mummyslatts

Please help ... We have been living in Australia for 4 years and now have permanent residency - we have a property in the UK which we rent out. I have recently realised that the buildings insurance has lapsed. On top of this, we intend to sell the UK property, so will be serving notice to get the tenants out before we put it on the market. So it will be empty for a period of time - bigger risk. I have phoned a number of popular insurers in the UK and they are all saying the same thing - I cannot get buildings insurance on the UK property because I am not a permanent resident in the UK and I need to be living in the UK to insure the home I own!! Crazy!! Has anyone come across this before? Any ideas on insurance providers who can help with this kind of dilemma. Many thanks, this whole uninsured thing is making me have kittens!!! Slatts

Hi All, I've done a bit of research on this site into shipping costs and most posts (although not sure how old they might be) have been saying you are looking at about £2.5 - 3.5 k for shipping and insurance. I've just had Pickfords and a company called Expect Move round. They've both estimated we have between 570 - 640 cubic feet of goods to ship and hence we are porbably looking at a shared container. Neither have provided quotes yet but when I pushed them for a ballpark and said my research was leading me to expect somewhere between 2.5 - 3.5 k, they both balked a bit and said they thought that was a bit low. Can anyone advise. I'm wondering if because they are off our corporate movers list, they think we might have a never ending budget (we wish) and whether perhaps, declaring it is a corporate relocation (for a secondment) results in higher price quotes?? (we are moving London to Brisbane btw). Anyone have any thoughts/ experience or am I just being overly cynical? Also if anyone has any indication on costs for half a container I'd be really interested to know. Many thanks Andrea x

Thank you all so much for the advice - i'm feeling a lot less anxious now! Lots of love to all you wonderful mummies xx

Wow such hugely helpful advice from all of you, thank you so much and keep posting! Your replies have made me feel both very positive and excited x x x

Hi, We are going to be moving to Brisbane for a two year secondment in May. I will be 7 months pregnant when we move (are we mad?!) and am trying to find out what we will need to do to have the baby in Australia. I'm not sure yet what visa we'll be on but I think I will be on my partners 475 (2 year work permit?), I'll be on maternity leave at the time of moving. We understand from the company that unlike in the UK, private health insurance is not included as a benefit with the job. We understand that there is Medicare - would this cover having a baby? How do we register? Also, what is the provision like? I have some Australian friends here who say they all have private health care in Australia and wouldn't have a baby under Medicare (surely it can't be worse than NHS maternity provision?), any idea what the costs of private health care, or the cost of having a baby in the private system would be? Also, how would I register in the health care system on arrival. Very anxious about stepping into such unknown territory so close to a due date (with a toddler in tow already) Any advice very warmly welcomed! Thanks Andrea

Hi, My husband and I are looking at taking a two year secondment to Brisbane in May 2012. We have a toddler who will be 17 months old by then and we also have a new baby on the way (will be born in Brisbane in August!). Can anyone give any advice on good central places to live? Our requirements are as follows; - central location, walk or public transport to CBD, commute <45 mins (prefer not to drive to work) - safe, friendly neighborhood within walking distance of cafes/ shops etc - proximity to parks etc and facilities for young children (e.g. playgroups, mummy and baby groups etc) We are looking at a budget of around $700 - $750 per week for a 3 bedroom house with private garden. If we could get a fourth bedroom and a pool for that, that would be a massive bonus but we are not really expecting that on our budget. Also - I have read that most rental properties in Brisbane are let unfurnished - can anyone confirm if that is the case? Any advice or insight much appreciated - I'm up for the move but love our house and location here (Balham, London) and am nervous we won't find anywhere nice or suitable to live as I hear the costs are very high! Many thanks Andrea