Guest Mel & Ed Posted October 31, 2005 Share Posted October 31, 2005 Hello everyone, I have been on this website a few times and got great help for my queries, but i thought id better introduce us now that we are well into the process and things seem a bit more real..!! Scary Mary!!! Im mel (37) hubby Ed (31) and 3 sproggs (8,5 & 1)and were heading for Perth early next year. Im a nurse and am applying for skilled visa and will work full time while Ed will have the pleasure of chilcare and "domestic management" .....!! Ive come up with areas like Hilaries, Joondalup, Duncraig,Carine, slightly north of perth central...Has anyone got any experience of these areas?? I would love to hear from anyone else heading for Perth... We dont have any relatives or friends(yet) in Perth so it would be excellent to hear from anyone else planning to make the move there.. Thanks Melanie.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cath Posted November 1, 2005 Share Posted November 1, 2005 Hi Melanie, We are also heading for Perth next year. We hope to be there by May at the latest we are waiting for our medical request at the moment and the house is going on the market straight after christmas. We too are going north of the river, probably either Mindarie, Iluka, Connolly or Carramar. Joondalup is a good area and I really love it around Hilaries. Have you been to Perth before? How far on with your application are you? Catherine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel & Ed Posted November 2, 2005 Share Posted November 2, 2005 Hi Catherine, I am just awaiting the return for my skills assessment and then we can put in for our visa...We have never been to Perth before,although some of our friends have and from all the research i have done it seems an ideal starting point for us..and i guess it'll be a great adventure. How did you come to choose the areas you mentioned?? Do you have any children going with you ?? Are you going to rent when you get there?? I'd be greatfull for any tips you have, Regards Melanie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cath Posted November 3, 2005 Share Posted November 3, 2005 Hi Melanie, Why did I choose those areas? well, in the end it was really all down to schools. We went out to Perth in May, rented a house in Mindarie and lived as much like the locals as we could. This made us decide we could live in Perth forever. While we were there we drove round as many suburbs as we could, each have their advantages and disadvantages and some you just don't like the look of at all! The suburbs I mentioned we felt suited our needs: Mindarie is lovely, nice marina, good supermarket near, station nearby, even tried out the local doctors when my daughter fell ill they were fantastic! there are Marina alteration plans in the pipeline so this can only have a positive effect on house prices. It seemed very friendly there too, when we walked to the local shops everyone we passed said "good morning", that does not happen where I live! Iluka is a nice upmarket suburb that just had a nice "feel" to it, it is also in the catchment area for good primary schools. There is a foot/cycle path there that runs all the way down to Hillarys, my children would love that as they are happiest when on their bikes. Connolly I know well as my brother lives there. The houses are slightly older so the plots are bigger, good little shop there and the place my husband wants to live because he can walk to Joondalup golf course! Carramar is a bit more inland but there are some nice well kept houses there and also good schools, being inland it is a bit cheaper so you get more for your money. When we get there we will rent a furnished place till our furniture arrives, decide on a school then go into an unfurnished in that area till we buy. I have two children aged 10 and 6, I have already put them down for Lake Joondalup Baptist College for when they start year 8 as there is a waiting list, this gives us options later on if we don't like the local senior school. Good luck with your skills assessment. Get in touch if you want any info. It would be nice to know someone in Perth. By the way I am 38 and my husband is 40, he passed his TRA as an electrician although he is now a financial adviser so what he will do when we get there is anybodys guess, in either case he will have to learn all the australian regulations so it will be quite tough to start. All the best, Catherine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel & Ed Posted November 4, 2005 Share Posted November 4, 2005 Hi Catherine, Many thanks for your reply.Wow you sound organised...I thought i was doing well but you have some great insight into Perth. Im affraid Ed and I both work full time and we have 3 small kids (1, 5 & 8) so flying over to check it out was not an option really and there for im in 2 minds about what to arrange before we go..Should we fix a short term rental for a few weeks so that we can check out areas as you did (expensive??)or should we go for a cheaper 6 month rental in one of our chosen areas?? We are after an area thats not too far from coast, good schools,houses with big gardens(no pool) a good Park and a hospital within cycling distance for me to work in. We do loads of cycling (even the baby - in his trailer!!)so any suggestions you have .... Im gonna look into the areas youve mentioned as they sound pretty similar to where we were looking..hope you dont mind.? Am still awaiting skills assessment but have heard that nuring visas are going through as quick as 4 months, which would be great...!! Keep in touch. Regards Melanie... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cath Posted November 4, 2005 Share Posted November 4, 2005 Hi Melanie, Yes I don't think you should be too long being a nurse. Are you doing the application on your own or have you got an agent? We are on the modl and our agent has quoted us 8 months but from looking at other peoples timelines they seem to be getting them quicker than that. Most of the hospitals seem to be in and around Perth so if you want to live north the main one would be Joondalup, therefore if you lived in somewhere like Connolly or Currambine you would be at your nearest to cycle there plus Joondalup itself but it is more "city living" there. All the suburbs along the ocean are nice. There is a hospital in Duncraig but I don't know what sort or how big it is. If you want a large garden you will be better where the houses are older. All the suburbs have parks. like I said previously Iluka is really nice, lovely park and the cycle path there is a real plus point for us. The houses ocean side of Marmion Avenue are dearer than the ones the other side but you are not far from the ocean anyway, only a few minutes drive. I think the only way you will know if an area is right for you is to live there for a while, if you are planning to rent all the decent houses get snapped up straight away so make sure you come over with as many references as you possibly can, get your estate agent to write one for you. Have you got your house up for sale yet? Take care, Catherine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RosaC Posted November 4, 2005 Share Posted November 4, 2005 Hi Mel, I am Perth girl from way back and have been living in Birmingham for the last 15 years. My hubby Mark has finally decided that 2006 will be the year that we give it a go and we hope to be going in January. We have two sons (10 & 8) who have slowly accepted the idea. We don't have visa issues and as we gone back to see my family every other year......everyone is familiar with where we are going. You would think this makes it easier........but it doesn't as my husband has decided on only two roads (yes road!) that he would consider living on! This is in Attadale. Must admit its a fabulous area ideal for families. What you need to know is that Perth is divided by the river. People associate themselves as either living North or South of the river. Anywhere along the river is fabulous and you will pay for it. I'm originally from Fremantle and that's southern river. There is a saying in Perth: " Live by the sea or up in the hills, but don't go anywhere in between". Sometimes you may be better off living in a older house closer to the sea or river, than going for a brand new house in the outer suburbs. Hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any further questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel & Ed Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Hi Cath, Many thanks for your advice again..We are doing the application ourselves as i dont like to part with my money unless its essential..!! I got my skills assessment through today saying all ok and suitable for migration..So i guess the visa application will go in on friday... We will put our house up for sale once medicals requested i guess..Do you know how much the Medicals will set us back (Me ED and 3 kids)?? Im currently inclined towards Ocean Reef but i guess we just wont know till were there. Let me know how things are going Regards Melanie.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cath Posted November 9, 2005 Share Posted November 9, 2005 Hi Melanie, well done with your skills assessment, its nice when that bits out of the way and the application goes in. Medicals seem to vary in price so I would shop about on that one, don't just book at the nearest place it may save you a lot of money to go somewhere further away. I would say what what i've read you're looking around the £500-£600 mark. Hopefully we should get our request in January, so I'm going to phone about after christmas. I would go and do your police checks though, we applied for ours 5 weeks ago and still haven't had them back yet. Ocean Reef is a good area. There are 2 good primary schools there Ocean Reef and Beaumaris. All the best, Keep in touch Catherine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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