Where in oz/ no of I don't want earthquakes, bush fires, snow, sharks or poisonous animals??

[Imsosorryalan]

Ok, it's a bit light hearted and as opposed to oz bashing, I'd love to live there and as I'm getting older, I'm thinking now or never.

However, money is tight and as we need to tie in a holiday with a reccy, I was wondering what place should we check out with a view to living there. I don't want to go to Victoria for folk then to say " oh you should have gone to xxx"!
We're not tied yet to jobs so still in planning stages.

Most places get some or all of those! If say that the Sunshine Coast .. Noosa, rainbow beach.. Not heard if anything too bad up there! We are just below.. We have had floods.. But shall.. Everywhere gets hot! Well maybe not tassie!
Depends on where you need to be to work!

Well, since I've lived in Melbourne, there have been bush fires, but nowhere near I live; three earth tremors of the kind you can actually hear, but only make the pics on the wall tilt; the snow is three hours drive away; there was shark off the beach near where I live two years ago, but was escorted from the premises.

Having said that, I live in a very tree'd suburb that is earmarked as urban bushfire zone. All it takes is some nutter to set the place going, and yes, a lot of bush fires are deliberately set.

There are blue-ringed octopus/i (not nice) in the sea at the bottom of my road, but you'd have to go poking your hands into the rocks to find them, and I've never heard of anyone being stung.

There are whitetail and red back spiders, but you soon learn where they're likely to be.

I'm not helping, am I?:o

Victoria is very nice indeed, but you are well-advised to do a reccy visit. We did, and found it made huge difference in making informed choose about schooling and housing. We were older, too. Moved at 50.

Good luck.

You are kidding, right?!
You need another country if you don't want poisonous animals! North of continent doesn't have the spiders like funnel webs and red backs but has the snakes and box jellyfish in the sea. Northern Territory could be good for lack of bush fires, but that's because in many parts there is no 'bush' to burn and places like Darwin have two seasons - the 'wet' and 'dry' season. Besides you get cyclones there which I can't imagine are any more appealing than bush fires or earthquakes. Lots if people like Perth in Western Australia or Southern Queensland. Eastern Coast /southern cities like Sydney and Melbourne are really expensive these days.
What appeals to you about Australia? It is so different from state to state (or Territory) and inland vs coast, city vs country towns... And is SOOOOOOOO much bigger than the UK. If you know what sort of lifestyle you'd like, that should narrow your options down quite a lot. Just don't expect to avoid all the things you'd like to.

Ha, thanks all. My husband can possibly get a transfer to padstow, NSW. Does anyone have any info about this area?
Lifestyle, good places to live, cost of living, wildlife? And of course weather!
Thanks

Padstow is a suburb of Sydney in the city of Bankstown (like a borough of London). It has the usual suburban wildlife, you will have possums and kookaburras and galahs making all sorts of noise in the trees and on your roof. And of course all the spiders. It would be unusual to find a snake in your garden...it is an inner city suburb.
Not a particularly nice area of Sydney...quite far out from the centre of the city but there are some nicer parts to Bankstown and Padstow could well qualify. Desirable areas of Sydney are the North Shore, northern Beaches, around Rose Bay/Mosman. also some of the southern beaches (yes, the famous Bondi included) but the further south and especially the further 'west' you get, the more chavvy less middle class the demographic. Padstow, to put it in perspective, is in the inner south west of Sydney.
If it is lifestyle (lots of outdoor activities possible, longer daylight hours during winter..but not summer compared to the UK, warmer climate most of the year) then there's nothing wrong with Padstow, but as a destination in and of itself as somewhere to live, it would be a bizarre unusual choice!
Like anywhere in Sydney, it is expensive but possibly less so in regard to housing than more desirable suburbs. Houses will probably on average be larger than many parts of the UK. Most are bungalows (but no Australian would call them a bungalow!) and fewer are over two stories. Only terraces you really find in Sydney are in places like Paddington, Newtown etc.. All the places where the original colonials built because they didn't know any better on how to construct a house where there is actually loads of space ??
You only live once...probably worth having a go, but do your sums before you go. Sydney is EXPENSIVE and sprawling...there are some suburbs closer to the Blue Mountains than the centre of the city. Personally, I would not uproot from the UK to move to Padstow!

Thanks schmedz
His office is in padstow, so if we wanted, say to live somewhere more desirable ( and not too expensive or too chavvy) where would be good? I'm not too sure of distances really. Places dont look too far on the map but then may be far as a commute for eg.
Outdoor lifestyle and decent weather is def. a pull so a beach close by or easy to get to would be good. As would being close to some good shops/ malls.

Sydney full of large shopping centres so wherever you are, you will be within easy reach of good amenities.

Can't really comment on that part of Sydney as I didn't live there and haven't been in Sydney for quite some time now. Traffic can be a real issue...public transport pretty poor in comparison to London bus /train system but there is a train line, stops along the way which would be worth investigating for potential places to live. You will, however, probably be pretty reliant on having a car in most places.

You're best to try to get in touch with real estate agents around Padstow/ Padstow heights and see which areas are good for a commute. Most sydneysiders would think nothing of driving at least half an hour /45minutes each way to work and there are motorways which can speed up journeys. There are some nice river areas a bit further south towards Sutherland but not sure on travel time.

It's not too far from some beaches and st George's national park. Keep looking at the Aussie websites and ask local people all the pertinent questions. You will get honest and up to date answers!

Good luck.