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Nursing student Ashdee Wilson loves owning a home and has no regrets about sacrificing warm weather and her beloved roller derby team to make it happen.
Wilson, 27, left his hometown of Nelson and moved to Invercargill last summer. In February, he collected the keys to his three-bedroom, two-bedroom home in downtown Invercargill. The price tag? $ 220,000.
He left behind friends, his mother and grandparents, and the Nelson Bays Roller Derby league he had played for for four years. But Wilson believes that a similar home would have cost at least $ 550,000 in Nelson.
Kavinda Herath / Things
Ashdee Wilson believes her home in Invercargill would have cost more than $ 500,000 if it were in Nelson.
The move brought her closer to her father, who lives on a farm outside of Invercargill, and allowed her to begin a free nursing degree at SIT.
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“I was newly single and had nothing, other than friends and family, to tie me to Nelson. I really wanted to buy a home and the only place to do it was Invercargill, ”says Wilson.
Kavinda Herath / Things
The 120 square meter house sits on a 506 square meter section.
Wilson enlisted the family’s help in making the purchase. He approached his grandparents to ask them to guarantee a home loan, but they preferred to give him a combined $ 17,000 gift.
“I didn’t want to ask them for money. I wanted a guarantor. But they decided this was more worth it because it was helping me with my life. I’m very lucky that they are in a position to do that. “
That sum added to his KiwiSaver savings of $ 23,000 and the $ 5,000 HomeStart First Time Homebuyer Grant for which he was eligible.
Kavinda Herath / Things
The house is in the suburb of Appleby, five minutes from downtown Invercargill.
His father is still helping, with his handy DIY help and unsentimental birthday gifts. “For my birthday he bought me a heat transfer system and installed it. That raises the price of housing. “
Paying your home loan is not a problem. Her two roommates, who pay $ 150 a week in rent, electricity and internet, more than cover her expenses, including mortgage, fees, insurance, electricity and internet.
Wilson spent his senior year at Invercargill, so he knew what to expect and, overall, he says, he likes it. But he admits he finds the weather bleak.
Kavinda Herath / Things
Halloween decorated queen size sheet covers Wilson’s attempt to remove wallpaper.
“The weather could definitely be a lot better. When you have a week of continuous rain, it depresses you a bit. “
You have also experienced some “small town” thoughts. “There is a lot of closed-mindedness, for example, racism and homophobic ideas.”
She says the house is habitable but could definitely use an upgrade. He has painted three bedrooms and did a “very poor DIY job” trying to remove wallpaper in one room.
Kavinda Herath / Things
Wilson has one of the three bedrooms and has roommates in the other two.
“I started to tear it off but it had seven layers of wallpaper and paint. It took me six hours to remove a queen-size sheet, so now it’s covered with a queen-size sheet. “
“My dad and I are going to finish the second dream this summer, to give us all a little more space. I need to put pink blocks, carpet, cover it with gib “.
Kavinda Herath / Things
With two lounge chairs and a garage, the house has plenty of storage space.
She just started working part time at McDonald’s, which she says will give her enough income to start renovating.
“Now that I have a job, I intend to fix the kitchen. I need to tear up the entire kitchen and start over.
“I want this house to be really nice for people to live.”
Wilson says she loves owning a home.
“If there’s something I don’t like, I’m the one who can do something about it.”
Kavinda Herath / Things
The kitchen is in line for a complete makeover.
She says it’s easier as a pet lover too.
“I have two cats. Renting is a nightmare with animals. I could go to the store and buy a puppy tomorrow. There is a great sense of freedom in owning your own home.”
His best advice to other potential home buyers: Approach a mortgage broker early on, if necessary, years before you want to buy.
“The one I saw told me to pay off a certain amount on my credit card debt and to make sure I have a full-time job. I already knew about HomeStart but they taught me how to get it, they gave me all the forms. They make it easy. “
Her mortgage broker also helped her obtain $ 2,000 from the bank to cover her legal fees.
Will you stay in Invercargill?
“My plan was always to do my study, tidy up the house and move to Nelson and have this place as a rental. But then I met this really amazing guy who has a son here, so we’ll see. “
Kavinda Herath / Things
Ashdee Wilson has rebooted the Invercargill Roller Derby league.
And as for skipping the roller derby, since the local league was not working, Wilson has taken it upon himself to get it going again, and already has 16 skaters signed up.
