Undecided on what is best for us

[Paul1Perth]

Hi

 

Anyone else got any views on my budget posted earlier in this thread? Is it right on the line, is it pretty much ok? Is it under by $200-300

 

Is it really worth it? You haven't got a job offer yet have you? You might get one on substantially more, you might not, don't worry yourself over it till you know. To be honest I wouldn't be thinking about how many cars you might need/want when you are here. A car is a luxury to my mind if you think you are going to struggle financially. When we came we had one car for ages, I was out of work for 5 months but still took the youngster to day care to be able to attend interviews and in case I got a job. I wanted to be able to take it as soon as poss. My wife is a nurse so had to go back to working shift work, after going back to Uni in the UK to get off it. I went everywhere on a pushbike for ages, put a childs seat on the back and used to take the youngster to day care and pick him up on the bike. We used to pack some sandwiches at the weekend and I'd whack him (2 year old at the time) in the seat and go off exploring for the day on one of the many bike tracks around Perths rivers. Looking back on it now I really enjoyed it and strangely enough my youngster (he's the eldest of 2 now, 24 years old) says he remembers going. We had great times and I think it's helped our relationship to this day.

 

When the other boy came along it was a few years later and we were a bit better off by then but I still did the bike seat thing and took him for miles. He loved it just as much.

 

If you are really serious about moving and making a go of it there are going to be sacrifices, or perceived ones. Sometimes you think it's a sacrifice and it turns out you actually enjoy it.

 

As for things like fixed line and internet costs you can get bundles where it's all thrown in with phone and internet costs, with unlimited downloads for around $80-100 a month, depending on which service provider you go with.

 

It still makes me laugh though that people would go into detail about how much the internet is going to cost. Work out if you can afford to even get it first, then make a choice, it's not a life or death decision whether you have fast broadband or none at all is it.

 

Holidays hmmmm. We used to miss them in the UK when we got our first house and first youngster. We had been used to going abroad to sunshine every summer when we were young and carefree. The first time we weren't able to do this was when we were newly married and had a mortgage and first youngster. We really felt down as the summer was a typical English one, crap. We aren't ones to get depressed about much at all really but it got us thinking is this as good as it gets. We were both working on good jobs at the time too.

 

Here we can literally go years without having a "holiday" where we feel we have to go away. It's sunny, the beach is a 5 minute walk away, the sea and beaches are fantastic. Everything we used to go away for is on our doorstep and people come here for a holiday. We love being off work and spending time at home as surfboards, paddle boards, surf ski and the surf club and friends are right here. What's the point of spending a lot of money to go to say Bali when we get there and wish I had the surfboard or something. The beaches where we live are better than Bali anyway.

 

The negative posts from Quoll might throw you a bit but she used to live in Canberra. It's the one City I've been to where I've felt it didn't have anything that I wanted out of a move to Aus. It's nowhere near the Ocean, is freezing in winter and had a layout like Milton Keynes. If I had got here and been told to live in Canberra I would have been on the plane back in no time at all.

 

I like Brisbane and could have easily settled there. It's my second favourite City. Good luck, just go for it if you want to do it.:cool:

[Xenon4017]

It still makes me laugh though that people would go into detail about how much the internet is going to cost. Work out if you can afford to even get it first, then make a choice, it's not a life or death decision whether you have fast broadband or none at all is it.

 

 

I agree that it's really a minor detail in the grand scheme of things. But I was prompted to write by a previous poster who assured us that she could get free electricity and a great deal on comms, without being able to back up the claim with hard facts. On this forum there's often a bit too much "she'll be right", without any substance behind it.

 

For most people the decision to move is pretty big. It's natural to want to examine it in a much detail as possible. Not all migrations fail for financial reasons, but some do, so it's wise to get as much info as you can. It's a pity to love it here but be forced to move back because things didn't stack up financially the way you expected. Of course, the income side of the equation is more crucial than expenditure.

[Guest Ptp113]

Is it really worth it? You haven't got a job offer yet have you? You might get one on substantially more, you might not, don't worry yourself over it till you know. To be honest I wouldn't be thinking about how many cars you might need/want when you are here. A car is a luxury to my mind if you think you are going to struggle financially. When we came we had one car for ages, I was out of work for 5 months but still took the youngster to day care to be able to attend interviews and in case I got a job. I wanted to be able to take it as soon as poss. My wife is a nurse so had to go back to working shift work, after going back to Uni in the UK to get off it. I went everywhere on a pushbike for ages, put a childs seat on the back and used to take the youngster to day care and pick him up on the bike. We used to pack some sandwiches at the weekend and I'd whack him (2 year old at the time) in the seat and go off exploring for the day on one of the many bike tracks around Perths rivers. Looking back on it now I really enjoyed it and strangely enough my youngster (he's the eldest of 2 now, 24 years old) says he remembers going. We had great times and I think it's helped our relationship to this day.

 

When the other boy came along it was a few years later and we were a bit better off by then but I still did the bike seat thing and took him for miles. He loved it just as much.

 

If you are really serious about moving and making a go of it there are going to be sacrifices, or perceived ones. Sometimes you think it's a sacrifice and it turns out you actually enjoy it.

 

As for things like fixed line and internet costs you can get bundles where it's all thrown in with phone and internet costs, with unlimited downloads for around $80-100 a month, depending on which service provider you go with.

 

It still makes me laugh though that people would go into detail about how much the internet is going to cost. Work out if you can afford to even get it first, then make a choice, it's not a life or death decision whether you have fast broadband or none at all is it.

 

Holidays hmmmm. We used to miss them in the UK when we got our first house and first youngster. We had been used to going abroad to sunshine every summer when we were young and carefree. The first time we weren't able to do this was when we were newly married and had a mortgage and first youngster. We really felt down as the summer was a typical English one, crap. We aren't ones to get depressed about much at all really but it got us thinking is this as good as it gets. We were both working on good jobs at the time too.

 

Here we can literally go years without having a "holiday" where we feel we have to go away. It's sunny, the beach is a 5 minute walk away, the sea and beaches are fantastic. Everything we used to go away for is on our doorstep and people come here for a holiday. We love being off work and spending time at home as surfboards, paddle boards, surf ski and the surf club and friends are right here. What's the point of spending a lot of money to go to say Bali when we get there and wish I had the surfboard or something. The beaches where we live are better than Bali anyway.

 

The negative posts from Quoll might throw you a bit but she used to live in Canberra. It's the one City I've been to where I've felt it didn't have anything that I wanted out of a move to Aus. It's nowhere near the Ocean, is freezing in winter and had a layout like Milton Keynes. If I had got here and been told to live in Canberra I would have been on the plane back in no time at all.

 

I like Brisbane and could have easily settled there. It's my second favourite City. Good luck, just go for it if you want to do it.:cool:

You obviously only went to the parliamentary triangle as most visitors do of course. Reality is though most of Canberra/ACT is open working cattle/sheep farmland or forest, but I guess you missed that.

[samdom1]

Thanks for the info re costs..I've found it really helpful

[Quoll]

Aw Paul! You don't like Canberra?! It's actually one of the better places to live in Australia but bloody expensive, I grant you!

[RNB31]

Hi,

 

Thanks for all the comments and advice, yes I am guilty of overanalysing this, I need to take a step back and look at it from a distance again. The first thing we need to answer is back to the start of the thread, so we need to decide first of all if a 2nd is what we want if so then the oz plans will be on hold for now, and we can see again down the line. Going to oz now although tight and will be tough at times, I can not say for sure we can have that 2nd one...its a 50/50 depending on jobs, lifestyle and wages and has to be assessed over there not here.

 

Thanks again and I'll update again once we look at all this again from a distance and decide on baby no 2

[Keefo]

Pardon my ignorance here everyone and for being a complete t*t but do you not need to have a landline to have internet in OZ unless it's some sort of dongle.

 

Everybody laughs

[Quoll]

Pardon my ignorance here everyone and for being a complete t*t but do you not need to have a landline to have internet in OZ unless it's some sort of dongle.

 

Everybody laughs

 

Broadband cable - not necessary to have a landline.

[Marisawright]

We have been dreaming of making the move to oz for about 8 years since we came home form travelling, we by no means have the rose tinted glasses on that many seem to have about oz i.e your going to earn mega bucks, have a massive house with pool for peanuts and the one that annoys me the most more family time. Does Australia have more hours in the day than the UK? Does house work not exist, do kids not go to school, you dont need to work 36/37 hrs a week for full time roles, you dont need to commute to work. It cracks me up when I hear both parents on TV shows saying we will both work full time, I just think to myself how, how can you both work full time if you have kids in school...what about for one those 12 weeks school holidays a year, and the fact school hours for young children are about 0845-1445.

We both have good jobs in the UK but not good enough for one of us to work solely as the main bread winner. ...Our workings have allowed my wife to work locally 2 days a week but only in school hrs so 10-12 hrs a week, and we have allowed to 2 days care on school hols so she can work these 2 days a week all the time. That alone should keep us a float plus some money we have from the uk on a monthly income but would mean no money for extras, hols and savings etc so she would need to work another 10 hrs a week during term time to cover this stuff. I have also calculated our entitlement from benefits etc. Most of all she has to find an employer willing to only employ for these hrs at about $25 p/h. We would be looking at Brisbane but our budget for rent really only covers being further out i.e north lakes distance.

Another big factor is that we want a second child but we can not see how this would be possible on the income, I think we would turn into one of the many that return home if we had a second child.

This decision for us is massive, we would need to sell our home and cars, use half our total money to make the move and visa about £32k thats inc buying 2 second hand cars and living for 3 months without work, visas, flights and shipping etc.

We both stay in a nice part of the UK, have a nice house and can move to a nice house after this one we are in, the area is nice with good schools...the move is not for a better life for our child as he will get great education where we are and we will provide the path he needs do what he wants to do in life, and we can have a brother or sister for him, the move is just for a different life with more sun.

However we have waited for this opportunity to come now for sometime and it has arrived, it was a dream for me and my wife we didnt expect it too take 8 years but it has for various reasons, now its not just me and my wife and we have to make the right choice on this one. I dont think in another few years down the line I'd be in a similar role to my occupation as if I stay in the UK I need to move on, so its really now or never, I know you cant say never but its very unlikely

 

Having read all that, I'm struggling to see how moving makes sense. You had a dream, years ago, of moving to "a different life with more sun". The reality now is that by moving, you'll wipe out half your savings, and probably both have to work full-time. That's not much of a dream, is it? Can you really see yourself enjoying your "different life with more sun" when you're struggling to make ends meet? It sounds more like a nightmare to me!

[wattsy1982]

IMHO sunshine alone isnt worth the move. We too had a good life back in the UK like you. We made the move with 2 kids, wasn't easy and we are wobbly most days. I know people will do their own thing at the end of the day and not really listen to advice on here, we were the same. But I would say that unless you are getting away from something at home (UK) and can specifically put your finger on one or more things that you are movin for/away from then dont do it.

 

As others have said here. If it isnt broke, dont fix it.

 

Good luck on what you decide though.

[Xenon4017]

Pardon my ignorance here everyone and for being a complete t*t but do you not need to have a landline to have internet in OZ unless it's some sort of dongle.

 

Everybody laughs

You don't necessarily need a landline, what you need is a phone line. Well, phone account. It could be a mobile phone. Obviously it's really cool if you're traveling around in a camper van or something. But mobile internet is generally slower, more expensive per Mb and more succeptible to disturbance from local conditions. for some places it's the only option, because there are only a finite number of adsl sockets available.

[Paul1Perth]

You obviously only went to the parliamentary triangle as most visitors do of course. Reality is though most of Canberra/ACT is open working cattle/sheep farmland or forest, but I guess you missed that.

 

No mate. Didn't make it that far. It was the first time I'd worn a coat in 15 years and I got up early one morning to go to the parliamentary triangle but it was so cold that I turned around after about 500m and went back to the hotel to have a swim before going to work. I can see all the cattle and sheep farming and forests I want close to Perth.

[Paul1Perth]

Aw Paul! You don't like Canberra?! It's actually one of the better places to live in Australia but bloody expensive, I grant you!

 

Sorry Quoll but Canberra hasn't got one thing that we came to Aus for. I doubt if either me or the wife could have settled there.

[jack13]

My child you should go to Australia. :biggrin:

[Surf N Turf]

When we arrived in Melbourne three years ago I networked fairly ruthlessly at kindergarten with a view to setting up some shared childcare arrangements when the kids reached school the following year. It never made sense to me that all the mums troop up to the school gates every day when we could be taking it in turns, making life easier for ourselves and giving our kids their friends to play with afterschool. My daughter is now in grade 2 and has one afternoon at aftercare each week. I could do away with that too but I want to keep it in her life so that it's not too much of a shock if our circumstances change. I pick her up, with one or two of her friends, two days a week and she goes home with her friends on the other two days a week. One of them even takes her to swimming lessons. This year a neighbour has started taking her to school each morning and in return I bring her daughter home twice a week. I'm self-employed so I take 6 weeks off a year to cover half the school hols and the other half is a blend of her dad, vacation care and friends. Today she's off to the museum with her best mate while we both work. All these arrangements make our lives easier but also enrich her life. She's sociable, confident, independent and has a sense of community.

 

I'm laying this out just to say that you don't need to get too caught up on the need for paid childcare. When you land in a place without family it's good to build up a patchwork of families with kids of similar ages that you can share care with. They can become an extended family of sorts.

 

On another note, my daughter is an only child. We're a very happy trio but I sometimes feel that not everyone who was supposed to got to join our party. If I could roll back the clock I'd give her a sibling. But since I can't, I've packed her life chockfull of friends! It makes all of our lives better.

 

I wish you much happiness with whatever direction you take.

[Quoll]

Sorry Quoll but Canberra hasn't got one thing that we came to Aus for. I doubt if either me or the wife could have settled there.

It's got Australians, won't that do?

[jasepom]

As the saying goes if it ain't broke don't fix it ? Is it broke ??

[Marisawright]

We have been dreaming of making the move to oz for about 8 years since we came home form travelling,

 

I think you'd be wise to read this thread:

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/moving-back-uk/209870-we-love-here-but-too-expensive-settle.html

[thinker78]

That is the dilemma Rupert, the move to oz will not be the dream we once had, it will be getting by and surviving but one the plus I do see more opportunities in Australia but they is more competition of course. its so difficult because its been a dream, we have always want 2 kids, we have always want to move to oz, we have always wanted to be above the water in terms of money and have savings, end of the day you can only spend when you bring home. On this though we cant always get what we want, but if we move to oz I cant see us another another kid.

 

I dont know how we will come to a decision but its nice to hear how others do it, to see if we are missing something

 

Hi there.

 

Other side of the coin; probably about to relocate back to the UK as we would like a 2nd child but it's effing hard going without grandparents to pick up some slack. Australia is very expensive and where as you used to be able to have an ok life on one wage that isn't the case now. If you have PR (not a temp visa) you do get some better childcare reimbursements than the UK DEFINITELY- childcare is the same price roughly but depending on your income you get more rebates. The major australian cities pretty much require 2 incomes to have any decent standards of living ie a bit in the bank for extras ie holidays etc.

 

If you have major grandparent help now and want to know how life is without this, it's pretty hard. when someone is sick, usually one parents has to be off work. And i dont' have to tell you how tough the newborn bit is....plenty do it and hats off! but not sure i can manage without a bit of back up. i did one child here with no help and that was bad enough.

 

For the most part, austraila has pretty good before and after school care, and the same sort of daycares. We have very good, heavily regulated family daycare (childminders) which is affordable and better organised than england.

 

to be honest, when you've got a young family and want more kids, you really need to consider what's going to keep you sane.

 

a lot of young families struggle in the same way they do in the UK- the only difference is the weather. i'm not telling you what to do, just sounds like you have weighed up and it seems best to stay where you are.

 

if you really want to grab the chance, realise that it's going to be fairly hard going- only you know if you can manage it, and how you will fair having another child far away from family.

 

I have put off having another child for the same reason- time is running out a bit as i'll be 37 next year and know deep down the only way i would be able to do it is with my own family around me.

 

down the track, perhaps you will get another chance at migrating- or perhaps life will take you in another direction.

 

good luck- big decisions are very hard.

[thinker78]

Only you will know what's best for your family and I am sure you are figuring your own path from this forum.

 

On the flip, I have been catching up with Ross Kemp's Extreme World and it makes you realise how lucky we are to live in the UK or Australia. It really made me reassess how lucky we were.

 

I'm sure things will work out when they are ready. I cant remember if you said age was a factor at the moment, but perhaps the time is just not right now. Iv had to wait 6 years and have retrained. I could have gone prior to this but I would never have been comfortable or happy. Its been worth the wait.

 

PS I am shocked at your food budget! We always have cupboards full of food and our £65 allows for packed lunches, treats etc. £100 would be pure luxury! Although, I do admit I buy a box of wine per month out of the spends budget on top of this. We give ourselves £55 a week between 5 of us for things like coffee, wine, days out, chocolate. We have had to do this and be strict because when I have access to my bank account I could spend £1k sat at home on the internet in 5 mins lol!

 

Good Luck

 

not being mean to anyone on this thread, but food and consumers goods are where it really hurts here- a $200 a week budget for a family of five is unrealistic-- we are 3 and spend $250 and i'm MEAN MUM- i never let hubby have much meat as it's so expensive, and i bulk cook etc- i am very careful and cannot get my budget below this. just to give you and idea, my 4 year old thinks cherry tomatoes are a complete indulgence as they are so dear. when in the uk on holiday i let her eat a punnet a day as they were about 50p! i haven't bought blueberries in 3 years as we don't have ALDI where i am, and they are around $7 a punnet. and before anyone leaps on me, yes i go to markets and green grocers....it's not true that the 'higher' wages provide for this- we too are on $65,0000 a year- and although i am not working we literally have no money at all left over each week, so much so that i get my parents to send us shoes from england as they are way cheaper and last longer, and i never buy clothes for the adults except in charity shops. depends on lifesstyle, i am not in anyway materialistic but it's wearing a bit thin now with me- 2 major supermarkets have total monopoly. i had a great life when i was a single person working here- but it's hard on one wage now with kidss. just my 2 cents worth.

[Guest]

not being mean to anyone on this thread, but food and consumers goods are where it really hurts here- a $200 a week budget for a family of five is unrealistic-- we are 3 and spend $250 and i'm MEAN MUM- i never let hubby have much meat as it's so expensive, and i bulk cook etc- i am very careful and cannot get my budget below this. just to give you and idea, my 4 year old thinks cherry tomatoes are a complete indulgence as they are so dear. when in the uk on holiday i let her eat a punnet a day as they were about 50p! i haven't bought blueberries in 3 years as we don't have ALDI where i am, and they are around $7 a punnet. and before anyone leaps on me, yes i go to markets and green grocers....it's not true that the 'higher' wages provide for this- we too are on $65,0000 a year- and although i am not working we literally have no money at all left over each week, so much so that i get my parents to send us shoes from england as they are way cheaper and last longer, and i never buy clothes for the adults except in charity shops. depends on lifesstyle, i am not in anyway materialistic but it's wearing a bit thin now with me- 2 major supermarkets have total monopoly. i had a great life when i was a single person working here- but it's hard on one wage now with kidss. just my 2 cents worth.

 

I'm not disagreeing with you but I did boggle when I read you pay $7 a punned for cherry toms. My local Woolies/Coles and grocer has them for about $2.50' $3 max. $7 is harsh. Blueberries in season here were costing me $3-4 a pack. Now they are out if season it's $5-6 a pack so I don't buy them. Before we left the UK last October blueberries in season were costing £2-3 a pack. Out of season it was £3-4 a pack. 250g, not 500g that is.

[Xenon4017]

we are 3 and spend $250 and i'm MEAN MUM- i never let hubby have much meat as it's so expensive, .....2 major supermarkets have total monopoly..

 

My figures are pretty much in line with yours, but I have to wonder how much you think meat should cost? I find it pretty cheap, and the quality is very good. You can get steak for abut 12$/kilo if you look. Mince can be had for 5$ per kilo, and it's actually pretty tasty. How much do you think mince should be?

 

I agree that Aldi is causing a shakeup, but technically two competitors can't have a monopoly. It's either a duopoly or a cartel.

[Johndoe]

My figures are pretty much in line with yours, but I have to wonder how much you think meat should cost? I find it pretty cheap, and the quality is very good. You can get steak for abut 12$/kilo if you look. Mince can be had for 5$ per kilo, and it's actually pretty tasty. How much do you think mince should be?

 

I agree that Aldi is causing a shakeup, but technically two competitors can't have a monopoly. It's either a duopoly or a cartel.

 

Yep. meat is dirt cheap compared to the UK. I never pay more than 9.99 for premium grain fed rump and T Bone, and that's at a major retailer. It's normally about 21.99 at my local IGA but I spoke to the butcher about bulk buy (2 whole rumps at a time) and he has agreed to let me have it at 9.99. I've had that deal for over a year now even though the store has changed hands twice. Just because they're major retailers doesn't mean that you can't strike a deal with the butchery department different to the prices displayed. What I do find strange is the price of belly pork.............dunno what it's like in the UK now but back when we lived there, the butchers couldn't give belly pork away, yet here, it's as dear as steak. I also buy my fishin bulk........7kilo box of hoki for $63 and the same for grenadier and imported flathead

[Guest]

I agree that it's really a minor detail in the grand scheme of things. But I was prompted to write by a previous poster who assured us that she could get free electricity and a great deal on comms, without being able to back up the claim with hard facts. On this forum there's often a bit too much "she'll be right", without any substance behind it.

 

For most people the decision to move is pretty big. It's natural to want to examine it in a much detail as possible. Not all migrations fail for financial reasons, but some do, so it's wise to get as much info as you can. It's a pity to love it here but be forced to move back because things didn't stack up financially the way you expected. Of course, the income side of the equation is more crucial than expenditure.

 

I can assure you, we are locked in to a tarrif of 52c for our solar when we buy the house. Till 2026. This is because we are buying a house where its locked in and won't change. People installing solar today get a far lower tarrif as I understand it and if buying a house with the lower rate will get the lower rate. We did our homework when house hunting and found a few houses with the higher taffif locked in so when we found the house we wanted to buy, it having that high taffif was a plus point I can tell you. Based on our current useage in our current house and the house we are buying we should not see an actual electricity bill for a long while once we move. We also have solar for the hot water in the new house which helps a lot. The current owners have been in the house for a fair number of years and have not paid an actual electricty bill in all that time.

 

As for mobile and broadband, we got a good deal. We shopped around online, hubby made a few phone calls. It wasn't difficult. I asked hubby to numbers and its a grand total of $120 per month for 150GB internet and 1.5GB of data per phone. That gets us texts and calls quota too. As to that being 'hard facts' well, its just me posting what we have on an internet forum.

[oidara]

I have only read the first 3 pages, but I'd cast another vote for staying in the UK and having the second child. I totally understand the pull of Oz, but family is more important, especially when it comes to your own kids. If you always hoped/planned for 2 kids, then I think you will always regret not having the second one. If there is no way to have both Oz and the second child, then I'd definitely stay in the UK. If the only way to make Oz work is to put your kids in childcare and you are not comfortable with that, then I don't think it would be worth the move. We are the same - our kids have never been in nursery/childcare and we've now ended up home-educating as well. I wouldn't swap the time we have had with them for the world, let alone one country, and they are all happy and well-adjusted kids. I know lots of parents do use childcare either from necessity or preference, and I would never judge them for that. But I do think there are some parents, like us, who could never get along with the idea, no matter how nice the childcare is. If you think you fall into that box, then I'd say stay put in the UK if Oz isn't feasible without you parting with your kids. Good luck!