Moaning British migrants air their grievances about moving to New Zealand

A British couple who moved to New Zealand and were left with crippling debts has blamed ‘horrendous’ rent prices and the ‘terrible’ transport system for heading back home. 

Tim Griffiths, 33, and Marie Edge, 38, first moved to Auckland in 2014 with high hopes of starting a family and building a new life.

But what they didn’t know was how much money they’d need to get by.

‘We paid $800 per week – rent was horrendous,’ Mr Griffiths told Daily Mail Australia.

Tim Griffiths, 33, and Marie Edge, 38, (pictured) first moved to Auckland in 2014 with high hopes of starting a family and a new life

‘They don’t build good quality houses – they get mouldy – but it’s so expensive to live there. 

‘One of the worst parts was that I was working in construction building houses around Auckland, and the quality was just awful.’

The pair described the public transport system as ‘terrible’. 

‘Auckland is struggling with public transport, so you really need two cars to get around,’ he said. 

‘But fuel costs are expensive, and doubled within a short period of time. And rent was horrendous. It was almost impossible.’

The pair took to a  private Facebook group to ask other expats if they’d had the same experience.

Many of the responses echoed how they felt.

‘It was hard to make friends. The cliques are so hard to break into – it just wasn’t a friendly place,’ one person commented.

‘I’ve been here for 10 years and still want to go home. But my family are here now so I’m stuck,’ another responded.

Others suggested they should stop comparing New Zealand to the UK.

Mr Griffiths landed a job in construction and the company paid for all their moving costs. But soon after, everything went wrong

Mr Griffiths landed a job in construction and the company paid for all their moving costs. But soon after, everything went wrong

The couple initially moved to Auckland in 2014 when Tim got a job that offered visa sponsorship – but it soon went downhill.  

‘The company I worked for went in to receivership,’ Mr Griffiths told Daily Mail Australia.

‘I was let go and we had to move back to England.’

The pair were forced to resume their job search in Auckland  from the other side of the world.

In 2018, four years later, Mr Griffiths got lucky with a new job offer.

This time they sold their house in England before relocating.

The new company paid for all their relocation costs, and they once again made the leap to the other side of the world.

'By this point we had a one-year-old daughter and we were living on one income,' recalled Tim. 'We really struggled.' 'I remember it was Christmas time ... we were living in a three-bedroom with one heater, no air conditioning, and there was mold everywhere, and most of my income went in to rent (pictured: Marie, Tim, and their one-year-old daughter Georgia)

‘By this point we had a one-year-old daughter and we were living on one income,’ recalled Tim. ‘We really struggled.’ ‘I remember it was Christmas time … we were living in a three-bedroom with one heater, no air conditioning, and there was mold everywhere, and most of my income went in to rent (pictured: Marie, Tim, and their one-year-old daughter Georgia)

‘By this point we had a one-year-old daughter and we were living on one income,’ recalled Mr Griffiths.

‘We really struggled.

‘I remember it was Christmas time … we were living in a three-bedroom with one heater, no air conditioning, and there was mould everywhere, and most of my income went in to rent.  

‘In the end, we struggled so much we had leave.’

For the couple, leaving Auckland a second time meant breaking his work contract and agreeing to take on debts of $40,000.

‘The company had paid for us to bring all our things over to New Zealand, but when I broke the contract, I had to pay them back.

‘It’s about $600 per month that I have to pay now, over the course of about 4 years,’ Tim revealed.

That amount equates to about $40,000 of debt.

'In the end, we struggled so much we had leave,' said Tim. For Marie and Tim (pictured with their daughter, Georgia), leaving Auckland meant breaking his work contract and agreeing to take on debts of $40,000

‘In the end, we struggled so much we had leave,’ said Tim. For Marie and Tim (pictured with their daughter, Georgia), leaving Auckland meant breaking his work contract and agreeing to take on debts of $40,000

On top of that, the couple had to pay to ship all their possessions back to England themselves.

‘We have no money left from the sale of our house, and no savings,’ he said. 

‘But choosing to leave Auckland with debts and no job was still cheaper than staying in Auckland without those debts, with a job.’

Tim said the couple now live back in England and pay $300 per week for a three-bedroom semi-detached place, but admitted they do miss New Zealand.

‘We loved New Zealand and we’d love to go back,’ he said.

‘It’s a great place to raise kids, but it’s just so unaffordable.  

‘You’d really need to make about $150,000 to live comfortably in Auckland, but the wage doesn’t reflect that at all.’ 

The minimum wage in New Zealand is $17.70 per hour.

According to Government-run website New Zealand Now, the average weekly cost of rent in Auckland is $500.

Tim said: 'You'd really need to make about $150,000 to live comfortably in Auckland, but the wage doesn't reflect that at all.' The minimum wage in New Zealand is $17.70 per hour. According to Government-run website New Zealand Now, the average weekly cost of rent in Auckland is $500

Tim said: ‘You’d really need to make about $150,000 to live comfortably in Auckland, but the wage doesn’t reflect that at all.’ The minimum wage in New Zealand is $17.70 per hour. According to Government-run website New Zealand Now, the average weekly cost of rent in Auckland is $500

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