nicolac34

If you buy under $500k then you wont have to pay stamp duty. I found the brokers always err on the side of caution when advising you how much you'll need for 'fees'. Ours said allow $5k, but we didn't need anywhere near that much. As a guide this is what we paid a year ago for a purchase price of $420k: Settlement Fee $950 Landgate registration transfer $250 Enquiry Fees $309.24 Then you also have to cover the water rates and council rates that may have already been paid by the previous owner, our settlement agent overestimated these as well, but we paid $306 for water and $506 for council rates (you have to pay up until the end of the year which is July). The only other thing we paid for was a pest inspection, this was $187. We also had a bit to put towards LMI, but as you've already stated you won't have this, then you need your deposit (obviously!) So all in we paid $2,508.24 in various fees and costs to settle.

Yes you can, I have a friend who is here on a 457 working as a solicitor. The law firm is supporting her in her studies to be able to be admitted in Australia as well.

If you're not even sure you want PR then I wouldn't do it. I've stayed with a Company I don't like for much longer than I ever would thanks to visa conditions and it can make you so miserable (as I'm sure you know) and cloud every judgement. Thankfully I can see light at the end of the tunnel now (4 months to go....) but if I was looking at 13 months before I could start the application, another 6 months waiting for the application and then another potential 2 years - that's over three and a half years of being miserable for something you don't even know if you want! No way.

Hmmm, Coogee is my usual beach, hope this doesn't mean it's going to be swamped with people using it as it's busy enough anyway!

Equally so much can go wrong with a natural birth. But I guess it also has a lot to do with who you know and the stories you read. Out of my friends and family who have had children so far one was in labour for 40 hours and had such a traumatic birth it led to a blood clot on her brain. She collapsed a couple of days later and had to have an MRI scan - she nearly died and was told because of her labour (pushing for so long) she wouldn't be able to have any more children as she'd be on blood thinning medication for life. Another friend was induced and in labour for 3 days, he got stuck and she had a 3rd degree tear and a forceps delivery. She was sent home the next day and collapsed at home due to all the blood loss, spent the next 4 days in hospital having a blood transfusion and without her baby. She developed severe anxiety once she was back home and wouldn't let anyone near the child. Six months later and she's only just allowing other people to hold him. There are more, and other than my mother (who also can't understand why you'd choose a section) I don't know anyone who has had a positive natural birth. I know they must happen, but the above scares me far more than abdominal surgery. I reckon if my friends had had positive stories to tell me my opinion would be different, but at the end of the day I'm just for people having an informed choice.

Maybe it came across that way, but I didn't mean it to. I guess it's a topic that gets my back up quickly because of the strong feelings surrounding it. There are a large section of people who look down on people who choose a c-section and ram the whole natural is best and you aren't a real mum or don't deserve to have a child if you don't do it the natural way. I've just done quite a bit of reading around the internet on various forums (not necessarily the people who comment on here) and people really do judge other people for their choices when it comes to childbirth and rearing their children. If you want to have your baby naturally that's great and I hope it all works out and you get the birth you want. But equally shouldn't those who want c-sections have the birth they want?

I have private health insurance to give me a choice when the time comes. I think it's a hugely personal choice and people should not be judged if they decide to opt for an elective c-section. At the moment I would have an elective for sure, too much of a risk and too much unknown with a natural birth. Whereas with a c-section although it's abdominal surgery, you know what the risks and what the outcomes are likely to be. I don't know why it's such a badge of honor to do it 'naturally'.

It's still a valid driving licence even though it's not a photo card one is my guess. Well I hope so anyway as my parents are here at the moment and driving our cars around on their old paper licenses! :biggrin:

Fantastic news Boss!! My parents are 3 weeks behind you.... so given we've got Christmas in the way fingers crossed they hear something by the end of January!!

Sorry Simmo missunderstood your post, I thought you were wondering why the link you posted was reported, not the Welford case.

The guy was from Perth.

I think with the sheer volume of people being killed in king-hits or one punch attacks then someone could safely assume that they could be killed.

Most of the time it's not even conflict being resolved - I know in this situation the person was known to the attacker, but there are so many reports of it just being totally random. There is no conflict, it's just someone going around trying to find a victim to attack for no rhyme or reason. In the case of our nephew he was just walking up the stairs and this guy who was stood on the stairs just lashed out and punched him in the head knocking him backwards down the stairs. He didn't know him, he hadn't looked at him 'funny', hadn't bumped into him or whatever other ridiculous reason they come up with, he just felt like causing someone else injury.

Wow LKC that's quite impressive! I haven't changed what I've been doing since coming to Australia, but I am quite bored of it. It's very repetitive from year to year and is quite dull.... but then the idea of changing to do something else is quite scary! I'm only 30 so keep telling myself I have plenty of time to re-train and do something else, and I have looked into doing an Environmental Science Uni course at UWA as I'd love to go and work with the department of environment and conservation - something very different from my office job! But 4 years full-time at university, giving up my very well paid and relatively easy (if very boring) job to just have one salary coming in. It's a lot to ask my husband to support really. And I'd never be able to earn as much as I do now working for the DEC - but then money isn't everything I guess!

Three and a half years for killing someone? Not an accident? Not long enough by far. My husbands nephew is currently in a brain injury center in the UK after suffering a 'one punch attack' in a pub, on some stairs. He fell back down and hit his head. Intensive care for a couple of weeks in a coma and now has quite a severe brain injury. He's 19 years old and has had his life ruined. I do not understand why people do it, I really don't.

Unfortunately not any chance unless you convince some of your siblings to up sticks and move to Australia. You're parents have to pass the balance of family test - that is more children in Australia than anywhere else. So in your case two of the four children would need to be PR in Australia for them to qualify, doesn't matter if you're siblings are step-siblings they are all in the same basket. https://www.immi.gov.au/migrants/family/balance-family.htm

I think you're right, you do romanticize about a place once you've left - I read the above and think - Yes I do miss the busy streets, the hussle and the bussle, places to be people to see.... traffic on the A3/A4 was a pain, but then the flip side is that traffic on the Kwinana is also a right royal pain in a morning. When I lived in Putney I could cycle along the river to work in 20 minutes, here I don't have a choice. The Swimming pools down the A3 were quite nice actually, the Lido at Hampton? Lovely on a (not very often) sunny day. Also the Leisure center in Putney was pretty good for a swimming pool, the one I pay for here at Bibra Lake isn't any better. And at least Putney has a high street, Warnbro doesn't! (a shopping centre doesn't count). But I did leave Putney despite loving it - moved out to Windsor so the husband could go one way on the M4 (Newbury) and I could go the other (Chiswick). Now that was a commute that wasn't much fun on a morning! And again, we loved Windsor - but always had a hankering for something new - hence Australia.

Lolz, maybe not, but we did live by the river and could go for a paddle every now and again! If you are a beach fan then Perth is certainly the place to be, if you're a City fan, not so much.

Ah Putney, lived there for a couple of years and loved it. Certainly no comparison to Perth! But does sound like you miss family and friends more - that unfortunately is difficult to replace.

Maybe so, but I'll always have a British Passport, I'm not looking to give it up.

2 years until we can apply but we will be because: a) after 5 years you have to apply for an RRV and again every 5 years - seems like a pain to me b) if we leave and go elsewhere we always want the option to return without jumping through hoops (again) c) Other half said he'd like to 'be like James Bond' and have two passports :rolleyes:

Happened to us in Dubai. What was more annoying was that hubby went to the shop to buy water for the plane and took a large bottle to the check out - assistant told him he wouldn't be able to take a large bottle on board so should buy two smaller ones. Purchased and walked about 5 meters to the gate and we weren't allowed through with them. Wasn't impressed!

Found it http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/migration-issues/200145-permanent-residency-will-not-granted-until-after-my-baby-born-help.html

There was a post similar to yours on here a week or so ago, maybe do a search? I think it concluded that if you didn't have PR when the baby was born you wouldn't get PPL. If your partner is a citizen or PR they would qualify for PPL, but would mean them being the main carer and you going back to work.

No... why is it illegal there too?