Huntersmummy Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hiya guys I would love to just know how people actually moved to OZ? My husband and I are waiting for our visa to come through and are looking at shipping our stuff over... BUTTTTTTT...... I'm confused as to when to ship and when to fly over? (after visa has been granted of course) Husband needs his tools so being the breadwinner, he can't be out of work for long but if we move to get a permanent address THEN ship our stuff, the minimum its going to take, is 7 weeks. We can't wait 7 weeks for his tools Has anyone shipped their stuff over, then flew over and found a house OR flew over, found a house THEN shipped stuff over? God, I've even confused myself. If anyone can make sense or get what I mean??? Thank you! xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Bear Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hi It is confusing, I think people ship their belongings in different order depending on their priorities. Me and my husband are flying over in December and my husband needs his tools for work too, so we are sending the tools by air freight it takes around 7-10 days I think. The rest of our stuff is being shipped as normal. We are sending the tools a few days before we leave, so they should arrive a few days after we get there. I hope this helps and makes sense and good luck! Ros Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huntersmummy Posted October 16, 2014 Author Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hi Ros. Thanks for replying! Can I ask, how much is the air freight costing you to ship the tools over? Sarah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 I'm confused as to when to ship and when to fly over? (after visa has been granted of course) Husband needs his tools so being the breadwinner, he can't be out of work for long but if we move to get a permanent address THEN ship our stuff, the minimum its going to take, is 7 weeks. We can't wait 7 weeks for his tools Has anyone shipped their stuff over, then flew over and found a house OR flew over, found a house THEN shipped stuff over? Why do you need a permanent address? I'm sure when I shipped mine, so long as we advised the shipping company of the final address before it arrived, we were fine. As you say, if you wait till you're here AND have found a home before you ship, you're going to have storage costs at the UK end, and it'll be even longer than7 weeks before it arrives. Besides, does your husband have a job to go to? He'd be very lucky to find a job within 7 weeks anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DivingMissDaisy Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hi Our container left on Tuesday and we haven't even booked flights yet! Probably go in a few weeks, but we are posting Xmas presents as we don't think the container will clear customs before then. We've got two medium sized moving boxes from the shippers, which are actually quite big. Just over 20kgs each and they're going to cost about £90 each to post. This is on a 3-4 day service. We use Parcel Monkey to get the best price. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buzzy--bee Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 We did both simultaneously. We stopped in the US and Mexico for 6 weeks. Mexico mainly because it was considerably cheaper for us to stay in Mexico than it was in either the UK or Australia. We then got to Australia around the same time as our container. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hi Our container left on Tuesday and we haven't even booked flights yet! . ....So obviously you didn't need a permanent address in Australia to be able to ship it, as the OP is asking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buzzy--bee Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 ....So obviously you didn't need a permanent address in Australia to be able to ship it, as the OP is asking? You can use a temporary address. People staying in our accommodation use our address for instance. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DivingMissDaisy Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 ....So obviously you didn't need a permanent address in Australia to be able to ship it, as the OP is asking? We're shipping ours to my Mother-in-Law's. I remember reading though if you give a rough area destination, you're okay for a set number of miles around that area, over that and it'll cost. Guess you'd need to check with your shippers though. Good luck!! X Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slean Wolfhead Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 We sent ours a month before we left, then we spent a month in Thailand...so 8 weeks. It turned up 9 weeks after we got to Australia and was becoming a problem. The issue is, shippers often cannot guarantee "when" your container will go, especially if you're sharing one. They do try and brush over this because they want your business. We checked the dockets and even though ours had been collected by Pickfords 4 weeks before we left, it was still sitting in the UK when we flew out. So do it early...the permanent address isn't a problem. You just advise the Australian end when you've found an address. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 We shipped a month before we left the UK and booked a months furnished accommodation in Australia. We managed to beg, steal and borrow most essential items to survive the last month in an almost empty house, I think it was easier that way than in Australia as many people do waiting for their container because of course we had a lot of friends and family to help out in the UK. We did send two boxes by air freight of things that we had kept back and also Christmas presents (due to the time of year we moved) and that is a possibility for your OH's tools if you don't want to wait for the container. We simply used an export company and freight forwarder and it was reasonably priced and straight forward. By the time our container arrived we had out rental sorted and we moved in with all our stuff. It worked well doing it that way for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainR Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Agree with above that it's better to send early and borrow from friends and family in England before you go. We had to send ours when we moved and of course it was groupage so sat in the shipping companies warehouse for a month before it started moving. We lived in a furnished place for a month then lived in a very empty house for a month, the rental agency was a bit shocked when she dropped round two weeks after moving in and we the house was still so bare... Painful times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sprug Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 We did the same sent early by ship and used the address of my work place as a temporary address. About a month before you actually fly is usually about the optimum time although you will be without for a few weeks on the other side. It's amazing what you can cook with one pan and a roasting tin!!! One other thing to remember if you need things urgently other than air freight is you could actually use the excess baggage on your flight. You obviously need to weigh up the costs of using this facility over the cost of regular air mail but it is an option and this way everything arrives at the same time you do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DivingMissDaisy Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Yes, we're sitting here in a bare living room with a TV & 4 camping chairs!! I bought some new pots, mattress etc to send off in the container and using what we'll eventually throw out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Bear Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Hi Ros. Thanks for replying! Can I ask, how much is the air freight costing you to ship the tools over? Sarah It is approx £160 for up to 30kg weight. We have also been advised to clean my husbands tools thoroughly with Jeyes fluid. you can probably get cheaper quotes but we are using the same shipping company for everything... for an easy life!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buzzy--bee Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 We had a furniture maker stay with us a few weeks ago and he brought all his tools with him in his hold baggage in a very rugged-looking tool box. If it's any interest he had a job within a week of arriving. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 Do what works for you. Depending on how heavy his tools are they can go in checked baggage when you fly. Also worth noting if you have permanent unvalidated visas you can get a migrant baggage allowance through booking with IOM http://www.iomaustralia.org/projects_selfpayers.htm or booking Singapore Airlines which has 30kg as standard and an extra 10kg for a perm unvalidated visa (though you need to confirm this with them after booking etc). Usual cleaning of the tools etc will apply if you take them in checked baggage. Shipping house contents, consider what you prefer Ship in advance of you leaving, say 8 weeks and then manage on the stuff you don't ship and borrow from friends and/or buy some cheap cheap stuff from charity shops to see you through. This is what we did. Only not so many weeks ahead as we had no need of it the other end as we stayed with family. The last stretch we were down to a mattress on the floor to use in place of a sofa, 2 camping chairs, some old kitchen stuff, washing machine, tumble dryer and a few smaller bits we didn't ship. Oh and old sleeping bags and bedding we were throwing out. Its honestly not that difficult and we had kept a double bed, table and chairs and a few other bits of furniture we were going to sell/recycle/tip before we left, so it worked well for us. Meant we only shipped what we really wanted to take and then slowly whittled down the rest as time ticked on before we moved. Sold the sofa about 2 weeks before flying out. Table and chairs went 2 days before so the last night in the UK we went out for dinner at our local pub up the road. We timed it all so a friend took all the stuff for the tip the day we left, the last few things we gave away to friends (microwave, bedside tables, camping chairs, BBQ) and then we were off. I did a couple of loads of washing at my Mum's when we went to visit the Sunday before we flew out (we left UK on Weds) and then managed. We wore old sweat pants and tee shirts the last couple of days to clean the house and stuff, we threw them out when we left so we had only clean stuff to take IYKWIM. Or ship a few days before you leave and buy cheap/Gumtree the basics once you arrive in Aus and are in an unfurnished place. Then wait for your stuff. Can work well if you can pick up cheap bits to see you through but you could end up spending a small fortune if you don't want to be without anything more than the basics for all those weeks. Personally, I reckon if you have family and friends near by in the UK, ship early and then borrow anything you need or dump it before you fly out. You can probably find a fair bit to not ship to use till you leave and then throw out or return to friends just before you leave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmjg Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 We shipped everything we were sending at the start of august, (groupage, it left when we did). We flew on the 17 th August and the container arrived on the 6th oct. This was all z2009. I can't see it would have changed too much since. A few things we did: Our apartment kitchen was built in so we shipped the personal stuff, sofas, dining table and chairs, bedroom furniture etc. The day the packers left we had the built in fridge and washer, a few borrowed pots and pans and towels and plastic camping items from the ohs parents, and our old double bed. Their camping stuff came in quite useful! We knew we would buy a queen size bed when in oz as the bedrooms are generally bigger. The old bedroom tv came into the lounge and sat on a cardboard box. We borrowed a cot. The cases sat against the wall with all our clothes we were taking and the old ones we would use until the end and then throw out. We left our apartment two weeks later and moved into the ohs parents. The double bed, mattress and linen went to the ohs granny for her spare room, the borrowed stuff went back and the old clothes went into the bin the day before we flew. Luckily my parents are at this end, they picked us up from the airport and we spent two weeks in their house until we found a unit of our own. A queen sized mattress on the floor sufficed until I picked up a bed frame from eBay. We borrowed my grandparents car until we purchased one of our own and walked through the houses of my brothers and sisters poaching basic items like a cot, shelves and a small sofa. We brought an outdoor table and chairs and used that in the dining room until the container arrived. We brought a beanbag to suffice for a third sofa seat. We brought a new tv and sat it on its box for a stand. A picnic bag was brought and raided for its plates, cups and cutlery. A new fridge, washing machine and deep freezer completed the attack on the savings. Amazingly enough we won a double and triple seater sofa in a competition three weeks after we arrived........ People we met, like neighbours and new work colleagues were very quick to offer any spare furniture they had when they found out how little was in the house. the day before the container turned up I hooked a trailer up to the car and took all the borrowed stuff back. The dining table went to its rightful place on the back patio, the picnic basket was packed away and all our familiar stuff came out again. We knew we would be moving again in a year out of the rental and into our own place so kept half of the shipping boxes which I collapsed and stored in the garage. Things like books and ornaments weren't unpacked, just opened to ensure they had made the trip without breakage. These were also stored for the year in the garage. The un-packers took the rest of the boxes and debris away with them. Dont be surprised at the cost of your first shop at the supermarket. You have to replace everything you used to buy once in a blue moon, but suddenly you will need all of them NOW! Salt, pepper, spices, sauces, cleaning products, shampoos, scrubbing brushes, can, cans, cans, coffee, tea, milo, sugar, flour, vinegars. We spent over $400 and then went back the next day and spent another $200 on fruit, veg, milk, meat etc. Remember, you chose to do this............. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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