Exodus to the lucky country

New Zealand Herald

The trickle of New Zealanders moving to Australia for good has turned into a flood, with the figure at its highest level in 19 years – a trend experts pick will only continue bar an economic miracle.

Figures released by Statistics New Zealand yesterday showed over 27,200 New Zealand citizens shifted across the Tasman in the 12 months ending November 2007.

The number represents an 83 percent jump from the previous year and is the highest level since 1988. But the trend is picked to continue unless NZ manages an economic transformation to rival Asia’s tiger economies.

“The pull factor in Australia remains very strong given the income difference and Australia will continue to grow faster than NZ, especially over the next 18 months” said ANZ economist Khoon Hog.

“Expect to see an ongoing number of New Zealanders going across the ditch”

It comes a week after a Government report confirmed a widening wage gap between New Zealand and Australia. The report showed that while average salaries and wages in New Zealand have always been lower, the gap between the two countries has widened since 1997. It also found that the equivalent of nearly 10 percent of New Zealand’s population was now living in Australia.

Dr Paul Callister, Research Fellow at Victoria University Institute of Policy Studies, said “People are heading to places like Western Australia and Queensland because the opportunities are so great. They are particularly strong for people who have trade skills and in terms of the middle level skills, Australia’s a place where you can earn a lot more money and you’ve got better weather along with better social services.” He said overall economic opportunities were better in Australia.

Housing prices are cheaper in Australia along with lower interest rates and higher capital gain which makes an affordable option for those seeking to own their own home or invest in property!