Moving to Australia- can we afford- advice pls

[Happybeans]

Hi
I’m after some advice, my husband has been offered a job 3 hrs north of Brisbane, good location package, $130,000 (before tax etc)
will this be enough for a family of five (kids, 3,7,10) to live? We’d be renting initially,
need to get 1 car.
id get a job once youngest was in kindy/prep.
we’d have £80k (English pounds) as equity from our house that we’d put in savings - incase we’d want to buy eventually.
house prices are huge in Australia at the mo- will we be paying off a mortgage (4 bed house) for the rest of our lives :-/
is cost of living as high as they say?

thanks in advance for help

Try posting on the Australia and New Zealand-board. They usually have good advice.
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/aussie-nz-mumsnetters

I would get onto British expats or Poms in Oz websites and ask there as you are likely to find people who have either just been through or are going through the move. You might want to be a bit more specific about location as well as regional living will always be cheaper than cities but tbh $130k doesn’t sound like a massive salary to me for a family of five (I am in Sydney). You also need to find out what the rental situation is like where you are going, it is brutal in a lot of Aus at the moment. Worth it though if you can make it happen, it’s a great place to raise a family,

Does your visa/ his visa provide you access to Medicare? … will you need daycare?

It sounds an ok salary we have that salary for a family of five in Perth but we aren’t renting. Beware 3 hours north of Brisbane will mean aircon will need to be on most of the year, so you will need a home with good aircon

You will probably need 2 cars? Unless you are in Sydney or Melbourne public transport is crap in Australia and if he takes the car you will be stranded.

House prices are expensive in capital cities, just like they are in London.

Try realestate.com.au for house prices and rents where you are going to be living.

Cost of living isn't more expensive than the UK when you take into account the exchange rate. And things like petrol and utilities are a lot cheaper.

Agree with PP - you need a more specialised forum. One thing jumps out for me though - it will be tight and as a family of 5 you are realistically you are very rarely if ever going to afford to come back to the UK to visit. Is that a factor?

You'll be fine. House / rent is high, but the cost of living is much less than in the uk. Also because the weather is so much better you can do outside stuff, which saves a lot of money.

We lived in Sydney and it was expensive i guess, but for us it was like winning the lottery - both finiancial and figuratively. Brisbane is supposed to be nicer and cheaper.

We should never have moved back.

Will you be living in a city? Do you know where the job is? Here's a recent article from house oricies.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-01/house-prices-breakdown-by-state-territory-capital-city-region/103784240

I am really sorry. The location is the first thing you say. I am an idiot.

It would be helpful to know where you will be. Hervey Bay way? Sunshine Coast? Inland? Queensland housing is a lot cheaper than in Melbourne or Sydney. There is a housing/rental shortage in Queensland but without knowing where you are going it’s hard to advise.

The median income in Australia is around $70K and that includes the expensive cities of Sydney and Melbourne. So on double or more of that, once you start working you should be fine.
As others have said, go to one of the expat groups who can better advise.

I live in Sydney and I would say it's not much of an income for five people renting here, but you should be able to rent and live comfortably in the north of Australia. The area you'll be moving to is much cheaper, and cost of living will be much, much lower than Sydney. Many Sydneysiders are moving to Queensland for this reason. If you like the heat, long sunny days and the outdoors, you'll save much money, as there's plenty to do with kids all day long, endless parks, the beach, sports, etc. Once you get a job you'll be even more comfortable.
Note: I'm trying to move to the UK instead, as I'm not outdoorsy and a history/art/literature freak who does not need sun all around 😁

If its Gympie, Hervey Bay etc you should be ok on that money. Not rich, but able to afford rent, maybe a mortgage on a small to average sized home.

If its the Sunshine Coast, prices have gone through the roof and I think you'd struggle more with a family on that income.

Bundaberg?
Do the maths, because 130000 pretax is roughly 90.000 when you calculate tax and the 2% medicare levy.

That is not a lot at all if you have to rent on that. What about private health fund. Utilities. Car and insurance and rego. Groceries are so expensive now, especially if you buy fresh food.
Then airfares.... unless your package includes one trip home per year, and those packages have become a rarity, you are looking at 12.000 minimum for 5 for a return trip in the cheapest economy.

It might be ok, but it is a salary worth leaving everything and everyone behind?