Keira huggins

Hi,

We are a french familly moving to Brisbane. We are wondering if you heard something about the Jindalee State School International program (from EQI). Our 3 kids will not speak English (only few words) so we are wondering if this program is well constructed and if the help to the kids is important.

The cost of this section is very elevated (11000 dollars per kids per year), so it is important to be sure that the management of the kids will be good.

In addition, if you have comments on the classical program Jindalee State School : school friendly, open minded, familly friendly suburb...

Thank you for your comments,

CLAIRE

Hi Claire

My friends son went to this school. He is an English speaking student coming from Ireland which has a very different curriculum to what is taught here and likely to what your children are used to.

Obviously, I cannot comment on what their International Programme is like but I can tell you that my friend was very happy having her son schooled there. It is has a nice student community and if it was necessary to see assistance from teachers in respect of her sons learning, they were very accommodating. It is in a beautiful setting and I know lots of children who attended this school and it is thought to be one of the better junior schools within this catchment area. I think maybe the only other school that does have a better reputation is the Lutheran school in Middle Park but I believe you may have to be part of that denomination to attend, but i cannot be sure.

Around this area, I live only a few km from Jindalee, there are a lot of international students that are brought into the area and integrated into the schools. I am lucky, my son went straight into a great secondary school.

There are numerous junior schools around this area both state and private.

Are you here yet, if so, go and look and take in a lesson or two for yourself with other foreign students before committing.

Thanks and take care

Hi there

I think it depends on the job you will be doing or who the main applicant is and they have to have one?! Anyhow my hubbie did. Cost £150. You can't do it until you've submitted your application though as it is all done electronically and it can only be done at certain places. When you book it they need your visa app reference.

​i had insurance with HSBC through my bank account and that met 457 standards

Hi and welcome!

​

Try gum tree for house shares. I managed to sort my hubbie out in one when he first came over.

If your positive together then you will be fine. You have landed here when it's winter, well it feels like it, give the sunshine time to comeback and you too will get a tan ,lol.

Its a huge step for anyone coming here, even those who are not close to their families. Throw yourself into Aussie life. Brisbane is amazin! You will settle soon.

I

skimmed most of the other comments, but I am sure re a job, if you persevere you will get something. They are not easy to get, even cafe work.

Stick with it, it's worth it!

We used White & Co also. They were tremendous! The packers took 2 days in total and were great. They worked SO hard and were great. We were kept apprised of our goods until handover to Brisbane where the process was taken over by Kent Removals. We could not have been happier all round. If your moving I can highly recommend White and Co and the same goes for Kent's Removals. Fantastic service.

P.S, not one broken item upon delivery in Oz....that says something!

Cleveland is lovely, it has the tiniest beach ever which is right next door to a park and BBQ area. There are a few restaurants by the marina, not a lot but there are some.

Beware of the journey into the CBD, it can take a while.

Try having a look at Bulimba. Very family friendly. There is a huge park and multiple very good restaurants on Oxford St. Not too far into the CBD and the city cat is at the bottom of Oxford St. I used to love going there

Hi my OH is already in Brisbane currently house hunting. He works in the CBD and we would like a family friendly place with good schools with shops restaurants etc. After a lot of searching and no doubt more searching to come I think we have decided to go with Cleveland, it's 25km from Brisbane but you get more for your money still got good schools and there are shops, cafes, restaurants etc although not on the scale of suburbs closer to Brisbane.

 

but after my OH looking at many properties in the various areas mentioned above we just can't get a nice 4 bed house in a rental budget to suit us. So we have started to look further out. I hope you find the area you want. Good luck with the search x

Cleveland is lovely, it has the tiniest beach ever which is right next door to a park and BBQ area. There are a few restaurants by the marina, not a lot but there are some.

Beware of the journey into the CBD, it can take a while.

Small world Keira, i'm in Kelbrook! Although we're heading to Adelaide! But thought I'd say hi

Small world indeed! When are you moving?

My son has just started year 8 there and loves it, although he is a bit bummed he is repeating first year high school again :laugh::laugh::laugh:

 

Wow someone from PIO who is so close !! :biggrin:[/QU

 

Hi i haven't been on here for years!! how long have you been in Brisbane? Where are you from? We are from Manchester...we are going back for a holiday in June... it will be nice to catch up with eveyone!! :biggrin:

Hi there

My son and I came out in October but my husband has been out here since last January and we moved to Westlake in October. I am originally from a town called Barnoldswick, just outside of Burnley! However we moved from Warwickshire.....small place.

I hope the weather holds out for you when you get over the water, it was quite nice last June! It's way too soon for us to be thinking of going back yet even for a holiday...Urgh, fills me with horror lol,,,,,I guess that time will come

Hi welcome to Brisbane...i have been here 4years now and have loved every minute of it!! Kenmore is a bit hiily..you will get use to it.

I am in Middle Park Keira!! my eldest son goes to CHS..Very good school!!! :biggrin:

My son has just started year 8 there and loves it, although he is a bit bummed he is repeating first year high school again :laugh::laugh::laugh:

Wow someone from PIO who is so close !! :biggrin:

We are signing a lease today on a georgeous house on coomera rivers, hope we are doing the right thing!

its took me 5 year to get here and after all that research I swore I would never live on coomera, but coomera rivers looks like a lovely area? I have two children who would go to coomera rivers state school? Any one have kids who go, or is private much better?

Please any advice would be much appreciated as having kittens that I'm making a mistake!

just want a safe quiet area with a lovely school as they went to a tiny school in the Lake District!

Thank you

Sorry I dont know where that it is, however, I am sure you have researched, researched, researched and then researched some more. If you feel it's right for you and your family, then I am sure that it will be. All the very best of luck. I hope it all works out and that you and your family are very happy there

:biggrin:

It absolutely depends on where you want to live. Close to the city in trendy places like west end or Milton you will probs be looking at 600-700 pw rent. A little further but still close it drops to 400-500 pw. We rented in Tarragindi for four years, lovely suburb, highly recommend it, leafy, good schools and ten mins to city, also good bus services from holland park busway.

Shame we couldn't afford to buy there tho so have moved out more towards ipswich, 45 mins drive to work but very cheap housing.

Good luck

I agree completely. We are in Westlake. 15 mins to Toowong, 5 mins more for the CBD. There are good schools around where we live so housing is of a premium, however, $600 should get you a decent size house. No guarantee on pool (if you want that). The closer to the city, short commutes and lots of amenities ie Bulimba....the rent is higher, however the area is lovely. It really does depend on what you want/need to be happy here

We have finally been allocated a Mediation Officer as things went from bad to worse since I last posted (believe it or not!) This started this afternoon. We have been given a bit of breathing space now. We have someone who controls the situation, the conversation and make sure that all issues are properly discussed and there is a strict agenda, which has been great. Anyone having issues with the owner/agent. RING THE RTA. They are GREAT!

Once I have an outcome, I will let you guys know how it all pans out! Fingers crossed :wub:

Hi,

 

 

Regarding pre-employment medical checks, wether it be in the mining industry or local employers, do they get in touch with your UK GP's or your UK employers for your medical history before taking you on??

 

 

Anyone had any experiences of this happening?, or isn't it the norm.

 

 

thanks

My husband had to have a general medical conducted by a GP who completed a form for the visa. This entailed nothing ominous. Height, weight, blood pressure and a general check up, plus he had to undergo an X-ray. I think this is fairly normal depending on the job that you will be doing when you get out here.

It's very straight forward and I wouldnt worry too much, if asked to do this.

Keira

All

 

Myself and girlfriend (28 & 24) are moving to Brisbane in April and have started clearing out and preparing our move from the UK. We're wondering what are the main things to organise before leaving. Already got a list including changing address details with banks etc and giving notice on council tax, water, electricity etc but is there anything else we should be doing before leaving the UK?

 

Any advice from recent movers would be great!

 

Andrew

Are you bringing house hold goods over with you, then you need to be getting removals quotes in ASAP as they need about a months notice to move you.

Make sure you get copies of your medical records from your doctors and photocopy all important documents and carry them on your person, ie birth certs, drivers licence and references personal and work, as you will need copies of these for rental purposes and if your stuff is in transit for 8 weeks, you will be goosed!

if you know where you will be settling over here, then obtain the addresses of where you get your oz drivers licence as this is a biggie on the I'd front over. Short of your passport it is the next most important Id, which counts towards points on renting applications, you will need over here and if you don't have the Internet up and running at least you have addresses of where to go to get this done. This will also work for your nearest Medicare office, which you will need to register for in person.

Erm, I can't think of anything else, but this is great forum, so shout and someone will answer any questions you have

Good luck

keira

Thanks for the advice Keira. We're now in a house in Kenmore and the children seem happy in their new schools, Kenmore State High and Kenmore South Primary. My hubbies job seems to be going well so its just me now that needs to get out and about to start making friends.:eek:

Hi Ailsa

I am glad you have all arrived safely and everything is going smoothly. It's not an easy process.

I am just down the road at Westlake, so if you fancy a coffee or glass of wine then just get in contact and we can have a natter. It's not easy meeting new people over here. I can get the car most days if needed.

Keira

Hey, thanks for the advice.

 

We never recieved anything from them apart from a letter and a form to fillin if we wanted it for 6 or 12 months. We ticked the box for 6 months and hand delievered it to their offices.

 

We just got a call from the PM in charge of our house saying the owner of the house was concerned that plants were dying around the house. We checked old photos we took of the house/garden when we moved in and we only noticed 3 grass plants that have died out of about 30 in total.

 

This is the only complaint we ever had as the house very clean etc.

 

We're just confused why they are not giving us a lease for 6 months, unless the owner is planning on selling it maybe?

Get in contact with the RTA, Residency Tenancy Association. They give free advice and tell you your rights as tenants. There is a lot of information on there also. Good luck!

In our last rental our landlord decided he wanted to sell the house while we were in it...he offered us a rent free period if we agreed to leave (5 months in to a 12 month lease). Cheeky perhaps, but is there any scope for asking for a rent reduction/waiver to go quietly??

No there isnt unfortunately. We have asked for a rent deduction, it was declined. They have now issued a Notice to Move. The agent has provided us with a form stating that the property is to be sold, however this appears not to be the case. The house has been re-advertised for rental at an increased amount. Hence we need in writing from the agent/owner a Mutual Agreement to End Tenancy which stipulates that we will not be held responsible for re-advertisement (which has already been done) or for loss of rent from when we move out to when a new tenant can move in. It is my understanding, and I could be wrong and am awaiting further contact from the TAAS, that they are not supposed to put a rent increase on the property as it may make it more difficult to rent because of the price.

It would appear that the agent already has someone coming to look at the property this Saturday. My husband spoke with the agent on Friday and she did state then that she did have someone in mind to move in but couldnt move until May, so hence, if we are out mid March, we dont want to be held responsible for rent until May or when ever someone moves in. I can tell you now, I wouldn't pay the increased amount when there are other properties out there of a better condition however there is a lack of properties in this area, so who knows.:eek:

I agree, I think you need professional advice from someone with a thorough knowledge of QLD tenancy law at this stage

 

Good luck. I still think she's in a weak position but it's out of my comfort zone now

Hi guys

I have taken advice. I am currently in contact with the Tenancy Advice and Advocacy Service, who for anyone else who should be unlucky enough to deal with similar issues, have been great.

I have just taken receipt of a letter from our Agent who has given us a Notice to Vacate. However, this comes with issues as until she writes in letter form that we will not be held for re advertisement of the property, loss of rent if no tenant moves into the property immediately or with holding our rent, then we cannot accept.

The letter has included a Form 12, Notice to Leave. A form 10, Notice of Lessor's Intention to Sell the premises and a Form 9, an entry notice. This will be on Saturday 23/2/13 at 1000 and the reasoning behind this is to show the premises to a prospective purchaser or tenant (24 hours notice) Clever huh?

I have to get back in contact with the TAAS and inform them of these notices to find out what are next steps are going to be. Regardless, it would appear that there is light at the end of the tunnel and we may escape this property and the agent.

Have to tootle off for now, as the owner and the insurance company are coming to visit the house to inspect damage. Deep joy

Hi guys

Update to date and issues over the weekend.

Over the weekend we had an emergency plumber/roofer out to the property as he had been instructed to as the issues we had reported weeks ago, were now deemed emergent. He made contact with us Friday evening 2000hrs. We told him then, that the issues had been reported weeks ago. He came out Saturday am at approx 0730 and made fixes to a number of things. Some will be fixed permanently others are a "band aid" fix.

At some point on Saturday morning, I was out, 4 members of the SES arrived at our property and stated that they had also been called out to make emergent repairs. My husband advised them at this stage, that we didn't have any water in the property but showed them the areas of damage that we have reported. Water marks in multiple rooms. Mould and nails protruding from the roof. They were not best impressed at having been called out and stated that they would not be putting up tarpaulin as requested by the owner/agent. Slightly bemused by them coming out. Being new to Australia, my husband and I thought, that the SES were called out in Emergency situations when there is storm, flooding or fire in an attempt to help people who are struggling and are in a much more needy situation that we find ourselves in.

Long and short, we receive an email from the agent, that is factually incorrect about what was said to the SES personnel and about works that are needed now and in the future.

This morning we have received an email from the agent.

Thanks for email, You have issued notice to remedy breach which means if repairs are not done by 22/2/13 you can move out, I would suggest you look for alternative accommodation as these repairs will not be done by the due date on the remedy, emergency services have told me lots of repairs are still waiting upon insurance.

If you do not leave by 8/3/13 the RTA procedure will be followed and I will get a warrant of possession from ******* ********* Police to evict you from the property.

Emergency repairs no notice is required but you were notified to you by way of email as a curtsey and I have copeis of all emails for access

I look forward to your notice to leave on 22/2/13

There was an email sent to my email address early on Saturday morning. This was not picked up until Sunday afternoon so in effect, she did actually notify us of the intention to have SES attend. I was not at the property when these people arrived. I had been out all morning with the dog at a dog training class.

So my question is folks, We have submitted a Form 16 with the RTA which is normally addressed within 2 weeks and then a they come to a finding from there. We would love nothing more to leave this house and move on from this agent. However, if we submit a form 13, an intention of Notice to Leave, then under those guide lines, we are held responsible for the re advertisement of the property and also for rent if the house does not have tenants in when we leave.

There was actually a very good selection of furniture there and of good quality although the rush to purchase items was worse than a next sale at Christmas. For anyone living in Brisbane, it is definitely worth a look,.get there for when they open and go armed with cash.

I find it irritating that people make generalisations, when we all know that there are idiots at large all over the world.

 

To the OP: I'm wondering whether she has now grasped that you have grounds for complaint, and if that is the reason why she has started issuing the correct paperwork. Even if some of the information on other forms is incorrect. I'd seek some advice from someone who knows about housing (e.g. RTA) before contacting her about forms. Sometimes having someone submit information that is incorrect can help the other party's case (I know nothing about renting so I don't even know what the forms are for).

 

I agree that written communication is the only way henceforth, and that you should make sure you have a copy of every bit of correspondence. As for telephone conversations, if you can remember dates, times and the content of verbal communication, you could document it (but only if you can remember what was said). Ideally, the notes are made at the time, but in any event any evidence you have that ties in with your side of things is relevant. It's better to have a massive dossier of info that you never refer to than wish you'd kept relevant letters, etc at the time.

 

I wish you the very best of luck.

 

S

I have absolutely no idea what is going on with this woman. We have always informed her if any works have been required. We have been polite and respectful. Most and I would say, that 90% of our conversations have been by way of email, so we have most of the correspondence going back to before we moved in.

She seems to have lost site of the fact that we are not opposing works. We both understand that the house needs work. Most if not all of the issues we have had which we were aware of prior to moving in, have been rectified but that in itself was not easy. Our frustration has always lain with the lack of communication. Dead lines being passed and more workmen in the house than you can shake a stick at, which has been an almost constant disruption. I have made myself available for every appointment without argument.

Prior to me picking up the phone to HER calling ME I had not spoke to her about the work being carried out. We had previously emailed her to let her know our frustration of all the work. She has proven herself to be a liar both on email, forms and phone calls, also not to be a trust worthy agent. I approached her this week as she was visiting our neighbouring property which is also up for let and that she manages. She asked me to come inside the property to show me the poor cleaning work, etc, and did nothing but mad mouth the previous tenants and the owner of the property. This has nothing to do with our house but she seemed hell bent on telling me just how poor land lords are when it comes to maintenance! I have to say, in fairness to our landlady, that she has always acted on reports of works required, although it is apparent that there is a huge breakdown of communication between the owner and agent when it comes to advising of the outcome.

The RTA have advised us to make contact with the Anti Discrimination Commission in regards to her comments about us as a family and our origins and her sheer lack of professionalism and also to obtain legal advice from the Tenant Advisory and Advocacy Service in respect of her legal threats.

It seems crazy that it has come to this.

She now seems to be doing a lot of back covering. i.e....SES, Emergent works..It;s a shame that she didnt have an emergency plumber come out and fix the water that was running down our garage wall and covering the floor....What she is doing is such an exaggerated response. To waste the time of people who in fairness have people who are dealing with real emergencies and shouldnt have to waste their times with petty dealings such as this.

I am totally beyond words when it comes to the experiences of dealing with this woman.

We have contacted the RTA when things broke down and their advice has been very useful. It was them who told us that we should have been offered a rent reduction due to ongoing works. They also told us that this would likely be declined and we were to put the results of this on our Form 16, the request was declined and our form has been lodged.

We have had a letter this morning from our agent in response to our form 11. She has some points correct and others incorrect. We are unsure if we should scan this and reply to her or not?

This morning we had a tradie out who had been contacted last night to complete emergent works at the property. It was explained to him last that the issue was not emergent but please come around if he wished as we didnt want to be in breach of our contract. He came around this morning and has fixed some issues which are maintenance issues.

We also had a visit from the SES!!!!! Who came to put a tarpoline on the roof as they were contacted by the agent and told to come to the house as it was an emergency!

We have the owner and the insurance company coming out on Monday. Today we have been issued with a Entry Notice (form 9) re the impending visit. This is the first form ever given. Round and round we go

Hi, and thanks for the responses guys.

We kept all emails professional. Things only became emotive when she telephoned me yesterday. She was rude, over talked, threatened to sue us etc. It was when she threatened my husband, that I admit, I lost the plot, raised my voice and shouted back not to make threats. I never swore or made threats back.

We sent an email to her asking to outline what she meant by the threats, suing, name calling, etc. She has not responded to this.

Unfortunately for us, she is a one woman band. We cannot report to her boss. We have followed RTA advice to the letter. We would love to move out, let the owner fix all of the issues with no disruption to anyone and then new tenants can come in and live happily ever after. We just dont want or need this kind of drama.

Hi there guys...

This story is long so please bare with me, but I am in desperate need of guidance here.

The long and short is that we moved into our property on the 21st of December. When we moved there was some storm damage from the cyclone in November, which we were told was due to be fixed by the insurance company. The damage consisted of a destroyed patio roof, nails protruding from some of the interior ceilings. We were advised that this was all in hand. We were given a time frame for the patio roof of mid to late January due to the building business closing down for weeks over the christmas period.

The pool, I was informed when I initially visited the property, was in a poor condition, again due to storm damage. The creepy crawlie wasnt working. We were informed by email 2 weeks before entering the property that this would be rectified prior to our move in date of the 21st.

The 21st came and went. We entered the property, with the letting agent completing the entry report, the pool was in exactly the same condition. It was unusable. She did however, inform me that people from an instructed pool company were due to come the next day to clean the pool and fix any issues that there were.

A man did attend. He did a very quick clean of the pool and left after giving us a short instruction on how to up keep the pool. The creapy crawlie still wasnt working. Long and short of this, it took 3 weeks and 2 companies and a new pump for this to be rectified. This is where our frustration started.

My husband had emailed the letting agent regularly in respect of the damaged patio roof, as it was deteriorating. There were large amounts of it hanging down and our outside furniture was taking a beating. We were informed that it was down to the insurance to fix and it would be done by the end of Jan. February arrived still no fix, until a man appeared to take measurements of the materials needed and stated that it would be fixed by the end of the next week.

This needless to say, didnt happen. The materials were dropped off and it was a further week before we were awoken at 0700hrs by two tradies who had come to fix the roof. We were not informed they were coming. Our frustration mounts.

I jump back a little here in time, but the reason will be relevant later on.

Origin, our gas provider attempts a routine delivery in December. He notifies me that he is unable to re fill the gas bottles due to the location of an air conditioning unit that was placed close by to the bottles and the reason for doing so was that it was a fire risk. I immediately informed my letting agent. The result of this was a property visit by the letting agent, the land lady, the gent who installed the air conditioning unit and a plumber. This ended in the gas bottles being moved. I contacted Origin to have the bottles filled to be told that this would not happen until I could produce a Certificate of Compliance. A further to call to the agent, a further 2 visits required to rectify the situation.

When the floods hit Queensland, we as were everybody else, were hit by strong winds and powerful rain. I noticed in the master bedroom that the carpet was wet and one of the windows appeared to be leaking. My husband and I then conducted a quick check of the property and noticed that there was water running down the inside of the garage wall and had started to gather on the floor there. Obviously we notified the agent immediately of this, in order for the owner to sort the issue. Here started the mutiple quotes and by multiple, I think we are now up to at least 7 visits from plumbers to roofers. They all vary in what they state is the issue.. they all agree that there is flashing that needs to be replaced. There is wood around the roof, cladding, part of these are cracked, warped and rotten. From standing in the garage and looking through the man hole, you can see day light in atleast 2 places and this is without me even sticking my head up there. I should mention at this point, the patio roof still wasnt fixed.

My husband has at this point, notified the letting agent, that we are far from happy with the property, the service that we are getting from her, or lack of it and that we would like to leave the property as there are obvious issues going on now with the roof and we do not wish to live in a house, paying through the nose for it with a constant stream of tradies coming into quote works and make repairs.

We were at this point offered to end the tenancy, with no fall back re loss of rent or re advertisement costs should we be out in 2 weeks! We hand;t even started to look for another property and advised the agent that 2 weeks notice, simply wasnt good enough.

After the rains, i have noticed water marks in 2 bedrooms that are increasing in size and number. A small amount of mould in the master bedroom has spread and is damaging the paintwork and there are now upwards of, well god knows, how many nail marks in 6 rooms in this house.

Recently we have had a painter come into fix the ceiling room of the master bedroom that had nails protruding and also the laundry, this has covered up a further water mark in the main bedroom.

We have only been in the property for less than 3 months. We have had issue after issue. There is very little in the way of communication from the owner to the agent and vice versa. During our stay at the property we have had in the way of 20 tradespersons visits for one reason or the other. I currently have a carpenter out who was called last night on the advice of the agent to the owner, to come and make safe the property and deemed it an emergent call out. This is not the case, far from it. This has been going on since the recent floods.

This has impacted us massively. We have no faith in our agent. We feel that we are being held into a contract, that we no longer wish to be in, only to pay rent whilst the works are ongoing. We stated that we give plenty of notice, but due to the amount of work that has been carried out to date and the works that are still outstanding, that this is now beyond the pail.

Communication has now broken down completely between ourselves and the agent. I received a very heated telephone call from her, stating that she had been contact with her lawyer and that she had definite grounds to sue for harassment and that she was also going to sue for deformation of character. This is simply not the case. We have not said anything about her lack of ability to anyone, not have we harrassed her. There many emails flowing yesterday between both myself, my husband and her. I wasnt aware of the communication between him and her until almost mid-day. She very loosely made threats that not only is her Lawyer qualified in the properties but also he is qualified in Imigration? What that was supposed to mean, I have no idea. She called me a winging pom (:biggrin:) and also questioned why we as a family moved to Australia. She has made threats to blacklist us with all local tradespeople as she has stated that we have questioned their ability to when completing works,,,,ie, the gas bottles being moved. We merely passed on the information to her from Origin. She has emailed these people stating that we are knocking their work!. She plans to contact my husbands work to complain about him and also contact any other agents to inform them that we are awful tenants.

We have already contacted the RTA when communication broke down. They informed us that we should ask for a rent reduction due to all the works that are needed and this should be back dated to when we moved in and that we should serve the agent a form 11, which we have done as well as completing a form 16.

This has brought me to my knees. I have never experienced anything like this, EVER. I am shocked that this is happening. I dont know what else to do, can she sue me, I mean really?

Any help, will be greatly appreciated.

Hi guys

Being new here and still needing furniture for our new house, I stumbled across this company. MJm Clearance....their prices are astonishing and they seem to have almost any kind of furniture you could think of. I plan on going to have a look this weekend as this sale only happens once a year and it is this weekend. They are found on FB too. I know this is going to help us guys enourmously as even though we brought all of our furniture out with us, we still have empty rooms to fill and EVERYTHING is so expensive over here.

Happy shopping!

p.s,,,they are based just north of Brisbane. Their address is on FB