Making the move - real world opinion
Discussion
Evening all. I'm hoping that you guys can give me your thoughts on an opportunity that's presented itself.
I'm a married guy of 36 with a toddler, working in Newcastle, UK. My wife and I were idlely considering a move to Aus, Perth in particular where my wife has family, all expats.
I work in house building as a PM, and earn around £45k, my wife looks after the nipper full time - which puts us in a decent 3 bed detached and affords us a decent living on which we get by. Holidays etc are something that happens every couple of years and we do need to be careful.
I've been offered a job, in a similar role at an SME in Perth which has raised our eyebrows a bit and made us consider it a good deal more seriously.
The job is offering AUS$120k, car etc, which on the face of it is a huge amount of money, but I hear that it's much more expensive to live in Aus, and I wonder just how much of a change in lifestyle that sort of salary would bring? I would see me being the sole wage earner for the foreseeable, so that would be our entire household income.
I'd be grateful if the downunder PH collective could give me their thoughts on what that sort of salary this would be classed as down there? Would it warrant the move, all other factors family/ change /lifestyle etc aside?
I'm looking at it seriously as the only possible way I'll ever get into a v8, but moving there would pretty much wipe us out financially so a good deal of due diligence is needed.
Thanks in advance...
I'm a married guy of 36 with a toddler, working in Newcastle, UK. My wife and I were idlely considering a move to Aus, Perth in particular where my wife has family, all expats.
I work in house building as a PM, and earn around £45k, my wife looks after the nipper full time - which puts us in a decent 3 bed detached and affords us a decent living on which we get by. Holidays etc are something that happens every couple of years and we do need to be careful.
I've been offered a job, in a similar role at an SME in Perth which has raised our eyebrows a bit and made us consider it a good deal more seriously.
The job is offering AUS$120k, car etc, which on the face of it is a huge amount of money, but I hear that it's much more expensive to live in Aus, and I wonder just how much of a change in lifestyle that sort of salary would bring? I would see me being the sole wage earner for the foreseeable, so that would be our entire household income.
I'd be grateful if the downunder PH collective could give me their thoughts on what that sort of salary this would be classed as down there? Would it warrant the move, all other factors family/ change /lifestyle etc aside?
I'm looking at it seriously as the only possible way I'll ever get into a v8, but moving there would pretty much wipe us out financially so a good deal of due diligence is needed.
Thanks in advance...
Thanks for the responses so far folks. To answer a few of the comments. The $120 is exclusive of superannuation. I've no knowledge of the taxible benefits etc so that's a great point that I'll need to look into.
The reality check on the salary is actually comforting as in my mind it was skewing the decision as I would never achieve a comparable figure here. What I'm gathering from the replies is that its perhaps akin to a £50/60k salary over here, is that a fair comparison?
If we came we'd be here for the long haul. At the moment I'm assuming I'd be covering the relocation fees and I'm looking into visas. The company who've offered me the job is very small, reasonably young and have not hired from abroad before. I'd be selling up entirely and would probably wash up in Aus with £10k to my name.
Lifestyle, we're pretty outdoorsy, not that into TV or the pub. We like the beach and the sea. The possibility of a 4x4 and a boat towed behind it is pretty exciting to me and the missus would love a small pool at home!
The cost comparisons that you're providing are really useful and thank you all for them. That's just the real world info I was looking for.
For those of you with kids, how is nursery/ schooling? Is the state system good or is private schooling common amongst expats?
The reality check on the salary is actually comforting as in my mind it was skewing the decision as I would never achieve a comparable figure here. What I'm gathering from the replies is that its perhaps akin to a £50/60k salary over here, is that a fair comparison?
If we came we'd be here for the long haul. At the moment I'm assuming I'd be covering the relocation fees and I'm looking into visas. The company who've offered me the job is very small, reasonably young and have not hired from abroad before. I'd be selling up entirely and would probably wash up in Aus with £10k to my name.
Lifestyle, we're pretty outdoorsy, not that into TV or the pub. We like the beach and the sea. The possibility of a 4x4 and a boat towed behind it is pretty exciting to me and the missus would love a small pool at home!
The cost comparisons that you're providing are really useful and thank you all for them. That's just the real world info I was looking for.
For those of you with kids, how is nursery/ schooling? Is the state system good or is private schooling common amongst expats?
There's some real food for thought here guys and some real insightful advice. I think further investigation is needed particularly around the cost of/ getting some employer support with moving costs and seeing if we can get some more cash together.
I'm fairly confident we could stay with relatives until we get on our feet, but Neville's point about the limits of certain visas are a concern.
You guys have really highlighted some potential pitfalls and given me some ideas on what to look into and that along with the offer of further assistance is greatly appreciated.
Many thanks!
I'm fairly confident we could stay with relatives until we get on our feet, but Neville's point about the limits of certain visas are a concern.
You guys have really highlighted some potential pitfalls and given me some ideas on what to look into and that along with the offer of further assistance is greatly appreciated.
Many thanks!
Hi all, once again thank you to all that have contributed to the thread so far. It's hugely helpful and is really providing some food for thought and laying out the realities of life in Australia.
This has allowed us to take à more measured view of the offer we've received and put a plan in place to look at it in a little more detail. We're hoping to answer most of our questions in the next few months and then head over early next year to take a look around on the ground, look at a few areas to rent, some nurseries etc and just see how it feels. From that we'll return home and make the decision.
I'm certainly on the fence at the moment. A big concern is the ratio of income to property prices which suggests that renting would be a long term proposition. Similarly, it seems that 'getting by' financially in the UK is perhaps more comfortable, albeit not as nice
I'll update this thread as we progress as there is some really good info here that I, and I'm sure others will find useful. I'm sure I'll have more questions in due course too if you folks don't mind?
Thanks again!
This has allowed us to take à more measured view of the offer we've received and put a plan in place to look at it in a little more detail. We're hoping to answer most of our questions in the next few months and then head over early next year to take a look around on the ground, look at a few areas to rent, some nurseries etc and just see how it feels. From that we'll return home and make the decision.
I'm certainly on the fence at the moment. A big concern is the ratio of income to property prices which suggests that renting would be a long term proposition. Similarly, it seems that 'getting by' financially in the UK is perhaps more comfortable, albeit not as nice
I'll update this thread as we progress as there is some really good info here that I, and I'm sure others will find useful. I'm sure I'll have more questions in due course too if you folks don't mind?
Thanks again!
Sorry for missing the last few comments, thanks for the input. I think you're right about the depth of culture.
Making the move because we're a little pissed off here is a long term solution to a short term issue and I'm much more on the fence than I was previously.
But, not one for regret and I'd hate to say I never even looked, so we're booked up and will be out there in circa 8 weeks to have a good snoop around for a few weeks and see how it feels.
It's pretty much decision time for us, and new things are a'happening either here or there, so the house is going up for sale shortly and I've been looking at liquidating a few assets (that'll not take long).
Tally ho!
Making the move because we're a little pissed off here is a long term solution to a short term issue and I'm much more on the fence than I was previously.
But, not one for regret and I'd hate to say I never even looked, so we're booked up and will be out there in circa 8 weeks to have a good snoop around for a few weeks and see how it feels.
It's pretty much decision time for us, and new things are a'happening either here or there, so the house is going up for sale shortly and I've been looking at liquidating a few assets (that'll not take long).
Tally ho!
Morning all, well we're back - just about over the jet lag.
What a great time we had. We were careful to see the place 'warts and all' but it has been pretty hard to fault the place. For reference we were staying in Armadale.
We had a look at a few potential rental properties, the local schools etc and generally tried to imagine the long term there. We got stuck in the rush hours, shopped at Coles and KMart and talked to all the rele's who thankfully are spread across the income brackets it seems.
The upshot? Well it's still a tough call. I can see a whole range of benefits over there, but I'm not sure I can give up some of the family etc we have here. My biggest concern is that everyone tells me that there is perhaps a two year period where you tread water, or even step back before you see the progress.
Another is the housing market. It seems that your boom has been even greater than ours, and we were already on the wrong side of that one. My aunts house for example has increased by 300% in about 8 years.
I think what it boils down to is the risk and reward of a possible move. We're a bit old to come back and start again if we're not happy - so we're got to be certain. Financially we'd be all in the pot, albeit with family over there as a safety net.
As a result we've decided to test the job market and see if something with a higher salary can be found. From looking over there, it's not impossible to find a job of $180k and over in the field I'm in - but I'll need to look into it further, along with visas and the like.
So this Christmas break is really decision time. Blow the dust off the CV and bait the hook - see what bites.
Watch this space and thanks again for the advice and comments.
What a great time we had. We were careful to see the place 'warts and all' but it has been pretty hard to fault the place. For reference we were staying in Armadale.
We had a look at a few potential rental properties, the local schools etc and generally tried to imagine the long term there. We got stuck in the rush hours, shopped at Coles and KMart and talked to all the rele's who thankfully are spread across the income brackets it seems.
The upshot? Well it's still a tough call. I can see a whole range of benefits over there, but I'm not sure I can give up some of the family etc we have here. My biggest concern is that everyone tells me that there is perhaps a two year period where you tread water, or even step back before you see the progress.
Another is the housing market. It seems that your boom has been even greater than ours, and we were already on the wrong side of that one. My aunts house for example has increased by 300% in about 8 years.
I think what it boils down to is the risk and reward of a possible move. We're a bit old to come back and start again if we're not happy - so we're got to be certain. Financially we'd be all in the pot, albeit with family over there as a safety net.
As a result we've decided to test the job market and see if something with a higher salary can be found. From looking over there, it's not impossible to find a job of $180k and over in the field I'm in - but I'll need to look into it further, along with visas and the like.
So this Christmas break is really decision time. Blow the dust off the CV and bait the hook - see what bites.
Watch this space and thanks again for the advice and comments.
We were looking at rentals in Byford primarily. Armadale et al just reminds me of any town in the north east really. But what I really noticed is how copy/paste the little suberbs are. Tightly crammed developments of carbon copy houses, then a retail park with Hungry Jacks. KFC, McDs.
I found that hugely different from when I was last there. Why - when there is so much land in Aus are developers selling such (comparitively) small plots? - makes no sense.
The only properties I actually fancied were the 20 to 30 year old ones, which had a bit more space and none of that hidious metal sheet fencing.
Are there any other areas around there that I should be cautious of? It's that sort of area that we're considering as that's where the family is. What reputation does Armadale and Byford have?
Thanks again PG!
I found that hugely different from when I was last there. Why - when there is so much land in Aus are developers selling such (comparitively) small plots? - makes no sense.
The only properties I actually fancied were the 20 to 30 year old ones, which had a bit more space and none of that hidious metal sheet fencing.
Are there any other areas around there that I should be cautious of? It's that sort of area that we're considering as that's where the family is. What reputation does Armadale and Byford have?
Thanks again PG!
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