Should we stay or should we go

Hi everyone,Dilemma time for us. We have been PRs for the last 3 years. We spent 4 months in Oz in 2009 but came back as my wife wanted to have our second child in the UK and we weren’t earning as much as we’d hoped.*We always knew we wanted to get back to Sydney and now that our youngest had his visa granted in November we are set to go again. I am an IT consultant and after a month or so of looking found a decent contract in Sydney CBD. For what I do there is far more work in London than in Sydney.*Our dilemma now is that my current contract in the UK have upped the ante by offering me very good money to renew (they don’t know about the possibility of us leaving) and very good terms with a year’s contract etc.*The money would work out to be around 35% more in the UK at the current exchange rate – obviously if the rate goes back down then it will be even more.*We were shocked last time with the cost of fruit and vegetables in Oz and realise that the cost of housing and other expenses are definitely higher in Australia.*Having said all that, we really enjoyed our time out in Sydney last time and think that it will be great for our two boys, we are just worried that we are making a financial mistake.*Add to that the fact that to renew our PR we will need to spend another 20 months out there and the realistic deadline to be able to come and go as we please is this November, after that we have to stay in Australia or relinquish the visa.*I know no one can make the decision for us, but we are really confused as to which way to go, it has always been our dream to get out there but the cold hard facts cannot be ignored.*This is potentially our last chance to emigrate.*

If it's your last chance to emigrate, then take it, and stop worrying about UK versus OZ plus/minus. Who cares about the relative price of fruit and veg? I don't even care about the relative price of beer - $5.20 for a schooner of VB and $5.80 for a schooner of Coopers tonight in the Royal Exhibition Hotel.

If you are sure that Aus is where you want to spend the rest of your life then take what opportunities lie in wait for you there (try not to burn too many bridges though, you never know when you may need to re-cross them). If your family life is established in UK then why bother moving take the opportunities which are offered to you in UK. It's all about where you see yourself in 5, 10, 25 years and take the pathways that will lead you there. As MR said, agonizing over the price of a pint is neither here nor there in the scheme of things, follow your opportunities

The experience is important, but so is paying the bills. Financial hardships can lead to much stress and can have many adverse fall outs. If you think you have a stable enough job with a high enough income then go for it. You can still go out in the Australian summers on a tourist visa. Maybe you could gain employer sponsorship at some time? That would mean you are able to move over again as PRs. Is it possible for you to do a quick reccie to Australia and see if you have good enough job offers there?

What did Oscar Wilde say about cynics? 'They know the price of everything and the value of nothing?' Moving to Australia, or for that matter, moving back to the UK, should not just be reduced to pounds and pence, or dollars and (non) sense. (sic!)

I dont think your hearts in it to tell you the truth. I think you want it more for your children. You say that your main reason for returning to the UK was because your wife wanted your second child to be born there. That speaks volumes imo. Sorry to be blunt but do you think it might be a case of 'the grass being greener?'

Thanks for the replies, and the good honest advice, there are some genuinely kind people on these forums.

I think for the time being we're going to stay put in the UK.

We do love Australia but our heart is not fully in it as the last poster mentioned.

Thanks