considering a move to australia.

[chikadee23]

hello, my husband and I have 4 children and have been considering a move to Australia for a while now but have never actually looked into it fully.
I was wondering if anybody could tell me anything and everything that they can.
our children are aged between 1 and 11 years and my husband is a joiner so he would be the main applicant I currently work in mental health as a support worker, my qualifications aren't on the skills list.

I have a friend in perth and my husband knows somebody in Brisbane so we have been looking mainly at these 2 areas , but are open to looking elsewhere. any info on cost of living, education and especially anybody who has gone over as a joiner would be really appreciated.

we both drive aswell so vehicle costs would be helpful too.

sorry for the essay and thank you in advance for any replies.

yes I agree we definitely need to go I wouldn't take the plunge at all without visiting 1st, researching now is my priority this side of the year with xmas etc not far away. then planning a visit then researching more then hopefully start the process of moving with probably another visit in. the more I hear about the cost of living in perth the more im put off if im honest I don't want to move somewhere love it but have to come back because we cant enjoy it. I understand we will still be working for a living, but the whole point of a move somewhere ( I have been looking in England too but abroad is our "dream") is to hopefully work but enjoy our downtime more, hopefully with less worry about cost.

realistically we know it might not happen as we might not be able to afford it or it might not be for us in the end and its something we aren't going to be packing up and moving next year too it will take time planning etc, we are talking a plan for maybe 3-5 years from now as we do want it to be forever we don't plan on coming back from wherever we settle.

could anybody tell me, once you have your skills tested how long do you have to get your visa and move before you have to be tested again ? is it different for every visa ?

I'm from Perth originally and what I'd say about both Perth and Brisbane is they get stinking hot. The weather is 'fabulous' if you're on holiday or get to work in air con all day. If you're in mental health (and out-reaching to clients) or a joiner, you have to be out in it. Most Brits I know start wilting and demand school closures when the temp starts getting around 25 degrees. Add on 10 degrees and then some and that's what you're looking at in Perth and Brisbane for months at a time over summer! It's fucking grim and inescapable.

I also found Perth desperately boring which is why I left, and wouldn't go back to living there. Even before the cost of living went off the rails, getting out of Perth was prohibitively expensive, just because it's so bloody far from everywhere. If I were to go back to living in Australia, I'd go to Melbourne. Beautiful city, loads of culture and tolerable weather.

For us we'd have been more worried about cost (everything is more expensive - but especially housing, food and clothes!! ) and that was a huge factor. I think you need to expect it to cost a lot more than here tbh..

Do you have work contacts so you can get an idea of salary? Or lurk online on job forums. The cost and pay are higher, but proportionately a larger parr of our income would go on just surviving. We are in different professions to you though so it may well be different. There are some different extras to budget for to depending on state - ambulance insurance, either dental insurance or be prepared to pay a lot, lots more people have medical insurance but therr is a medicare system altgough you often need to contribute towards it, schools -lots more people choose private (cheaper to go private than here) and state schools you pay towards supplies or provide books/tissues/pencils/etc at start of term! Cars are more expensive to buy but cheaper to run (no MOT ). on state

Having to pay for everything after living in the uk can be a shock.

My dd had to have occupational therapy and it was $180 a session. We got $18 from medibank (we have the highest insurance) and I cried because the other child in her class who needed it didn't get it as it was too expensive for his parents. Written off at 5 I was sobbing.

Someone I know didn't have ambulance insurance and someone else called an ambulance when a car went over her ds's foot in a carpark and she had to pay $1000 or whatever it was so then she got the insurance, went yo the Gold Coast on holiday, her dh collapsed in the 50 degree heat and of course the insurance did not cover them as they were out if state...

--And then there's the school dresses....

Obviously money is not everything but it's a hard place to live without any. I nearly fainted the day I had to buy antihistamine syrup for dd1.

Yes there's parks and things but no more than there are in England. And museums are not free like they are in the uk. It costs us $35 for our family to go swimming.

Wow at 35$ for swimming, our closest pool is $4 each (Perth) for non members, cheaper if you buy multi tickets.

YY to Savoy and things being expensive. I've just taken dd to the doc for an ordinary appt. Cost us $50. FIFTY DOLLARS!! .

Our city museum is free as is our art gallery though. Kids enjoy them. Swimming isn't as expensive here as for you Savoy $20 for a family but in an amazing 50m outdoor pool set in beautiful parklands. (Either that or we go and visit freeload friends with pools).

OP can you be a bit more explicit about why you want to live in Aus? I've been here 8 years and now love it but it is a huge move. Do bear in mind that it is really expensive to move, unless you are funded by your job - and that doesn't seem to be the case for you. I can't remember exactly what it cost us to ship our stuff over but it was about 8,000 UKP - including initial rental costs.

Definitely come for a visit, think about what type of climate you like as well as cost of living. Some people love all round tropical warmth (QLD,NT), some love 4 seasons - cold winters and warm summers (SA). Some prefer stinking hot (WA), or cool and temperate (VIC/TAS).

Australian cities are great, much more livable than UK ones I think, Sydney and Perth are all glittery and beautiful (at least in the bits I've been to). Melbourne cool and arty, Brisbane relaxed, Adelaide small and manageable. Darwin MAD (but in a good way). Obv these are all massive generalisations but they are all different so have a think about what you want.

Yikes! Our nearest pool is free and looks like this!

Just to stick up for Perth, which always seems to get a bit of hard time on these threads, we've been here for 18 months now, and have loved every bit of it. Yes, it can be expensive, but wages are generally higher. We are considerably better off here financially than we were in the UK, and are enjoying a much higher standard of living. We do work in IT though, and am conscious that this doesn't apply to all fields.

We also do live quite far out, in the dreaded suburbs, but love it. There's loads of beautiful, clean parks, the beach is 5 mins away, we have big shopping centres in joondalup which is all we need. There are 2 cinemas withing a few minutes drive, a massive sports arena also close by, and the train takes 30 minutes into the city. We both commute in, and can count on one hand the number of times train's been delayed. Being near the end of the line, we always get a seat.

I know Perth seems to have a reputation as being boring, but we've not found that at all. Our kids are sports mad though, and most of our weekends revolve around some kind of sporting activity. Much more pleasant watching soccer here though, last Sunday morning was 20+ degrees, beautful sunshine and we're still in winter. In summer they have the open air cinemas at Kings Park, which are fab.

In terms of the heat, I think Perth summer's are more bearable than Sydney, it's not so humid and there's always a nice breeze by the coast. I've certainly not found it too hot to be by the sea yet, though I am a total sun worshipper (hence why we chose Perth in the first place).

If you prefer living more rurally, then I'd suggest you look at some suburbs in the far North of Perth, especially if you're not likely to have to commute into the CBD. There's a lot of housing development, so might be a good option for a joiner anyway. Suburbs like Yanchep, Two rocks are reasonably priced and you'd get quite a lot for your money. You'd probably find similar suburbs South of river, and in land, but I don't know them so well to be able to comment.

If you like I can PM you a breakdown of our income and living expenses to give you a better idea of costs and can give you more info on specific areas / schools etc.

Good luck, was the best thing we've ever done, and we'd never visited Perth before we sold up and moved over. I had to nag the other half for years to make the move, but he was sold within a week of getting here and I'd agree with Koala, I've travelled and lived in many other places, but in my opinion Perth has to be one of the best places for bringing up kids.

Just to stick up for Perth, which always seems to get a bit of hard time on these threads, we've been here for 18 months now, and have loved every bit of it. Yes, it can be expensive, but wages are generally higher. We are considerably better off here financially than we were in the UK, and are enjoying a much higher standard of living. We do work in IT though, and am conscious that this doesn't apply to all fields.

We also do live quite far out, in the dreaded suburbs, but love it. There's loads of beautiful, clean parks, the beach is 5 mins away, we have big shopping centres in joondalup which is all we need. There are 2 cinemas withing a few minutes drive, a massive sports arena also close by, and the train takes 30 minutes into the city. We both commute in, and can count on one hand the number of times train's been delayed. Being near the end of the line, we always get a seat.

I know Perth seems to have a reputation as being boring, but we've not found that at all. Our kids are sports mad though, and most of our weekends revolve around some kind of sporting activity. Much more pleasant watching soccer here though, last Sunday morning was 20+ degrees, beautful sunshine and we're still in winter. In summer they have the open air cinemas at Kings Park, which are fab.

In terms of the heat, I think Perth summer's are more bearable than Sydney, it's not so humid and there's always a nice breeze by the coast. I've certainly not found it too hot to be by the sea yet, though I am a total sun worshipper (hence why we chose Perth in the first place).

If you prefer living more rurally, then I'd suggest you look at some suburbs in the far North of Perth, especially if you're not likely to have to commute into the CBD. There's a lot of housing development, so might be a good option for a joiner anyway. Suburbs like Yanchep, Two rocks are reasonably priced and you'd get quite a lot for your money. You'd probably find similar suburbs South of river, and in land, but I don't know them so well to be able to comment.

If you like I can PM you a breakdown of our income and living expenses to give you a better idea of costs and can give you more info on specific areas / schools etc.

Good luck, was the best thing we've ever done, and we'd never visited Perth before we sold up and moved over. I had to nag the other half for years to make the move, but he was sold within a week of getting here and I'd agree with Koala, I've travelled and lived in many other places, but in my opinion Perth has to be one of the best places for bringing up kids.

Just to stick up for Perth, which always seems to get a bit of hard time on these threads, we've been here for 18 months now, and have loved every bit of it. Yes, it can be expensive, but wages are generally higher. We are considerably better off here financially than we were in the UK, and are enjoying a much higher standard of living. We do work in IT though, and am conscious that this doesn't apply to all fields.

We also do live quite far out, in the dreaded suburbs, but love it. There's loads of beautiful, clean parks, the beach is 5 mins away, we have big shopping centres in joondalup which is all we need. There are 2 cinemas withing a few minutes drive, a massive sports arena also close by, and the train takes 30 minutes into the city. We both commute in, and can count on one hand the number of times train's been delayed. Being near the end of the line, we always get a seat.

I know Perth seems to have a reputation as being boring, but we've not found that at all. Our kids are sports mad though, and most of our weekends revolve around some kind of sporting activity. Much more pleasant watching soccer here though, last Sunday morning was 20+ degrees, beautful sunshine and we're still in winter. In summer they have the open air cinemas at Kings Park, which are fab.

In terms of the heat, I think Perth summer's are more bearable than Sydney, it's not so humid and there's always a nice breeze by the coast. I've certainly not found it too hot to be by the sea yet, though I am a total sun worshipper (hence why we chose Perth in the first place).

If you prefer living more rurally, then I'd suggest you look at some suburbs in the far North of Perth, especially if you're not likely to have to commute into the CBD. There's a lot of housing development, so might be a good option for a joiner anyway. Suburbs like Yanchep, Two rocks are reasonably priced and you'd get quite a lot for your money. You'd probably find similar suburbs South of river, and in land, but I don't know them so well to be able to comment.

If you like I can PM you a breakdown of our income and living expenses to give you a better idea of costs and can give you more info on specific areas / schools etc.

Good luck, was the best thing we've ever done, and we'd never visited Perth before we sold up and moved over. I had to nag the other half for years to make the move, but he was sold within a week of getting here and I'd agree with Koala, I've travelled and lived in many other places, but in my opinion Perth has to be one of the best places for bringing up kids.

Just to stick up for Perth, which always seems to get a bit of hard time on these threads, we've been here for 18 months now, and have loved every bit of it. Yes, it can be expensive, but wages are generally higher. We are considerably better off here financially than we were in the UK, and are enjoying a much higher standard of living. We do work in IT though, and am conscious that this doesn't apply to all fields.

We also do live quite far out, in the dreaded suburbs, but love it. There's loads of beautiful, clean parks, the beach is 5 mins away, we have big shopping centres in joondalup which is all we need. There are 2 cinemas withing a few minutes drive, a massive sports arena also close by, and the train takes 30 minutes into the city. We both commute in, and can count on one hand the number of times train's been delayed. Being near the end of the line, we always get a seat.

I know Perth seems to have a reputation as being boring, but we've not found that at all. Our kids are sports mad though, and most of our weekends revolve around some kind of sporting activity. Much more pleasant watching soccer here though, last Sunday morning was 20+ degrees, beautful sunshine and we're still in winter. In summer they have the open air cinemas at Kings Park, which are fab.

In terms of the heat, I think Perth summer's are more bearable than Sydney, it's not so humid and there's always a nice breeze by the coast. I've certainly not found it too hot to be by the sea yet, though I am a total sun worshipper (hence why we chose Perth in the first place).

If you prefer living more rurally, then I'd suggest you look at some suburbs in the far North of Perth, especially if you're not likely to have to commute into the CBD. There's a lot of housing development, so might be a good option for a joiner anyway. Suburbs like Yanchep, Two rocks are reasonably priced and you'd get quite a lot for your money. You'd probably find similar suburbs South of river, and in land, but I don't know them so well to be able to comment.

If you like I can PM you a breakdown of our income and living expenses to give you a better idea of costs and can give you more info on specific areas / schools etc.

Good luck, was the best thing we've ever done, and we'd never visited Perth before we sold up and moved over. I had to nag the other half for years to make the move, but he was sold within a week of getting here and I'd agree with Koala, I've travelled and lived in many other places, but in my opinion Perth has to be one of the best places for bringing up kids.

Aargh, sorry about the multiple posts, as you can see, I'm super keen on Perth!

DetMcnulty, it is very obvious you love perth
Chikadee, just bear in mind when reading replies that there are people who will reply pointing out all the bad things about living in Australia because they either did,t want to move here or don't like it and can't go back. I may get flamed for saying that
Adelaide has many suburbs of all varying prices. There are a lot of established places where house prices are higher and lots of new build areas that are pretty cheap. Adelaide is totally surrounded by hills and mountains with the sea on one side. This makes it a pretty picturesque city from any angle. We lived in Leeds before we moved and it suits us pretty well, used to live in London.
I would suggest a visit over to all the areas you want to see. It will cost a little more in flights but money invested now before you make a decision will be worth a lot when it is time to move everything.
As for work at the moment have a look on the South Australian migrant skills list, but they do change regularly.
Good luck with your research. Swimming here is only $4 per person also so I guess that one must be a pretty expensive pool

I think I've been quite positive really!

DetMcNulty I could have written your post except we are SOR in Rockingham. been here since February 13 and absolutely love Perth. I've lived in UK, Ireland ( North and south) but I finally feel that I'm home. We haven't even been homesick, although I am looking forward to my mum visiting next year.

her dh collapsed in the 50 degree heat and of course the insurance did not cover them as they were out if state…

Just wanted to point out that almost every health insurance policy covers you Australia wide so it doesn't matter if you travel. Clearly this poor family found an exception, so it worth checking, but I've never heard of that before.

Surfsup that pool looks amazing - is that Icebergs?

No, you have to pay for Icebergs. That's Bronte Pool.
My happy place!

I'm normally more of a lurker, but thought I come to Perth's defence this time (may have slightly over done it!).

Glad you agree Glasto, we must have arrived around the same time. Also not been homesick, other than a little twinge when it was the Commonwealth games in Glasgow. We've had quite a few visitors though, and didn't live close to any family back in the UK either.

I am very jealous of that pool though, looks gorgeous.

I've never heard of insurance that doesn't cover you Australia-wide. OT is available under special health care plans through medicare or through community clinics or hospital clinics--OK there are waiting lists which can be long. It's also fucking ridiculous to say that if a 5yo doesn't get OT they are written off for life.

Ambulance cover is not all that expensive--in Q it is now free but used to be $75 a year IIRC. Antihistamine syrup? It's not $100 a bottle, it's $8.99 for benadryl!

We've hit our safety nets on medication and see a bulkbilling GP so both are free for us.

Yes there's parks and things but no more than there are in England. And museums are not free like they are in the uk. It costs us $35 for our family to go swimming.

Wow, really?!

It costs $16.50 for a family pass to Beatty Park Leisure Centre in Perth, which has just been completely rebuilt and has an awesome indoor kids' water playground plus an Olympic-sized outdoor pool. And Perth is supposed to be super expensive. Are you sure there's nowhere cheaper?

As for the museums: not true. Some charge, but there are many free museums: our state museum, the WA Museum is free, as is the Maritime Museum and the Art Gallery of WA. On the other hand, I went to plenty of museums in the UK that charged an entry fee (as well as some free ones). I don't think it's possible to generalise.

Re: parks - I have no idea whether there are actually more in Australia(although per head of population, I'd be almost certain there are), but you can get a lot more use out of them because of the weather.

I think there are positives and negatives, and you need to do a lot of research and be very realistic about your lifestyle and priorities. I remember reading an article in a UK newspaper once which said that the most popular national hobby was 'shopping' (admittedly, this was a few years ago). If you love shopping and eating out and live theatre and concerts, then you will probably struggle in Perth unless you have a high disposable income. We don't get lots of live shows because of the distance, the shopping is quite boring and expensive, and although the restaurant scene is really thriving, it is pricey. (Although all these things are improving.) But if you are more into having barbecues, going to the beach, doing water-sports, swimming, bike-riding, and generally living an outdoor lifestyle...you might love it.

The standard of parks we've found to be way higher, they're definitely maintained better, less vandalism of equipment etc, and the free bbqs are great.

Yep, we do a lot less shopping here, I still tend to shop online in the UK every 6 months and have it shipped over, though have found a few shops I like here, and they do tend to do good sales.

Restaurants are pricey, but we bought the entertainment book this year which has helped, and I'm a groupon / scoopon junkie, so very rarely pay full price.

Just so you don't think I'm completely biased, childcare is very expensive, although you can claim 50% back depending on your visa. We pay $25 an hour for before and after school care for our childminder here.

Our australian friends were amazed at the country parks near us, and the wooden play trails and equipment (even took photos to take back to oz). It must depend where you are in the uk (obviously imner city london is diff to rest of england!). We enjoy walking in the countryside here a lot and there isnt the network of rights of way and footpaths over in oz that there is here. Obviously if you drive out of the suburbs yoi can get ot some fantastic scenery in the bush, and some exciting walking, but therr isnt the everyday rambling that we are used to here.

I think in our circumstances we live more outdoor lofe here (beach walks in the winter are amazing, crashing sea on boxing day is an annual ritual). I wouldnty be out in blazing sun in the daytime (or the children) and would miss national trust, the variety of walking and country parks in easy distance. Ive realised im not a subburbs person and wouldnt like to do beach/bbq/sea everyday. I'd miss the other stuff (and do get beaches and bbqs here, kust a more varied diet.)

I did find the English bashing surprising. I think oz media feeds a line of "england is horrible arent we lucky to be in oz). And no I dont know anyome for whom shopping is thei major hobby! After all our ozzie friends had been led to believe they were surprised when they came here!

Lots and lots of people move to australia (and similarly many move from oz to here) but with any move to another country you need to be v aware of why you are doing it and the pros and cons. We know people that have done both, and are v happy with choices, but just assuming one way of life is better all around is a recipe for disaster.

From observation tradespeople seem to be happier with the move - perhaps different balance income/outgoings over there than here?

Arg. Find it difficult to correct typing on this phone. I need to give up and wait until im on the computer next time!! Apologies!