llessur

The process here is 10x better than in the UK - you'll normally get the keys and be in your new home within 4-6 weeks of having an offer accepted or winning an auction. Most houses are listed for sale for around 4 weeks before either an auction is held or offers close. Either way, there will be a series of open home inspections scheduled in the weeks leading up to that date, normally on weekends. You can just turn up, give a few details to the agent and take a look round with everyone else who's turned up. If you're really keen on a house you can also arrange for a building inspection during this time (around $500) but obviously if you don't end up being the winning buyer it's money down the drain. If the house is being sold at auction (I would estimate at least 50% of houses in metropolitan SA are) then this will be your only chance of having an inspection done as you would be unlikely to be able to attach a 'subject to inspection' clause to your bids at an auction. If it's a sale by offers situation as opposed to an auction then there will be a closing date for the offers generally around 4 weeks after listing. You can attach a 'subject to inspection' clause to offers submitted this way but obviously your offer would be less attractive to a seller than a similar offer from a buyer who doesn't attach any clauses. In both cases - houses sold by auctions or offers - sellers can choose to accept a good offer prior to the auction/closing date so you can't always bank on the sale process running the full time period. If you're genuinely interested in a property then it's always worth letting the agent know and asking them to involve you if a seller is considering accepting another early offer, or put an offer in yourself - people can argue that this shows your hand to an agent prior to an auction but at the end of the day the bidders control the selling price of houses sold that way, not the agent. We bought our house through an offers process and submitted our offer with a subject to satisfactory inspection condition - we had the inspection done the next day, signed the paperwork a couple of days later and within another 3-4 weeks moved in. We also bid for two houses at auction prior to buying this one - the first we were really keen on so got an inspection done during the period the property was listed ($500 wasted at the end of the day but would have been well spent if we had won), the second place we were a bit half hearted about so didn't bother. Anecdotally, from what I can tell through knowing various other people who have bought here, only around half bother with an inspection at all. Once your offer has been accepted and any attached conditions been met (e.g. subject to inspection) then it's binding. If you pull out you'll lose the lot. Best to arrange finance with your bank before hunting (i.e. get a loan agreed in principle) so that you know what your budget is and don't have to put in an offer which is subject to finance which again would be unattractive to a seller. Having just seen my parents and some close friends go through the house buying process in the UK I can't for the life of me fathom why it's such a complex system over there with chains, gazumping, gazundering, people pulling out left right and centre, and in some cases months and months elapsing between having an offer accepted and getting the keys to your new place. Even when it does go through everyone in the chain has to move on the same day so you're liable to be sitting around in a moving van for hours waiting for the existing owners to bugger off. It seems like a nightmare in comparison. The only benefit I can see from the UK system is that it makes it easier to buy a new place before taking the leap and selling your existing house. Here, unless you have an offer accepted which is subject to the sale of your existing place (not unheard of, especially in country areas, but as a seller I would find this very unattractive) or you can qualify for an expensive bridging loan (i.e. you'd be paying two mortgages at once) then you have to list and sell your place before hunting for a new one - so probably moving into rented accommodation for a bit. Other than that I'd vote for the Aussie (well, SA - I can't comment on other states but I'm pretty sure it's similar) process any day of the week. Best of luck with the purchase by the way - where are you looking?

I started a new thread as requested. Needs to be approved by a mod.

Thought I'd add a bit of an update to this thread as there's been a few milestones reached with regards to new tall buildings in Adelaide's CBD. Adelaide's tallest building the Adelaidean is now complete and its neighbour, the 118m student accommodation building on North Terrace, is taking shape and starting to look very nice: The redevelopment of the Adelaide Central Market which includes a 124m tower has been approved and construction will commence later this year: Not exactly a tall building at 65m but worth a mention is the new office building and shopping centre to be built on King William Street - this retains the 30s art deco facade of the Sands and McDougall building. Demolition has started now and construction will follow later this year. Finally, the 117m Sofitel Hotel on Currie Street is close to completion and is looking fantastic:

To what end? Why? By whom? We've had pandemics before which resulted in similar social distancing, border closures and quarantining measures - e.g. the Spanish Flu back in the early 1900s. Why this time round does there need to be a conspiracy afoot? What are the elite all doing in the world's empty city centres whilst the proles are all languishing at home watching Netflix? Because of social distancing and increased hand/cough/sneeze hygiene.

Things are pretty normal here in SA as rammygirl alluded - with the most noticeable impact for me being the reduced crowds at sports. But at least we still have sports - in fact I'm off to the cricket tonight with 20,000 other people. Offices are still open but working from home has become much more commonplace - I'm on a 50/50 office/home split which is a nice arrangement that I think will last long after Covid has died down. There's barely a mask in sight, even on public transport or in crowded places - whether that's a good thing or a bad thing is a matter of opinion but at the moment there doesn't seem to be any Covid circulating outside of hotel quarantine so arguably they're not really necessary. Schools, childcare, shopping etc is all largely unaffected - although lots of universities have increased their online teaching presence considerably for the time being, with lectures and tutorials limited. Travel's been impacted obviously. We can't leave the country (well technically we could under certain circumstances but we'd never get back in) so there's always a worry that something will happen back in the UK that I won't be able to be around for. Interstate travel can be a bit patchy as in the couple of situations where Covid has leaked from hotel quarantine the internal borders have been closed whilst the contact tracing teams do their thing. All in all life is very bearable and I feel terrible for all of my friends and family back in the UK who've had to endure months of hardship - much of which seems to have been brought on by utter mismanagement of the situation from the get go. I disagree with the current Australian government on a multitude of issues but in terms of Covid management I'd give them a solid 9/10 - especially considering we've all be learning as we go along. State governments have all stepped up to the mark admirably as well. We continue to be a very lucky country.

Been a while since my last update but when someone opens an axe throwing bar it's probably worth a mention... From:

The second one is the new student accommodation building on the corner of North Terrace and Frome Road - that's already started, the piling's done and they're starting on the ground floor slab now. The first one is proposed for King William Street but that's about as far as it has got - as far as I know. The office that's currently on the site has a for lease sign up so they're obviously not planning construction imminently.

It looks good on cloudy days too

A little while since my last post but both the Adelaidean and Realm have now reached full height and are largely complete externally: (Pictures courtesy of the Sensational Adelaide development forum) The Adelaidean was subject to a increase in height during its construction and now sits at 138m, making it a clear 6m taller than the previous tallest building - Westpac House - as well as Realm. I would certainly argue however that Realm is the prettier of the two! The 115m Luminesque building on Currie Street is slowly taking shape - it is the left hand of the two buildings under construction is this photo and will certainly make an impact on the skyline from this approach into the city:

I'm from Brighton and have been living in Adelaide for 8 years now, I moved over with my then girlfriend (now wife) when I was 32. I love it here - as one of the above posts said it's definitely not Melbourne or Sydney in scale but it's still a very sizable city by UK standards and has a lot going on (especially right now as we're smack bang in the middle of festival season with Adelaide Festival, Fringe, WOMADelaide, V8 supercar racing and all sorts going on in the city centre). In terms of where to live - definitely don't rush into anything. Ideally you'd want a few weeks at least in a rental place fairly close to the city and then use that time to explore different areas on the weekends - there's beachy suburbs to the west, posh and leafy suburbs to the east, koalas galore up in the hills and plenty of pommies down south Different areas can give remarkably different lifestyles so it's well worth getting to grips with the place before you commit to anything. Where you work, how you want to commute/how long you're prepared to commute for and what sort of house you want to live in (i.e. heritage vs modern) will also play a big factor. Schools will be a thing too - many public (i.e. state) schools are zoned but it's not necessarily done by postcodes, a lot will have very specific zoning maps so it's worth checking with a school if you're interested in it. A lot of the time the data is on the school's website, otherwise this website should help: https://www.sa.gov.au/topics/education-and-learning/schools/choosing-a-school/school-zones The state schooling system here is generally very good and at least on par with (and arguably better than) the UK's. As in all cities some schools will have a better reputation than others but that tends to be in line with the area they are located in. There are some rankings on SA schools here: https://bettereducation.com.au but in my opinion, especially with primary schools, blistering academic performance isn't the sole indicator of a good school. Our local primary school sits around the middle of academic performance league tables but has a very good reputation with local families and excels in pastoral care. Private schooling seems to be a bigger thing here than it is in the UK - it's a genuine option for middle income families, although there are some very expensive schools too. It's worth bearing in mind that many of the more affordable private schools are church-affiliated so given Australia's arguably higher levels of religious conservatism than the UK you'd have to weight up the pros and cons depending on your own values. For example, finding out that sex education is often taught as part of religious studies rather than science or biology tends to make me a little wary of this route for my kids. A secular state education sits better with me. I'm not sure about the specifics of nursing recruitment but it's worth mentioning that the new Royal Adelaide Hospital completed in 2017 is probably one of the most advanced hospitals in the world and situated right in the middle of Adelaide's emerging biomedical precinct which in a few years time will include the southern hemisphere's only proton therapy unit. It would most likely be a great place to continue your career There are various other hospitals scattered around the metropolitan area so you should be OK for choice depending on where you end up living. Best of luck with it all - keep us updated!

I wouldn't be too put off by auctions. They're not my preferred method of buying (not that I have bought more than one house) but at least it's all out in the open and you know an agent can't play a game with you but telling you they've had higher offers elsewhere - you know exactly who is offering how much. They can be a bit intimidating but you can always get a proxy to vote on your behalf - at least you know they won't get caught up in the moment and bid more than you have to spend. We bid (and lost) at two auctions before buying our house by private sale, however we went to many more whilst we were house hunting and saw a few houses go for below their estimate - that's less likely to happen at a private sale. Overall the house buying process is much easier here compared to the UK as there are no chains. Most houses in metropolitan areas will be advertised for a four week period culminating in either an auction or close of offers. Once an offer has been accepted you generally have the keys four weeks later. I know people in the UK who have waited 6 months to get the keys after having an offer accepted because of problems with the chain. Seems like a silly system from that perspective. Good luck with the house hunt - it can be stressful but going to opens can be fun and a great way to nose around houses you might otherwise not get to see

Just in case anyone else has the same question - I can confirm that there were no problems at all in me travelling on just an Aussie passport. I passed straight through the smart gates at Gatwick without a hitch.

Some more dicsussion (plus an excellent map ) on this topic here:

There have been some pretty significant fires in South Australia over the last few months - probably the most serious being the one on Kangaroo Island (somewhere in the region of half of the total area of the island has been burnt). However, South Australia has not (yet) been as badly impacted as the east coast - specifically New South Wales. It should be remembered that in Australia the threat of bushfire is real and likely to become more so as the climate warms. That said, it is important to distinguish between metropolitan and rural areas - the risk of bushfire is generally confined to the latter with metropolitan areas not usually at direct risk (although there have been some exceptions in the past where fringe metropolitan areas have been affected - the 2003 Canberra bushfires spring to mind). The further away from rural areas you live, the less likely the threat of fire is. The major impact to the cities such as Sydney and Adelaide has been smoke haze - this has been covered quite extensively on the news overseas. Adelaide has had a couple of days (or partial days) of noticeable smoke and the overall air quality has decreased during the fire season. Again, we have not been impacted anywhere like the extent to which Sydney has - the main impact that I have noticed other than occasional smoke has been a layer of fine black ash on outdoor surfaces, and getting black feet from walking barefoot on our floorboards. In summary, if you're planning to move to metropolitan Adelaide you won't really have much to worry about in terms of bushfires directly impacting you (certainly not to the extent that your house would be threatened). The further away from the main metropolitan mass of Adelaide you move, the higher your risk will be - including to some of the newer suburbs down south which are bounded by open land, or even places to the north like Gawler. If you move to the Hills or a rural area such as McLaren Vale, Barrossa, Clare etc then you should absolutely be prepared for the risk of bushfire - including accepting that you may lose your home (or worse) should the risk ever eventuate. A comprehensive bushfire action plan would be essential in these circumstances.

Welcome to the forum and best of luck with your move to Adelaide! Mot sure about the specifics around rentals in units or apartments. I always thought it would be landlord/building specific but maybe someone more knowledgeable can help on this one. I have good friends in Norwood and they love it - generally anywhere on the immediate eastern side of the city is considered a more upmarket place to live so you won't go wrong. Norwood has a nice centre with a UK-style high street/shopping strip (the Parade). If you could get within walking distance of that you'd appreciate it Re: private health and pregnancy. No - you'll still end up with a sizable out of pocket bill ($1000+) for having a baby in the private system. Plus, you'll also need to take into account any waiting limits before you can claim for certain things - we investigated private health cover when we were thinking of having a baby and I think most policies had a 12 month wait period from signing up before you could access any pregnancy services. We had out baby through the public system and couldn't have been happier with the experience. If you live in Norwood you'll probably end up at the Women's and Children's hospital in North Adelaide - it's the major hospital in SA for all things obstetric and pediatric so you won't go wrong. Side note: if you get classified as having a high-risk pregnancy you'll most likely be giving birth there anyway regardless of what private cover you have. We had a private room, great midwives and it didn't cost us a cent. The public system also covers all pregnancy-related ultrasound scans - and chances are you'll get them at a private hospital/provider anyway (we had all ours done at the private Calvary hospital). All blood tests are free through Medicare, regardless of whether they are pregnancy-related. GP visits you'll pay a small amount for (maybe up to $30 - but are free for kids). My personal view is that you should think carefully and do some research on whether you will truly need private health cover at all - lots of younger people are dropping out of the system as they feel a) it is not value for money and b) their needs are and will be covered by the public system. Because of this, premiums are rising and the value of the policies gets lower. And so the cycle repeats. My understanding of the benefits of private cover are reduced waits for elective surgery (i.e. joint replacements etc), being able to choose your surgeon/doctor/obstetrician etc (being used to the UK system that doesn't bother me at all) and being guaranteed a private hospital room. It's also important to note that even with top tier private cover you'll most likely end up with a bill after any hospital stay as many things just aren't covered (such as dressings etc). Another argument for private insurance is the 'extras' cover you get - such as optical, dental, physio etc. However, the extras cover is a sizable monthly expense payable over your entire lifetime and the odds are that if you funded these things out of your own pocket in full you'd end up spending nowhere near as much money overall as the total insurance premiums anyway. There are also limits for individual and lifetime claims for some things so even with good extras cover don't expect all your dental work to be 'free' for life. I think the sensible thing to do financially is to put aside the monthly cost of health insurance into a savings account and be very disciplined to never touch it. By the time you get older and need elective surgeries there'll be a very sizable pot there to fund any private ops you need - plus if you don't use it your kids will get it when you pop off. My wife and I have no privtae health cover - just ambulance cover for a hundred-odd bucks per year. We've been absolutely fine with the public system for the last 8 years and we're thousands of dollars better off for it. The public system here is great and covers all emergency care, non-elective hospital visits etc. Unless you're particularity precious about being in a private room or who you get as a surgeon or obstetrician etc (which let's face it, we're in a highly-advanced country - they're all going to be just fine), private health cover just seems like a massive scam to me - people think they're getting stuff for free but forget they pay several thousand dollars a year for it up front. I don't have any connection to either of those job areas unfortunately - but I'll ask around and report back if I hear of anyone Very best of luck with everything!

From: https://indaily.com.au/eat-drink-explore/the-forager/2019/11/27/mum-cha-brings-dumplings-to-rundle-street/

Awesome, will get round to it at some point I guess

My passport already expired a few months ago but the online renewal system still says I can do it as a renew rather than a new application. I can't find any info about how long that grace period lasts - anyone know?

Thanks everyone for your replies! I'll probably renew at some point in the not-too-distant future but at the moment, given the last-minute nature of my trip, I could do without the cost and hassle of doing it now. Glad to hear others have had no problems using just their Aussie passport, will be one less thing for me to worry about

True, but it's $200 I'd rather not have to spend for a two week trip at this point

I know this question has been asked before but I'm just trying to see if anyone's had any recent experience of travelling to the UK using only their Australian passport? I now have dual UK/Australian citizenship but my UK passport has expired and given the fact it's soon to be withered down from a 28 nationality passport to a single nationality passport I can't really see the point in renewing in when my Aussie passport will be fine for my travel needs in the future. I'm flying back for a 2 week trip in January with a return ticket - presumably I'll be fine entering as an Aussie tourist on my Aussie passport?

*Can be tough there depending on the industry you want to work in. Healthcare is a pretty major part of the SA economy so you shouldn't have any problems from that perspective - although you might want to do some research on that front to make sure before you commit. There are various engineering firms within Adelaide/SA but obviously it depends on what field your husband works in as to what opportunities exist here. Adelaide is a great place to live - commutes are short, traffic is non-existent by major city standards, we have lovely beaches, life is laid back and happy and the weather is great (we have four distinct seasons unlike the top half of Australia). The trade-off for some of the benefits a smaller city has to offer is a smaller job market accordingly. I wouldn't write Adelaide off on the job front without doing further research specific to your and your husband's careers. Best of luck with your move whatever you decide!

Some positive news on the SA employment situation: From: https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/sa-jobless-rate-drops-from-73-to-63-per-cent-shaking-off-title-of-having-the-nations-highest-unemployment-rate/news-story/b84976153dabb48c07c7ed135bf119eb

Progress shot from last week of Realm (foreground) and the Adelaidean. (Image courtesy of the Sensational Adelaide discussion forum)

I'm not overly familar with Aldinga as a city (which is what it is called here, but it's more like a small town in UK terms) so someone else might want to step in here but in general it's a nice part of the world. Obviously it's quite far south as far as the Adelaide metropolitan area goes so if you had a job in Port Adelaide for example you'd have an hour's drive to get there - maybe a bit more in peak hour. I don't know where the bulk of your work would come from but if it's all over the metropolitan area you might want to consider living more centrally so that you've never got more than half an hour's drive to any job. That said, we've just finished renovating our house and I would say the majority of tradies we had through lived down south so it certainly can be done I guess it's a case of weighing up the beachy lifestyle vs longer commutes.