Marisawright

Thanks for the blue rinse alert - that could've been a close call! LOL.

 

I'm still after a village atmosphere, but one that feels like history in a heritage sense more than a 70s sense. I get the 70s vibe from the pics I've been able to find of Oakley, but of course very difficult to tell simply from photos. Woollahra looks like it has the makings of a village feel in terms of its architecture, and really the butcher, baker and candlestick maker are nice extras that I'm not too fussed about, though being able to choose the thickness of lamb chops wouldn't be a bad thing Seriously though, the only reason for looking at Leichhardt and others are because of their proximity to the CBD and somewhat of a leafy existence - and Centennial Park isn't far either.

 

 

I recommended Oatley, not Oakley! Huge difference, but it sounds like you're determined to be very close to the CBD.

I'm not sure what you mean by a village atmosphere now. I'd pictured it as everyone-knows-everybody-else, friendly shopkeepers, sense of community, tranquil setting - which is something you don't get in the inner suburbs of Sydney.

I honestly don't think you can get a "feel" for anywhere from photos. I lived in Paddington and Edgecliff for several years and while I like Woollahra, I would never call it a village - unless you think places like Chelsea or Knightsbridge have a village feel. Lots of inner city suburbs have exactly the same architecture and leafy streets shown in those photos, that's typical old Sydney.

One thing to consider is that you can't let your cats out at night in Australia, so if you feel your cats would be unhappy with that, you might need to consider rehoming them.

Some people do put the cat out at night here, but that's only because they're either uninformed or irresponsible! Most Australian native animals are nocturnal, and there's still a lot of wildlife in the cities, so a cat loose at night can do an enormous amount of damage to the local population.

When we are well and we feel that we have years ahead of us (and think we're invincible) we think we have all the time in the world to do certain things. It's like we hold a certain amount of cards which have our dreams, values, beliefs etc written on them and we have them in a certain order of priorities. When you have an SEE these cards all get thrown up in the air and we gather them back up, but then they're in a different order. What was once low down on your priorities may now be at the top.

 

If your cards are now in a totally different order there's a reason for it. Don't ignore it, they're in a different order for a reason. It sounds like you've already made your mind up and are going to return home anyway, but I hope this analogy helps you to make sense of things in a different way

 

 

Wonderful post!

After taking a closer look at suburbs, I'm thinking Inner West and Hills are probably the closest match.

 

Thanks for the extra options! Funnily enough, I've been looking at inner west in those three L-areas. Some very nice options on the Lane Cove and Lilyfield side. One or two options in Leichhardt too

Ah, now I'm getting a clearer picture. When you said you wanted village-y and mentioned Camden, I was picturing a tranquil English-village-style place - but it sounds like what you really like isn't a quiet village at all, it's a buzzy, trendy, leafy, upmarket inner-city suburb with cafes, restaurants, a boutique butcher and an artisanal baker!

Woollahra is lovely but it is very ritzy and therefore a bit stuck-up. Also out of your price range of course. Lilyfield, Annandale, parts of Glebe could work. Be aware that parts of Leichhardt and Stanmore are directly under the flight path for Sydney airport - if you find anything affordable in those areas, that's probably why. People who can't afford those suburbs are moving out to Dulwich Hill and Marrickville - grungy but becoming popular with the hipster set.

On the North side, Neutral Bay or Crow's Nest. Could be a challenge on your budget. Not Lane Cove or Greenwich though - if you were my age (60's) I'd say yes, but if you're not ready for the blue-rinse set then I'd say no.

Hi, only once properly about 4 yrs ago when we were exploring potential places to live. Since then I've only passed through. I've never considered bothering to go re-visit as I thought it was a bit bland, tbh. Maybe I missed something?

I seem to recall you're a surfer so I doubt it would work for you - but the whole of Majors Bay Road is one long line of cafes and restaurants, so anyone who's into a cafe lifestyle would like it.

Mozzies love me. I get bitten every time I go to visit Benn without a doubt. The bites can get as big as a grapefruit and often (once calmed) hang around for weeks afterwards. I am moving to Bunbury so can't wait to be eaten to death. I use insect repellent spray, can't remember what brand, and my fiancée always makes sure to have a citronella coil hanging around if outside. I didn't get bitten after that. Defo didn't see or hear them anywhere in the house either, we just made sure the flight screens were closed and that seemed to do the trick.

Have you tried taking vitamin B1? I used to be a mosquito magnet and was really worried when I went to Kakadu because of dengue fever etc. I went to the chemist in Darwin to stock up on repellent and she told me to forget the repellent and take the B1 instead.

And it worked! Didn't get bitten once.

Been here 7 years, they used to have a few reasonable Aussie dramas, like Rush, city homicide etc. Now it is just fluffy stuff like house husbands, winners and losers.

 

Only half decent stuff is some drama on ABC (that gltch thing was a bit naff though - should have been good) and UK series.

...

 

However, if you like non stop reality shows then I guess it is good, as there is nothing else on.

 

.

I'm afraid you'll find British TV has gone much the same way, while you've been gone.

Like you, the British series and drama specials have always been the highlight of my TV viewing in Australia. So I was looking forward to living in the UK and seeing even more of that kind of programming.

But guess what? There is no "more". ALL the good stuff is bought by the Australian stations and shown in Oz. The rest of British TV is just as cr@p as Australian TV. It's been over-run by the same reality shows - selling property, buying property, renovating property, building property, beauty makeovers, weight loss, embarrassing bodies, buying and selling antiques, cops or customs or airport documentaries. In fact, most of those reality shows were invented in the UK and Australia has just copied them, I think! The other reality genre is the benefits cheat - there are several shows on that topic.

Apart from that, British TV is full of repeats of old series - which are excellent, and I'm enjoying some of them, but they are repeats (some of them several years old), not new shows, and they were all shown in Australia too.

Will check out the area search on Domain, didn't know that was possible - thanks!

 

How about areas like Annandale (http://www.domain.com.au/for-rent/112-trafalgar-st-annandale-nsw-2038-9996617?sp=9)

or Lilyfield (http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-lilyfield-405154559#). Are these decent suburbs?

Yes they are, trendy hipster areas. There are lots of cute little terraced houses too, which might suit you - but do be careful, as they are often postage-stamp size and if they're cheap, they're probably run down! The nice renovated ones would be out of your price bracket, as they're selling for $1 million now and rents have gone up accordingly. You can get a similar feel in Dulwich Hill (which is on the tram line) for a lower budget.

I do think you need to manage your expectations regarding the commute. Most Sydneysiders would be absolutely delighted to have a 45 minute commute to work. People do live closer in, but like London, they manage it by living in shoebox flats and townhouses or dinky terrace houses which cost a fortune - or they bought a long time ago when property in those areas was still affordable (I wish I had!). That's not an option for you with two dogs.

I think Camden is quite quaint. Concord is rather dull, it's on the water but I don't rate it as a particularly nice part of the harbour. !

Have you ever walked down Majors Bay Road? That's the centre of Concord.

I'm currently living in Southampton and notice how the city itself is fairly small, and most people live in places like Bursledon, Netley, Hamble, etc - which were villages once, but have all been swallowed up by So'ton. As a result, they still retain their village-y feel.

You don't get that in Sydney until you get a long, long way out of town. Most suburbs were built as suburbs, they were not villages that got swallowed up - so they look and feel like suburbs. No village pond, no town square, and of course no historic architecture since most buildings are less than 100 years old! Many suburbs will have no pub and few local shops (killed off because everyone shops at Westfields these days). Think of suburbs in London - more like that.

Having said that, I'd nominate Oatley as the most village-y Sydney suburb I've ever seen. Before meeting my oh, I had lived in trendy inner-city Sydney for 20 years and was very reluctant to move to the burbs, which I saw as uniformly depressing! I was instantly charmed by Oatley's vast village green, clock tower, cafes and shops. There is even a pond with ducks, a river with a picturesque pedestrian bridge leading to a pub high over the water - and a train station to take you to the CBD in 40 minutes. It's also a short train ride to the beach at Cronulla. Your budget should be adequate there, but do avoid areas near the railway line (that's good advice in all Sydney burbs actually - the lines carry goods trains at night which are very noisy).

I had never heard of Melrose Park, and I've lived in Sydney for 30 years. Looking at the map, it's next to Meadowbank and I doubt very much it has a village atmosphere!

Concord is a nice area, its main street is one long line of trendy cafes and restaurants (but no pub!) and there are some pleasant nice river walks. On the downside, there's no train, but if you end up working in Ryde or Macquarie Park, it's an easy commute by car (which is not something you can say very often!). Breakfast Point is not far away and a nice development - but it IS a development, all brand new flats and townhouses, no history!

You'll find plenty of villages in the Blue Mountains but it's a long commute - well over an hour.

Look on domain.com.au and realestate.com.au to get an idea of rentals.

Hmm the plot thickens! We are two names drivers on both policies, I wonder if it is the non UK driving licence?

Neither of us has a UK driving licence, both Aussies, we still got our full no claims from Aviva.

12 year Volvo v40 nearly 1500 pound! That's fir me and my husband to drive.

 

i'm trying a few different online ones now and saying UK resident sibpnce birth. I just thought direct line could resurrect an old policy just change the vehicle. I was floored. I live on an island! It's hardly high risk.

Did you try phoning? We got our Aussie no claims recognized by Aviva but we did it by phone

I think it's pretty deliberate. The Australian Government wants to discourage people from visiting Australia and then applying to stay - they want people to apply from their home country, and stay there till they get approved. So I'm afraid yes, it does take longer to apply onshore for a visa.

All female mozzies make the same noise. It's not a "terrible" noise - it's more like a faint whine, but it's persistent and it's annoying. If it suddenly flies past your ear, it's going to be loud enough to wake you up. Plus, of course, you know if you can hear it, you're likely to get bitten, so you can't afford to ignore it.

You can't generalise about a whole city and mozzies. Mozzies breed where there's stagnant water, so if you're near a river with mangroves, for instance, you're more likely to get them than if you're in a high-rise miles from water. But you can have a problem anywhere - we had heaps of them in our Sydney flat, until we tracked the problem down to an old bucket in the rubbish area at the back of the block - it was full of water.

Hi Guys,

 

Thinking about Novated at the moment, and this thread is being quite useful. Regarding the difference you mentioned, it was my understanding that the money you give them is kinda like an account that you use to pay the car related expenses. Hence, at the end of the lease if there is some leftover, it comes back to you (less the taxes)...

Am I wrong?

Firstly there are different kinds of novated leases so check the details of the one you're offered. I had a novated lease and it didn't cover fuel, for instance.

The big advantage of a novated lease is that it comes out of your salary BEFORE tax, so it reduces your taxable salary, and therefore you pay less tax. You have to look at your tax situation and decide whether the tax saved is more than the extra money you spend on leasing.

Personally, I would've been better off NOT having a novated lease (I got it as part of a job offer on joining the company and didn't know any better!). It was nice having a brand new car and not having to worry about servicing etc - but if I hadn't taken the lease, I would've bought a much cheaper second-hand car. Also I had low mileage, and that makes a difference in Australia to how much fringe benefits is payable.

There is nothing illegal about deciding to apply for a visa while in Australia on a visitor visa.

 

There's nothing illegal about DECIDING to apply for a visa while IN Australia on a visitor visa. What IS illegal is getting a tourist visa and entering the country with the INTENTION of overstaying.

Alan, the bottom line is that it's illegal to arrive in Australia on a tourist visa with an intent to settle in the country. So you do need to be conscious of that.

If they arrive with a valid return ticket, as if they're just coming on a short holiday, then it's unlikely anyone will interrogate them. But if they're unlucky and are questioned, there are all kinds of things that could give them away. Will there be anything in their luggage that they wouldn't take on holiday (for instance, when we migrated, we took all our valuable documents in our hand luggage rather than risk losing them - we certainly wouldn't have brought them on a vacation!)?

Well right now that is still up the air.

There are three possible outcomes they could go back to their native country or go and stay with my sister or stay in Australia

So, your parents are trying to stay in Australia illegally and you are asking which passport will make it easier for them to do that. Not sure that is a wise question to ask on a public forum.

The immigration officials will not know they've given up their jobs/home, so that is not an issue. What will make them suspicious is if your parents have only a one-way ticket and can't show sufficient funds for their holiday.

Can anyone please tell me what State pension I get moving back to UK,I am a duel citizen and worked in Uk for 23 years and Australia 25 years

If you leave Australia before you reach pension age, you will get no Australian pension at all, ever. If you wait until you can walk into Centrelink and claim your pension, you will get the pension paid to you in the UK - but it will be paid at "outside Australia" rates (I have no idea how they compare to resident rates, sorry!), AND it will be paid pro rata based on your number of years of residence.

Annoyingly, Centrelink has rearranged its website again and I can't find the section on how many years' residence you need to get the full pension. It used to be 25 years (in which case you'd get the full whack), but it was supposed to go up to 35 years (in which case you'd only get 25/35ths of the pension).

http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/outside-australia-pension-rates-payable

You should be able to get the full UK pension, because you can apply to have your Australian work record before 2001 recognised, which will easily bring you up to the 35 years required.

The annoying thing is that if you stayed in Australia, you'd be able to claim the full Australian pension AND a part UK pension too. Plus your super would be tax free.

honestly don't know where to suggest you try next....

I know you don"t want to consider here, but what has made all the difference to me was (boring though it sounds) was settling somewhere that others retired to, because there were plenty of like minded people there, who moved there because they wanted to and were determined to live life to the full.

Maybe I should give Bournemouth another chance, in that case! I think, because we're in our early sixties, we are still not quite ready to see ourselves in the ranks of the old. Judging by Bournemouth, people in the UK retire later too.

You're on a WHV so you're limited how long you can work with one employer - so no one is going to be willing to take you on and train you up. However I have known plenty of WHV holders get jobs in "white collar" jobs - you don't have to work in bars and restaurants. When you arrive, sign up with a few temp agencies and see what happens.

I love England, want to retire in Europe (Go Marissa) x

Thanks! I am at a low ebb today - just caught a nasty cold so stuck in the house. Our plan right now is to move somewhere else in the UK to give it one more chance - everyone keeps telling us Southampton is the worst place to be so we owe the country another chance. The trouble is, because we don't belong anywhere in particular, it's overwhelming knowing where to start looking.

I don't think my oh would ever be brave enough to move to Austria. German is not an easy language (all that grammar!). He has always been attracted to Italy and because I already speak French and Spanish, Italian wouldn't be a big challenge for me - so at least one of us would be able to handle the bureaucracy needed to get permission to live there.

However that's going to have to wait, I think. The fact that we spent money on setting up a flat and buying a car means we feel bad about just throwing all that away, and if we do go the Italy we'd probably have to take a furnished place.

I'd say, if you've got an easy case then there's no reason to use an agent. The forms are complicated rather than difficult, and agent applications aren't given any special consideration.

BUT if you've got any doubts at all about which category to apply under, whether your qualifications are enough, what visa to apply for - get an agent. Yes, it costs money but we're talking about your future here! Wouldn't it be a tragedy to fail just because you made a small mistake somewhere? There are some good ones on these forums (W Russell, GoMatilda).

He sounds like exactly he guy we need! Thanks Jodi, would be brilliant if you could pass his details on.

It sounds like you've got a dodgy agent. My advice? Get yourself a proper MARA registered agent, forget about trying to get a 457, and persevere with the 189.

Even if you managed to get a 457, you'd just have to go through the whole PR application again in 2 years - so why put yourself through all that again? Be patient, and get it right first time.

 

we have a few bottles of wine and champagne that we have not been able to drink and are quite old. As such I do not want to just bin them or give them away (one was given to me the year I was born for example).

 

So so any idea what I will be charged if I put them in my container?

 

As they are all old bottles of booze I have no receipts and can only guess at the cost but think some of them are quite expensive.

If they are old and valuable, I'd be worried about shipping them at all. When it's shipped professionally, wine is kept at a consistent temperature to stop it spoiling - your container will be going through the tropics and will get stinking hot - you may find the lot is undrinkable by the time it gets there.

Have you thought about putting it in a wine auction? Google "sell wine online UK" and you'll find a few sites that do it.