However, Napier had been the ideal location - their son went to a Napier school, both had friends in the area, and they wanted to be close to their families, who lived in Napier and Hastings.
"It was the hardest thing we've ever done," the mother of three said. "The emotional toll it's taken on us, you get your hopes up so much thinking the bank's giving us this offer and you're waiting to get these phone calls, and emails, and then so often it's disappointment.
"It's such an emotional rollercoaster, really full of ups and downs. I'm so glad we're not doing it anymore."
Finally, the Robertsons had found a property in Onekawa, and purchased it through a private sale.
"[The previous owner's] bottom dollar was our top dollar," she said. "The market was just so insane. We were looking, we'd made tenders that we'd been beaten out on, and offers.
"If it hadn't been this private sale I think we still would have been looking, because there's just so many people."
Mrs Robertson said they are very happy with the house, which was small, but had a big backyard for their three children.
"We really wanted somewhere that could be their own home."
The hardest parts of house hunting for Mrs Robertson - a lack of listings, and being priced out - show how bouyant Napier's market is - the latest QV figures show Napier values rose 18.4 per cent year on year and 5.7 per cent over the past three months.
The average value in the city is now $449,717 and values are now 32.2 per cent above the previous peak of 2007.
While Napier's market has remained buoyant due to this supply and demand - like most of Hawke's Bay - there is also a lot of interest in the city due to its beachside location, lifestyle and affordability.
Property Brokers Napier residential sales consultant Ronnie Turner said the market was still booming locally, despite a slow down over winter.
"That combined with a lack of listings in the market anyway has kept the market really buoyant with a lack of supply, but the demands still there so the prices are still getting up."
Tremains sales consultant Jen Brownlie said in the past six months Napier's market had "dramatically changed", with low interest rates and good confidence with the market around the country.
There had been "phenomenal growth" in Napier - while interest was predominantly from local residents, people from across the country were looking to buy in the city.
"At the beginning of this crazy rush it was Aucklanders, but now ... I think people have discovered our little piece of paradise and people from all over are moving here.
"I think Napier just has that kind of holiday feel being on the beach, and Ahuriri with its little precinct. Being close to the airport, which is quite important, we've got a lot of people now commuting to Auckland during the week for business and coming back here because it feels like a holiday."
Mr Turner had also been noticing a lot of out-of-town buyers showing interest in the region - some even paying at the top end of the market to secure properties - with people drawn to Napier because of the choices it offered.
"The lifestyle is attracting a lot of people, a lot of buyers who have moved into the region who don't have any other sort of affiliations to the location except for the lifestyle," he said. "People who've come through for a summer holiday, or for an Art Deco weekend, they love it and feel it's an affordable place for them to come and locate to."
As well as more affordable housing than in some major centres, the Hawke's Bay industry was booming, and people were able to find work relatively easily.
There had been growth "across the board", with high demand areas continuing to draw great interest.
For specific areas, Ms Brownlie said the growth in Tamatea had been "pretty unbelievable", with a lot of interest in Maraenui, which was "starting to grow with first time buyers moving into that area fringe, which is great."
Properties in Taradale and Greenmeadows were increasingly sought after, which Mr Turner said school zones played a big part in.