thinking of moving to Australia
Discussion
Hi all I'm thinkintg of moving to australia possibly to the out skirts of sydney from the uk, i own a bodyshop here specializing in sports and prestige cars.I would like to know what a painter or panel beater can earn per week and is it worth setting up a bodyshop of my own and as for a commercial unit do you have to have local council concent to do this trade.
At first i think i would get a job to get to know the system and then make my moves from there the main reason i am thinging of this move is for the future of my 18 month old boy.
Thanks in advance,
Bob.
At first i think i would get a job to get to know the system and then make my moves from there the main reason i am thinging of this move is for the future of my 18 month old boy.
Thanks in advance,
Bob.
autobodytechnic said:
Hi all I'm thinkintg of moving to australia possibly to the out skirts of sydney from the uk, i own a bodyshop here specializing in sports and prestige cars.I would like to know what a painter or panel beater can earn per week and is it worth setting up a bodyshop of my own and as for a commercial unit do you have to have local council concent to do this trade.
At first i think i would get a job to get to know the system and then make my moves from there the main reason i am thinging of this move is for the future of my 18 month old boy.
Thanks in advance,
Bob.
Can't help you with specifics on the trade, although in general wages here are less than in England.At first i think i would get a job to get to know the system and then make my moves from there the main reason i am thinging of this move is for the future of my 18 month old boy.
Thanks in advance,
Bob.
Just a question on your last statement; what is the problem with your son? Does he have health issues compounded by English weather? Can't think of any other reason, don't be fooled into thinking we don't have at least the same problems that you have in England.
What is it that has turned you on to the idea of moving here?
I dont mean to pry but if you explain your situation a bit further and tell us what it is you want to achieve moving here we would be able to give you some better advice.
I moved to Perth from the UK 3 years ago now...sometimes I desperately miss home and sometimes I enjoy living here.
As has been mentioned moving here will never bring a fix for any problems you have at home...
I dont mean to pry but if you explain your situation a bit further and tell us what it is you want to achieve moving here we would be able to give you some better advice.
I moved to Perth from the UK 3 years ago now...sometimes I desperately miss home and sometimes I enjoy living here.
As has been mentioned moving here will never bring a fix for any problems you have at home...
Hi guys, no health issues or anything like that, it's just that lifes becoming very expensive here, the weather no good, the schools are no good unless it's private and only a hand full of state ones, it's just a thought at the moment but am seriously looking in to it. What sort of problems do you mean you have same as us.
Thanks
Bob
Thanks
Bob
autobodytechnic said:
Hi guys, no health issues or anything like that, it's just that lifes becoming very expensive here, the weather no good, the schools are no good unless it's private and only a hand full of state ones, it's just a thought at the moment but am seriously looking in to it. What sort of problems do you mean you have same as us.
Thanks
Bob
I'm probably not the best person to reply as I would move back to England in a flash if I had the choice.Thanks
Bob
The days of cheap housing here are long gone, especially in Perth which has gone from one of the cheapest to THE most expensive Capital city in a few short years.
An average home will now cost in excess of 10 times the average gross wage.
Don't compare prices and convert $ to £, the average wage here is less than in England. Sure some things are cheaper, others more expensive.
As has been said before many times, (and not just by me, I will try and find some links) Perth especially is NOT the place to come if you have any interest in cars/driving/motorsport. (and I guess you do otherwise why are you here?
)Enforcement of ridiculously low speed limits is draconian, hidden cameras are the norm, along with constant brainwashing of the largely brain dead population that this is somehow linked to road safety...
I could go on...
autobodytechnic said:
Hi guys, no health issues or anything like that, it's just that lifes becoming very expensive here, the weather no good, the schools are no good unless it's private and only a hand full of state ones, it's just a thought at the moment but am seriously looking in to it. What sort of problems do you mean you have same as us.
Thanks
Bob
Hi Bob..Thanks
Bob
Not trying to shit in your spa...Just want to make sure you have the facts so you can think long and hard about moving here!
Life is becoming increasingly expensive here:
Rent is on average $250/week in Perth..Just 2.5years a go I was paying $140/week for a similar sized place just 2minutes down the road. Rent prices are expected to rise and keep rising for the forseeable future. It is getting VERY hard to find a rental and you may find yourself 'bidding' for a rental by offering to pay more than the other 25people who showed up to view the place!!
Mortgages are nigh on impossible for a lot of people (hence the difficulty in finding a rental) though recently the 'boom' has begun to slow down a bit and house prices have dropped a touch as people are beginning to realise that buying slap bang in the middle of the boom has left them stretched to far! interest rates have risen several times in the last year and are expected to rise again.
Basically Aus is going through a housing crisis at the moment as it is becoming so pricey..there are calls to artificially restrict growth here to give people a chance to catch up and get on to the property ladder!
The 'boom' Aus is going through at the moment is serving to make the rich richer and make money tighter for the average blue. Personally I am not convinced that Aus can sustain this much longer.
Petrol has seen some big increases in price recently but despite all the moaning people have beend doing its not *that* bad...infact over a full tank of fuel we only pay something silly like $5 more than we did a couple of years ago.
Food shopping is getting expensive to and is defiantely a noticeable rise...for 2 of us it is now costing $50/week more than it did 2years ago.
The Weather:
It depends what you want...
Personally I think the summer is a pain in the arse.
A 40degree day is brilliant when you have nothing better to do than stick the BBQ on and sit in the shade with a beer. Its proper crap though when you need to do DIY, Gardening, Shopping, Wash the car, Go to work, Sit in traffic, try and sleep...
We are in the winter now and although it doesnt get really cold its very wet and very windy and very miserable.
Schools:
Never went to school here so cant really comment to much..However most of the people I work with send their kids to private school (and they are not that well off to start with) and dont rate public schools.
Also my partner is a product of Aus public schools and when I met her the lack of knowledge on history outside of Aus was shocking! It was not through lack of trying either..it just was not taught!
Other problems:
Draconian speed limits and VERY well hidden speed cameras...sometimes disguised as a wheelie bin!! Oh and dont bother with a radar detector...they are illegal.
The government..
Lack of quality motorsport and there are not many racetracks to visit here either..
The small range of good cars are expensive, most people buy a Japanese import to try and have some budget fun but before you know it you will have plowed $30K in to one. If you do decide to move here then consider buying a good car in the UK and import it here, you must have owned it for more than 12months to do this though.
Not much in the way of entertainment..very few major bands come here, few museums, no airshows.
Stupid TV with its heavily biased news presentation, apalling american TV shows and stupid adverts every 2minutes.
Everytime you get behind the wheel of your car I can promise that at least once on the journey an emergency brake and horn press will be required...driving standards here are simply apalling and the goverment is going about things the wrong way to fix it.
Travelling abroad becomes a once in a lifetime chance here...a family trip to Italy would cost you $50K easily! Partly because of the week AU$ and the price of flights is high..no budget airlines here!
I know I have made it look like Aus is completely shit which it isnt...but there are as many frustrating problems here as there is in the UK. You would probably find that a lot of the things you take for granted in the UK will be very much missed here...I think I am in the same boat as RX7...really missing the UK!
Edited by deviant on Tuesday 31st July 05:55
deviant said:
...I think I am in the same boat as RX7...really missing the UK!
I was about to say I didn't remember posting that reply, you took the words from my mouth!I forgot to mention schools; I always intended sending my kids to private schools as the State schools are a joke. Education has been completely dumbed down and academic achievement is frowned upon. Our best students are almost always Asians who generally have a much better attitude to work and success.
Unfortunately due to my illness and now divorce, my girls have gone to State schools.
Rentals: I am currently renting for the first time in my life (ex is still in "my" house), paying $250/week for a really crap 3x1 in Forrestfield (It does have a big garage) Trying to find a decent house to share with my new partner and her teenage boys, prepared to spend up to $500/week but there is nothing in the (fairly wide) area that suits.
They don't sell Jaffa Cakes or Pot Noodles here... thats reason enough to stay in the UK.
I see you in the same trade as me, take it from me, the Motor trade here in Oz is bullshit, ruthlessly run by the cabals of the insurance giants NRMA and RACV, turning a profit and being proud of the work you do will not be happy bedfellows.
I see you in the same trade as me, take it from me, the Motor trade here in Oz is bullshit, ruthlessly run by the cabals of the insurance giants NRMA and RACV, turning a profit and being proud of the work you do will not be happy bedfellows.
SkinnyBoy said:
They don't sell Jaffa Cakes ...
Ah I've found an English shop/cafe where we sometimes go for a "full English" breakfast, they even do kippers and black pudding and they sell Jaffa cakes aswell as other hard to get things.The one thing I cannot find anywhere here is clotted cream
madazrx7 said:
SkinnyBoy said:
They don't sell Jaffa Cakes ...
Ah I've found an English shop/cafe where we sometimes go for a "full English" breakfast, they even do kippers and black pudding and they sell Jaffa cakes aswell as other hard to get things.The one thing I cannot find anywhere here is clotted cream
Decent size 'taters for Jacket Spuds are hard to find.
The mayonaise is crap here to...its that nasty tangy cheap stuff and tastes like what comes in a little plastic sachet with a motorway service station meal.
Would that cafe be the one in Cannington? Britannia I think its called?
We are in a bit of a pickle at the mo...the missus is earning more money than ever before but its with a natural resources company so there is only so long it can last. While she is earning that kind of money we want to save up a big wad of cash and either use it as a deposit on a house...or invest it...or move back to the UK.
Problem is though if we move back to the UK it will cost us near as damn it every single dollar to do it and then we would be back to square 1 again...
If we buy a house here and the 'boom' falls on its face I dont know how we would survive earning substantially lower wages..
If we invest the money I will go mad with always renting..
jeez they reckon poms winge to much...i think there are more aussies winging in here than poms
...we should have a pistonheads meet up and moan spectacular..bit of a trek for me chaps, east coast and all that.
I'd love to do a PH Australia meet though, are there even enough of us here?
I keep longing to go back to the UK, even though I'd be back to square one, I have a massive ache where i miss my family. Is the UK as bad as its made out to be? I know I only have the media to go on, and what my family tell me, but surely its not that bad! What hurt me the most was my little brother (6' 4 lanky bastard) got beat up outside a local pub by 4 hoodies, and i cried because if I was there I would of loved to smash the little scrotes heads in. Thats when i realised that Australia is tooooo far away. I never feel like this is home either. Its a great country, but its going the way of the rest of the world now. Plus I miss going to trackdays at Oulton Park, and ice cream at Delamere Forest on a Sunday.
I'd love to do a PH Australia meet though, are there even enough of us here?
I keep longing to go back to the UK, even though I'd be back to square one, I have a massive ache where i miss my family. Is the UK as bad as its made out to be? I know I only have the media to go on, and what my family tell me, but surely its not that bad! What hurt me the most was my little brother (6' 4 lanky bastard) got beat up outside a local pub by 4 hoodies, and i cried because if I was there I would of loved to smash the little scrotes heads in. Thats when i realised that Australia is tooooo far away. I never feel like this is home either. Its a great country, but its going the way of the rest of the world now. Plus I miss going to trackdays at Oulton Park, and ice cream at Delamere Forest on a Sunday.
madazrx7 said:
Yep the Brittania in Cannington, there is also an English shop in Kalamunda.
I think we should definitely arrange a mini PH meet in Perth, maybe in Spring?
Sounds good...Though I am going to be away for 6 weeks on holiday right when spring starts.I think we should definitely arrange a mini PH meet in Perth, maybe in Spring?
SkinnyBoy said:
bit of a trek for me chaps, east coast and all that.
I'd love to do a PH Australia meet though, are there even enough of us here?
I keep longing to go back to the UK, even though I'd be back to square one, I have a massive ache where i miss my family. Is the UK as bad as its made out to be? I know I only have the media to go on, and what my family tell me, but surely its not that bad! What hurt me the most was my little brother (6' 4 lanky bastard) got beat up outside a local pub by 4 hoodies, and i cried because if I was there I would of loved to smash the little scrotes heads in. Thats when i realised that Australia is tooooo far away. I never feel like this is home either. Its a great country, but its going the way of the rest of the world now. Plus I miss going to trackdays at Oulton Park, and ice cream at Delamere Forest on a Sunday.
I dont think the UK is as bad as people like to say it is....no worse than anywhere else anyway.I'd love to do a PH Australia meet though, are there even enough of us here?
I keep longing to go back to the UK, even though I'd be back to square one, I have a massive ache where i miss my family. Is the UK as bad as its made out to be? I know I only have the media to go on, and what my family tell me, but surely its not that bad! What hurt me the most was my little brother (6' 4 lanky bastard) got beat up outside a local pub by 4 hoodies, and i cried because if I was there I would of loved to smash the little scrotes heads in. Thats when i realised that Australia is tooooo far away. I never feel like this is home either. Its a great country, but its going the way of the rest of the world now. Plus I miss going to trackdays at Oulton Park, and ice cream at Delamere Forest on a Sunday.
I understand the feeling of isolation...flights to another country involve heaps of cash and 7hours on a plane. You cant really just jump in your car and drive for 2 hours in any direction and hit a multitude of towns with something new to see, chances are all you will find is the middle of no where!
deviant said:
I understand the feeling of isolation...flights to another country involve heaps of cash and 7hours on a plane. You cant really just jump in your car and drive for 2 hours in any direction and hit a multitude of towns with something new to see, chances are all you will find is the middle of no where!
That is probably my biggest single issue with living here. I the distance it takes me to drive to another town that is worth more than an hours visit, In England I could have spent 3 months exploring the same area and still not see everything there is to see.Theres no doubting there is some spectacular countryside to see here but you have to drive so bloody far to see it!!
I miss the abundance of museums, ancient castles and ruins to see in England. Chances are you can go to any town and there will be something like that to see nearby...I guess its all to new here for me!
The cars/motosport thing really gets to me sometimes. I will be buying an Evo around the new year so I will enter a few sprints and trackdays but I think I will still miss the trackday scene in the UK.
I miss the abundance of museums, ancient castles and ruins to see in England. Chances are you can go to any town and there will be something like that to see nearby...I guess its all to new here for me!
The cars/motosport thing really gets to me sometimes. I will be buying an Evo around the new year so I will enter a few sprints and trackdays but I think I will still miss the trackday scene in the UK.
Edited by deviant on Wednesday 1st August 04:22
I did a few rounds of the sprint series at the AHG track near the airport last year in an RX7 that I share with a friend. The FC is now for sale, he has bought an FD which is a great car but we are bored with the AHG thing.
We are both WASCC members so will probably do some tuning days at Wanneroo this year.
I miss actually racing, would need a lotto win for me to get back into proper competition now.
Have you driven at Wanneroo or AHG?
(Oh and sorry for going O/T but I think we have given the OP enough to think about. Probably needs someone to add some balance, I'll get my mate with the RX7 to comment. He thinks life is great in Perth, million $ house, multimillion$ business, toys galore etc makes all the difference no matter where you live...)
We are both WASCC members so will probably do some tuning days at Wanneroo this year.
I miss actually racing, would need a lotto win for me to get back into proper competition now.
Have you driven at Wanneroo or AHG?
(Oh and sorry for going O/T but I think we have given the OP enough to think about. Probably needs someone to add some balance, I'll get my mate with the RX7 to comment. He thinks life is great in Perth, million $ house, multimillion$ business, toys galore etc makes all the difference no matter where you live...)
I have not really had anything to do with motorsport since I moved here....so no I have not driven Wanners/AHG/Collie yet.
When I get the evo I hope to be doing something in it once a month depending on funds.
I like the look of the AHG sprints but I have noticed people are beginning to get pretty serious and you rarely see any budget drivers show up which is a real shame.
Ok back on topic...
Perth has some of the best resturants I have ever been to and dont always cost the earth.
Despite the price of renting I am living somewhere far nicer than I could ever afford in the UK.
Sitting out in the yard first thing on a summers morning having breakfast is great.
There are some impossibly attractive women here.
Feel like going for a swim...10minutes drive to the beach.
Snorkelling (sp?) is great.
When I get the evo I hope to be doing something in it once a month depending on funds.
I like the look of the AHG sprints but I have noticed people are beginning to get pretty serious and you rarely see any budget drivers show up which is a real shame.
Ok back on topic...
Perth has some of the best resturants I have ever been to and dont always cost the earth.
Despite the price of renting I am living somewhere far nicer than I could ever afford in the UK.
Sitting out in the yard first thing on a summers morning having breakfast is great.
There are some impossibly attractive women here.
Feel like going for a swim...10minutes drive to the beach.
Snorkelling (sp?) is great.
I hope I can give a balanced view of what life is like living in Oz and the UK.
A bit about me. I'm an Aussie currently living in Shrewsbury, Shropshire UK and will be moving back to live in Canberra (where I grew up) at the end of this month after living 9 years in the UK and Ireland. I'm was born in Hong Kong and migrated to Oz at the age of 10. I was brought up and educated in Canberra but I've lived in Sydney and Brisbane for about 1 year each. I loved living in the UK and would have stayed longer but I'm going back for family reasons.
I've been lucky enough to go back to Oz annually to visit family and friends and I've noticed some of the changes over the last 9 years. Here are my observations:
Pay and Tax
Pay in general has increased greatly in Oz and is now on par with the UK. If you've got a trade (like a builder or plumber etc) then you're likely to be paid the same if not more than you will in the UK but other jobs are catching up with the UK as well. The tax rate short of the top rate is less than the UK. Considering in the UK you will have to pay 10% NI on top of your tax, while you don't in Oz so the tax can be less, so you could take home more money in Oz.
Renting House
I'm currently live in a smallish 2 bed semi with a very small back yard. I pay £580 rent + £100 council tax per month (Council tax is paid by the owner in Oz and included in the rental price). This is the going rate for my area and its cheap compare to most part of the UK where for similar property you will be paying more like £700+ and a lot more if nearer to London. I'm not quite sure what rent is in Perth but in Canberra £680 can easily get me a big 3/4 bedroom house with garage and 3 living areas close to the city centre.
House prices.
House prices in UK is in general much more than that in Oz especially if you are comparing like for like. The main cities in Oz can be expensive but you can easily get a 3 bedroom house in the outer suburbs of Sydney for £120K not necessarily in the best area but not that bad. In the sort after location you will be paying a lot more like London prices. For £120K in London, you'll only buy a garage for your car! But you can get a 2 or 3 bedroom small terrace in a run down area in Birmingham. The 2 bed semi I'm currently renting in Shrewsbury will sell for around £150K! If you're not going to settle in the big cities like Syd, Perth, Melb etc then you can get big house for £120K in the smaller rural towns. Once again house prices depends on where you want to live. Best bet is to get a map and go to www.domain.com.au to see what houses are selling for.
Schooling.
State School is free and if you do your research then you will easily find a good school for your kids. In general the better state schools are located in new estates where cheaper housing are because this is usually where families with kids live in these areas. My experience are: good schools are easier to find in Oz and the standard of education are also better. The big plus for aussie schools are the opportunities for your kids to get a higher education and get into different sports.
For example, I have a friend in Canberra who has 4 kids between 5 and 14 yr old. He sends his kids to state school 10 minutes walk away from home, they play cricket, tennis and swimming in summer, Rugby and Aussie Rule in Winter. The cost of doing all these activity for a year for each child including coaching and facilities come to $400! His sister live in London and sends her 10 yr old to private school and tennis and swimming lessons and she is paying £7K/year for school fees and £180 per month for swimming and tennis lessons.
Private school fees are a lot cheaper in Oz than UK.
Lifestyle
Chalk and cheese. Depending on what you want? UK is a really great place to live but it is definitely EASIER to live in Oz, facilities like doctors, care centres, hospitals are usually more accessible in Oz. You can easily get doctor appointments etc. There's more Olympic size pools in Canberra than the whole of the UK! If you live in the east coast then you don't have to travel as far to get to interesting places to visit.
Cost of living
It is much more expensive to shop in Oz including general grocery, clothing etc! It cheaper for housing/rent, petrol, eating out etc.
My Conclusion
I think you need to really do your research before making the move. I think if you want to give your kids a better lifestyle than there is no better place than Oz. After living in the UK for 9 year and loved every minute of it. I don't have kids but if I did I would have returned earlier. A lot of my friend have lived in the UK and other parts of the world. Nearly all of them had returned to Oz once they had children because they think the same as I do. You really need to be sure that you want to do this as going back could be difficult financially as mentioned by other posts.
Hope this helps.
Onny.
A bit about me. I'm an Aussie currently living in Shrewsbury, Shropshire UK and will be moving back to live in Canberra (where I grew up) at the end of this month after living 9 years in the UK and Ireland. I'm was born in Hong Kong and migrated to Oz at the age of 10. I was brought up and educated in Canberra but I've lived in Sydney and Brisbane for about 1 year each. I loved living in the UK and would have stayed longer but I'm going back for family reasons.
I've been lucky enough to go back to Oz annually to visit family and friends and I've noticed some of the changes over the last 9 years. Here are my observations:
Pay and Tax
Pay in general has increased greatly in Oz and is now on par with the UK. If you've got a trade (like a builder or plumber etc) then you're likely to be paid the same if not more than you will in the UK but other jobs are catching up with the UK as well. The tax rate short of the top rate is less than the UK. Considering in the UK you will have to pay 10% NI on top of your tax, while you don't in Oz so the tax can be less, so you could take home more money in Oz.
Renting House
I'm currently live in a smallish 2 bed semi with a very small back yard. I pay £580 rent + £100 council tax per month (Council tax is paid by the owner in Oz and included in the rental price). This is the going rate for my area and its cheap compare to most part of the UK where for similar property you will be paying more like £700+ and a lot more if nearer to London. I'm not quite sure what rent is in Perth but in Canberra £680 can easily get me a big 3/4 bedroom house with garage and 3 living areas close to the city centre.
House prices.
House prices in UK is in general much more than that in Oz especially if you are comparing like for like. The main cities in Oz can be expensive but you can easily get a 3 bedroom house in the outer suburbs of Sydney for £120K not necessarily in the best area but not that bad. In the sort after location you will be paying a lot more like London prices. For £120K in London, you'll only buy a garage for your car! But you can get a 2 or 3 bedroom small terrace in a run down area in Birmingham. The 2 bed semi I'm currently renting in Shrewsbury will sell for around £150K! If you're not going to settle in the big cities like Syd, Perth, Melb etc then you can get big house for £120K in the smaller rural towns. Once again house prices depends on where you want to live. Best bet is to get a map and go to www.domain.com.au to see what houses are selling for.
Schooling.
State School is free and if you do your research then you will easily find a good school for your kids. In general the better state schools are located in new estates where cheaper housing are because this is usually where families with kids live in these areas. My experience are: good schools are easier to find in Oz and the standard of education are also better. The big plus for aussie schools are the opportunities for your kids to get a higher education and get into different sports.
For example, I have a friend in Canberra who has 4 kids between 5 and 14 yr old. He sends his kids to state school 10 minutes walk away from home, they play cricket, tennis and swimming in summer, Rugby and Aussie Rule in Winter. The cost of doing all these activity for a year for each child including coaching and facilities come to $400! His sister live in London and sends her 10 yr old to private school and tennis and swimming lessons and she is paying £7K/year for school fees and £180 per month for swimming and tennis lessons.
Private school fees are a lot cheaper in Oz than UK.
Lifestyle
Chalk and cheese. Depending on what you want? UK is a really great place to live but it is definitely EASIER to live in Oz, facilities like doctors, care centres, hospitals are usually more accessible in Oz. You can easily get doctor appointments etc. There's more Olympic size pools in Canberra than the whole of the UK! If you live in the east coast then you don't have to travel as far to get to interesting places to visit.
Cost of living
It is much more expensive to shop in Oz including general grocery, clothing etc! It cheaper for housing/rent, petrol, eating out etc.
My Conclusion
I think you need to really do your research before making the move. I think if you want to give your kids a better lifestyle than there is no better place than Oz. After living in the UK for 9 year and loved every minute of it. I don't have kids but if I did I would have returned earlier. A lot of my friend have lived in the UK and other parts of the world. Nearly all of them had returned to Oz once they had children because they think the same as I do. You really need to be sure that you want to do this as going back could be difficult financially as mentioned by other posts.
Hope this helps.
Onny.
onny said:
I hope I can give a balanced view of what life is like living in Oz and the UK...
Well I'm not going to argue with you, but either life in Canberra is TOTALLY different to Perth (I guess Canberra is full of public servants) or you have slightly rose tinted specs...Your £120K would buy you a vacant block of land in some of Perth's less desirable suburbs. I haven't seen a house anywhere in Perth for less than that for a long time.
Schools; yes there are a couple of decent State schools in Perth, but you have to go to the school that they tell you. We had a big battle to send my 15yo daughter to the 2nd closest high school to home as the nearest one had a particularly bad rep. House prices in the better school zones (eg Rossmoyne) have increased further to reflect the desirability, in fact an ad for a house in the "Rossmoyne High Zone" would have that as it's main selling point. I certainly couldn't afford it.
I started my schooling in England and finished it here. Even at 11 I could see a huge difference, I soon fell into the Australian way and underachieved for the rest of my time. Things have got a LOT worse here since then.
ETA: I have good friends who have moved back and forth several times, living in Perth for a few years at a time. They have youngish children, and have moved back to England, I think permanently this time. My younger brother was 7 when we moved here, he went back to England completely broke about 12 years ago. Now has a great job, nice cars, beautiful big house in Surrey, he says he would never come back here.
Edited by madazrx7 on Thursday 2nd August 02:35
OK, I'll add a bit more. Moved from UK to Sydney about 4 1/2 years ago. Have worked all over the city - used to be a truck driver for office removals - but live by the beach., And its the quality of life of living by the beach, and not having to drive anywhere if we don't want to, that keeps us here. For us it was quality of life or culture - we couldn't see a way of having both, and we just thought "Sod it" and gave it a go here.
Property prices are astronomical - Sydney came in at about no. 6 on the recent list of world's least affordable cities. Property prices in the western suburbs have fallen markedly recently, but the area is about to be expanded hugely - take from that what you will.
Wages - well I'm now fortunate enough to work for a multinational with a resources shortage and an office in the main part of the city, so I'm doing probably about as well as I would in the UK. I probably pay a lot, and I mean a lot, more tax than in the UK.
But for us it comes back to that quality of life thing - being able to walk to the beach in five mins, yet being able to be at work in 30 mins, or in a national park in 20 - that's what counts for us. Personally, if I had to live in the western suburbs of Sydney, I wouldn't bother - nothing to do with being snobbish but I reckon I could have a better life in Europe.
My advice - come over for a holiday of several weeks, base yourself out west - rent an apartment in Penrith - and see what you reckon.
On the topic of PHers out here - always happy to meet any in Sydney for a pint.
Property prices are astronomical - Sydney came in at about no. 6 on the recent list of world's least affordable cities. Property prices in the western suburbs have fallen markedly recently, but the area is about to be expanded hugely - take from that what you will.
Wages - well I'm now fortunate enough to work for a multinational with a resources shortage and an office in the main part of the city, so I'm doing probably about as well as I would in the UK. I probably pay a lot, and I mean a lot, more tax than in the UK.
But for us it comes back to that quality of life thing - being able to walk to the beach in five mins, yet being able to be at work in 30 mins, or in a national park in 20 - that's what counts for us. Personally, if I had to live in the western suburbs of Sydney, I wouldn't bother - nothing to do with being snobbish but I reckon I could have a better life in Europe.
My advice - come over for a holiday of several weeks, base yourself out west - rent an apartment in Penrith - and see what you reckon.
On the topic of PHers out here - always happy to meet any in Sydney for a pint.
Gassing Station | Australia | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff