How did you decide on area?

[The Smith Clan]

How did you decide on area to move to in Oz?  At the moment we are considering Perth and SA.

 

We are a family of 5 moving, social worker and gas engineer children currently 4, 9 and 11.

 

We love the outdoors and regular campers and day trips out.  we currently live in semi rural area in worcestershire and prefer not to be in the city, but not too far that it would leave us with long commutes to work and to visit (30/40 minutes max).  Any advice would be useful.  

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Maria

Edited July 15, 2017 by The Smith Clan

[NicF]

Easy for me.  We moved to be near my OHs family and as they are in Adelaide that's where we moved to.  I think you need to research both areas fully before making any decisions.  Work could be a deciding factor although WA and SA are doing it a bit tough at the moment.  You won't get really rural in either place just 30minutes from the city although here in Adelaide some of the hills areas can feel quite remote and still be just 30 minutes from the city.  I can't comment on if there is similar by Perth as I don't know it at all.

[Guest]

Agree with NicF about Adelaide. And moved for the same reason, married to an Aussie but we did consider other parts of Aus also. Just ruled them out and chose Adelaide. 

You can defo be semi rural here with a commute from somewhere in the hills down to the city. 

We live in the foothills and right on the edge of an outer lying suburb pretty much and can be in the CBD in about the timeframe you give, although rush hour can tip it over 45 some days driving in. Train is easier though, especially starting at the end of the line as it were. Just the matter of the drive to get to the station. It's about 40 minutes all up.

We'd have liked to have gone a bit further out and found a property outside of a suburb or small town in the hills but for me the driving reason to at least remain on the cusp of a suburb was it gave us greater choice of schools, social and sporting groups for our child. I wasn't keen to send mine to a small town school for various reasons and also then limit the social aspect. Semi rural here is different from semi rural in the U.K. I think. I lived rural for many years in the UK and semi rural also and find so many differences in lifestyle and other things here that semi rural with a child isn't something I'd go for. I'd love it for myself but not with a family. 

If schooling isn't a worry, as in you plan to go private then you have far more choice of where you can live. If going the state school route keep in mind all high schools are zoned and you need to live within it to attend. So a certain semi rural area will see you allocated a certain high school. It could be a bit of a commute for this also. Country and outerlying town schools should be researched well to ensure you find a good fit for your family.  

Job wise, it does seem Perth and Adelaide are both finding it tough atm. No one can know how it will go for you. 

[Guest]

Oh one other thing to consider with hills living around Adelaide is the fire risk in summer. It should at least be considered and you have awareness of the bush fire season and that you are comfortable with what it entails. If up in the hills and elsewhere you'd need a bushfire plan, to maintain your property to be bushfire safe etc. We have to have one here also as we are so close to open countryside and fall in the risk zone. I pay careful attention to the fire risk forecast each day over the season.  Plus school closure days of it's a catastrophic fire rating. I don't think the metropolitan schools close on the catastrophic days, but the ones in the risk areas do. 

[VERYSTORMY]

The first thing I would consider is jobs. Research job availability for your occupations. For example, Perth is in a severe economic downturn at the moment and jobs can be hard to find. 

 

[starlight7]

To be brutally honest I think the employment situation is not too good in either of those cities but if you can land jobs, go for it. I would personally prefer Adelaide of the two ( not as isolated)

[Peachy]

Do you have a particular reason for Perth or SA? If you are thinking about better work prospects, have you considered other states? 

[Bobj]

As VS indicated, jobs are the important item. Does your work need to be in a city? Can you gain employment in regional Australia?

Worked in Perth and was fortunate enough to get a job while on holiday in the West Kimberley Region, in the Main Roads Dept. That lead to working in all the Kimberley Region and that lead to working, some years later, in NSW in Glen Innes, a town of 6,000 people.

In all the 50 odd years I have lived in Australia, only 2 years have been spent in cities.

Cheers, Bobj.

[ali]

Funnily enough, we didn't chose to be near family (I have a brother in QLD).  We chose WA because of the more Mediterranean style climate and that it was the least populated state.  Job security was also a big issue for us and at the time we were both able to secure positions prior to our arrival.

[Toots]

We went where the work was.  First of all Sydney then Perth then back to Sydney.  It's all very well stating where you'd like to live but where the work is, is the priority.  When work dried up in Sydney at one time, my husband worked way out in the west of NSW building shearing sheds and an abottoir.  I was always lucky to have a steady office job in Sydney.  

[LKC]

Yes, I'd reiterate what others have said about work.  Wherever you move, if work is hard to come by you will probably struggle.  When we moved over, it was with a job offer for OH, so we just moved somewhere within commuting distance to that.  We're doing the same now we're moving back to the UK.  If you don't have the luxury of a firm job offer, I would do a bit of digging around on Seek and some of the other job search websites and see what opportunities are available, to try and gauge where you/your partner are most likely to find work.  

Once you have work sorted, everything else will drop into place.

[fergiep]

Did most of you have jobs lined up before moving? We are facing the same decision to make. OH is a mechanical fitter, i have just completed an entry course for nursing so could porentially do some care/support work. We have friends in Perth but work situation is giving me fear. Can anyone comment on Queensland for mechanical fitter/technician?


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[starlight7]

Depends which part of Queensland I think- it is very big. Massive in fact,

[sussex boy]

Job, that should decide your area, I am in country WA and applying for jobs in Perth and getting nowhere in my trade / motor trade. I would secure a job, Skype interview where ever you can then move. No pint living in a nice house then having to head back to UK after six months due to no work. Seek site is good. type in your trade and minimum amount and have a look. My workshop was sold from underneath me and I have been job hunting for 3 months here in WA. Now looking further afield and had 5 phone interviews in a week all either country QLD or SA.

Good luck the move, just a bit harder than it was, and remember you move a year down the line.

[Jessica Berry]

On ‎22‎/‎07‎/‎2017 at 19:09, fergiep said:

Did most of you have jobs lined up before moving? We are facing the same decision to make. OH is a mechanical fitter, i have just completed an entry course for nursing so could porentially do some care/support work. We have friends in Perth but work situation is giving me fear. Can anyone comment on Queensland for mechanical fitter/technician?


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Most people coming over to Australia won't have jobs lined up when they move over and have to compete with everyone else to secure work.  The fact that your job is on an 'in demand' skills list doesn't necessarily mean it is actually in demand.  That's not to say that certain skills aren't in demand, but just because you have secured a visa, it doesn't mean you are guaranteed a job.

[fergiep]

Yeah this is the fear we have. Have seen that its taken some people months to get into work.[emoji53]

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[VERYSTORMY]

15 minutes ago, fergiep said:

Yeah this is the fear we have. Have seen that its taken some people months to get into work.

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That is something you need to budget for. I always advise that you need enough funds to live on - rent, food, bills and everything for at least 3 months and ideally 6 months

[fergiep]

That is something you need to budget for. I always advise that you need enough funds to live on - rent, food, bills and everything for at least 3 months and ideally 6 months

Thanks for advice, we are looking at cheaper accomodation and hubby arriving first to hopefully secure work til things come together.

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[fergiep]

Job, that should decide your area, I am in country WA and applying for jobs in Perth and getting nowhere in my trade / motor trade. I would secure a job, Skype interview where ever you can then move. No pint living in a nice house then having to head back to UK after six months due to no work. Seek site is good. type in your trade and minimum amount and have a look. My workshop was sold from underneath me and I have been job hunting for 3 months here in WA. Now looking further afield and had 5 phone interviews in a week all either country QLD or SA.
Good luck the move, just a bit harder than it was, and remember you move a year down the line.

Hope you find something soon. All good and exciting the prospect of moving but the reality of sustaining it is real.

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[Jessica Berry]

I think some people have unrealistic expectations of how long it will take to find work.  If I was to return to the UK I wouldn't expect to get a job straight away, the process takes time.  I would have to register with recruitment agencies, apply for jobs via the paper, internet etc, wait for the closing date, interview, reference checks etc. Obviously this isn't the case in all industries.

My OH and I have recently changed jobs.  I finished my previous job on Friday and started my new job on the Monday.  Recruitment process involved an initial phone screen interview (this is common to try and exclude people from the shortlist often due to the volume of applications), an interview, police check, ref check.  My OH secured a new job, but the process involved 2 panel interviews, police check, medical, ref checks...the process takes times.  Both of these jobs were newly created jobs, so despite the doom and gloom about the Adelaide job market there are jobs out there, but it depends on what you do, what you are willing to do and what your expectations are.

Have a look at one of my previous posts for more information on the time it can take to find work...

 

Edited July 26, 2017 by Jessica Berry

[aconcannon]

Personal finance is a big consideration when deciding where in Australia you want to live as each state varies massively & within each state rental / buying prices will also vary massively depending on the area. We ended up in Sydney as it offers us everything we want, and it helped we already had friends here. We live on Sydney's northern beaches which doesn't feel anything like living in a city, but we pay the price for it which is the only downside. Of course weather should be a big consideration for you too as that varies massively from state to state as well


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[Paul1Perth]

We were in a similar situation to you in 92 when we came. We had never been to Aus before but liked the look of Perth and the climate. We had Adelaide down as our 2nd choice. All the employment agencies were telling us to go Sydney or Melbourne as there were very few opportunities in Perth. It was before the mining boom. 

We decided to ignore the advice and came to Perth. Love it, best decision we ever made. I was out of work for 5 months but here is just the same as the UK and anywhere else. Once you get work and a few contacts it's fine, you hear about jobs through mates.

My wife is a nurse and started work in a couple of weeks so that kept us going in our first year rental. We always wanted to be near the beach and found a suburb which we both liked, close to a beach (walking distance, important if visitors come) and far enough up the coast we could afford. Been in the same place and house since the end of 92. 

Love the suburb, loads of friends, great social life, brilliant for the kids when they were growing up. We joined the local surf club as soon as we could and still spend loads of time at the beach with friends with the same interests. 

I work near Perth, go in on public transport and it takes about 40 minutes door to door. We live about 30Km North of the City.

I've been to Adelaide and feel that we made the right choice. In my opinion things are starting to pick up again in Perth, great potential.

[Eera]

Went where I was offered a job, simple as that.  Ended up in regional Queensland which in hindsight I should have looked in the first place (hate cities).  Been here 13 years, married a bloke who also escaped the city and two kids later...

[timmybuddha]

On 16/07/2017 at 13:30, VERYSTORMY said:

The first thing I would consider is jobs. Research job availability for your occupations. For example, Perth is in a severe economic downturn at the moment and jobs can be hard to find. 

 

Yyyyyyyeeeeeahhhh!!! Dont go to perth!!!!!