Buying a car or a van in New Zealand

The end of your WHV often marks the moment when you have to sell your van. This can be particularly difficult at certain times of the year. We recommend that you put your van up for sale at least one month before your departure from New Zealand so that you don’t end up with the van in your hands when it’s time to leave the country and selling it in desperation for a low price.

When is the worst time of the year to sell your van?

The worst time of year to sell your van is around autumn: from April-May until around September. At this time, many working holiday makers of all nationalities return from their travels and not many new people choose to arrive in New Zealand at this time. Working holiday makers who might be interested in buying a van prefer to wait until the end of winter, rather than making a purchase at the start of winter: they don’t intend to live in the van over the winter.

When is the best time of the year to sell your van?

The best time of year is probably from November (spring) to the end of January (summer). There is one small exception, however, between mid-December and early January. New working holiday makers often prefer to celebrate Christmas and New Year with their families in their home country before flying to New Zealand, where they will often come straight to buy a van.

How to sell your van?

You can resell your van on the Internet, on Facebook, via the weekly car markets or car fairs, by placing classified ads in backpackers, on supermarket notice boards, or by putting up a poster on the window of your van.

If you place an ad on the Internet, beware of van resale scams. Don’t continue a discussion with someone abroad who hasn’t seen the van, who claim they would like to buy it for a family member, or who has too few questions to appear seriously interested without bothering to negotiate the price. These are often scams where you end up not selling your van and losing a bit of money via Western Union.

Don’t forget to take the necessary steps to change ownership. Fines and incidents with the new owner could come back to bite you in the butt if you don’t.