Daffyduck

Hi,

Can anyone recommend any good nurseries around the Trinity Gardens, Eastern suburbs area?

5 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

I don't think you should bank on that "house prices will drop in 2023" prediction.  A lot of people have watched the market speed away from them while they've waited for the "inevitable correction".  

That said, I seem to recall you were taking a career break and comnig on a temp visa?  if that's the case, then you'll get slugged tens of thousands in foreign buyer surcharge if you buy a home, and the "transition to PR" from a 482 visa is far from guaranteed, so I would be hanging on to your UK property until you've got your PR safely in your pocket. 

Turns out I was mistaken on the visa subclass. My wife would be getting an employer sponsored 186 visa with PR.

My wife and I are getting our visa application sorted out and are trying to figure out what to do with out main residential property and an investment flat.

Originally, we had planned on renting them both out for a couple of years then selling if we're happy in Aus.

Now, we're wondering if it would make more sense to sell before we go (easier than a long distance sale) and sit on the gains until 2023 when Australian house prices are (apparently) going to drop.

Does anyone have any experience of this? Is there a "best" option for reducing tax liability?

5 hours ago, purplealster said:

Where in Australia are you planning on moving to? 

Adelaide 

Hi again all,

I'll apologise in advance as I'm aware I'm asking lots of questions and being a bit of an information leech. Also, this question probably comes up a lot but circumstances change and the information online is extremely variable.

We're progressing our move and my wife has a solid offer and I have a fairly solid one. The salaries are 130-140 & 70-80 respectively. Is this enough to live comfortably? 

Initially I thought it was but I'm reading a lot of stuff online that says you need to be earning 250k+ to live comfortably. Seems a lot to me so thought I'd seek out some first hand opinions.

TIA

12 minutes ago, Lavers said:

You do hear the planes but we have never really found it to be an issue, we are probably just far away from it.

Most of the suburbs just feel the same to me to be honest around here, although as you go north of the city they don't seem to feel as nice to me. So it would just be down to public or private schools to me.

I work just south of Hallett Cove and the commute really doesn't feel to bad as traffic is nothing like the UK.

I even cycle 3 days a week.

Not far off distance wise to the kind of commutes I've been looking at. How long does it normally take?

8 minutes ago, rammygirl said:

What visa will you be coming on?

186, had originally thought about a 190 but some of the job offers include visa sponsorship along with relocation bonus. Though, I know thats a temp 2 year visa which ties you to the employer.

26 minutes ago, Lavers said:

As llessur has said if you go public then you need to look at school catchment zones which are on the South Aus school website. If you go private then you don't need to worry about catchment zones.

Alot of the private schools here are nothing like what private schools are like in the UK.

Private primary schools will set you back about $3000 a school year, then the private high schools will start around $7000 a school year.

We have put both of ours into public schools and they are pretty much what you would expect from a public school in the UK.

We are currently renting in North Plympton, 10min to the city and 10min to the beaches. Plenty of parks and cycle paths for the kids.

 

Wow! I knew it wasn't as expensive but not by that much. Cheapest private school here is around $30,000 a year.

Had been looking at houses in NP but was put off by proximity to the airport, do you find there's much noise?

10 hours ago, Lavers said:

Are you looking at public or private schools for the kids?

Unsure at the moment, it wasn't something we had considered as it's far more expensive here. Though, neither of us are sure about sending the kids to a religious school either.

54 minutes ago, llessur said:

Have a look at Croydon/West Croydon - https://www.pomsinadelaide.com/topic/44226-croydon-and-west-croydon/. A stone's throw from either Prospect or Seaton - maybe a 10 minute drive. I live there so I'm biased btw.

It's in high demand at the moment so prices can head towards the top or just over of your budget depending on the house but there are still some bargains to be had if you look for them.

https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-with-3-bedrooms-in-west+croydon,+sa+5008%3b+croydon,+sa+5008/list-1?source=refinement

For me it ticks a load of boxes - great public transport (two stops from the CBD via train), good cycling infrastructure (it's a 20 minutes cycle into the city without having to use a single road once you reach the shared path at Croydon) and heritage houses on large blocks. There are great cafes and parks as well as easy access to supermarkets and other services. It feels a little more like Europe than some of the outer suburbs do and doesn't make you dependent on your car for absolutely everything.

Neighbouring suburbs along the rail line are also worth a look - Woodville, Kilkenny, Cheltenham etc and also Beverley and Allenby Gardens etc which are just to the south. All have lovely heritage houses on good sized blocks. Mile End and Prospect can be nice and are also just as close to the CBD.

The inner west is still (fairly rapidly) gentrifying so there are some less attractive spots but in general the market seems to be catching up with the fact that there are heritage suburbs right next to the CBD which have been undervalued for years. The defence work at Port Adelaide and the expanding biomedical precinct at the north west of the CBD (and likely soon to extend along Port Road at Thebarton) are likely to accelerate this.

The posher Eastern Suburbs like Unley, Parkside, Norwood etc are probably out of your budget for a family home. Campbelltown, Magill etc might be worth a look and wouldn't be a bad commute to Prospect or Trinity Gardens. Seaton would be a bit further to travel but not too bad. I know less about the east though...

That's really helpful, thanks!

Hello again all,

Slight update on where we are. My wife has had a few formal job offers which would include sponsorship for the visa. However, they are all pretty much around the CBD. One in Seaton, one in Prospect and another in Trinity Gardens. Previously we had wanted to move to the Hallett cove area and all our research has been focussed there, however, the commute from there to any of the options looks pretty bad, Google maps says 40-90 minutes each way.

Can anyone recommend any suburbs closer to the areas where the job offers are? We've two young children so looking for somewhere family friendly with a budget of about $950,000. 

Thanks once again for all your advice everyone. I'm lucky enough to be in a position that my line manager is supportive of a career break. Means we could go and try it for a year or two and still have a job to come back to. So, looks pretty positive so far.

Just the difficult conversation with the grandparents next.....

1 minute ago, Marisawright said:

This is why it's so difficult to make the decision. It's likely there's no one reason for your move.

If you were moving to Sydney or Melbourne, I'd say you'd be no better off.  Unpaid overtime is rife in those cities, too.   However I have noticed that in other states, the attitude seems to be more reasonable.  And in Adelaide, you'll have a reasonable commute, too.  

However you mentioned after-school activities.   It's not true to say they'll be able to get outdoors after school all year round.  For one thing, in mid-winter, the sun sets at 5.30.  If you want to go for a swim or play sport, it'll be in the dark.    Even in summer, the sun sets by 8.30 - we don't have long summer evenings like the UK.  So you may find that by the time you get home from work, there's not much time left for outdoor pursuits in the evening.  Of course, you can still enjoy lingering with a chardonnay on the verandah, but that's you not the kids!

Then there's the heat.  It can get too bloody hot to do anything energetic, and it often doesn't even start cooling down till the sun goes down. One of the big complaints we hear from migrants is that they expect to spend all their time outdoors, but when they get here, they find they're spending most of their time indoors with the air conditioning on full blast.  

The sun sets before 4pm here in midwinter. Glass of wine on the verandah after work sounds lovely!

Just now, Marisawright said:

Could you fix that by moving elsewhere in the uk, within easy reach of grandparents?

Possibly, I've lived in the South previously and the climate was certainly better than it is where I currently am. Though climate is only one of the reasons we've been thinking of the move, some of them are also related to the employment my wife and I are in. The profession my wife is in is notorious for poor working conditions and poor pay (relative to skill set), seems to be the case for the profession across the whole of the UK. We both work in stressful jobs with a lot of unpaid overtime. The post that looks to be on offer for my wife seems to comes with a far better work life balance as well as remuneration. The work life balance difference between the UK and Australia is a big selling point but it may be one of those things that the reality is far different from the sales pitch  

34 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

I doubt that whether or not kids go out to play is the main thing the OP is concerned about...

It's one of the reasons actually. I live in what is probably the wettest, most overcast and one of the coldest parts of the UK. We can go weeks at a time without any sunshine whatsoever. Come the weekend we're often trapped indoors as driving wind and rain isn't great for the kids.

I want them to be able to do after school out door activities all year round.

Hi folks, I had posted back last year that my wife and I were considering the move and got some really helpful advice. Now almost two years down the line and pregnancy and the arrival of our daughter put plans for a move on hold. 

We're now in a position where my wife has a pretty solid offer of employment in Adelaide with sponsorship. The reality seems to have kicked in and now I'm seriously second guessing everything and the thought of taking my children away from their grandparents is causing a lot of anxiety.

Is this normal? I had been so sure that this is what would be the right thing for our family to give our kids a chance at a better life.

Did anyone else have this? How did you overcome it?

Hi,

Had previously posted a while back asking for some advice on skilled migrant visas, the general consensus was to find a good agent.

To that end, can anyone recommend a good agent/agency which offer an initial consultation (not expecting it for free)?

Sorry if this is another naive question but Google throws up all sorts of random results and it's always best to get first hand reviews!

Oh, and merry Christmas!

Just now, Maussie said:

@Daffyduck are you including a potential 20 points from the language test?  If not then definitely worth looking into. 

I hadn't no, thanks for pointing that out.

Definitely seems like speaking with a professional is the right way to go!

Thank you all for your comments, certainly food for thought. 

Certainly seems like moving to Australia is far from easy!

7 minutes ago, Raul Senise said:

If you are referring to my 189 comments, they are based on the Regulations and how Skillselect operates. You will find the reality of this option very different to how it is advertised on many Migration websites touting for business.

In regards to free movement, there has been talk of this for many month since a speech by the Prime Minister was grossly misreported. There has been talk of "movement of people", however this is far from "free movement" between the two countries. Time will tell I suppose, but I would caution basing your whole Australian Immigration plan on it.

 

Sorry, I wasn't particularly clear in my reply, I see from your sig block that you specialise in migration so was genuinely curious as to your opinion, the latter part of your post addressed that, thank you.

18 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Raul is a highly experienced agent so you can trust what he says.  I wish Immigration would update its information, because the 65-point threshold is grossly misleading. It's been many years since anyone got invited with less than 75 points, and in recent times, no one has got invited with less than 90.   

Here's a table from 2019:

https://www.iscah.com/will-get-189-invite-updated-predictions/

....and it's got worse since then.   Unfortunately, as you get older, you lose points, and there's nothing you can do about that. 

Your only hope, as Paul says, is that they seem to be giving priority to medical-related staff, so your wife might stand a chance - but I suspect you'd have to go for an employer-sponsored or provisional visa and that would mean moving now not later, so you stand a chance of transitioning to PR in due course. 

I think you may have missed the boat unfortunately.

That's a shame, we're not 100% sure as we both have established careers at the top of our respective fields so moving to Australia would present a substantial risk, it would be nice to have the option.

Unfortunately here, Brexit poses so many potential problems it's difficult to know what the right course of action is.

5 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

No it isn't,  smoke and mirrors I'm afraid.  There is no way Australia would accept totally free movement, because that would allow thousands of parents and retirees to flood into Australia, and the government has done the numbers - being entitled to Medicare and benefits, they would cost the Australian taxpayer many times more than the money they bring in.  

Even Tony Abbott has been careful to qualify it, talking about free movement "for work".  So there will be conditions and it might work for you - but then again, it might just be for temporary transfers of staff working for UK companies.

Yes, I should have specified that those quoted did specifically say it was for work. Can completely understand why a mass influx of UK retirees wouldn't be appealing to Australia.

Who knows, there may or may not be some degree of free movement post 2021. Regardless, it's not looking like they make it easy, even for people with jobs listed on the skills shortages with qualifications!

3 minutes ago, mt9754 said:

Most political leaders out here seem very keen to limit immigration, numbers have fallen substantially over recent years.  Free  movement is very much against the grain at the moment and “free” means losing control which i’m pretty sure Australia/UK won’t want to do.

Strangely, both UK and Australian delegates are being quoted as saying that movement of people will very much feature in the trade deal likely to come into effect 1st Jan 2021.

6 minutes ago, Raul Senise said:

Being eligible is not enough, as you can only apply if you are invited.

Currently a little over 100 invites are issued per month and priority is given to onshore applicants.

As such a 189 is not guaranteed and you should explore all potential options.

Unlikely to happen. 

 

What makes you think that?

2 minutes ago, paulhand said:

Medical lab scientist may hit a sweet spot at the moment. I’d get some advice and get started ASAP. 

How so? I've been managing my own lab for a few years now but not against going back on the bench for a move.

@VERYSTORMY Further to previous, it's looking like free movement is very much on the cards for a 2021 trade deal, all is not lost!