnival during the weekend with fireworks!


Hi

I made a post here about Kilbirnie earlier this month - here

Have friends who live in Petone and further along the harbourside at Eastbourne. The ones who also work that side of the harbour are I think the happiest job and time-wise.
It's the commuting that would put me off if you are going to be working in the central city - not so much the time - you can accept that if you know eg 90min each day - but the poor reliability - worked with people who were endlessly late for work, whether it be by bus, train or the Eastbourne ferry.

If you can work out that way - ideal.


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## klunman

Hi there! 
We moved to NZ and rented in Petone for 12 months. We loved it there!! In the end, we moved slightly north to Alicetown to get zoned for a better school for our now 5 year old daughter (and rent for a WARM house is a tiny bit cheaper). I have a blog that you might find useful - kids in tow dot co dot nz (not allowed to post urls)

I share in your frustrations that no one really wants to talk to you until you actually ARRIVE here….and then once you are here, you have to sign a 12 month lease!! Try to negotiate on this one down if you are concerned about the house for some reason. Ask about insulation and make sure there is at least a heat pump. 
Woburn and Waterloo are both great for kids but if you love to be closer to the beach and in a vibrant area, Petone and Eastbourne are great. With Eastbourne you have to contend with the road in and out but it is a MAGNIFICENT area that gets all day sun and a fabulous tight-knit community. Petone (and Eastbourne for that matter) has lots of playgroups and things for littlies to do (Library story time, mainly music) AND close to the beach. 
Cheers, Kristen


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## irishinwelly

Thanks everyone for all your help. Really helpful and we are getting closer to the date when we finally arrive and start our new life.


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