Seriously thinking of making the leap to Oz

[Lavers]

Why so soon Jon?

[Marisawright]

3 hours ago, Lavers said:

At the end of the day I don't see it as as a risk, I either don't do it and I'll live the rest of my life thinking what if. We go and it's the best the decision we ever made after everything settles down or it's not what we thought and your on a flight straight back to the UK not thinking what if and you settle straight back into your old life.

If you've got the money to do it, then go for it. The sad thing is that too many people take that attitude when they can't really afford it.  

Moving to Australia means shipping all your worldly possessions (or throwing them away and buying the lot from scratch), paying for air fares and a holiday flat when you arrive, and several weeks (if not months) with no income while you job hunt.  A figure of £30k is most often quoted as the cost of relocating a family to Australia. 

If you decide it's not for you and go home, then you've got another set of airfares to add, plus the cost of turning your container around (or buying everything from scratch again in the UK), then a few weeks with no income while you job hunt.  So you would be close to the same again for the move back.

I haven't even mentioned the house.  If you hold on to your house when you migrate, then yes, you can move straight back in, but most people don't because they need some of their equity to pay the migration costs. If you go back, then you'll be trying to buy a similar house, but as you've just spent at least £50k of your equity on the move, you'll have a smaller deposit so you may have to settle for a smaller house.  And if you stayed long enough to buy a house in Australia, that's at least another  £10k in stamp duty and fees you won't get back when you sell.  

Like I said, if you're comfortable enough that you can afford to spend that amount of money without feeling it, then there isn't much risk involved. For the average person, losing that amount of money would have a serious impact on their quality of life.

Edited August 7, 2018 by Marisawright

[Lavers]

Hi Marisa

I have the cost of moving a lot lower so am I missing something?

visa for family of 4 = £4000

Skill Assessment = £1500

Medical = £860

Holiday rental 60days = £3500

Cheap car = £1700

Flights for 4 = £1200

House Bond = £1400

Shipping Costs = £2000

Also other small bits and pieces so add another £1000

Then lastly money to cover wages whilst I find work but seeing as I will be in a holiday rental for 2 months costs will be low.

[can1983]

1 hour ago, Lavers said:

Hi Marisa

I have the cost of moving a lot lower so am I missing something?

visa for family of 4 = £4000

Skill Assessment = £1500

Medical = £860

Holiday rental 60days = £3500

Cheap car = £1700

Flights for 4 = £1200

House Bond = £1400

Shipping Costs = £2000

Also other small bits and pieces so add another £1000

Then lastly money to cover wages whilst I find work but seeing as I will be in a holiday rental for 2 months costs will be low.

you're at about 17k, and a $3k car is practically a bomb a half decent small reliable car $6-7k.

Also if you more without a job rental real estate often want rent in advance as you have no job to assess affordability against

and living costs for 2 months would be $4000 for a family of 4 surely....

furniture (are you shipping everything for that price) what about the stop gap between your leaving temporary accom and shipping arriving

We spent $30,000 and had a relocation package covering flights, temporary accommodation and shipping

Edited August 8, 2018 by can1983

[Gbye grey sky]

1 hour ago, Lavers said:

Hi Marisa

I have the cost of moving a lot lower so am I missing something?

visa for family of 4 = £4000

Skill Assessment = £1500

Medical = £860

Holiday rental 60days = £3500

Cheap car = £1700

Flights for 4 = £1200

House Bond = £1400

Shipping Costs = £2000

Also other small bits and pieces so add another £1000

Then lastly money to cover wages whilst I find work but seeing as I will be in a holiday rental for 2 months costs will be low.

Family of 4 holiday rental for under $100 a day!  Seems very low.  Feeding a family in cheap rental is not easy so I expect you will eat out a lot.  Cannot imagine $1700 will last a couple of months.  We spend about $300 - $400 a week on food and consummables for a family of 3 and eat out very rarely.

You cannot be shipping much for £2000.

$3000 will buy you a car wreck essentially.

Are the flights really that cheap?

[Marisawright]

1 hour ago, Lavers said:

Hi Marisa

I have the cost of moving a lot lower so am I missing something?

Not counting the house bond (which is only a deposit, so you eventually get it back), you're at £15,760.

I'm assuming you've researched the figures, but some of them seem light to me.  For instance, my niece bought a car for about that price recently.  It's an old bomb which I think is a danger on the roads!   Cars are more expensive here.  I'd suggest allowing £4-5K for a small reliable car.  You'll also have to register and insure it.  Obviously if you left, you'd cancel the insurance and get some money back, but you get no money back on the registration. 

What does your shipping cost cover?   It depends where you are and where you're going, but if you're shipping all your possessions, I'd expect you to need half a container at least, which I thought was about £4-5K.   

If you're only sending  furniture, then you'll need a lot more than  £1,000 to buy other stuff when you arrive.  Look around your house - you'll need pots, pans, storage containers, crockery, cutlery, glasses, bathroom essentials, sheets, duvets, towels, cleaning materials....individually it's all cheap, but it's frightening how quickly it mounts up.  If you want to do the exercise, just try doing an online shop at somewhere like Kmart (which is the cheapest there is) and see what it all comes to. Then there's a fridge, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, TV, hairdryer, iron...and whitegoods are a lot more expensive here.

It occurs to me that maybe you're bringing all the small stuff and planning to rent a furnished place?   It depends where you're going, but in general, flats are not furnished here, unless they are for business executives and priced accordingly. So if you're not bringing furniture, you'll have to buy some.

With children, you also need to budget to outfit them for school.

Finally, you still need to eat while you're not working!

Edited August 8, 2018 by Marisawright

[Alltogethernow]

3grilmama, do you need to sell property prior to leaving?

We came over with a similar family setup and are loving life since

It takes balls, but I think you guys should go for it!

Start with the reccie trip, which is what we did.

ATN

[Gbye grey sky]

Also allow for car rental.  You won’t buy a car straight away and you will need a car.

[Lavers]

Thanks for all the replies

Obviously the figure I give for a car is a wreck but it would hopefully do just to get around but I am probably best to up that I think.

Holiday rentals are around that price on the internet and don't seem to bad at all really just to get us going for a few months.

Flights are checked, cheaper if you book early.

I will check on the shipping as a couple I know moved end of last year and they gave me that figure.

I would come with around 2 months worth of wages and hopefully find something in that time.

Thanks again.

[Lavers]

45 minutes ago, Gbye grey sky said:

Also allow for car rental.  You won’t buy a car straight away and you will need a car.

Ive allowed for that thanks just didn't add it to my list as im only looking at $500 for 3 week rental so neither here nor there, although the small bits add up.

[Lavers]

Out of curiosity what do people spend on a weekly food shop?

[LKC]

We've been back in the UK for almost a year, but we used to spend around $350 to $400 per week for two adults and two children, including cat meat, cleaning products, fruit and veg, meat from the butcher, fish from the fishmonger, limited processed/convenience foods.  Of course people will come along and tell you that they spend no more than $25 a week, but that isn't realistic for a family in my opinion.

Your budget does seem a bit low, to be honest.  You will probably find that your budget for your car too small, plus you'll need to add on rego, CTP and insurance.  Plus of course you'll need to add in running costs such as petrol.  Our shipping was a bit over £4000 in 2009, for a full container, but of course this will depend on how much is being shipped and where from/to.  People usually recommend coming with six months of wages, just in case it takes longer to get a job, and you may find that if you try and get a rental place before you have a job contract, you may have to offer to pay six months rent up front.  

Don't underestimate how the little things add up.  Even silly things like store cupboard ingredients add up, for the first few months you spend way more than you think you will on things like that.  As Marisawright points out, things like towels, bedding, pots and pans, mop and bucket etc will need to be bought too.  School costs also add up because schools don't tend have generic uniforms (eg. grey skirt, white shirt, blue jumper) that you can buy cheaply from the supermarket.  It used to cost me $200+ per kid per year for uniform, excluding shoes.  Plus you may have to buy their books and things for school, as those things aren't always provided.

[Lavers]

16 minutes ago, LKC said:

We've been back in the UK for almost a year, but we used to spend around $350 to $400 per week for two adults and two children, including cat meat, cleaning products, fruit and veg, meat from the butcher, fish from the fishmonger, limited processed/convenience foods.  Of course people will come along and tell you that they spend no more than $25 a week, but that isn't realistic for a family in my opinion.

Your budget does seem a bit low, to be honest.  You will probably find that your budget for your car too small, plus you'll need to add on rego, CTP and insurance.  Plus of course you'll need to add in running costs such as petrol.  Our shipping was a bit over £4000 in 2009, for a full container, but of course this will depend on how much is being shipped and where from/to.  People usually recommend coming with six months of wages, just in case it takes longer to get a job, and you may find that if you try and get a rental place before you have a job contract, you may have to offer to pay six months rent up front.  

Don't underestimate how the little things add up.  Even silly things like store cupboard ingredients add up, for the first few months you spend way more than you think you will on things like that.  As Marisawright points out, things like towels, bedding, pots and pans, mop and bucket etc will need to be bought too.  School costs also add up because schools don't tend have generic uniforms (eg. grey skirt, white shirt, blue jumper) that you can buy cheaply from the supermarket.  It used to cost me $200+ per kid per year for uniform, excluding shoes.  Plus you may have to buy their books and things for school, as those things aren't always provided.

Thanks LKC, may I ask why you came back?

[calNgary]

1 hour ago, Lavers said:

Out of curiosity what do people spend on a weekly food shop?

I spend an average of $300 a week for 2 adults and 3 teens (1 of which is gluten / dairy  free, so everything more expensive). This week it was $229 ,but the week before last it was $350 ish..  The trick with supermarket shopping is buying items when offer. This happens every few weeks at Woolowrtrhs or Coles so when (as an example) Comfort conditioner is down to $3.49 ,i will buy a couple of bottles, when Lynx deodorant is down to $2.49, again i buy a few tins. You get in the habit after a while.

I will buy extra bread and milk throughout the week on top of that.

 

As for a car it depends what you want, if your not bothered about a sparkling new model ,you can actually get a half decent run around for $3k to $4 k ,have a look on Gumtree to see what your money will you get you and don't forget everyone haggles here !

 

   Cal x

[NickyNook]

I monitor all our expenses and know down to the last cent what we spend and where we spend it.

For two adults, we spent $165 a week on food and other supermarket items last financial year. That figure does not include eating out or alcohol.

We live in Sydney and use Aldi whenever possible then Coles/Woollies depending who has the best specials.

[LKC]

6 minutes ago, Lavers said:

Thanks LKC, may I ask why you came back?

There were lots of reasons, to be honest.  A large part of it was to do with timing.  Our eldest daughter was due to start high school, and we realised that if she started high school in Australia, it would be more difficult to move back later on down the track, and that if we stayed we needed to be prepared to stay in the longer term (we were there for almost nine years as it was).  The longer we were there, the less settled we felt, particularly for me.  I felt like a square peg in a round hole.  We found it extremely difficult to make friends.  Don't get me wrong, everyone was friendly, but deeper friendships never developed at all.  I've never needed lots of friends, but I have always made and kept good friends wherever else we've lived (including here in Scotland, where we'd never lived before last year), so I found the lack of friendships hard.  More than anything though, we just didn't belong there and it wasn't home.  We came over to the UK for a holiday, and it made us realise that we didn't want to live in Australia any more.  So, we moved.

[Gbye grey sky]

49 minutes ago, calNgary said:

I spend an average of $300 a week for 2 adults and 3 teens (1 of which is gluten / dairy  free, so everything more expensive). This week it was $229 ,but the week before last it was $350 ish..  The trick with supermarket shopping is buying items when offer. This happens every few weeks at Woolowrtrhs or Coles so when (as an example) Comfort conditioner is down to $3.49 ,i will buy a couple of bottles, when Lynx deodorant is down to $2.49, again i buy a few tins. You get in the habit after a while.

I will buy extra bread and milk throughout the week on top of that.

 

As for a car it depends what you want, if your not bothered about a sparkling new model ,you can actually get a half decent run around for $3k to $4 k ,have a look on Gumtree to see what your money will you get you and don't forget everyone haggles here !

 

   Cal x

This is not to be underestimated in terms of savings and something you cannot take full advantage of on your first few shops when everything is essential.  We have a larder full of items like rice, tea and coffee because the offers are generally 30-50% off and they come around periodically.

Even silly things at first such as buying plug adaptors for electrical appliances you don’t really factor in but they add up.

[ali]

2 hours ago, Lavers said:

Thanks for all the replies

Obviously the figure I give for a car is a wreck but it would hopefully do just to get around but I am probably best to up that I think.

Holiday rentals are around that price on the internet and don't seem to bad at all really just to get us going for a few months.

Flights are checked, cheaper if you book early.

I will check on the shipping as a couple I know moved end of last year and they gave me that figure.

I would come with around 2 months worth of wages and hopefully find something in that time.

Thanks again.

When the time comes, see if you can do a deal for a long holiday rent - we got $50 a week knocked off - but paid $625 which included all bills, fully furnished and use of a car

[Lavers]

58 minutes ago, LKC said:

There were lots of reasons, to be honest.  A large part of it was to do with timing.  Our eldest daughter was due to start high school, and we realised that if she started high school in Australia, it would be more difficult to move back later on down the track, and that if we stayed we needed to be prepared to stay in the longer term (we were there for almost nine years as it was).  The longer we were there, the less settled we felt, particularly for me.  I felt like a square peg in a round hole.  We found it extremely difficult to make friends.  Don't get me wrong, everyone was friendly, but deeper friendships never developed at all.  I've never needed lots of friends, but I have always made and kept good friends wherever else we've lived (including here in Scotland, where we'd never lived before last year), so I found the lack of friendships hard.  More than anything though, we just didn't belong there and it wasn't home.  We came over to the UK for a holiday, and it made us realise that we didn't want to live in Australia any more.  So, we moved.

At least you did what you thought was for the best both times of asking and you wont live with any regrets (hopefully).  Regarding the friendships I grew up in social care so I sought of feel like I belong in the UK either its just a case of  plodding on (this isn't a big reason for wanting to try Australia though) so hopefully that wouldn't be a problem in Australia and if it does then I put up with it for my kids or we all feel the same and move back.

I think maybe the deeper friendships you have are with people you have grown up with and experienced many things together rather than the friends who you see once a month at a bbq who are more than happy to slag you off behind your back haha.

 

[Lavers]

13 minutes ago, ali said:

When the time comes, see if you can do a deal for a long holiday rent - we got $50 a week knocked off - but paid $625 which included all bills, fully furnished and use of a car

I may look at a 3 month rental then at least that stops some of the pressure in finding a job straight away. Am I right in thinking that you cant rent a house until you have a job?

[Lavers]

The shopping can vary greatly then, I spend £80 a week in the UK if I do an online shop.

If my wife goes to asda she spends £100 - £120 a week haha

[LKC]

2 minutes ago, Lavers said:

At least you did what you thought was for the best both times of asking and you wont live with any regrets (hopefully).  Regarding the friendships I grew up in social care so I sought of feel like I belong in the UK either its just a case of  plodding on (this isn't a big reason for wanting to try Australia though) so hopefully that wouldn't be a problem in Australia and if it does then I put up with it for my kids or we all feel the same and move back.

I think maybe the deeper friendships you have are with people you have grown up with and experienced many things together rather than the friends who you see once a month at a bbq who are more than happy to slag you off behind your back haha.

 

We don't have any regrets about moving to Australia at all, we had a great adventure there, and we got to live in and see a part of the world that others can only dream of.  But we knew it was time to move on, so we did.  We don't regret our move to Scotland either.  It has been hard work, we've never lived here before, and have had to start from scratch in many respects.  I'm glad we had the courage to try something new, though, rather than try to go back to what we had before.  Australia changed us, and for that reason we had to move on, rather than back.

[LKC]

4 minutes ago, Lavers said:

The shopping can vary greatly then, I spend £80 a week in the UK if I do an online shop.

If my wife goes to asda she spends £100 - £120 a week haha

Have a look at the Woolworths or Coles websites and do one of your online shops, to see what it comes out at.

[Lavers]

14 minutes ago, LKC said:

We don't have any regrets about moving to Australia at all, we had a great adventure there, and we got to live in and see a part of the world that others can only dream of.  But we knew it was time to move on, so we did.  We don't regret our move to Scotland either.  It has been hard work, we've never lived here before, and have had to start from scratch in many respects.  I'm glad we had the courage to try something new, though, rather than try to go back to what we had before.  Australia changed us, and for that reason we had to move on, rather than back.

Good on you for what you have done.  It is so easy for people (including myself) to just carry on and do the same thing over and over just because it is easy, then we find ourselves in our own little bubble. The unrest at the start is what we could all do without but the rewards can offer so much more.

[Booma]

2 hours ago, Lavers said:

Out of curiosity what do people spend on a weekly food shop?

Our shop usually costs around $100 a week for 2 adults and 2 toddlers. We are vegetarian and tend not to eat processed foods either so I’m sure that helps keep our costs down. I shop mainly at our local fresh food market and I only go to supermarket for washing powder and such and grab it on the specials.