Crusing on Lake Hawea South Island
New Zealand is such a dream within a dream! The beauty is endless from Cape Reinga to the Fjords in the South Island. New Zealandʻs working holiday gives every adventurer the opportunity to fund their travels around New Zealand. Meaning, one can see the country on their terms & time. The best way to experience New Zealand on a WHV though, is with your own vehicle. Most people buy a car or famously, a campervan. Me, I did it a bit more different and bought a motorcycle. Regardless of the vehicle, the process of owning a vehicle in New Zealand as a backpacker works all the same. Here is a list of resources & “Must do’s” of how to Buy & own a vehicle in New Zealand.
Where to Look
TradeMe
Trade Me is like Ebay on steroids, as you can buy & sell just about anything. You can also list your property for rent, find roommates, even find jobs. But ask any kiwi on where you can find cars for sale and just about everyone will refer you to TradeMe.
Backpacker Boards
A pretty straight forward option as a backpacker is to search the number of backpacker boards websites for New Zealand. Most of these boards post events, jobs, and guides for backpackers planning to travel and live in New Zealand. But you can also find cars on the market by other travelers who are most likely leaving the country and would like to pass on their ride. Buying from a likeminded travel would probably make things smoother.
Facebook Market
This is where and how I found my motorcycle. I like Facebook market because it’s simple and more personable with no fees and hidden costs. Contact a seller, arrange to meet, and set up the purchase between the both of you. The only downside is that there is no security in the event that something goes wrong on either end.
Walk into a Store
The most old school resource out there is simply walking into a Countdown, New World, & Four Square. Every locations I’ve walked into has a pin board with cars for sale as well as jobs, or people seeking workers.
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Things to Check before buying a Vehicle
Check Rego
Registration is pretty straight forward like in the US or Europe. A vehicle is road legal is all the information in the national database are up to date. Once this expires, the car cannot be on the road. It’s best to check the Registration and how long it’s good for before it’s expired so you can plan on when you need to renew. No rego is fine but leaves more work for you to do after you buy the vehicle.
Example of a NZ Registration card.
Check WOF
Warrant of Fitness needs to be done once a year for newer vehicles and every six months for older ones. This is like an inspection to make sure the vehicle runs properly. (Windshield wipers, turn signals, horns) If a WOF fails, you will need to complete the checklist of things to work on before it can be passed. If you fail and need to update your Rego, it cannot be done without a completed WOF.
Example of a NZ WOF card
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Sending Money to New Zealand
Unless you have a job with money to pay for a vehicle, you’re solid. Otherwise, you’re most likely in a situation where you have to send money from your home bank to your New Zealand bank (assuming you have one open.) Don’t do it like me asking my mom to go into my home bank, request a wire transfer, do paperwork, send it out only to pay $120 US in fees including receiving the money in New Zealand. Instead use..
Transferwise
I couldn’t stress how much any backpacker living abroad should use Transferwise. Fees are minimal and the process to get money from A to Z is incredibly simple. My wire transfer of 6,200 USD from New Zealand to the US of A, cost me a whopping $25 USD. If you haven’t used Transfer wise yet and curious to sign up and use this for your wire transfers, Sign Up Here.
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Pay Your Seller
Bank Transfer
I would never pay cash for anything that had a high dollar amount and was being paid to an individual. At home, I’d use a check if possible for tracking. But in New Zealand, bank transfers between accounts is an absolutely safe and useful way to send money. The best quality about it is that your money is documented, SECURITY!!! I personally prefer to be in person with my buyer like I did with my motorcycle just to be safe on both ends of the deal.
Finally, Transfer of Ownership
Once you have arranged payment with your buyer, the seller must go online and classify his vehicle as sold. Doesn’t clarify if it’s to you or to the Prime Minister. It’s allows the NZTA to see that the vehicle is no longer that persons and is the first step to transfer of ownership.
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/buying-and-selling-a-vehicle/
Normally for a Kiwi, one would put in their license information, vehicle license plate number and a $9NZD fee is paid for online. But because a backpacker from abroad does have have a NZ license, one must go to an NZTA office or Post Office, request a transfer of ownership document, have an official review your passport information, and pay the $9 in person. Once that is done, the vehicle is yours and you’re all set for exploration across New Zealand.
Just a bit of common sense before you go exploring, get an oil change and inspection of the vehicle for sanity sake. I learned the hard way in the middle of a busy Hamilton intersection. 🙂
