The truth on Perth?!

[Blue Flu]

1 minute ago, HappyHeart said:

Yes I found the paywall article. No source identified though which makes it less than reliable. I think by the census stats 4 years later you can assume it was not accurate. 

It was in West Australian as well which was the link I sent. May be as I mentioned a newspaper beat up.

[Bulya]

52 minutes ago, welljock said:

So exactly the same as the UK, USA, Canada and numerous other countries in the world

USA and Canadia for sure..

[Bulya]

57 minutes ago, Blue Flu said:

Indeed. I get that entirely. Completely correct. But do you really feel the size of the beer glass will impact on decision ? Education may feature with some but my feeling tells me it is something far more deeper in a sense of belonging (even wanting to) and an often cited comment was a bit of a sameness when I travelled around part of Australia, decades ago as a Back Packer. Even back then far more "Poms' appeared to be on the road in comparison with Aussies. I wonder just how many Australians see their country these days? It was once the thing when I was at school here. 

I've been to all states bar ACT and Tasmania and am if anything amazed at the similarity. Nowhere do I really find the people very different. Same accent, slang, lifestyles similar. It's IMO the geographic features that change not the people, which gives an odd similarity. 

 

Nothing to do with size of the beer glass.  My comment stands 

[Toots]

1 hour ago, Blue Flu said:

Luton and Edinburgh though differ in accent/economics/country's. 

Tasmania is still part of Australia but it may as well be a different country.  It's not a big place - about the size of Switzerland and varies a lot depending where you are so I totally get what @Marisawright means.  Economics, climate etc here very different to other parts of Australia.

[HappyHeart]

19 hours ago, TheBs said:

Thank you everyone, I can see it is still quite a split opinion. 

I'm not from a big city and for me any kind of concert day out is an overnight stay.

I'm from a quiet coastal town, where the pubs still shut at 11pm, so by the sounds of it I think the lack of hustle and bustle won't be an issue, we love the beach and bike rides, and country walks, doesn't need to hilly.

Theres drug issues everywhere in the world I suppose, though meth isn't an issue in the UK I don't think it's more cocaine.

In my area there is a big issue with child trafficking and gangs using children as drug mules, there's no job prospects being a seaside town, unless you're prepared to commute, you're waiting for the next person to retire to fill their shoes.

I guess we won't know till we're there, but with two kids in tow, you just want it to be right, not necessarily perfect but right enough, to warrant leaving the UK, and not up-haul again to go to a different state.

My family live in Joondalup, obviously they love it and have been there 20+ years, so I just wondered what an "outsiders" perspective was. 

I’d guess it’s going to suit you. What areas are you looking at? You might prefer the hills region to Joondalup area. 

[Marisawright]

4 hours ago, HappyHeart said:

That's not really accurate about Perth to be fair. Most of the newer suburbs have livability at their core with amenities within walking distance. Pub, cafe, restaurant, park 

I am NOT saying all Perth suburbs are soulless, so there's no need to get defensive.  In fact if you read my post, you'll see I was defending Perth - I was pointing out that many of the negative posts which the OP read, were probably from people who migrated and ended up in a soulless suburb, then judged the whole city by that. So the trick is to be careful when picking suburbs.  

All cities end up with some soulless dormitory suburbs once they get above a certain size. Perth would have to be very special indeed to have none.

[HappyHeart]

1 minute ago, Marisawright said:

I am NOT saying all Perth suburbs are soulless, so there's no need to get defensive.  In fact if you read my post, you'll see I was defending Perth - I was pointing out that many of the negative posts which the OP read, were probably from people who migrated and ended up in a soulless suburb, then judged the whole city by that. So the trick is to be careful when picking suburbs.  

All cities end up with some soulless dormitory suburbs once they get above a certain size. Perth would have to be very special indeed to have none.

Be careful when picking suburbs, absolutely and not defensive at all, just pointing out some facts. I just can’t think of any suburbs that meet your specific criteria of ‘soulless’ that’s all. I guess soulless is also subjective!  

[HappyHeart]

My street in Perth is very quiet. Nobody out after dark. That tends to be the nature of suburbia. No street parties as such. I live in an older suburb. I could walk to the shops and pub if I wanted to. There’s lots of green space. Transport links are ok. Value for money is good. 
When choosing a suburb identify your non negotiables;

Budget (very important- choose the suburb based on your budget not the other way around) 

Amenities within walking distance - how important is this?

Local schools?

Commute time and bus/rail links?

Proximity to beach, river or green space? 

We used PIO and other sites extensively when planning our move and we still live within 10km of original suburb we moved to. Do your homework and you should be fine. 

[newjez]

1 hour ago, HappyHeart said:

My street in Perth is very quiet. Nobody out after dark. That tends to be the nature of suburbia. No street parties as such. I live in an older suburb. I could walk to the shops and pub if I wanted to. There’s lots of green space. Transport links are ok. Value for money is good. 
When choosing a suburb identify your non negotiables;

Budget (very important- choose the suburb based on your budget not the other way around) 

Amenities within walking distance - how important is this?

Local schools?

Commute time and bus/rail links?

Proximity to beach, river or green space? 

We used PIO and other sites extensively when planning our move and we still live within 10km of original suburb we moved to. Do your homework and you should be fine. 

Also, there tend to be a lot of suburbs where migrants flock to, and many suburbs where migrants don't consider.

Take Guildford, Inglewood or bayswater for example. Not trying them. They have their pros and cons. But they have a different flavour to the newer suburbs.

[Blue Flu]

4 hours ago, HappyHeart said:

Be careful when picking suburbs, absolutely and not defensive at all, just pointing out some facts. I just can’t think of any suburbs that meet your specific criteria of ‘soulless’ that’s all. I guess soulless is also subjective!  

Gosh really? As a Perthite , if not a completely won over patriot, I can think of loads. When house hunting in 2000 the feeling  in so many suburbs of desolation, emptiness, isolation, distance from amenities, was soul wracking in itself. Hence  inner city decision which was a sound option, at least until more recent years.

[HappyHeart]

4 minutes ago, Blue Flu said:

Gosh really? As a Perthite , if not a completely won over patriot, I can think of loads. When house hunting in 2000 the feeling  in so many suburbs of desolation, emptiness, isolation, distance from amenities, was soul wracking in itself. Hence  inner city decision which was a sound option, at least until more recent years.

Name some?

[Paul1Perth]

What

On 31/08/2021 at 02:25, TheBs said:

Hi we've researched areas, and our head chose Perth as well as other benefits the deciding factor was due to its proximity to Bali where we have family and we also have family in Perth so figured a friendly face would help us settle.

HOWEVER....

 

I''ve just come off a comment section from another site where I don't think in 20 comments I read a single positive about Perth! 

 

Anyone live there that can give me their honest opinion, as most of the comments I read basically said WA was money obsessed, had a  work till you die ethic, racist, misogynistic and cliquey with nowhere to go and nothing to do!! 

I'm shocked and need reassuring

 

What site were you on? Let's face it you can find a site with negative comments about anywhere if you search.

We've been here since 1992, love it and wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Kids are 32 and 25, the 32 year old has travelled extensively, including 2 years living and working in Whistler Canada.He used to have a bit of a negative attitude about Perth before he started travelling. He's a sparkie, worked FIFO since his late teens, used to save up then disappear for 6 months at a time.

He came back from a European trip once where he'd been on a couple of boat trips in the Greek Islands and Croatia, been to a few music festivals (tomorrowland was one, he's been there 3 times). 2nd day he was back here he was off to Rottnest on his mates boat for raftup, where the youngsters moor boats together, crank the music up and party. I went to pick him up as he'd had a few drinks and on the way back I asked if he'd had a good time. He said don't worry Paul, I know how good Perth is and how good we have it.

He was going to Bali that evening too so was coming home to sober up for a couple of hours.

We've been to Bali a couple of times too, quality of hotels for the price is fantastic, but it's extremely crowded and it's a third world country with a lot of poor people. Nice people though.

Don't know what the hotels will be like after covid. We certainly won't be going for a long time.

Plenty to do and see in WA though, we've been so lucky during covid.

 

[Paul1Perth]

1 hour ago, HappyHeart said:

Name some?

Whilst not as bad as BlueFlu makes out I wouldn't want to live in say, Ellenbrook, Armadale and probably a few more where it's a long way from the beach and a cooling breeze.

[TheBs]

5 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said:

What

What site were you on? Let's face it you can find a site with negative comments about anywhere if you search.

We've been here since 1992, love it and wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Kids are 32 and 25, the 32 year old has travelled extensively, including 2 years living and working in Whistler Canada.He used to have a bit of a negative attitude about Perth before he started travelling. He's a sparkie, worked FIFO since his late teens, used to save up then disappear for 6 months at a time.

He came back from a European trip once where he'd been on a couple of boat trips in the Greek Islands and Croatia, been to a few music festivals (tomorrowland was one, he's been there 3 times). 2nd day he was back here he was off to Rottnest on his mates boat for raftup, where the youngsters moor boats together, crank the music up and party. I went to pick him up as he'd had a few drinks and on the way back I asked if he'd had a good time. He said don't worry Paul, I know how good Perth is and how good we have it.

He was going to Bali that evening too so was coming home to sober up for a couple of hours.

We've been to Bali a couple of times too, quality of hotels for the price is fantastic, but it's extremely crowded and it's a third world country with a lot of poor people. Nice people though.

Don't know what the hotels will be like after covid. We certainly won't be going for a long time.

Plenty to do and see in WA though, we've been so lucky during covid.

 

It was a price comparison site comparing cost of living, and then at the bottom there was a link to a comment section on life in Perth and if say for every 10 negative comments, like really negative, there was 1 Luke warm positive

We have family in Bali who we have visited, it would be out local getaway for sure.

 

Just starting the long process now, forgot how many loops and hoops you need to jump through before even considering visa application

[Paul1Perth]

On 31/08/2021 at 09:16, Marisawright said:

I don't think you can draw that conclusion at all, because you don't know what kind of UK and Irish people.

One of the things I often hear is that there's a kind of British ghetto in some Perth suburbs--a bit like the British ghettos in Spain, where people have left the UK but live in a little British bubble and have no interest in belonging to the country they've moved to.   

Never experienced that. There are lots of UK people here but the ones we know came because they wanted the Perth lifestyle, liked the country, wanted to be part of it and most were sick of the British weather and overcrowding. We all mix well with our Aussie, Italian and South African heritage mates too.

[Paul1Perth]

6 minutes ago, TheBs said:

It was a price comparison site comparing cost of living, and then at the bottom there was a link to a comment section on life in Perth and if say for every 10 negative comments, like really negative, there was 1 Luke warm positive

We have family in Bali who we have visited, it would be out local getaway for sure.

 

Just starting the long process now, forgot how many loops and hoops you need to jump through before even considering visa application

You're a long way off coming then if you're only considering visa applications. It's not easy to get in.

[Paul1Perth]

7 minutes ago, TheBs said:

It was a price comparison site comparing cost of living, and then at the bottom there was a link to a comment section on life in Perth and if say for every 10 negative comments, like really negative, there was 1 Luke warm positive

We have family in Bali who we have visited, it would be out local getaway for sure.

 

Just starting the long process now, forgot how many loops and hoops you need to jump through before even considering visa application

Don't forget there's a beatiful Island, Rottnest, 30 minutes ferry ride away. Bali might be risky for a few years yet.

[TheBs]

17 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said:

Don't forget there's a beatiful Island, Rottnest, 30 minutes ferry ride away. Bali might be risky for a few years yet.

Oh yes of course, just thinking in the future when "normality" of what ever level is back it's somewhere we'll go 

[Craig Colas]

1 hour ago, Paul1Perth said:

Whilst not as bad as BlueFlu makes out I wouldn't want to live in say, Ellenbrook, Armadale and probably a few more where it's a long way from the beach and a cooling breeze.

Any others you would recommend or have good knowledge about @Paul1Perth? Our flight out there is in November, staying with friends for a month while we get set up. Daughter will start school in January as well. She's had a year and half here so far but will be first year over there, she's only 5. We are looking North of the river Hillary's upwards. Commute doesn't matter to me as I will be FIFO as well most of the time. Wife is a nurse but will be agency for a while so not attached to one place and not working loads either so commute not too important. Just looking for a quiet area, good for kids with good schools, close'ish to the beach. 

Renting for a few years first, then once settled and have PR. It's the 491 Visa we have. Plan on then selling our UK house and buying here but wanted to rent in an area where we would look to buy. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Edited September 1, 2021 by Craig Colas

[HappyHeart]

8 minutes ago, Craig Colas said:

Any others you would recommend or have good knowledge about @Paul1Perth? Our flight out there is in November, staying with friends for a month while we get set up. Daughter will start school in January as well. She's had a year and half here so far but will be first year over there, she's only 5. We are looking North of the river Hillary's upwards. Commute doesn't matter to me as I will be FIFO as well most of the time. Wife is a nurse but will be agency for a while so not attached to one place and not working loads either so commute not too important. Just looking for a quiet area, good for kids with good schools, close'ish to the beach. 

Renting for a few years first, then once settled and have PR. It's the 491 Visa we have. Plan on then selling our UK house and buying here but wanted to rent in an area where we would look to buy. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Are you aware that there’s a rental crisis right now? It’s very difficult to secure property 

[TheBs]

10 minutes ago, Craig Colas said:

Any others you would recommend or have good knowledge about @Paul1Perth? Our flight out there is in November, staying with friends for a month while we get set up. Daughter will start school in January as well. She's had a year and half here so far but will be first year over there, she's only 5. We are looking North of the river Hillary's upwards. Commute doesn't matter to me as I will be FIFO as well most of the time. Wife is a nurse but will be agency for a while so not attached to one place and not working loads either so commute not too important. Just looking for a quiet area, good for kids with good schools, close'ish to the beach. 

Renting for a few years first, then once settled and have PR. It's the 491 Visa we have. Plan on then selling our UK house and buying here but wanted to rent in an area where we would look to buy. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

@Craig ColasColas can I ask, did your wife do the ANMAC and APHRA applications and then just find work once in Australia? Who got the 491 visa was it you or her?

We are looking at a similar route, and have discussed going over to a fixed term job, and then once over apply for the PR. It would be useful to know that it's possible to go with the qualifications but without the job and start applying once out 

[Craig Colas]

44 minutes ago, HappyHeart said:

Are you aware that there’s a rental crisis right now? It’s very difficult to secure property 

Yer I am aware. Sure to get one at some point though and we could pay a year up front if we had to try and secure one. Obviously if the crisis is that bad and we can't get in the area we want you just look elsewhere for the time being. 

43 minutes ago, TheBs said:

@Craig ColasColas can I ask, did your wife do the ANMAC and APHRA applications and then just find work once in Australia? Who got the 491 visa was it you or her?

We are looking at a similar route, and have discussed going over to a fixed term job, and then once over apply for the PR. It would be useful to know that it's possible to go with the qualifications but without the job and start applying once out 

We are still in the UK at the moment. Fly on the 8th of November...hopefully! My wife is a Nurse and it was her that got the visa. You need the ANMAC to secure your visa I think. Once she had the visa she then started her APHRA registration. Then she applied for jobs and got one, got contract etc. then applied for exemption to travel and it was granted.

[HappyHeart]

7 minutes ago, Craig Colas said:

Yer I am aware. Sure to get one at some point though and we could pay a year up front if we had to try and secure one. Obviously if the crisis is that bad and we can't get in the area we want you just look elsewhere for the time being. 

We are still in the UK at the moment. Fly on the 8th of November...hopefully! My wife is a Nurse and it was her that got the visa. You need the ANMAC to secure your visa I think. Once she had the visa she then started her APHRA registration. Then she applied for jobs and got one, got contract etc. then applied for exemption to travel and it was granted.

Good luck. It’s really tough out there to be honest and most rentals are going higher than advertised rates. Not a question of getting one in area you want- more of getting one at all. Maybe get your family to look for you before you come (if it’s you that has family here) 

[RandL]

What do people think about Yanchep and/or Two Rocks. 

 

All this talk about Perth makes us homesick again, stuck in the UK at the moment , have lived in Perth and Great Southern for more than 20 years , plus a couple of years in Queensland. If there's a definition for pingponger , i think it would be us . 

went to OZ for 20+years, the UK for 6 , Oz again for 2 , now back in the UK for almost 2 and can't wait to get back ..... 

 

[MacGyver]

3 minutes ago, HappyHeart said:

Good luck. It’s really tough out there to be honest and most rentals are going higher than advertised rates. Not a question of getting one in area you want- more of getting one at all. Maybe get your family to look for you before you come (if it’s you that has family here) 

I don’t know if it’s true or not but a real estate agent told us the rental market has been cooling slightly, particularly townhouses and apartments closer to the city. Northern suburbs do seem to be popular just now but they could always look for something more compact and central and use it to enjoy/get to know the city and explore preferred suburbs to the north. Then look to move to that suburb when the lease ends and the market has possible eased off a bit.

I think a fair few people will leave Perth when the borders eventually open, whether that’s FIFO workers no longer staying in WA to avoid closed borders or people desperate to travel overseas and/or move back to UK etc be closer to family again.