The American couple travelled around multiple New Zealand towns with spreadsheet in hand, ranking each place they visited in 15 different categories.
From the art scene to golf courses, restaurants to grocery stores, its "walkability", whether it was safe, right down to "the vibe" it was all considered.
Timaru was their Goldilocks town — not too big, not too small.
Just right, in fact, with a total score of 4.4, compared with closest contender Blenheim at 3.9.
Timaru also outscored Nelson, Kaitaia, Dargaville, Oamaru and Masterton, and the South Canterbury towns of Geraldine and Waimate.
Now writer and illustrator Violet and retired golf pro Fred are rapidly becoming Timaru’s most enthusiastic ambassadors, amazed at how many people do not know about their new hometown, and eager to share their passion for the place.
The couple arrived in New Zealand in 2015 when PGA-level teacher Fred took up a position at the Institute of Golf in Auckland, and Violet continued her work as a successful writer and illustrator.
While they loved their rented home in the seaside suburb of St Heliers, they knew real estate prices would prevent them from buying there.
Not fully realising that Auckland property values did not reflect all of New Zealand, they initially considered moving overseas to retire.
During working stints in China and Malaysia, Fred embarked on intensive online research into New Zealand towns, reading, watching videos and checking out real estate prices.
The couple visited some of the towns of interest, but when Fred retired, they embarked on a major journey around New Zealand to find their "soul place".
They visited 15 towns — becoming very familiar with Top 10 Holiday Parks — as far north as Kaitaia and as far south as Oamaru.
And while their search was spreadsheet-savvy, their hearts definitely played a role.
The couple originally met in Savannah, the oldest city in the state of Georgia, and there was something about Timaru — particularly its main street — that reminded them of where they met.
There were similarities, too, to St Heliers, with its culture, activities and natural beauty — although with much less eye-watering real estate prices — and Fred’s university dream of coming to New Zealand to study Maori rock art seemed to be just another example of the universe steering them towards the town.
"We were really excited about Timaru before we had even seen it.
"It was one of our last stops, and as soon as we drove in, we both had a hunch we had found the right place.
"It’s not too big, not too small ... we call it our Goldilocks town.
"The town just really spoke to us as soon as we got here.
"It was just the right fit, the real estate was right, it just had it all.
"It felt familiar, and similar, to where we were in Auckland, but Auckland without the price tag and the traffic."
The couple moved in to their Wai-Iti Rd home early in December, and have been making the most of the easy walk to Caroline Bay, the rose festival, the carnival, and other events.
They fell in love with New Zealand as soon as they arrived, and moving to Timaru had strengthened that feeling.
Despite missing family and friends in the United States, they say retiring there has become less appealing.
While they were often asked "do they even have internet?" when they first departed the US, now friends and family were more inclined to ask, "can we come with you?".
"There are so many reasons to be here.
"We just don’t know why more people don’t know about Timaru."
