How did you buy a car when you arrived?

[BlueKangaroo]

Arriving in the next few weeks in QLD and figuring out the finer details! I'm really interested to know how others have managed balancing the cash outlay associated with the move.

 

We will need 2 cars, we don't want to buy them outright if at all possible, we won't have jobs when we first arrive and I suspect it could take a couple of months before we do. We do have some savings and a large amount of equity tied up in our property which is for sale in UK. Would car dealers be prepared to loan against that on used cars?

 

Also if moving to QLD I thought I'd read somewhere we would have to sit a driving test to get a QLD licence before buying a car, is that correct?

 

...and finally can you bring across no-claims history from UK insurance?

[calNgary]

Hi

There is no driving test if you hod a Uk licence you just take that and passport etc to a Dept of Transport 'shop' and buy your licence, i think they do 1yr, 3yr or 5yrs.

 

Yes most insurance companys recognise your UK no claims here.

 

I don't think you would get a loan when you have just stepped off a plane, but i have no experience in this so could be completely wrong,lol.

Also, when you register the vehicle in your name, you pay a percentage of the purchase price , so make sure you budget for this so it doesnt catch you off guard.

 

Hope this helps a bit

Cal x

[Marisawright]

It would be much wiser to buy a cheap old banger than to get a loan, even if you could get one. You can always sell it and upgrade once you're settled and have your finances sorted.

 

We've had many Pomsinoz members posting because they've taken on a car loan, then decided Australia isn't for them, and then find they're in a horrible situation where they're not allowed to sell the car because of the loan and/or they face penalty charges when they pay the loan off early.

 

I know you're feeling confident that will never happen to you, that your move to Australia will be a huge success and you have no intention of coming back - but remember, EVERYONE who migrates is just as confident, and yet we see posts from people in that situation with depressing regularity, often through no fault of their own. So it always pays to be a little bit cautious!

 

P.S. Also, if you do decide to go for a loan, check the conditions carefully. I'm surprised at how common car loans are here in the UK because they're not at all popular in Australia, where they're considered a bit of a rip-off. Not sure why that is but all I'm saying is, don't assume the terms and setup are the same as a UK car loan.

Edited May 28, 2016 by Marisawright

[srg73]

Car loans are expensive. We had jobs when arriving meaning we could secure a 50% car loan which we elected to agree to so we could start to establish a credit record.

 

You maybe better going to a dealer for cars as they have to give 3 month warrantee. When selling a car in QLD the seller is required to have a roadworthy certificate which can be up to 4 weeks old (as I can recall). This should give assurance however some private sellers are sharks.

 

Aus brands are cheapest, Japanese are most common and European most expensive including maintanance. Petrol most common engine type etc and ensure full service history.....don't be surprised to see an oil service every 5000kms.

 

Licence is easy to get, you do get 6 months with your uk one but better to change ASAP as helps with banks etc too.

 

Best of luck, car is almost the least of your concerns as there are loads of them here and people do tend to change them frequently.

 

S

[Peachy]

Hi

Wouldn't recommend getting a loan. So much more costly in the long run and commits you long term. Although second hand cars aren't as cheap as the UK, you can go for something with higher mileage because they run for a lot longer.

 

Also do you definitely need 2 cars? And you certainly won't need 2 cars when you first arrive (unless you have very specific personal circs) if you don't have jobs lined up. Public transport is good and cheap (depending on where you are). Try and live somewhere on the rail or bus route.

 

Don't feel that you need to get a massive 4 x 4 either. A lot of people do get use out of them, but would just get a very cheap run a round until you are established.

 

We had 2 heavily used cars in the UK. We now have 1 car, which is primarily used on weekends for longer trip. Saves a fortune!

[Bungo]

Arriving in the next few weeks in QLD and figuring out the finer details! I'm really interested to know how others have managed balancing the cash outlay associated with the move.

 

We will need 2 cars, we don't want to buy them outright if at all possible, we won't have jobs when we first arrive and I suspect it could take a couple of months before we do. We do have some savings and a large amount of equity tied up in our property which is for sale in UK. Would car dealers be prepared to loan against that on used cars?

 

Also if moving to QLD I thought I'd read somewhere we would have to sit a driving test to get a QLD licence before buying a car, is that correct?

 

...and finally can you bring across no-claims history from UK insurance?

 

Nobody is going to lend you money when you don't have a job. Lenders without exception want to see ability to pay from incone, not from savings as that just begs the question why are you borrowing (that will be their question not mine by the way). With neither of you working, can't you just make do with one car until the jobs come along and then get second one? Once you have a job or jobs lending will become an option too.

[JockinTas]

When we first arrived we bought our cars and OH's work trucks/utes from Government car auctions.

[lp77]

We hired a car for about 6weeks and took time going round garages /dealers etc. it was end January sale so managed to get a decent deal. I was glad not to have the pressure for a few weeks and gave us time to run around. With three young kids we wanted a bigger car but knew we would need a second car at some point. Bought an x trail .. Love it. And it was only last week we got our second car. Been here since jan 7th. Tbh we would probably have tried to do single car longer but hubby out 7-7 and bit of a pest taking kids out at night. When it's bed time. My parents were over and my dad took me round looking gotta love parents.

The reason we waited till few was cos we were waiting for our house sale to complete so wanted a smaller outlay initially. One of the garages offered us a loan car till we decided and could pay... Said get rid of the hire... Not a bad option but I wasn't. Sure of the car and would've felt pressured to buy then...

[xxlornaxx]

We hired a car for couple of weeks and then bought an old car off gumtree for $700 which done us really well...about five months later after I started work I bought a new car on finance but we still kept the old car for over a year till it gave up on life...then 18 months later I had to go back to the UK so had to save up money to pay off car loan and wished I hadn't got it in the first place....6 months later came back to Aus and again hired a car..then bought cheap one for $500 this time, then got another car on finance! But only coz I know this time I will be staying...I wouldn't get a long car Finance commitment when you first arrive as you don't know how it's all going to work out....loads of good second hand cars going to get you started.

Edited May 29, 2016 by xxlornaxx

[Eera]

When I first moved over I lived in a YHA for a couple of weeks. I ended up buying a fairly decent car dirt cheap from a couple who had bought it to go backpacking and were just trying to get rid of it before flying out home. Came with a boot full of camping gear too. Might be worth a shot if you're after something cheap for a while. Most hostels have notice boards.

[xxlornaxx]

Yeah that's what happened to us too..backpackers flying home wanted quick sale..gave us load of camping gear too in boot that we sold for couple hundred...they were pleased to get rid of it as were leaving that day and we got lucky too Lots of good deals especially in main cities

[Guest]

We bought second hand and paid cash. We didn't want to splash loads on a newer model or anything so looked round dealerships for second hand ones in decent condition. Found one with low KM's, full service history and 11 months rego. Paid $6000 or so and still have the car 2.5 years later. Not needed/wanted or fussed to buy a newer car when it drives so well, is well looked after and other people on the road in the city drive like they do. I don't have the worry of the paintwork being dinged, scratched when I park either as I might with a newer car.

 

We didn't bother with a second car. We make do with bikes, walking (for school drop offs and stuff) and if need be bus or train. For us the amount of times we've actually really needed a second car I can count on one hand. I realise we are probably not the norm in that respect but we only ran one car in the UK for about 5 years before we left and we didn't see the need to change here unless it was impossible to manage. We plan to buy a newer vehicle in a couple of years and will get something that can tow a caravan or trailer and currently we are planning to keep the car rather than sell it. So we can still use that as the day to day car and save the newer one for bigger trips etc.

 

I'd not spend masses to begin with. It could be you want a daily driver workhorse car and then a smaller occasional use or local use car and so could shop around and buy once you know what your needs are going to be.

[LKC]

We hired a car for a few weeks so that we could take our time. OH had a job to go to, but we paid for both cars in cash because we figured we'd rather not have a loan even though we had a steady income. You may find you only need one car. We actually sold OH's car in January and haven't replaced it. We use my car as the family car to and from school, shopping, holidays, general fetching and carrying etc, and OH has a bike and cycles the 6km to the train station and then hops on a train to work. It takes him no longer to get to work (actually it is slightly quicker some days) and he is getting fitter in the process. Plus we don't have running costs and parking, so I calculated we save about $5000 per year (insurance, petrol, rego etc) even after we take train tickets into account.

[Rallyman]

With no credit history you will pay a lot higher interest rate , I doubt you would get a loan without a job to be honest

[BlueKangaroo]

Many thanks to all of you, this has been very helpful and you've definitely got us focused on buying cheap for the short term!

[Croft]

Just a word of advice. Buying without a QLD licence, especially direct from a dealer, can involve a LOT of extra paperwork. It's not insurmountable (though some dealers will tell you it is - that's not true) but it is an extra hassle. If you can, rent a car for a few weeks (you can get some very good deals booking ahead of time, and don't take out the extra insurance, get it through one of the many third party companies in the UK), get your licence as quickly as possible (it REALLY helps with ID) and take the time to look around and get the lie of the land.

[PeterJa]

We will need 2 cars, we don't want to buy them outright if at all possible

 

First off, I love it here! So please don't think I'm being bitter.

 

But finance over here is a lot different to the UK and you need to be careful. In the UK finance and insurance is very heavily regulated and loan organisations need to be up front about all charges. Over here the *******s will happily lie to your face (I've had this with health insurance, mortgages and car loans) and there can be lots of hidden extras that you don't find out about until you come to sign the contract - and that's only if you read through it very, very carefully. There can also be "discretionary charges" that aren't itemised so even if you go through the contract looking at all the numbers you won't realise these are there unless you read all the text.

 

So the first moral is, READ THE SMALL PRINT! You can't have a UK attitude where the FSA / courts will look after you if the provider lies or hits you at a later date with an unitemised discretionary charge.

 

The second sad moral is don't believe a word the salesperson says. It's amazing how they will sit and lie to you, I just wasn't used to that.

 

Other than this the place is great

[benthomas010]

I arrived not long ago, and we have bought a brand new car on finance.

 

We went around all of the dealers and they all said they would be able to get us approved for finance as soon as I had an offer of permanent employment.

 

Ended up getting a Kia Sportage, paid a 10% deposit, and the finance at 7.5% which isn't too bad. Was all approved within 2 days of me getting a job.

 

Why did we buy brand new? I didnt want the worry of car repairs or the cost. 2nd hand cars here are expensive, and we had gone without for so long saving up for this move it felt right to spoil ourselves a little. You can get some really good deals on brand new cars at the moment too. A lot of dealers still have 2015 stock they are trying to shift.

[Deb Moss]

Just moved to Canberra and purchased two cars. All dealers are having EOFY sales and I have found them to be slightly cheaper than in UK (probably due to exchange rate) and new or nearly new cars were not that much more than second hand cars with 60,000 KMs.

 

Costs do add up and we are now looking at kitchen white goods (which are more expensive) and TVs etc. Make sure you budget very carefully - we didn't and savings have been eaten into.

 

Another option would be to pay outright for cars and get a 0% credit card for other purchasers once settled (NAB are doing one at present). Good luck.