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Realistic cost of living in Perth


noelle25

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Hi everyone,

I'm looking some info on realistic cost of living in perth.

My husband & son (with another on the way) are looking to immigrate next year. My husband is a theatre technician & I am a nurse but I would be looking to settle the kids before getting work. My husband seems to be able to get work quite easily earning approx 65,000 dollars. We would have the sale of our house hopefully to eventually buy a house but would rent initially.

 

So my question is would we be able to live on my husbands salary comfortably and how much would we be looking to pay to rent a house & then to buy?

 

is the cost of living the same as the UK or a lot higher?

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Noelle....

 

I'm going through the same dilemma at the moment, and am working out the minimum we could afford to live on.. some say $70k, some $100k, some $150k... I'm ignoring all that...

 

At the end of the day, it is all relative... what is your income in Oz and how much will it cost to live in Oz... I don't think you can compare to UK salary or cost of living.... it's not realistic to think of it in those terms...

 

What sort of lifestyle do you want...??? How much will the things you want to do cost in Oz after you've bought food, paid rent, bills etc....

 

The following sites are helping me to build up a picture of what my income is likely to be, what the associated costs are and what I can claim from the state on a PR visa (Family Tax Benefit, being the only one it appears you can claim in the first two years, a benefit that includes rent supplement)...

 

https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/ ...... I use this to look at my overall projected budget...

http://www.aussiemove.com/costofliving/ .... a rough idea of costs

http://www.paycalculator.com.au ... calculate your take home pay

http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/online-estimators .... get an estimate of what FTB you will be entitled to....

 

Do you're research on rental costs in the area you want to live... landlords pay local rates and water rates, so you don't need to budget for that...

 

Hope that helps

 

Chris

Edited by cjbchris
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Having looked in to rental properties and having family over there in Perth already I can tell you that a 3 bedroom house can be anything from $400 - 600+ a week (yes week, not month) and depends on usual stuff like how close you are to beach, city etc. Cars are more expensive to buy out there but apparently good price to run. Fruit can be costly as its seasonal (on a holiday in nov 2010 we paid around £5.00 for a tiny punnet of grapes). The exchange rate is not great at the moment either but may pick up. I would do a spread sheet and work out what you pay here for food, bills, rent/mortgage etc and try and find out the same for rough prices in Australia bearing in mind the exchange rates. Wages are generally higher though so you may work it all out ok :) Google for estate agents in australia and have a look at both rental and to buy and you will see what money gets you on both. Dont forget there is no nhs out there so medical costs differ greatly, I think you can get quotes online for medical insurance, might be worth checking. Might be worth getting quotes for childcare/nursery fees etc as I dont know much about these yet but there are plenty of people on here who do :)

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Realestate.com.au is a really good site for houses, and their app is even better, its so easy to find rentals on it, would highhly recommend it.

 

We are a family of 3 as well moving in april. We have worked out based on our current lifestyle we could live on 60k, it wouldnt be luxury but we could live.

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Realestate.com.au is a really good site for houses, and their app is even better, its so easy to find rentals on it, would highhly recommend it.

 

We are a family of 3 as well moving in april. We have worked out based on our current lifestyle we could live on 60k, it wouldnt be luxury but we could live.

 

 

Do you mind me asking what area you are moving to in perth??

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Noelle....

 

I'm going through the same dilemma at the moment, and am working out the minimum we could afford to live on.. some say $70k, some $100k, some $150k... I'm ignoring all that...

 

At the end of the day, it is all relative... what is your income in Oz and how much will it cost to live in Oz... I don't think you can compare to UK salary or cost of living.... it's not realistic to think of it in those terms...

 

What sort of lifestyle do you want...??? How much will the things you want to do cost in Oz after you've bought food, paid rent, bills etc....

 

The following sites are helping me to build up a picture of what my income is likely to be, what the associated costs are and what I can claim from the state on a PR visa (Family Tax Benefit, being the only one it appears you can claim in the first two years, a benefit that includes rent supplement)...

 

https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/ ...... I use this to look at my overall projected budget...

http://www.aussiemove.com/costofliving/ .... a rough idea of costs

www.paycalculator.com.au ... calculate your take home pay

www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/online-estimators .... get an estimate of what FTB you will be entitled to....

 

Do you're research on rental costs in the area you want to live... landlords pay local rates and water rates, so you don't need to budget for that...

 

Hope that helps

 

Chris

 

thank you Chris.

 

we are not looking for a flashy life I don't want a house with a pool right next to the beach.

our main reason for the move is more family time so our priority is hubby being a short drive to work & having a better work life balance.

 

When I've had a quick look at properties I find it hard to see how anyone affords to live in perth at all which is a big worry for me.

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It depends on what lifestyle you are used to. People can and do live on $65k a year. The lifestyle it would give is about the same as 26k pounds in the UK. Housing is expensive. You should plan to pay between $450 min to $600. To buy a house you are looking at about a minimum of $400k That wont be in Perth itself. Nearly all of the actual city suburbs have a average price tag now of $1 mill.

 

Have you got a visa yet? That is the first thing to worry about.

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Hi Noelle,

we are looking NoR around Butler simply due to cost. however once one of us has secured a job we may reconsider depending on the location of the job. If you have PR you can claim family tax benefit and rent assistance. On a salary of around 65k and 1 child this amounts to around 450 dollars every fortnight. Seems they like to support working families in australia!

what areas were you looking at? We did a lot of looking and researching so its not an easy task and really until we are there we just dont know where we will end up. Our holiday let is Carramar so we are hoping this will be a good base for looking for more permanent accomodation.

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Rent levels are scary, but with the rent element of FTB it makes it slightly more manageable.

 

Hope I'm right that you can claim it on a 189.

 

chris

 

I'm not sure what you mean by the "rent element" in FTB. If you are talking about rent assistance, I doubt a family on $65000 qualifies for that. That is not part of Family Tax Benefit it is a supplement for very low income earners. Happy to be corrected...just don't want you doing your sums on something you may not qualify for..

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I'm not sure what you mean by the "rent element" in FTB. If you are talking about rent assistance, I doubt a family on $65000 qualifies for that. That is not part of Family Tax Benefit it is a supplement for very low income earners. Happy to be corrected...just don't want you doing your sums on something you may not qualify for..

 

I take it back - I have now looked at the Centrelink website and you may indeed get rent assistance if your rent is high enough - but on rent that high you may struggle on $65,000. But by the time you get Family Tax Benefit as well you may be OK. I know plenty of people who live in Melbourne on less and it must be as expensive as Perth. But you must get used to eating seasonally and just live without grapes in November!!

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My husband has a job offer on a 457 in central perth hospital which is worrying me as we just couldn't afford any close surrounding areas to live in so he would be travelling a lot which is what we are trying to get away from in the uk.

 

This is why we are considering holding out for PR as from my limited experience the 457 doesn't seem as secure and with going with kids that is scary, however on the other hand 457 means less visa costs & we could enjoy the adventure & if it all fell to pieces we wouldn't have lost so much money.

 

My husband would leave to go in the morning I think I'm more a person who needs every question answered beforehand.

Id love a few hours with someone to ask them every single question!

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Actually there are some quite nice older areas not too far from Perth that are not too expensive (for Perth!) - you just have to go East rather than West - try looking at Maylands, Bayswater, Bassendean, South Guildford and other suburbs around there. They are cheaper because you are not so near the river or the beach.

 

A 457 can definitely be a gamble, although probably less so in a hospital, in trades it is very risky and in private businesses too. If you cone on a 457 don't sell your house, definitely don't buy a house and consider it 'working away from home' - a lot will depend on the age of your children as to whether that's viable.

 

Everyone's lifestyle is different so cost of living is difficult to compare - housing is the big cost in Perth and the figures you've been quoted are about right, so take $500 a week off the proposed income and divide what's left by 2.5, compare that to what you have left after paying mortgage/council tax/water rates in the UK - if it's similar then you'll have a similar lifestyle, if it's more fabulous, less then I'd seriously reconsider - if you can no longer afford to do the things you enjoy then the gloss of your new life quickly wears thin.

 

I also think 'more family time' is a huge myth. The only way to achieve that is to make other changes which you could do in the UK anyway! Typically the working week is longer and annual leave less and unless you live in the home counties and commute to London, the commute longer.

 

We are returning after four years, lots of reasons but we were able to afford to do much more in the UK, we hate the heat and are bored with what Perth has to offer so maybe I'm looking on the black side but I would prefer you to come with realistic expectations.

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Actually there are some quite nice older areas not too far from Perth that are not too expensive (for Perth!) - you just have to go East rather than West - try looking at Maylands, Bayswater, Bassendean, South Guildford and other suburbs around there. They are cheaper because you are not so near the river or the beach.

 

A 457 can definitely be a gamble, although probably less so in a hospital, in trades it is very risky and in private businesses too. If you cone on a 457 don't sell your house, definitely don't buy a house and consider it 'working away from home' - a lot will depend on the age of your children as to whether that's viable.

 

Everyone's lifestyle is different so cost of living is difficult to compare - housing is the big cost in Perth and the figures you've been quoted are about right, so take $500 a week off the proposed income and divide what's left by 2.5, compare that to what you have left after paying mortgage/council tax/water rates in the UK - if it's similar then you'll have a similar lifestyle, if it's more fabulous, less then I'd seriously reconsider - if you can no longer afford to do the things you enjoy then the gloss of your new life quickly wears thin.

 

I also think 'more family time' is a huge myth. The only way to achieve that is to make other changes which you could do in the UK anyway! Typically the working week is longer and annual leave less and unless you live in the home counties and commute to London, the commute longer.

 

We are returning after four years, lots of reasons but we were able to afford to do much more in the UK, we hate the heat and are bored with what Perth has to offer so maybe I'm looking on the black side but I would prefer you to come with realistic expectations.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Go for the adventure, but remember on a 457 you are unprotected. We're on a 457 and hubby is on his fourth week of notice, meaning if he doesn't have a job by the end of the week, we're on the first plane out of here! With two kids that's not too bad, but we've 5 and it is a worry. Also, 65k won't do a lot here, we've been on twice that and still struggle. Good luck with the decision.

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Go for the adventure, but remember on a 457 you are unprotected. We're on a 457 and hubby is on his fourth week of notice, meaning if he doesn't have a job by the end of the week, we're on the first plane out of here! With two kids that's not too bad, but we've 5 and it is a worry. Also, 65k won't do a lot here, we've been on twice that and still struggle. Good luck with the decision.

 

Hi Chiara, Really sorry to hear that. I hope your husband gets an offer very soon.

 

Lorraine x

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Actually there are some quite nice older areas not too far from Perth that are not too expensive (for Perth!) - you just have to go East rather than West - try looking at Maylands, Bayswater, Bassendean, South Guildford and other suburbs around there. They are cheaper because you are not so near the river or the beach.

 

A 457 can definitely be a gamble, although probably less so in a hospital, in trades it is very risky and in private businesses too. If you cone on a 457 don't sell your house, definitely don't buy a house and consider it 'working away from home' - a lot will depend on the age of your children as to whether that's viable.

 

Everyone's lifestyle is different so cost of living is difficult to compare - housing is the big cost in Perth and the figures you've been quoted are about right, so take $500 a week off the proposed income and divide what's left by 2.5, compare that to what you have left after paying mortgage/council tax/water rates in the UK - if it's similar then you'll have a similar lifestyle, if it's more fabulous, less then I'd seriously reconsider - if you can no longer afford to do the things you enjoy then the gloss of your new life quickly wears thin.

 

I also think 'more family time' is a huge myth. The only way to achieve that is to make other changes which you could do in the UK anyway! Typically the working week is longer and annual leave less and unless you live in the home counties and commute to London, the commute longer.

 

We are returning after four years, lots of reasons but we were able to afford to do much more in the UK, we hate the heat and are bored with what Perth has to offer so maybe I'm looking on the black side but I would prefer you to come with realistic expectations.

 

 

I love reading your posts Jules, but can you explain why the "we hate the heat" sentance.

 

WA has a lot of things that will sneak up on you that you arent prepared for, but the heat!! thats no surprise surely.

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Go for the adventure, but remember on a 457 you are unprotected. We're on a 457 and hubby is on his fourth week of notice, meaning if he doesn't have a job by the end of the week, we're on the first plane out of here! With two kids that's not too bad, but we've 5 and it is a worry. Also, 65k won't do a lot here, we've been on twice that and still struggle. Good luck with the decision.

 

Chiara - sorry to hear about husband's job. I really hope something turns up for him before the end of the week.

 

On another note, I have been reading your blog and really enjoying it.

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Chiara - sorry to hear about husband's job. I really hope something turns up for him before the end of the week.

 

On another note, I have been reading your blog and really enjoying it.

 

 

Thanks guys, well he's been offered two jobs - one a fifo role (no way in hell) or a regional job in the arse end of nowhere (no choice!) - word of warning to anyone coming out to Perth in search of construction management positions - you will struggle to find anything in the city itself!

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Most people love the heat when they go on holiday. But when you have to live in it, work in it, go to school in it, shop and clean in it - it can become wearing. The heat was part of the reason I left Perth. It gave me terrible headaches.

 

 

I love reading your posts Jules, but can you explain why the "we hate the heat" sentance.

 

WA has a lot of things that will sneak up on you that you arent prepared for, but the heat!! thats no surprise surely.

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Thanks guys, well he's been offered two jobs - one a fifo role (no way in hell) or a regional job in the arse end of nowhere (no choice!) - word of warning to anyone coming out to Perth in search of construction management positions - you will struggle to find anything in the city itself!

 

FIFO isn't for everyone. But it does have some pluses. I personally like it as love the chance of having an extended time off rather than just a weekend.

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Well he's been offered a fifo role also, and honestly I don't think I could do it again, so yes I would go home I think. He's waiting to hear about a city job, although the money isn't as good as the regional. Think we'll go regional for a year, if nothing else it will give me something to write about!!

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