Exchange Rate Argh!!!!

[Guest taylor family]

:sad:Sorry but I feel it is time for a reality check the cost of living is high here and house prices high to.

I fell that you need to look at moving very carefully if you are a family of 5 with children of primary age on a sponsored visa then you may find it hard if you dont have 100k+

education here is poor and the house prices 325+ for a good area and everyday shopping not cheap.

If you have a trade then you may have to bye a liecence or go back to college at your own cost so be aware.

And for a few that say they are livin it lovin it most have rentals to fill and dont want the brits to stop coming so dont realy say many bad things about south australia.

once again sorry to those back in england looking at the web sites with rose tinted glasses but I stand by what I have writen.

[Guest ozzy wannabe]

IS the education in SA Poor?

[Guest Guest75]

:sad:Sorry but I feel it is time for a reality check the cost of living is high here and house prices high to.

I fell that you need to look at moving very carefully if you are a family of 5 with children of primary age on a sponsored visa then you may find it hard if you dont have 100k+

education here is poor and the house prices 325+ for a good area and everyday shopping not cheap.

If you have a trade then you may have to bye a liecence or go back to college at your own cost so be aware.

And for a few that say they are livin it lovin it most have rentals to fill and dont want the brits to stop coming so dont realy say many bad things about south australia.

once again sorry to those back in england looking at the web sites with rose tinted glasses but I stand by what I have writen.

 

I think most are seeing the reality here now.

Cost of living is the same if not higher in some areas of lifestyle than the UK.

 

The "Buy a house cheap dream and live mortgage free" is slipping away with both the rise in property here,the falling exchange rate and poor sales in the UK.

 

My personal advice is to bring as much capital as you can,it will make life easier for the first few years during that hectic and unsettled period.

 

Definitely people are now realising it is tougher by the conversations I've had.

Most are now just wanting to totally change their lives and have a better lifestyle.By this they mean better quality and cleaner surroundings,safer environment for their kids,access to beaches (which is good and free entertainment).

 

Some have come over blinkered with the rosy glasses but they are few and far between.

Some felt as if they could "cash in" or walk into a plum ,highly paid job.Quite a few did not realise they had to have a licence to operate their trade and earn a decent living.

Any one in a trade such as plumbing/electrical MUST look at this site http://www.ocba.sa.gov.au/licensing/ .............It will let you know what you are up for.I fear that some applicants are not made aware of this by the migration authorities or their agents.

 

Eventually those migrating here will not be caught up by the unrealistic dreams portrayed by TV and will be coming solely for a change in lifestyle,a new challenge (this was us) or to find a safer and happier place for their kids(us also).

 

Think of the 10 pound Poms,flipping heck - they did not have the luxury of internet research or much cash in their pockets.

 

I'm sorry but I have to comment on your last paragraph.

There are those of us who are living and loving it here we do share our experiences but do tell the reality regarding this fine country.There is good and bad in every country.

[Guest caoimhe]

This forum started as a moan about rates and it is now getting very dark!!!

It is really worrying the h*** out of me. There is Stephen, myself and 4 kids and we are fed up with "making ends met". We honestly do not think the lottery is awaiting us in Australia and both are prepared to work hard so we both think it will be a better lifestyle

Here Stephen works a full time job in IT and as a taxi driver 3 nights a week, I have done some work during school hrs but trying to get permanent work during term time is not easy and trying to get 4 kids minded after school and during school holidays would cost £14 an hr and I don't know about the rest of you but I am not qualified in anything that would give me at least £20 an hr to give me a profit.

I am not looking for Stephen to earn a fortune but I want us to get by and be able to pay the mortgage and have something left to spend on the kids at weekends. It's family time we want, living without the 2nd job.

Could someone in Australia tell me if that is possible, we should be able to buy an extremely modest house outright and save for the bigger house at some point as with 4 kids we need it

[Guest Guzzler&Sas]

:sad:Sorry but I feel it is time for a reality check the cost of living is high here and house prices high to.

I fell that you need to look at moving very carefully if you are a family of 5 with children of primary age on a sponsored visa then you may find it hard if you dont have 100k+

education here is poor and the house prices 325+ for a good area and everyday shopping not cheap.

If you have a trade then you may have to bye a liecence or go back to college at your own cost so be aware.

And for a few that say they are livin it lovin it most have rentals to fill and dont want the brits to stop coming so dont realy say many bad things about south australia.

once again sorry to those back in england looking at the web sites with rose tinted glasses but I stand by what I have writen.

 

 

Hi,

 

Agree with Tyke the cost of living is on the rise here, but I don't expect for one moment it is dropping in the UK.

 

Most trades require a licence, definately if you wish to work as a contractor/sole trader, some trades you can work under other peoples licence.

In my instance carpenter/joiner when I first arrived I worked in a cabinet makers, NO licence required, during this time I obtained, independently my licence which involved doing a 28 hour legal and financial course, a police clearance certificate, a interview with the licensing board and paying the set fees. No dramas and what made it a bit easier was the fact I was expecting to do this because I had done my RESEARCH back in the UK.

 

Reference your last paragraph, YES I am one of those fortunate to have a rental, which I have had for the last 4 months, against your theory though I have been here 20 months and have lived and loved it since I stepped of the plane,

 

For those of you thinking/about to make the biggest decision, yes take off the rose tinted glasses, do research and when you have done that, do a bit more research, then when you get here have loads of positive attitude and you will be surprised how far you will get.

 

Living life to the full and loving every minute of this fantastic place,

 

Guzzler

[Guest smit]

IS the education in SA Poor?

Depends who you talk too! Ive got older kids and have not got a problem with the system.I think sometimes people think that their kids were more advanced in UK. That is true,because they start earlier and get info crammed into their heads. The oz system is different , the early years are spent giving social skills and the pressure work comes later on.

 

And as Tyke says, Good and bad in SA as anywhere else.And IMO, cost of living is not cheap ,unless you come with a bid wad, or get a well paid job.

[andy and lindsey]

Hi there thought I would give you my five penneth worth!

 

We have been here since October last year and are definately not wearing the rose tinted glasses. My hubby is a nurse and is earning a decent wage (by Aussie standards and easily comparible, if not slightly better than what he earned in the UK). At the moment we are living off Andys wage as I am waiting for my qualifications to be assessed, in order to practise as a midwife. I sent the request for assessment before christmas and am still waiting (no worries for me, but Andy is doing his nut:biglaugh:). We had a decent amount of equity to bring with us but as has been said previously - money really does run through your fingers like water when you first arrive! We have been lucky and have managed to buy some land (which is becoming increasingly more difficult to come by) in Aldinga - the downside being that we are now 50 minutes away from the city. Its not a problem for us as I could count on one hand the number of times I have needed to go there, but the housing market being as bouyant as it is here means that often you will have to travel further and set your sights lower than were your initial intentions. I spent many a night looking at www.realestate.com.au when we were still in the UK and realised quite quickly that what you want and sometimes what you can afford are two different things! We are more than happy with where and what we are building but now have a larger mortgage than we had in the UK, all that said had we moved in the Uk we would have had a similar sized mortgage. Grocery shopping is easily comparible to the UK - but I feel that fruit and veggies are much nicer and last longer and you can get some fantastic cuts of meat at very reasonable prices. We certainly eat more meat than we did in the Uk - lamb was a luxury there and is a staple here:D. We no longer rely on credit cards and have no loans (well apart from a huge mortgage - I jokingly say to people that my mortgage resembles the national debt of a small african country:biglaugh:!) but we can afford to live and find that there is so much to do here that is free or costs very little. I only have to look at my children to see the benefits!

 

Education - I would say that you have to find whats right for your child, there are good and there are bad. My eldest is struggling at school, but would have probably struggled wherever he was. He has dropped back a year here and a lot of the aussie kids are way ahead of him, which is surprising when considering he has had an extra year of schooling in the Uk at a very academic beacon school!! Private schooling is option for us here though, it would have been way out of our reach in the UK. We dont and wont have a pool but the ocean is free and five minutes away (could do with heating:shocked: but beggars cant be choosers). Would I swap what I have here for the Uk - No way, never say never, but I certainly have no intention of going back at the moment! Be realistic - there are still the lucky few who can come over here and be mortgage free but that number is getting less, and quality rather than quantity is the way forward for us.

 

Lindsey

[Guest mcfarscott]

For all those reading this thread back in the UK I would like to offer some hope!!

 

Yes the cost of living is roughly the same as back in the UK but house prices are still much lower than back home, for example I could buy a 4 bedroom property set on 800sq meters of land with a pool nex to the beach here or I could buy a pokey two bed semi in a dodgy area in the UK which would you rather have..........:unsure:

[Guest smit]

If you had same mortgage, same wages, youd be laughing. For every person thats worse off there be one thats better off. Do your research , then if you fancy it, come and live it, because you sure hell dont know the place until you have!. Oh , and the longer youre here , you assimilate into the place.......it becomes the norm.

[Guest louiesmum]

Hi

Me again!! I dont think I am looking at the move with rose tinted glasses! I/we are well aware & prepared to work hard when we get there. We know we will have a morgage & cost of living is going up but so is it here! Yes we are looking forward to going & excited, I dont think that wrong. Re schools there is good/bad where ever you go you just have to find the best school to suit you & your child thats no different to uk is it? We can all look at the past (back in UK) & look at that with rose tinted glasses & forget all that is going on in the UK, stabbings gang culture etc etc. just remembering the good bits. With us its not about the money as said before its to do with lifestyle. We're looking forward not back.

 

Moan over.

 

Have a great day all!!

[Guest graandjac]

Have to agree with the above, but also the cost of living here is going up aswell so if thats the case it must still be higher over here:goofy: , and as the cost of living goes up so must wages.....? spoke to a guy in perth a month ago and he said most trades are now earning the same as in the uk as part of the boom there , which as i believe is now heading South Australia's way.......? hence the house prices going up.

On the suburbs subject when on our reccie we stayed in Huntfield Heights, in Guzzler & Sas's rental on Paringa View, the spot is what i would describe as straight down the middle price wise and a typical ozzy street , but it was still nicer than the uk equivalant , maybe not everyones cup of t but still very nice. But when i had my hair cut out there i was chatting to the hairdresser and in conversation she said NOT to live in huntfield heights because of the social housing:arghh:, so what it was miles from where we were and we had to drive around and look for it, so i hope we aren't starting a battle of the suburbs thing after all everyone's dream house is very different and we all have very different amounts to spend.......................the key i believe is dont over spend and stay within your budget. Cheers Graham

[Guest Richard & Amanda]

Hiya,

 

I wouldn't class myself as having "rose tinted glasses" on whilst we plan our move out to Oz.

It's interesting to see the comments made by those already there. I found Andy & Lindsey's posting really interesting and I feel that both hubby and I can relate to this.

 

I realised a long time ago that mortgage free is a pipe dream and yes you do have to work hard once there.

 

It's a challenge we are both up to and look forward to the rewards of quality family life together at the weekends in the sunshine.

[scooterdan]

Hey!!

 

I dont think we look through rose tinted glasses either.... i would love to live mortgage free...but it isnt goin to happen anywhere i dont think!!! I know i will have to work, pay bills and a mortgage....i am prepared to do this to better my life!!

 

Our dream house isnt by a beach or in the hills...its where we can go in our budget and make the best of it...!! (although the beach would be nice!!)

 

The exchange rate is not too good at the mo....but im not i the postion to leave a chunk of my money here....what £££ i have is what $$$$ goes with me!!! Its tough...but thats it!! It could be a lot worse....!

 

After all im not moving all that way to be rich...its the lifestyle!!!!

 

Dan and Steph

[Guest muppetbro]

i landed my first aerial handle pass moves yesterday - flat 3s at henley

 

one thing i do more and more of is avoid asking poms anything about adelaide - my work colleagues and mates down the beach offer me more honest opinion on all things adelaide.....one common thing that is said - the south is catching up the north for feral scummys and "that what you bloody poms breed when you congregate together" - well i cant disagree with my 6 months teaching experience in some of these areas -

 

as for education here - my school after 4 weeks of using relief teachers to fill in finally filled their quota of positions with teachers who get moved around every year

 

my daughters school lost 8 teachers and a headteacher a week before new year started - good school she attends.......well the kids are well bahaved for sure and you wont find many school populations like that in the north and south suburbs...........oh yeh house prices are much higher in these suburbs............in fact its just the same as the uk .......

apart from schools have accountability in the uk which has bred a far tighter run school system and professionalism amongst teachers.......

 

if at the end of the day you dont mind teachers and kids talking to one another and accepting f words every other word is acceptable, no homework no exams no pressure curriculums that get dropped at a whim, trips that take place with little connections to work being done in curriculum then sure kids are going to l ike school here more........well apart from the decent kids who get a good education denied them from a totally disjointed unorganised beaurocracy.........

 

i love adelaide - but i think the southern suburbs are slums full of all the social indicators i honestly thought id leave behind in the uk towns / cities - nice beaches change when they become crowded with the local population - schools give a very good insight into the social characteristics of a community - cheap land cheap house prices at what price for your children id be asking.............

 

im off to middleton to hit some kickers

 

mwah

[Guest graandjac]

:unsure:Ferel scummers.....???believe me Australia dosent know what they are, every day now on the news some innocent dad is stabed or kicked to death standing up for his family in some way by ferel scum here in the uk , gangs of youths who the police do nothing about, we live in sleepy old sussex and if i go out for a beer at the weekend, we have to be in a group of 3 or 4 to wander about after 12 (and Iam not the one to walk away from a group of young thugs) but you have to watch your back, and the street crime is years behind the uk . Cheers Graham

[Guest Django]

i landed my first aerial handle pass moves yesterday - flat 3s at henley

 

one thing i do more and more of is avoid asking poms anything about adelaide - my work colleagues and mates down the beach offer me more honest opinion on all things adelaide.....one common thing that is said - the south is catching up the north for feral scummys and "that what you bloody poms breed when you congregate together" - well i cant disagree with my 6 months teaching experience in some of these areas -

 

as for education here - my school after 4 weeks of using relief teachers to fill in finally filled their quota of positions with teachers who get moved around every year

 

my daughters school lost 8 teachers and a headteacher a week before new year started - good school she attends.......well the kids are well bahaved for sure and you wont find many school populations like that in the north and south suburbs...........oh yeh house prices are much higher in these suburbs............in fact its just the same as the uk .......

apart from schools have accountability in the uk which has bred a far tighter run school system and professionalism amongst teachers.......

 

if at the end of the day you dont mind teachers and kids talking to one another and accepting f words every other word is acceptable, no homework no exams no pressure curriculums that get dropped at a whim, trips that take place with little connections to work being done in curriculum then sure kids are going to l ike school here more........well apart from the decent kids who get a good education denied them from a totally disjointed unorganised beaurocracy.........

 

i love adelaide - but i think the southern suburbs are slums full of all the social indicators i honestly thought id leave behind in the uk towns / cities - nice beaches change when they become crowded with the local population - schools give a very good insight into the social characteristics of a community - cheap land cheap house prices at what price for your children id be asking.............

 

im off to middleton to hit some kickers

 

mwah

 

I've read this post 4 times and still can't see what it has got to do with the exchange rate.

If you want to talk about social characteristics then perhaps you should start a new thread rather than hi jack this one.

 

Pete

[Guest Shy Ted]

:unsure:Ferel scummers.....???believe me Australia dosent know what they are, every day now on the news some innocent dad is stabed or kicked to death standing up for his family in some way by ferel scum here in the uk , gangs of youths who the police do nothing about, we live in sleepy old sussex and if i go out for a beer at the weekend, we have to be in a group of 3 or 4 to wander about after 12 (and Iam not the one to walk away from a group of young thugs) but you have to watch your back, and the street crime is years behind the uk . Cheers Graham

 

Fantastically put my friend.