cjenky Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 (edited) Hi, our 190 application is currently in progress so fingers crossed 1) our visa is in fact granted & 2) hopefully we don't have too long to wait. Although I don't want to move too far in front in terms of planning and next steps (just in case we fall at the final hurdle) we are struggling with how people decide on where they want to live. Ideally we don't want to be in Sydney and are thinking one of the smaller cities would suit us better. That being said one of my best friends lives in Sydney and has done for the past 10 years so in that regard Sydney could be the ideal starting point for us, we would already know people and maybe it would help us settle quicker?? Our other options are Newcastle or Wollongong, how easy is it to get jobs in these places? I am a project administrator currently working Logistics and Exhibitions but I would do any admin job (in fact id do anything if it came to it) the hubby would like to work in the horticultural industry (again he would be willing to do anything...van driver etc) Ideally I would like to secure a job before we leave but realistically this probably wont happen, i'm finding it difficult to get my head around where we should move to when we don't know where we are likely to find work. Don't really want to move somewhere and then have to up sticks and move again because the job market was not as good as we thought. Really busy city life is not really for us, we enjoy the countryside and wide open spaces. We are a couple in our 30's with no children and are past the wild party stage in our lives. We want somewhere with plenty of space and a nice communal feel. NSW is so vast compared to the UK and we are overwhelmed with the options and really don't know how we are to decide where to go. How did everyone decide where to go? Any pointers would be great. Thanks Edited March 28, 2016 by cjenky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 I feel for you! For us, it was always going to be Sydney. My partners three siblings live here and his Dad is in Wollongong. Coupled with friends in both locations, there was no other real option for us. Maybe you could start on Sydney (6-12 months) to be close to your friend and find your feet, and take time to properly explore Wollongong, Newcastle, Sutherland area, central coast etc... It is possible to find a reasonably priced rental in Sydney if you're willing to be flexible on location and size! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murta Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 This is exactly how I feel too, we have more people we know in Sydney but financially other areas are cheaper, difficult Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 we are struggling with how people decide on where they want to live. Ideally we don't want to be in Sydney and are thinking one of the smaller cities would suit us better. That being said one of my best friends lives in Sydney and has done for the past 10 years so in that regard Sydney could be the ideal starting point for us, we would already know people and maybe it would help us settle quicker?? Our other options are Newcastle or Wollongong, how easy is it to get jobs in these places? I am a project administrator currently working Logistics and Exhibitions but I would do any admin job (in fact id do anything if it came to it) the hubby would like to work in the horticultural industry (again he would be willing to do anything...van driver etc) Ideally I would like to secure a job before we leave but realistically this probably wont happen Although the idea of being close to your best friend is tempting, I would say avoid Sydney. Sydney is a huge sprawling city and if you want to live in a more rural area, you'll be facing a commute of well over an hour to the CBD, possibly two. Also it sounds as though you are aiming for a work/life balance by choosing less high-powered (and therefore lower-paying) jobs, and it would be very hard to live comfortably in Sydney on the wages of an administrator and a van driver! I would vote Newcastle as a starting point. Much, much cheaper to live. You're within a couple of hours of Sydney if you do get interviews down there, so you're not cutting yourself off and you can always move if you need to. You may find job opportunities in the Hunter Valley/Port Stephens as there are quite a few hotels which are also conference venues. Also of course there are all those wineries up there - does your hubby know anything about growing vines? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LKC Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 We settled where OH's job dictated. He works in Hurstville which is way too urban for us, so we live in Sutherland Shire which is a nice balance (in my opinion) between convenience and green and leafy. We live in a house which backs on to national park, and in a suburb with one road in and out, so it is pretty quiet, but within 20 minutes we can be at the cinema in Miranda with the kids, or at one of the beaches in the Royal National Park. That said, if you have no job to go to you won't have anything to pin your search to. I would probably recommend starting out within an hour or so of Sydney, either north or south, so that if you happen to find jobs closer to the city the commute won't be a killer. I would have a look at the suburbs right at the very edge of Sydney. I don't know much about north Sydney, but down here on the southern edge is beautiful (not really countryside like the UK, more rugged with eucalyptus and littoral rainforest) and also very much a community. We are only 30 or 40 minutes from Wollongong area so it wouldn't be a bad commute down that way, and only an hour to Sydney on the train so not too bad that way either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bungo Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 Hi, our 190 application is currently in progress so fingers crossed 1) our visa is in fact granted & 2) hopefully we don't have too long to wait. Although I don't want to move too far in front in terms of planning and next steps (just in case we fall at the final hurdle) we are struggling with how people decide on where they want to live. Ideally we don't want to be in Sydney and are thinking one of the smaller cities would suit us better. That being said one of my best friends lives in Sydney and has done for the past 10 years so in that regard Sydney could be the ideal starting point for us, we would already know people and maybe it would help us settle quicker?? Our other options are Newcastle or Wollongong, how easy is it to get jobs in these places? I am a project administrator currently working Logistics and Exhibitions but I would do any admin job (in fact id do anything if it came to it) the hubby would like to work in the horticultural industry (again he would be willing to do anything...van driver etc) Ideally I would like to secure a job before we leave but realistically this probably wont happen, i'm finding it difficult to get my head around where we should move to when we don't know where we are likely to find work. Don't really want to move somewhere and then have to up sticks and move again because the job market was not as good as we thought. Really busy city life is not really for us, we enjoy the countryside and wide open spaces. We are a couple in our 30's with no children and are past the wild party stage in our lives. We want somewhere with plenty of space and a nice communal feel. NSW is so vast compared to the UK and we are overwhelmed with the options and really don't know how we are to decide where to go. How did everyone decide where to go? Any pointers would be great. Thanks NSW is vast in size but the population is very concentrated and hence the job market the same. For us the job market dictated where we would live and therefore it was Sydney. You mention really busy city life is not for you, but Sydney sprawls and sprawls and it is not "really busy city" like throughout. In fact there are loads of suburbs not even that far from Sydney CBD that are very quiet indeed and Sydney has plenty of open spaces too. But it is very expensive and if you are going for lifestyle and not pursuing the big jobs then it does make sense to steer well clear if you can. Newcastle is obviously not going to have the same level of opportunity as Sydney but it is probably the second best bet and if you can find something there it would be a much more affordable place to live and it is also a lovely place, I would happily live there if I could. Until you get the jobs, you might need to keep things a bit flexible and be prepared to move if you have to though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 Go where you can get a job and work from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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