Guest Posted August 19, 2018 Share Posted August 19, 2018 Hi. I really think that there should be a big notice put up for anyone coming out here to Oz -saying- DON'T DO IT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILLIONS. Australia has become a two class society. The Rich and the poor. No in between. I do know since I am an Australian brought up in the SE of SA! I went to the UK when I was 21 and returned (my family is here) when I was 51. I was so unprepared for what had happened to my Homeland. There is NO affordable housing here. The rentals are dire! Medicare is good but very limited. And anyone over 40 struggles to get work! The ageism here just doesn't exist in the UK. I have now had to dip into most of my savings to survive and found the horrible future that awaits all over 55, single, low income women here in Australia. Homelessness. The Govt will not build the units needed for low cost living and the private sector simply want as much rent as they can get. Plus my pension is frozen. So incredibly disappointed in Australia. In my youth it had such potential. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, dii said: Hi. I really think that there should be a big notice put up for anyone coming out here to Oz -saying- DON'T DO IT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILLIONS. Australia has become a two class society. The Rich and the poor. No in between. I do know since I am an Australian brought up in the SE of SA! I went to the UK when I was 21 and returned (my family is here) when I was 51. I was so unprepared for what had happened to my Homeland. There is NO affordable housing here. The rentals are dire! Medicare is good but very limited. And anyone over 40 struggles to get work! The ageism here just doesn't exist in the UK. I have now had to dip into most of my savings to survive and found the horrible future that awaits all over 55, single, low income women here in Australia. Homelessness. The Govt will not build the units needed for low cost living and the private sector simply want as much rent as they can get. Plus my pension is frozen. So incredibly disappointed in Australia. In my youth it had such potential. Is this the first time you've been back since you moved to the UK when you were 21? If so you will find it a great deal different. We came here over 30 years ago when it was much easier to find work and buy a house. We saved carefully all our working lives and managed to retire very comfortably and we have a happy life here. We retired to Tasmania. I blame useless Governments over the last couple of decades for the problems here. Useless the lot of them. Would life be better for you if you returned to the UK? Edited August 20, 2018 by Toots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 2 hours ago, dii said: Hi. I really think that there should be a big notice put up for anyone coming out here to Oz -saying- DON'T DO IT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILLIONS. ... went to the UK when I was 21 and returned (my family is here) when I was 51. The ageism here just doesn't exist in the UK. I have now had to dip into most of my savings to survive and found the horrible future that awaits all over 55, single, low income women here in Australia. Homelessness. T I'm so sorry to hear you are struggling. Where in Australia are you living? You are right to say some parts of Australia are unaffordable, but house prices and rents vary enormously across the country. Some places are ludicrous but other places are more manageable. Could you move, or are you stuck near family? As for Medicare - Medicare covers almost everything. First of all, find a doctor who bulk bills, then you'll have no gap to pay. Then, if you need to see a specialist, TELL the doctor that you want to go public. GP's here are so used to people having health insurance, they'll refer you to a private specialist without thinking, so you just need to let them know that's not what you want. Although they tell horror stories about long waiting lists for the public system, that's only the health funds using scare tactics - the waiting lists are no worse than the NHS in Britain. For prescriptions - once you get to a certain threshold, you'll go on the safety net and you won't have to pay as much for prescriptions. Also if you haven't already, go to Centrelink and see what other benefits you can get. I agree about the ageism. Having lived in Sydney for 30 years, I assumed it was a world-wide phenomenon, but I did notice, when I was back in the UK, that it seemed much less prevalent there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 24 minutes ago, Marisawright said: I'm so sorry to hear you are struggling. Where in Australia are you living? You are right to say some parts of Australia are unaffordable, but house prices and rents vary enormously across the country. Some places are ludicrous but other places are more manageable. Could you move, or are you stuck near family? As for Medicare - Medicare covers almost everything. First of all, find a doctor who bulk bills, then you'll have no gap to pay. Then, if you need to see a specialist, TELL the doctor that you want to go public. GP's here are so used to people having health insurance, they'll refer you to a private specialist without thinking, so you just need to let them know that's not what you want. Although they tell horror stories about long waiting lists for the public system, that's only the health funds using scare tactics - the waiting lists are no worse than the NHS in Britain. For prescriptions - once you get to a certain threshold, you'll go on the safety net and you won't have to pay as much for prescriptions. Also if you haven't already, go to Centrelink and see what other benefits you can get. I agree about the ageism. Having lived in Sydney for 30 years, I assumed it was a world-wide phenomenon, but I did notice, when I was back in the UK, that it seemed much less prevalent there. Thank you for your kind words. But actually ALL of Australia is unaffordable unless you want to live far away from services or go inland. Unless you have money there is no where on any of the coasts (believe me I have done my research). As someone who has been used to living near services and good transport and near hospitals etc, why would I want to live remotely? In fact I have Australian friends who have come to live near the coast because living inland was too hard for them, especially in older age. They too are barely surviving. The average lowest rental is $300 per week (That is over half of my friends pension). In the UK a low private rental is $400-$500 per month. ($800 per month), but there are many more rentals through the govt much lower:( Centerlink here provides rent assistance - which hasnt been updated for many years- so practically everyone is now on maximum rental assistance, and it doesnt really touch rent. HAAG is a good website to go to to see how hard older Aussies are doing it now. Thank you anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 1 hour ago, Toots said: Is this the first time you've been back since you moved to the UK when you were 21? If so you will find it a great deal different. We came here over 30 years ago when it was much easier to find work and buy a house. We saved carefully all our working lives and managed to retire very comfortably and we have a happy life here. We retired to Tasmania. I blame useless Governments over the last couple of decades for the problems here. Useless the lot of them. Would life be better for you if you returned to the UK? Yes,like so many having to return to the UK- it would make it financially so much easier for me. But really what that says about Australia is- IT IS ONLY FOR THE RICH. Unfortunately it will also mean a huge exodus of the next generation as they become older- as they cant afford to buy/live here either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 1 minute ago, dii said: Yes,like so many having to return to the UK- it would make it financially so much easier for me. But really what that says about Australia is- IT IS ONLY FOR THE RICH. Unfortunately it will also mean a huge exodus of the next generation as they become older- as they cant afford to buy/live here either. Tasmania is trying to provide housing for low income people and it can't come soon enough. There is quite a lot of state housing here and they are building more. I do voluntary work and one young single mother I know very well pays $500 per month for her small 2 bedroom villa type home. https://www.dhhs.tas.gov.au/housing/tasmanian_affordable_housing_strategy We used to live in Sydney and the price of houses there was unbelievable for what you got for the money. The thing is though, they were snapped up. Some people seem to have loads of money to splash around. Yes, it is sad to see how various governments don't seem to worry too much about the folk who voted them in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 1 hour ago, dii said: Thank you for your kind words. But actually ALL of Australia is unaffordable unless you want to live far away from services or go inland. Unless you have money there is no where on any of the coasts (believe me I have done my research). I agree that Australia doesn't cater well enough for the poor. I don't agree that means it's only for the rich, though. The average person, with a decent job, can afford to buy a nice home and live a good lifestyle if they're able to move away from the crazily-priced major cities. I don't believe there will be an exodus of young people for that reason - so many young people are able to work from home these days, they can go and live in a cheaper area and still have a good income. Rents can still be expensive in smaller towns, but that's because rentals are scarce, not because the houses are expensive to buy. So affordability still exists in nice towns with good amenities. I'm a big city girl myself so I understand what you mean about not wanting to live somewhere remote. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 5 minutes ago, Marisawright said: I agree that Australia doesn't cater well enough for the poor. I don't agree that means it's only for the rich, though. The average person, with a decent job, can afford to buy a nice home and live a good lifestyle if they're able to move away from the crazily-priced major cities. I don't believe there will be an exodus of young people for that reason - so many young people are able to work from home these days, they can go and live in a cheaper area and still have a good income. Rents can still be expensive in smaller towns, but that's because rentals are scarce, not because the houses are expensive to buy. So affordability still exists in nice towns with good amenities. I'm a big city girl myself so I understand what you mean about not wanting to live somewhere remote. I must say I am talking about people over 50 here. If you dont have a house already there is no hope of getting one. And many younger people also feel this way. Job or not. Plus getting a job over 50 is very hard to impossible hence why thr govt has had to step in with the RESTART program. And getting one that pays enough to pay billsand rent etc.... hence the increasing homeless over 50. Many friends in same position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 12 minutes ago, dii said: I must say I am talking about people over 50 here. If you dont have a house already there is no hope of getting one. And many younger people also feel this way. Job or not. Plus getting a job over 50 is very hard to impossible hence why thr govt has had to step in with the RESTART program. And getting one that pays enough to pay billsand rent etc.... hence the increasing homeless over 50. Many friends in same position. Out of interest did you own or rent in UK. Depending where you moved from rents can be quite high in UK. Sorry to hear about your situation, but You don’t actually have to be a multi millionaire to live here. As others have posted check what help you are entitled to, every little helps. You don’t mention your circumstances in UK, if you were still working? but If you were better off in UK is returning the best option? Do hope things improve for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 4 minutes ago, ramot said: Out of interest did you own or rent in UK. Depending where you moved from rents can be quite high in UK. Sorry to hear about your situation, but You don’t actually have to be a multi millionaire to live here. As others have posted check what help you are entitled to, every little helps. You don’t mention your circumstances in UK, if you were still working? but If you were better off in UK is returning the best option? Do hope things improve for you. Owned.divorced. rented. Really not about me moving back... its HAVING TO. There should be a better housing system for affordable rents. Its as if you are worthless here if you are over 55 and havent bought a home. And what about all my friends here in similar positions? This is much bigger than me. This is about the way Australia treats its older low incomes. Like I said... so disappointed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 27 minutes ago, dii said: I must say I am talking about people over 50 here. If you dont have a house already there is no hope of getting one. And many younger people also feel this way. Job or not. Plus getting a job over 50 is very hard to impossible hence why thr govt has had to step in with the RESTART program. And getting one that pays enough to pay billsand rent etc.... hence the increasing homeless over 50. Many friends in same position. I have friends (in Sydney) who managed to get work in their 50's. One of them (a single woman) got a job with a large insurance company at the age of 58. She had worked at her previous job - in a bank for over 20 years. She has managed to pay a mortgage, holiday overseas and recently retired late at the age of 68 but at least she owns her own place and has superannuation plus her pension. It is possible. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 4 minutes ago, Toots said: I have friends (in Sydney) who managed to get work in their 50's. One of them (a single woman) got a job with a large insurance company at the age of 58. She had worked at her previous job - in a bank for over 20 years. She has managed to pay a mortgage, holiday overseas and recently retired late at the age of 68 but at least she owns her own place and has superannuation plus her pension. It is possible. Thankyou. Perhaps easier in the cities... but then the rents are higher. Unfortunately companies do not recognise UK qualifications as equal to Oz ones. Really been there... done that. I have friends that were nurses in Queensland. One has parkinsons one bad back. Both no money. Living in rent little money Glad your friend was successful though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 5 hours ago, dii said: Hi. I really think that there should be a big notice put up for anyone coming out here to Oz -saying- DON'T DO IT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILLIONS. Australia has become a two class society. The Rich and the poor. No in between. I do know since I am an Australian brought up in the SE of SA! I went to the UK when I was 21 and returned (my family is here) when I was 51. I was so unprepared for what had happened to my Homeland. There is NO affordable housing here. The rentals are dire! Medicare is good but very limited. And anyone over 40 struggles to get work! The ageism here just doesn't exist in the UK. I have now had to dip into most of my savings to survive and found the horrible future that awaits all over 55, single, low income women here in Australia. Homelessness. The Govt will not build the units needed for low cost living and the private sector simply want as much rent as they can get. Plus my pension is frozen. So incredibly disappointed in Australia. In my youth it had such potential. Oh well, you can always go back to the UK where people are begging to employ you and houses are two a penny. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 3 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said: Oh well, you can always go back to the UK where people are begging to employ you and houses are two a penny. Why are you so defensive? Honestly why have Australians become so annoyed if anyone says it isnt all wonderful here? Im only saying what most Media are reporting now. It IS terribly hard here for over 55 single low incomes. A huge rise in homeless over 50. God, Aussies used to be so open Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 2 hours ago, dii said: Thank you for your kind words. But actually ALL of Australia is unaffordable unless you want to live far away from services or go inland. Unless you have money there is no where on any of the coasts (believe me I have done my research). As someone who has been used to living near services and good transport and near hospitals etc, why would I want to live remotely? In fact I have Australian friends who have come to live near the coast because living inland was too hard for them, especially in older age. They too are barely surviving. The average lowest rental is $300 per week (That is over half of my friends pension). In the UK a low private rental is $400-$500 per month. ($800 per month), but there are many more rentals through the govt much lower:( Centerlink here provides rent assistance - which hasnt been updated for many years- so practically everyone is now on maximum rental assistance, and it doesnt really touch rent. HAAG is a good website to go to to see how hard older Aussies are doing it now. Thank you anyway. The single pension here is 826.20 a fortnight plus supplements. I think that's pretty OK and being near retirement age I can see me and the wife surviving on the married couples pension. Most people own their home when they retire. Most several years before, so I reckon Aus is going to be fine in retirement. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 4 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said: The single pension here is 826.20 a fortnight plus supplements. I think that's pretty OK and being near retirement age I can see me and the wife surviving on the married couples pension. Most people own their home when they retire. Most several years before, so I reckon Aus is going to be fine in retirement. Yes you own your own home. And dont have a frozen pension. I am sure retirement will be fine. It is a beautiful country and lovely people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 3 minutes ago, dii said: Why are you so defensive? Honestly why have Australians become so annoyed if anyone says it isnt all wonderful here? Im only saying what most Media are reporting now. It IS terribly hard here for over 55 single low incomes. A huge rise in homeless over 50. God, Aussies used to be so open I'm an ex pom. Came out in 92 with wife and 2 year old. Gave up jobs to come with nothing to come to. Had to start from scratch as savings went on emigrating. I know it's harder now but it wouldn't be any easier if you'd lived most of your life here and gone to the UK later with no work contacts. There's really expensive places and cheaper in the UK just like here. We thought about moving to the South Coast when we were discussing emigrating and we couldn't afford to. That was with a job to go to. It's still doable to emigrate. Plenty of people still doing it, not many of them millionaires. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 8 minutes ago, dii said: Why are you so defensive? Honestly why have Australians become so annoyed if anyone says it isnt all wonderful here? Im only saying what most Media are reporting now. It IS terribly hard here for over 55 single low incomes. A huge rise in homeless over 50. God, Aussies used to be so open I think it is hard anywhere for anyone with no savings and on low incomes. It must cause an awful lot of stress. I have seen the reports about women becoming homeless - not quite on the same par as males but significant anyway. I do hope things work out for the best for you even if it means you have to move all the way back to the UK. Do you have any family and friends there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 26 minutes ago, dii said: Owned.divorced. rented. Really not about me moving back... its HAVING TO. There should be a better housing system for affordable rents. Its as if you are worthless here if you are over 55 and havent bought a home. And what about all my friends here in similar positions? This is much bigger than me. This is about the way Australia treats its older low incomes. Like I said... so disappointed. The dreaded divorce eh. A guy I work with had a birthday and I thought he was 65. I asked him (jokingly as we are way the eldest where we work) why he was still here at 65. He replied he was 66 and wouldn't be here if he hadn't divorced twice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 5 minutes ago, Toots said: I think it is hard anywhere for anyone with no savings and on low incomes. It must cause an awful lot of stress. I have seen the reports about women becoming homeless - not quite on the same par as males but significant anyway. I do hope things work out for the best for you even if it means you have to move all the way back to the UK. Do you have any family and friends there? Thankyou. Moving back to the UK is not cheap. So it is unlikely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 3 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said: The dreaded divorce eh. A guy I work with had a birthday and I thought he was 65. I asked him (jokingly as we are way the eldest where we work) why he was still here at 65. He replied he was 66 and wouldn't be here if he hadn't divorced twice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 1 hour ago, dii said: I must say I am talking about people over 50 here. If you dont have a house already there is no hope of getting one. And many younger people also feel this way. Job or not. Plus getting a job over 50 is very hard to impossible hence why thr govt has had to step in with the RESTART program. And getting one that pays enough to pay billsand rent etc.... hence the increasing homeless over 50. Many friends in same position. I should add for balance that if you are over 50 anywhere and poor it will be hard to buy a house. And in the UK council housing is not always available either. Getting my own foot on the housing ladder back in 1989 in Surrey was difficult. My first wife and I bought a flat which had been squatted in and was thoroughly squalid. It cost £65,000 and we had a 95% mortgage with an interest rate of 12%. Property prices fell and a year later it was worth about £40,000 despite spending thousands making it habitable. Over 60% of our joint net income went on the mortgage in those early years. We had one holiday for a week on the Isle of Wight off season in our first few years together. But we soldiered on. Interest rates eventually fell, our incomes gradually rose and lifestyle improved. Ultimately you reap the benefits of this sacrifice when you are older and the mortgage is paid off but I must admit at the time we sorely wished we were renting as we would have been much better off at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 7 minutes ago, Gbye grey sky said: I should add for balance that if you are over 50 anywhere and poor it will be hard to buy a house. And in the UK council housing is not always available either. Getting my own foot on the housing ladder back in 1989 in Surrey was difficult. My first wife and I bought a flat which had been squatted in and was thoroughly squalid. It cost £65,000 and we had a 95% mortgage with an interest rate of 12%. Property prices fell and a year later it was worth about £40,000 despite spending thousands making it habitable. Over 60% of our joint net income went on the mortgage in those early years. We had one holiday for a week on the Isle of Wight off season in our first few years together. But we soldiered on. Interest rates eventually fell, our incomes gradually rose and lifestyle improved. Ultimately you reap the benefits of this sacrifice when you are older and the mortgage is paid off but I must admit at the time we sorely wished we were renting as we would have been much better off at the time. Really sorry you had it so hard. Totally get how difficult it was. But I worked for Social Services while in UK and can tell you the council housing stock there was up to 50% of housing stock at one time. Yes it has reduced but is so much higher than Australian public housing. UK is around 35%. Australia is 4%! And reducing. Look it up beureau of stats or Wikipedia. Yes there is community housing... oh Ill leave it. Only people in low income would know or understand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 15 minutes ago, dii said: Really sorry you had it so hard. Totally get how difficult it was. But I worked for Social Services while in UK and can tell you the council housing stock there was up to 50% of housing stock at one time. Yes it has reduced but is so much higher than Australian public housing. UK is around 35%. Australia is 4%! And reducing. Look it up beureau of stats or Wikipedia. Yes there is community housing... oh Ill leave it. Only people in low income would know or understand Actually quite impressed that the UK still has 35% left. Where I lived in SE Engand so much had been flogged off. 4% is pitiful though so can understand your dilemna. Presumably Oz doesn’t have the equivalent of Housing Associations either which in the UK picked up some of the slack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drumbeat Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 2 hours ago, dii said: Really sorry you had it so hard. Totally get how difficult it was. But I worked for Social Services while in UK and can tell you the council housing stock there was up to 50% of housing stock at one time. Yes it has reduced but is so much higher than Australian public housing. UK is around 35%. Australia is 4%! And reducing. Look it up beureau of stats or Wikipedia. Yes there is community housing... oh Ill leave it. Only people in low income would know or understand But surely you knew the price of houses/rents etc before you moved back? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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