Which area is better?

Question

I am thinking of moving to Wellington, need to know your opinion about which areas are good in the following cities:

- Upper Hutt

- Lower Hutt

- Porirua

I mean good in terms of neighbourhood, safety, schools, traffic and shopping,..etc

I have two boys 7&9 years old.

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

agree with cmac.

Answer 2

When you say Porirua do you mean the whole Porirua region or simply the areas directly surrounding the city?

Because if you mean the whole area (as in, everything that comes under the Porirua City Council) then personally i would suggest Porirua region is a very good location.

Also, are you going to be working in Wellington City? If so, a trip to Upper Hutt can take nearly an hour. Long time on the train. Porirua is only about 25 mins and Plimmerton about 35 mins. There are some cute little primary schools around. Possibly your one problem if you do live in these areas is the secondary school (when they reach 13) as they will probably end up going into Wellington. Aotea is perfectly fine but due to its location it still isn't that highly regarded (not actually because of the school and exams but other peoples perceptions).

Lower Hutt is obviously also quite convenient and has good schools. I like Lower Hutt, i just think that the harbour and features of the Porirua region are prettier. In saying that, the schools are very good in Lower Hutt and there is a good convenient secondary school (Hutt High).  

Upper Hutt is further out and in some ways has more of a 'community' aspect to it. While many people work in Wellington city, many also do their living, playing, and educating in Upper Hutt. Which gives it, in some ways quite a different 'vibe' as compared to Lower Hutt or the Porirua region. Does that makes sense? Hope so!

Both Lower Hutt and Porirua have the main westfield type malls (actually Lower Hutt's is a westfield mall, Porirua is just similar) so has the standard shops (Farmers, Glassons, Hallensteins, movie theatres etc).  

To be honest, i don't think you will go far wrong as long as you have a look around the areas first before committing to schools or housing.  So, your question about safety relates to the above.

Yes there are some dive areas in Porirua but there are also quite a few in Hutt City.

Answer 3

In order of preference:

Lower Hutt

Upper Hutt

I wouldn't consider Porirua and I lived there for 4 years when my husband taught school there. It is (mainly) a state housing area and we moved when the children were 1 and 3. It has high unemployment and crime.