I have an opportunity to take a role in Richmond, Melbourne as a relocation package with my current employer in the UK. Recently visited Perth at Chrimbo but no doubt there are differences in Victoria as oppossed to WA.
So...all the usual questions. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated by you guys and gals. I've been told that the East side of Melbourne is a nicer place to live. Is this true?
What is a reasonable 'ball park' figure for renting and/or buying a 2-3 bedroomed pad a decent area?(hope that's not too vague).
What is deemed a good wage in Victoria? 100,000k ?
How does the cost of living realistically compare with the UK i.e. Which things are notably dearer and cheaper and in balance, is it cheaper or dearer as a whole?
Average salary in oz is around the $55K mark, $100K is therefore a good salary.
South of the Yarra is good, I like SE Melbourne along the bay.
check out realestate.com.au for rental & buying prices.
Most people will probably say on balance that things are more expensive than the UK but it does depend on what you are buying and what exchange rate you use. If you are earning $100K you should have a good lifestyle depending on your personal circumstances.
Pinhead is right, SE Melbourne is nice. I'm in Bentleigh if you're looking for a 3 bedroom place you can pay anything from $400-$800 p/w for a nice place - depends what you want.
Like Pinhead said, check out realestate.com.au - it's really handy.
I can't tell you too much about price comparisions at the moment - we haven't had many bills come through but for a rough idea my mobile phone package is $29 a month which gives me $130 worth of calls (about).
Food shopping is not cheap - there are several other threads about this on here with many people giving their opinion. My opinion is that it's great quality fruit and veg but more expensive than the UK, meat and fish is also more pricey.
Eating out works out the same pound for dollar so it you'd pay £15 for a meal in the UK it'd be $15 here which is great value and there are loads of options for places to eat!!!
There are lots of dollar stores, like poundland and pound stretcher in London so you can find cheap bits and pieces that you may need.
Plus there's always Ikea which is in Richmond - I guess it'll become your furniture shop! From where I live it only took me about 30 mins to drive to Ikea. Most places are really near although look far on a map.
Feel free to ask more questions, there's always someone here who is able to help!
Good luck with it all.
