For most international students, their choice of accommodation is to rent a room. So this article will show you how to rent a house in New Zealand.
Rental House Options in New Zealand
Rent in New Zealand is much higher than in China. To rent a room in Auckland, you may need to spend about $1400. But in most cities of China, you can rent a whole suite for the same price.
You can set the check-in time as the same day to avoid overpaying the rent because of the high price. You can also choose to stay in a hotel for a while, and at that time you can find a place to rent in person. So in the following part, we will show you some options and advice about houses for rent in New Zealand.
School Dormitory
There are some merits and demerits for living in the dormitory.
1. It’s close to campus, saving your time on commuting.
2. It can help you make friends from all over the world and improve your language ability.
3. Dormitory has a set of strict management rule and the safety can be guaranteed.
4. Dormitories are more expensive than off-campus accommodations. It offers both single and double rooms. A single room costs $1400 -$1650 a month, and a double room costs $940- $1180 a month.
5. Student dormitories are well-located but have little personal space. A single room of about ten square meters contains a bed, a desk, a closet, a stove, and a toilet and shower. Living there may be very crowded.
Downtown Apartment Sharing
Apartment typically has two or three bedrooms, with each person having a separate bedroom and sharing bathroom and kitchen with your roommate.
Here are the pros and cons of renting a downtown apartment in New Zealand.
1. Short commute. Commuting distance is a very important factor. If you live far away from the campus, you can only rely on public transportation. New Zealand’s public transportation is not as convenient as China’s and is often late.
2. It is convenient to live in the city for shopping and entertainment.
3. The price of a shared apartment in the city is slightly cheaper than a student dormitory.
4. The house is small and noisy. A tip to live in the downtown street apartments: try to choose a higher floor. Otherwise, you will be woken up by the noise from the road at night.
5. Fixed rental period. It’s really a long period of time (from six months, preferably one year). The deposit is usually four weeks’ rent, which is transferred to the rental agent or landlord when you sign the contract. When the apartment is expired, the deposit will be returned after the landlord has checked that there is no damage to the facilities in the room. If you leave the apartment in the middle of the tenancy, the deposit isn’t refundable, but subletting is individually allowed.
Suburban House
Houses in suburbs are usually wood buildings with three floors or less, and there are several options about renting a house in suburbs. Different rooms have different price. The bigger your live, the higher rent price is. Here are some options for renting a suburban house.
1. Rent a bedroom and share the bathroom with your roommate.
2. Rent the master bedroom with ensuite bathroom and share the kitchen with the landlord and roommate.
3. Rent a room with a separate kitchen and bathroom, with no contact with the landlord.
4. Renting an entire house.
Suburban houses usually have a two-week deposit, and there is no fixed rental period, so tenants can just talk to the landlord two weeks in advance if they want to end the lease. If the landlord wants the tenant to leave, it is also two weeks’ notice.
Ways to find a house for rent in New Zealand
1. You can rent a friend’s house and get a discount on the rent while knowing the house better.
2. Renting a house from local people. The advantage is that the process of renting a room is formalized, and it will specifically check your background, whether you have a criminal record, whether you work and rest regularly, etc., and there are also strict measures to compensate for any damage to the items in the house. However, the rent is higher.
3. Using rental website or app. For example, uhomes is a very useful website for students to rent a house in New Zealand. You can find various types of houses in it and the houses there have a relatively high quality and a better price.
4. Post on forums for Chinese landlords. Search for the appropriate keywords and look for the latest posts to ask about according to when they were posted.
Rent Notice
When looking for a house, you need to pay attention to the location to avoid commuting for too long. You also need to pay attention to the safety of the neighborhood, and don’t be tempted to rent something less safe.
When looking for a room, pay attention to the environment of the room, whether it is pleasant to live in, whether there is noise in the surrounding area, whether the roommate and landlord are nice to live with, and so on.
FAQ
If you are considering moving to a small town for a short time, you may have some difficulties to find a rental house. If you plan to move to New Zealand for a long time, you can have a plan to get on the property ladder. Renting in New Zealand has less security for tenants than in other countries, and the average lease is only two years.
It depends on various factors. If you want to live in Auckland, $80-100k salary is usually enough to live comfortably. In smaller cities, you might need a little less.
This depends on how long you want to stay, whether your ability is needed in New Zealand, and if you are moving with your family. You’ll need a job offer before applying for your visa.
