twinkletoes35

Hey Good advice so far, I remember when we were planning to move out I often read treads like this, then groaned at the frequent reference to how expensive everyone thought it was here, thought they may have misjudged or got it wrong somehow. The bottom line is, its the same but different, I agree you live to your means, I am nurse and on a good wage and my partner is in real estate so income is variable, we live on the Gold Coast. We do have additional expenses here that we did not have in the UK such as health insurance. We budgeted at home and do the same here, meals out are more of a treat, my son will be going to private school next year, something I would never have considered back home but is more the norm here. Over the almost 3 years we have been in Australia (we did not come out with much money) we have made careful decisions, but still managed to make incorrect choices or make fantastic finds by accident. How much you spend will be based on what your expectations are, what standard of living will be acceptable to you e.g. rent could vary widely based on where you choose to live Happy to give you a run do of our costs, if you pm me

Hello Mogsandrover Just thought I would pop on with some friendly advice, with a hope that it may help you, totally from my prospective (in case anyone wishes to disagree) I came over sponsored by the Mater in Townsville in 2011, I had several other job offers in Sydney and Melbourne but no offer of relocation assistance, you will need to look rurally for those kind of opportunities s the big cities do not need to offer them to gain overseas staff We moved down to the gold coast last year at out own cost, QH have stopped offering relocation help, in fact from the 1st july 2014 each health care trust will operate independently for recruitment For some time SA have only been offering temp/ fixed term contracts, I had an ICU interview with an SA hospital last year and the first ten minutes was taken up with how they do not provide relocation allowance! However there are still jobs to be had, in most areas just depends what working conditions will suit you, the last I heard about the brisi mater was that they were not internationally recruiting but I could be wrong, it is true that not all new grad are getting employment, we have a new grad who travelled from Broome to take a job in the gold coast Good luck with your jobs search…in QLD search on smart jobs, or apply direct is quite a good site… Logan Hospital is having an extension and looking for an additional 150 staff and the Princess Alexandra have had a run of nurse vacancies Hope this helps TT x

Hi there! We are not in Brisi but down the road in the Gold Coast, Me and OH (40 and 37) and our little man who will be 5 in September I am a nurse and partner is in real estate, have been in Oz nearly 3 years now and am happy to help out with any questions for now take care and wish you the best of luck with your upcoming move TT x

Hi all My son is due to start prep in Feb 2015, so starting the task of looking for a suitable school, we currently live in Molendinar though plan to change rental in November. I work in Southport, OH in Mermaid Beach Any suggestions? Thanks TT x:wink:

hi all could anyone recommend a reasonable but reliable remover, looking to move from Townsville to Brisbane/ Gold Coast, in the next couple of months Any recommendations appreciated TT x :wink:

we shipped 12 boxes and used seven seas they were excellent, a couple of breakages only but good service. cost around GBP400 good luck xx

I have some sad news, four months ago my partner and I separated and he has returned to the UK, long story, but he is going to stay there, so I am sorting his stuff out, he cant afford to ship the lot so wants to ship one or two tea chest boxes of his essentials. could anyone recommend a shipping company which would be reasonable to do this from Townsville to Belfast? your help would be appreciated to make a stressful situation easier and get this sorted thanks TT x

Hello All at PIO, Been a while since I posted on here, have been living in Northern Queensland since Oct 2011, working at the same employer, there has been some major changes at the hospital and I worry about job security. My partner and I are considering moving to Brisbane or Perth, and wondered what the nursing job markets were feeling like 'on the ground'. I have been looking online at jobs and costing a move, we would need to do it this year before our little one starts school. Any help always appreciated TTx

Does anyone bank with BankWest? considering moving bank and wondered what they were like? thanks TT x

Hello all We celebrated our first year un Australia at the weekend, live in a nice town, job is ok rather the great, My o.h and son are really well settled and love it where we are, we have talked about saving to buy a house but I cannnot shake the feeling that there is more out there. Alot of the problem is I do not feel challenged in my job and often feel like I am going through the motions, although there is opportunities for promotion I cannont see ones for development. I am often left feeling stupid for asking questions and consequently feel undervalued. I think maybe moving to a bigger/more progressive hospital may help, due to relocation assistance given to us have another year on my contract till we could move. The public hospital in the town is making job cuts, and I am told that not necessarly is the grass greener Maybe I should just be happy with my lot? I just wish I did not feel like there could be something better for us in another part of Oz? Now I am not asking anyone to tell me what to do, just interested in hearing your thoughts, especially your experiences if you have moved from one area to another thanks TT

hey there could someone give me the form number to claim my uk income tax back, had a look on the site and cannot seem to locate it thanx TT xxx

I guess areas are a matter of opinion, as we have a house in Condon, and have not had any problems there, made friends with some of our Aussie neighbours. We went for a house that suited us and our needs, and viewed in several areas. THe way we look at it is, this house suits us right now, at the end of our lease we will relook at things and if we continue to be happy here stay, or we can look for something that will suit us then. For example, we chose at this point not to have a pool, as with our adventurous 2 year we were concerned, but next year we may move to upgrade to a home with a pool. I would say come, look around and find out what suits you best and your budget Good luck TT x

Interested in this one as stopping over (also for 6hrs) on our way to Townsville, had considered booking into the hotel too, but will probably settle for a nice shower, thanks for the tip!!!!!

flying with Quantus heathrow- singapore- brisbane- townsville its what worked best for us, may book showers at singapore No, need to stop, just sent a certified copy of my visa to AHPRA and had my registration approved already TT xx

lol mines tea and 2 and can you recommend a coffee for John??? lol Can't wait to meet everyone (if they want to) I am going to send some clothes with over in the boxes, what do you recommend to pack??? just Ts ans shorts and light trousers??? i thought ot would get easier but I just think up aload of new questions with every phase looking forward to meeting younand find yiour posts really helpful!!!! TT xx

congrats to you and the rest of the family.....hope all goes smoothly TT xx

Hi all Finally happy to report we booked our flights to Townsville yesterday going to be arriving on 20/10/11 in the morning Travelling with John and our little one, who turned 2 yesterday Now to finalise packing and sorting our stuff, just sending some boxes over, and they are arriving Wednesday to packed Eeeek its finally here!¬!!! TT xx

does this problem exist only with NAB or the other banks too? have openned a NAB account and wonder should I be worried? TT XX

its good you haved double checked, I received my visa grant recently and it clearly states that my oh cannot enter the country before me and we have to enter as a unit i guess we all should read our grants small print TTx

i sent my passport decree absolute, original bank statement ( for address) since I had no diriving lic ense they requested both sides of my debit card with signiture varified by the notary, that gave me eligibility to registar, just sent visa to complete the process Yes sent a copy of CV, your current post details needs to be witnessed on your CV by either a unit manager, hr or director of nursing, also thery requied statement of service (available from HR) Off the top of my head cannot remember how long they requested but I remember sending 5 yrs worth of evidence hope this helps TT x

congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

pm me your email and i wll forward you the copy i used TT xx

Hi Runner Since it was 20 years since I left school, they could not find me either!, I sent certified copies of my GCSE certs and a statutory declaration regarding my education and that it was taught in English etc, worked for me hope this helps TT xx

Hi all we are hoping to buy a nearly new car when we move over to Oz, my main concern is what are the higgen cost, when dealers advertise an on the road price, are there any other exoenses you need to take into consideration at the point of sale? besides insurance and fuel of course! Any help much appreciated TT xx

congrats mate! xx:biggrin: