Alaska

Short sighted though as most put that money straight back into the economy! I am not sure it will really put people off though - maybe short term it might. Like I said they were the rules when I came and there were a lot of us around.

That's how it was when I came on a WHV back many moons ago which wasn't easy when you are a backpacker on a low wage!

We washed ours thoroughly ourselves. We were told that they don't like rust so left one older one behind. Everything got through fine.

DH is from the USA but hadn't lived there for over 10 years. We found out that it was possible that it would be asked for so we went ahead and got the police check and submitted it just so our application wasn't delayed (as it took quite a while to get back).

Sorry to tell you that it took 18 months for all of ours to be sorted out. We were up to date with UK vaccinations and had the Hep B ones here started straight away. (Have you done this by the way?). We had an exemption from the Chicken Pox one as I proved both of mine had had the disease in the UK (this was accepted by the register funnily enough even though apparently they could've insisted on a blood test to confirm according to the GP) The doctors kept faxing things and phoning and being told it was all fine. I kept phoning and was told it would be fine but every time it came back as "not up to date". Eventually I got a wonderful woman on the phone who personally ensured it all went through and came back as "up to date" but it was a long process. I'm not the only one it has happened to either.

I think you have possible hit the nail on the head there - definition of essentials can vary a lot from one person to another. We were on 60% of the income talked about with 2 children on a 457 visa with higher rent, and we were "comfortable" and managed to put a little away at the end of the month. I think it's really a case of cutting it back to the bone for a while and it's amazing what you can save.

Back to the original question - In lots of ways yes. We have a big yard that they can play in all year around. They enjoy doing outdoor sports all year (part of that is me as I hate the cold and wouldn't have traipsed around football grounds all winter). So because of the climate they are probably fitter and healthier in that respect. We do a lot more walking and exploring than we did in the UK. I think a part of that is that you take your own backyard for granted so don't make the most of it. When you move somewhere new, you realise all the places you can go. Of course the flip side is taking them away from family. We didn't have any family local to us, so the every day contact wasn't an issue. However still the monthly contact with grandparents and extended family instead of the once or twice a year (albeit for much longer periods) that we have now

The only thing that I can think of is that a lot of your money has gone on start up costs which eat up so much in the first months - year. We came over on a 457 with 2 kids earning very substantially less than that and paying more rent and managed to do ok once we got past that first 6 months. We still now earn less than you guys but pay a lot more on mortgage repayments, also now have to pay all the rates and water/sewerage and we are still in the black. So it's definitely possible! All I can suggest is shopping at Aldi (this saved us a fortune) and buying in season. This meant really changing the way we were used to eating in the UK. Doing heaps of few activities on the weekends which is very easy around here. Using sites like Groupon/Scoopon if you do fancy a meal out. Shopping around for insurance - for example were quoted $700 for contents insurance from a couple companies but ended up going with Youi for around $250. Checking that you should be charged for water - is your rental water efficient? (ours wasn't but they were charging us for all the water for a while!). It's a case of every little helps!

This is not true in my experience at all (as I say every time you post similar). I am on 2.2 x the wages I was on in the UK which is comparable (actually probably more so as I am starting at the bottom of the ladder, and I left at the top of the UK one). Our conditions are definitely better at the moment than they were when I left the UK where they kept making us redundant and made to reapply for lesser paid positions! I liaise very closely with the teachers, we have meetings about the best way to support the students, we are generally well respected. I do agree that going from teaching to being a TA would probably be quite frustrating so I would be looking at whether you could top up your qualifications as Quoll suggests. I know a few primary teachers who like doing relief work and short contracts and get a good amount of work through that. I previously worked in a primary school and they would call back the same relief teachers again and again so it is important to build up your reputation and reliability.

You can rent them with the car. However we staying in the city and so just got public transport to the apartment. DH went to get the hire car (from in the city) and drove to pick up car seats that we had already bought online/over the phone before we arrived.

Does your contract say "reasonable additional overtime" or something similar? That seems to be the way that they get out of overtime pay regularly.

It sounds like they are worried that you get PR and then leave. I think you need to reassure them that wouldn't be your intention. My DH's company paid for our PR application and all costs involved but if he leaves within 2 years then we have to pay it back. Not sure if it would be possible to have some kind of deal with your employer? PR is priceless.

We have had red backs in the garage and patio. Hadn't ever seen a snake around the suburbs until last weekend. A whip snake in the garden. Sunday there was a snake in the house! Must have come in through the patio doors from the deck (but we have the screen doors shut all the time). It was only a tree snake thankfully but still a surprise.

I think they really understand the importance of a good name and reputation and have done a lot to build that up.

I think this greatly depends on your area. We have a good bulk billing practice in our area and you can always get an appointment the same day if you call in the morning and can even book online. They are also open Saturday and Sunday but appointments do need to be booked a couple days in advance for them. We have the "school bus" and are awaiting free dental appointments for the kids as we speak. The system is confusing. We have found that there are a lot of services that are fully bulk billed if you know where they are. For example if you get a referral from the GP for a scan, you can use it at a lot of different places not just the one on the form. So we would've waited about 10 days for a bulk billed scan but wanted it done asap and so went somewhere else the next day and had to pay about half ourselves. We have had to pay very little in terms of healthcare since we arrived and more has been covered than we expected but do talk to people and find out things work in your local area.

It's just through TRACER which I'm sure your friend would've contacted. It's often a case of getting that first foot through the door which can be tough I imagine.

I can't comment on the visa thing and how that will affect you, but generally there seems to be a decent amount of supply work around. I work in a high school in Brisbane and talk to lots of relief teachers who are getting plenty of work. In QLD we now have an extra year of high school as the Yr 7s just joined (so obviously fewer students in primary), so I would consider this age group.

I find most second hand goods on Gumtree and the like to be very expensive. For example we wanted a decent dining table and chairs when we arrived. All the local ads were 80%+ of the full price. We ended up buying new in the sale as it was cheaper. If you really don't mind things in not so great condition then you should find cheap things. Also there are bargains to be had, and we got a great deal on a fridge, but you have to be a bit lucky. I am not meaning to sound negative but I found the second hand market to be very different to the UK where things depreciate very quickly.

Working as a (Specialist) Teaching Assistant and including Super and working it out per hour actually worked, I get paid 2.2X more $ than I got £

When we came over we just needed the cover until we had registered with Medicare so did a 21 day emigration policy. We found it adequate but there is a word of warning. A friend of ours on a 457 had problems accessing treatment as there are some exclusions. It was something to do with outpatient operations not being covered or something really bizarre even though it was for something 100% necessary. It was extremely fortunate for them as it turned out they had private cover though work. So just be aware that there are some exclusions. I certainly wasn't aware and it wasn't an issue for us fortunately.

That is often largely irrelevant. Depending on the occupation just having a degree is enough. For example my DH had 10 years experience and a diploma but we couldn't apply for a PR visa. If he had had my Sociology Degree and 5 years experience we would've been eligible.

I arrived (back a few years mind) with less than $1000 in Sydney when I was backpacker. Just went out job hunting for anything I could find and was working within days to save up for the travel part.

My absolute top tip is to find a really good recommendation for an agent and do fully managed. We have dealt with some shockers in our time and actually found a really good small business to manage it whilst we were away and they were very proactive about letting us know any problems etc. Also it is worth getting some good recommendations in advance for contractors such as plumbers etc. The agents should have some anyway but good contractors are worth their weight in gold when you are a long way away. I can say this with authority as our rental (we bought to renovate in 2006 just before the market crashed and it went into negative equity) had some really serious problems with damp that took a long time and a lot of money to sort out. It was extremely stressful as you can imagine. Also negotiate with the agents regarding fees - you should be able to get them down a couple of % from their original quote. Regarding tax - you only need to declare the income in Aus if you are on a PR visa. We weren't at the time so didn't need to. Finally it isn't necessary for the faint hearted. We went a while with no problems but when they hit they hit hard and it really was difficult being over here trying to sort it all out. As soon as we got our PR we were lucky to be able to sell them both immediately and it was a massive relief.

We did it for years. We registered for self assessment and did all returns online using tax calc (you can't use the usual HMRC website I seem to remember). We filled in some form when we left so that we did our own taxes and tax wasn't taken out earlier. It means that you can then do all the deductions before you work out tax. Things like all your insurance, interest from mortgage, agents fees etc are all tax deductible. With the allowance we haven't paid any tax on the rentals since we left. We have had some great advice from GM Tax along the way even when doing them ourselves. This year coming though we will use them as it is very complicated as we became PR and sold 2 houses in the UK.

Yes Prep is the first full time year of school (like reception in the UK) and he would be starting in early 2017. My DD is just started Prep. Last year she attended Kindy. It had a 2 year waiting list (luckily I put her name down just after we arrived but a lot of people camped out a week or two before that!). They often do a 5 day fortnight. Depending on the area you might need to get names down early as the good ones have waiting lists. Saying that there are a lot of long day cares that have some kind of Kindy program included in the day. School was very straight forward. Some are enrolment managed meaning you have to live in the catchment area, but as long as you do then you can enrol whenever you like. If you are out of catchment then you would want to get your name down as far in advance as they allow (often around 6-10 months beforehand in our area).