munchkinpie

Hey Fowler Family Sorry to see you are still struggling - its a real tough decision to make. Think I messaged you a few weeks back on Living In Victoria site. We ruled out the West side quite early because of the amount of problems we had heard about the commute over from that area. I do know a few people who have settled over that way and love it though (Point Cook, Tarneit, etc) but none of them commute to the CBD so cant pass on their details for you to chat to unfortunately. I really thought I had researched thoroughly from the UK and decided on an area but it just wasn't to be. In hindsight we would have saved ourself so much heartache and expense by arriving and giving ourself a bit longer to get our feet and a feel for the area. For us - me at home, hubby working in South Melbourne, 4 year old monster and then 2 girls of 12 and 15 - after only a few days of our new move to Berwick we are already just so much happier and positive. Yes hubby now has an extra 15-20 mins commute but its nothing in the grand scheme of things. Girls are at a school that I am happy with the vibe and feedback from. Monster should get a Kinder place next year whereas last area I was told he wouldnt. Im so sorry that I cant help with other areas but please feel free to message me if you want to chat or ask any other questions Good Luck x

Hi Jamie Here is our story: My husband came over in May - he had 4 weeks accommodation from his company (Based near Albert Park and was put up in St Kilda Rd which was walking distance). He arrived on the Sat morning and started work on the Mon morning. He works till at least 6/6.30pm each night. This left Saturdays to do viewings as although there were evening viewings for some it was meaning he would have to keep taking almost half days to factor in arriving on time and commuting there as he didnt have a car yet. After months of research in the UK looking at school tables and websites and rental prices etc we had narrowed down our search to Glen Waverley, Wantirna, Vermont South areas as we felt that we could get a decent enough rental after maxing out our rental budget, fair choice of schools and Glen Waverley train station allowed my husband to keep the door-to-door commute at under an hour. After 4 weeks of Saturdays trawling round the areas and looking at many many properties and upping our budget again, he still hadnt found anywhere that he knew we would want to live in. Luckily for him when he put out an email at work asking if anyone had a room to rent for a few weeks, Mr Boss Man seen it and said the company would keep paying his accommodation until he was sorted. The accommodation he had was $900 a week just for him alone. He said where he was for another 2 weeks and then decided to find somewhere cheaper so not to abuse his companies generosity. Cheapest he found in the area was what he refers to as the haunted house and it was just about $450 for the week but clean and tidy and safe. In total it took him over 7 weeks to find a place but I do think that is because of the area and although we pushed our budget to $450-500 it is an expensive area. He applied for 2 that he found on the same day and was accepted for both within 24 hours - he basically showed his passport and driving license to agents and had his employer as a reference. My name was on the lease even though I was still in UK and husband just supplied copies of my ID. All the agents we have encountered work on whats called a 100 Point ID Check - if you google that it will really help you know what to bring copies of and have scanned into laptop etc. Our shipping container arrived 2 weeks after he got the house (that was adding extra panic to the house hunt also) and then me and the children a few weeks later. Unfortunately within a few weeks of all being here we knew the area wasn't right for us and despite allsorts of efforts to make it work we are now finding ourselves on the move to Berwick. Its costing an arm and a leg but its the only way forward for us and in particular my sanity I think. The house we have taken in Berwick, we both went to an open viewing but our details werent taken or anything, I went back for a 2nd viewing alone and then we put in application and nothing was said about my husband viewing it. Its a tough decision though and hard on my 2 oldest who are now having to move to another school and at 15 and 12 they arent impressed but I have to do whats right for their education and prospects. One of the contention points is obviously it will make my husbands commute longer by about 15-20 mins we reckon but still less than it was in and out of London each day in the UK and "touch wood" he certainly hasn't had any of the commuting sagas that were an almost daily occurrence for him back home. I can understand why your wife would be drawn to Mornington as it is beautiful but we it is a longer commute. However Id say still go and have a look at it though so you can make up your own mind and you may just feel that the rest of the positives outweigh the commute. For us we always wanted to be middle ground from beach and mountains and Glen Waverley offered us that as does Berwick - I have totally fallen in love with the Mount Dandenong area. In terms of schools - some of them wont have anything to do with you until you can say you have a property in the area, others will ask for a copy of the kids school reports from UK (or maybe that was because we were looking at secondary schools). We were told by a few of the Enrollment Officers that because our girls weren't joining at what is classed as a natural stage ie Year 7 or Year 10 then it was probably easier for us to get into a school that was out of a catchment zone. However, the school I have chosen in Berwick is renowned for being strict on catchment zone and it has offered both mine a place without us even living in that council catchment so there are always ways. Only my opinion but if I was you I would probably ask the company to get the Apartment for you. In fact Id be cheeky and see if they would do the apartment and maybe the bond payment so you have less to worry about. Based on the time you are arriving then you may end up paying over the odds to get somewhere. Also speak to your company about working hours etc in those 1st 2-3 weeks. If you can work Sundays and have a day off in the week then you may find the search easier, or if you can do some flexitime to leave earlier in the evenings that has viewings on. Anyway its all an adventure and if you do decide to head Berwick way then give me a shout if you want any help with anything. Oh and if you pop over to Living in Victoria there are quite a few people who can help you with all the areas you have mentioned and may have other suggestions especially in terms of helping with schools etc. Good Luck

Hi Rach You should definitely pop over to the Living In Victoria Forum - next meet up is planned for Albert Park on 1st December. Last meet had a great turn out and there was couples and families alike ranging from 1yr to 15yrs to 25yrs and then the rest who have started counting backwards! L x

Hi Chezza I cant comment much on the west as I havent ventured that way myself and in fact have only been here just over 2 months so Im no expert. I do have a friend from the UK who has been out in Tarneit for a few years and I know she loves it and has mentioned a few times about the ex pat community over there. We are currently in Glen Waverley area but its not working out for us mainly on a schools and social level (but like I said thats just for us). We are hopefully making the move down towards Berwick or thereabouts in next month or so. I joined the LifeinVictoria forum and found the people on there really friendly and helpful and many of them are out in the South Eastern Suburbs and are keen to make new friends etc. I guess what you really need to consider also is how far you want to be from workplace or coast etc. Good Luck x

Hi Jo I moved out almost 9 weeks ago - my husband has been over since May and I stayed at home with our 3 children (15, 12 & 3) to let them finish the school year and sort out the house et. My little un is the exact same when it comes to getting rid of things (one car boot sale I think we ended up giving up and putting all the toys back in the car). As i was on my own and dealing with the packers I just knew it wouldn't work having him around. I gave him his Trunky and let him pick things to go on the airplane with (I kept a few other little things back also to surprise him with) - what I also did was arrange that he wasn't there at all by putting him in 2 full days at nursery for when the Packers were going to be in the house - cost a fortune but meant less heartbreak or tantrums I feel. Depending on how long they have quoted it may only be 1 day and its all over but for us when he got home at the end of the first day all of his and 90% of the other furniture was all wrapped up in the removal packaging and he thought it was fab and seemed to start understanding the process a little bit then and guess playing around the boxes etc was like an adventure. He was a little stunned the 2nd day when it was all gone but I do believe that had he been there to see the things being dismantled and loaded and driven away he would have had an absolute paddy! A few other things we also did was to show him photos on the internet of the big shipping containers and ships and when we were out in the car we looked out for transporters with containers on them and played at guessing where they were going or contained etc and I think that got him a little bit more into it all. We are hopefully moving to Berwick area in next 4 weeks from Glen Waverley, we attended a Meet-Up there organised via the sister site of here and it was great to meet other people in similar situations and circumstances, plus most of the people were young families so the kids got a lot from it also. A few of us are planning more get togethers etc that you would be more than welcome to come along to. Keep in touch - you wouldn't believe how nice it is just to have a friendly face to put the world to right after you have been here a few weeks. L x

Yeah my husband came over in May as his sponsor needed him ASAP and me and kids followed in July. My youngest is 4 on 30th and one of reasons GW isn't going to be any good or us is the lack of kinder places for him even next year. I really like Melbourne (weathers just like Glasgow so far so can't complain too much) - spent a month in Sydney last year as husband had a 9 month contract there but me and kids only went for holiday - Melbourne is much more family friendly and liveable I think. Do you ever go onto the Life in Victoria site - lots of people over Berwick?

Hi Lovers We aren't in Berwick YET (found 3 houses today that I liked though so fingers crossed will be in 3/4 weeks) Currently in Glen Waverley which just isn't right for us, been in Melbourne for 8 weeks. Was at a meet over Wilsons Park today and quite a few Brit families turned up - quite a few of them were talking about football teams etc so I reckon there is a right little team in the making lol!

Writing all these suggestions down - hoping to be in Berwick in next 4-8 weeks once we've got out of our rental in Glen Waverley (although wont be able to afford take-away after that)!!! Off-topic - know quite a few Brits who are moving/just moved to Berwick area, all with kids. I've got a little boy aged 4 (plus 2 teenage girls), one family has boys 4 + 8 , another has a boy of 7 - maybe we should set up our own little football club!

Hi Gemstone Ive been in Melbourne 8 weeks now - what you have achieved so far is fab! If you are free tomorrow then Ive oganised a meet up tomorrow at Wilsons Botanical Park in Berwick. Maybe you could come along and say hi and tie it in with maybe looking at some properties and the area out that way. You can find all the details at http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/victoria/164841-life-victoria-east-south-east-melbourne-meet-up-sat-13th-oct.html Again well done - getting jobs so fast is great and makes you even more employable in the long run. L x

One thing I should have warned you all about is that no matter when it is, if I organise something you can guarantee it will be P'ing down! Must be the Scottish jinx :-s On another note - not sure why I used different names for this and Live in Victoria forum - blonde day perchance???!!

Hey guys There will be a few people meeting up this Saturday at Wilsons Botanical Park, Berwick. Most of us will be people new to the area, looking to meet friends etc Here is my post from the sister site Life In Victoria (link at the bottom to direct you to that webpage) ------------------------------ Saturday 13th October. Is everyone happy with Wilson Botanic Park? Here is link for the "regulations" of the park and im sure link will take you to directions etc. http://www.casey.vic.gov.au/wilsonbo....asp?Item=3068 Ive had a look at the map and Im thinking maybe Area 16 would be best for us all to meet - guessing there will be seating and its near toilets etc if need be. So I guess if I say 12noon does that suit everyone? Ill probably bring along a picnic to keep the rugrats occupied and quiet lol. Map of Park - http://www.casey.vic.gov.au/wilsonbo....asp?Item=4836 ------------------------------ Sorry I didnt post it on here earlier but didnt even think of it. So why not come along and join us if you are free on Saturday afternoon. L x