New Zealand is mainly dominated by houses rather than apartments. This reflects the high percentage of families with children that reside in New Zealand. There is also a certain social expectation to move into a house after marrying in anticipation of children. Fairly recently, around the early 2,000’s, there was an influx of immigrants to New Zealand which has continued to the present. This influx has caused the prices of housing in general to increase, but more specifically the prices of suburban housing has risen in some areas considerably. Many properties are actually sold on word of mouth rather than advertising, and may not be advertised at all sometimes. Because of this it is recommended to ask friends and acquaintances if they know of any place for sale or rent in addition to traditional methods of searching. The use of heating in New Zealand homes reflects a kind of “don’t use it if you don’t need to” kind of mentality.
Most New Zealanders will layer their clothes while indoors to keep warm during the winter and only heat a room if they are using it and will stop heating it when they are done. However, they are much more liberal in the use of AC as it can get fairly hot during the daytime in some regions. Something else that is important to families choosing a house in New Zealand is if the house is located in an ‘enrollment/school zone’. If you live in one of these zones your child is guaranteed admission to schools that are in the same zone. Although there is not much information regarding the housing of New Zealander students, there are accommodation options available for students studying abroad in New Zealand. The dormitories in New Zealand are referred to as “Halls of Residence”. Almost all of these are located on or very close to the campus and almost all universities offer them. They cost around $5,000 a year which is relatively inexpensive. There are also many rental properties near universities and it is also a popular option for students. When students search for housing using this method it is called “going flatting”.
Sources
https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/living-in-nz/housing/choosing-somewhere-to-live
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100809130016AAN8NNE
https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/why-choose-nz/compare-new-zealand/usa
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g255104-i125-k5581357-Need_for_Air_Conditioning-New_Zealand.html
http://www.education-newzealand.org/accomodations-new-zealand/