Australia - expensive??!

[cazmayo]

hmmm Trendy Cottesloe will be my first stop!!!!

 

cheers caz

[Guest Guest26012]

I still am very disappointed how expensive everything is. We are worse off here than we were in the UK that's for sure.

 

We should have stayed in the UK

 

Hi! We have a big mortgage here! We did in the uk, no different! In comparison to the uk, talking about bills mortgage etc, we are roughly on a par! What is different is our life satisfaction! We pay our mortgage and bills etc, dont have a lot left over on a weekly basis. However, we live near the beach, which we use a lot. We have friends that we socialise with most weekends, and we shop cheaply for our food items. We had a lot more disposable income in the uk than we do here! But we were unhappy there and now we feel good on a daily basis! Oz is expensive, i agree, but it depends on what you want to sacrifice, financially, to be here! We have no kids here so that makes our living cheaper! I know with kids its a different story! Good luck!

 

:hug:

[Guest Batfinktasha]

im beginning to worry now, i live in Brighton in the UK, just waiting for our visa'a to come through. We have a 2 bed terrace which is worth £240,000 which we are hoping to sell and take away 40k with us to WA. We have been over to Perth in Dec and realized its very expensive, so have decided to try further down the coast such as Mandurah. Do you think we will have enough deposit for a home of our own??? My Partner is Quantity Surveyor/project manager so hoping for a good salary plus what ever I can bring in.We are going for the life style of course but we dont want to struggle like we are here in the south of England, otherwise what would be the point!! any advise would be greatly appreciated

[Guest rachellh]

im beginning to worry now, i live in Brighton in the UK, just waiting for our visa'a to come through. We have a 2 bed terrace which is worth £240,000 which we are hoping to sell and take away 40k with us to WA. We have been over to Perth in Dec and realized its very expensive, so have decided to try further down the coast such as Mandurah. Do you think we will have enough deposit for a home of our own??? My Partner is Quantity Surveyor/project manager so hoping for a good salary plus what ever I can bring in.We are going for the life style of course but we dont want to struggle like we are here in the south of England, otherwise what would be the point!! any advise would be greatly appreciated

 

Does your partner have a job lined up, or know what salary he is likely to get? You wouldn't want to arrive and be in for the shock of your lives! Look on real estate websites here to gauge what sort of house you'll be able to get for the money. Banks aren't handing out mortgages so easily now (so says hubby who works with them) and you need a pretty big deposit + stamp duty etc. It sure ain't cheap to buy the dream!

 

Not trying to put a downer on your plans, but nothing worse than rocking up here, finding you don't have what you need and then having to eat into your capital to survive. I would definitely say rent before you buy, just so you make sure you've got the right area before you commit - looks and first impressions can often be deceiving when you arrive fresh off the plane and all excited to start your new life. Speaking from bitter experience there!!

 

I only visited Mandurah once while living in Perth, so I admit I don't know a huge amount about living there. All I would say, especially after visiting Brighton last Christmas, is that if you enjoy everything that's on offer where you already are (shops, restaurants, bars, cafes, little winding streets etc!), then I'd have thought it unlikely you'll get the same in Mandurah - unless I somehow missed it all when we went there?!

 

I've known people who came here from Brighton and then promptly went back as they missed the 'buzz' and their old life too much!! But then I've also known people who love life here and would never leave... Of course you might be sick of the buzz and want to escape the rest of the world, and in that case you've absolutely chosen the right place - it doesn't get any more isolated than it is down here!

 

As you saw from your recent visit, cost of living here isn't cheaper than the UK, you just get a different lifestyle. Other people will no doubt disagree, but we personally found it very expensive to get by month by month (and that was on a great wage) and we're looking forward to getting more from our money when we're back.

 

Of course I'm moving back the other way in 10 days and I can't wait to get on that plane and out of here, but that certainly doesn't mean I can't see the benefits this country has to offer and I do hope everything works out well for you!

 

Good luck and enjoy your new life Down Under!

Rachel :biggrin:

[heyyu]

when you have a booming economy prices rise,west australia is booming.if the economy is in the s----t prices will be lower.the aus dollar is high because the money men see value at the moment.

[Guest rachellh]

when you have a booming economy prices rise,west australia is booming.if the economy is in the s----t prices will be lower.the aus dollar is high because the money men see value at the moment.

 

The economy may be booming, but that doesn't necessarily help the average man in the street - especially when interest rates keep shooting up and salaries don't always go up to match.

 

For us personally, the credit crisis was a godsend. Before that we couldn't afford to keep our house and we were short every single month. But then our mortgage halfed and petrol prices came down for a bit. Luckily we managed to sell our house and buy a smaller car before it all went back up to what it was before!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

[Paul1Perth]

im beginning to worry now, i live in Brighton in the UK, just waiting for our visa'a to come through. We have a 2 bed terrace which is worth £240,000 which we are hoping to sell and take away 40k with us to WA. We have been over to Perth in Dec and realized its very expensive, so have decided to try further down the coast such as Mandurah. Do you think we will have enough deposit for a home of our own??? My Partner is Quantity Surveyor/project manager so hoping for a good salary plus what ever I can bring in.We are going for the life style of course but we dont want to struggle like we are here in the south of England, otherwise what would be the point!! any advise would be greatly appreciated

 

40K English pounds is still quite a bit of cash to have at hand. It converts to nearly $69,000 dollars which should see you right for a while. I would imagine, if your husband gets a job with a decent salary and you could save the majority of this for a deposit it will give you a lot of choices in the housing market. You wouldn't need to move down to Mandurah and I feel you need to maybe do a bit more research on the web on house prices. Try the Northern suburbs you might find something to your liking around Mindarie or closer to the city. Joondalup is getting pretty big now and offers job opportunities without having to go into Perth.

I have to agree with comments in another posts about renting first and having a good look around. You may think you know where you want to be and that suburb turn out to be totally the wrong choice. It could make all the difference in your settling in Oz or hating it.

We certainly don't have any more spare cash than we did in the UK but are a lot happier here. We like the hot weather and sunshine for most of the year and we live near the beach which we use a lot. If you don't like these sort of things maybe Perth isn't for you. I had a quick look at Rachelh blog and it seems she didn't care for Perth too much.

 

We love it and couldn't imagine living anywhere better.

 

I also see you have a two bedroom terrace. We made much the same move having sold our two up two down terrace near Stockport and managed to get a 4 bedroom detached in a nice neighbourhood, 5 mins walk away from a really great beach. I would imagine you would be looking at having the same sort of buying power. You might not want something that big if you don't have kids which will give you a better choice, if anything.

[Guest rachellh]

40K English pounds is still quite a bit of cash to have at hand. It converts to nearly $69,000 dollars which should see you right for a while. I would imagine, if your husband gets a job with a decent salary and you could save the majority of this for a deposit it will give you a lot of choices in the housing market. You wouldn't need to move down to Mandurah and I feel you need to maybe do a bit more research on the web on house prices. Try the Northern suburbs you might find something to your liking around Mindarie or closer to the city. Joondalup is getting pretty big now and offers job opportunities without having to go into Perth.

I have to agree with comments in another posts about renting first and having a good look around. You may think you know where you want to be and that suburb turn out to be totally the wrong choice. It could make all the difference in your settling in Oz or hating it.

We certainly don't have any more spare cash than we did in the UK but are a lot happier here. We like the hot weather and sunshine for most of the year and we live near the beach which we use a lot. If you don't like these sort of things maybe Perth isn't for you. I had a quick look at Rachelh blog and it seems she didn't care for Perth too much.

 

We love it and couldn't imagine living anywhere better.

 

No, I'll be the first to admit I didn't care for it a huge amount, even though it is a very easy place to live. Lots of people love Perth, lots of people hate it - but it makes no difference to me personally. Besides, I'm not in a Perth-bashing frame of mind, I'm far too happy now!

 

So apologises if it comes across like I'm trying to put anyone off moving here, I was just trying to give some general advice on the pitfalls of buying in unknown areas and being prepared for the cost of living. I actually thought I was being fairly unbiased!!!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

[Paul1Perth]

While i agree with those who say Australia is expensive,i can get an Aussie sized pint of beer in all the boozers around here for $5,the promotion from one brand to another changes every few weeks,and as they all appear to taste what i would call reasonable,then i don't care which one is on offer!Never seen any of this 8-9 dollar stuff!:confused:

 

If you drink in the popular pubs near the coast or in Perth expect to be ripped off. They are aiming at the younger market in general and they don't seem to worry much about how much booze costs. We have a 21 year old and generally they get together with a few mates before going out and have a few drinks first to save some money. Some call it binge drinking but they all know they are going to be ripped off once they're out. They also don't seem to worry about spending heaps on taxis to get home either. They could just as easily get the train and save themselves heaps but it doesn't even cross their minds to do that.

We live near Hillarys boat harbour where they have the breakwater pub. It's a nice pub, big, fairly new with fantastic views as it's on the boardwalk of a boat harbour. BUT it's around $12 a pint.

There used to be an old pub called the breakwater which they closed down when the new one opened. A pint there was half as much and you still got the same views. Guess they wanted to get rid of the locals and only cater for holiday makers.

 

Now if you don't mind not having nice views there are still lots of taverns around where you can get the same beer you pay $12 at the breakwater for half as much. Try Craigie Tavern for example. Drinking in the surf clubs, RSL's and other "private" clubs is also a good option as there are a lot of them around and the prices in those are a lot less.

[Paul1Perth]

No, I'll be the first to admit I didn't care for it a huge amount, even though it is a very easy place to live. Lots of people love Perth, lots of people hate it - but it makes no difference to me personally. Besides, I'm not in a Perth-bashing frame of mind, I'm far too happy now!

 

So apologises if it comes across like I'm trying to put anyone off moving here, I was just trying to give some general advice on the pitfalls of buying in unknown areas and being prepared for the cost of living. I actually thought I was being fairly unbiased!!!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

 

I wasn't meaning to critise you Rachel. I enjoyed your blog and you write very well. It's nice to see a bit of well written, humorous prose. I just got the feeling you didn't care too much for Perth. I can understand that, it's not for everyone.

Good luck back in the UK.

[Guest rachellh]

I wasn't meaning to critise you Rachel. I enjoyed your blog and you write very well. It's nice to see a bit of well written, humorous prose. I just got the feeling you didn't care too much for Perth. I can understand that, it's not for everyone.

Good luck back in the UK.

 

My mistake Paul, I'm just used to some people leaping on everything you say and having a go! I'm glad you enjoyed the blog though, and took it for what it's supposed to be - a humorous take on Aussie life, not the gospel or a universally shared opinion!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

[Paul1Perth]

dougie, im interested in your opinion (if offered) as we have four kids also/ We lived in Geelong Vic-- for 6months and then ping pong back to UK. We are now seriously thinking about retunring although this time to Perth " better climate than Geeong". We found the education system awfull in geelong. Whats is it like in Perth ? our eldest is 13 youngest 7 ..... naturally if we remain in aus it wont matter, but we dont wana mess up our kids possible A levels & Uni in UK.

 

We have two kids. The eldest is 21 now and was 2 when we emigrated. The youngest is 15 and has learning difficulties (an autistic spectrum disorder, not full blown autism but some of the behaviour).

They both went to the same primary school and did just fine. The youngest was a bit more difficult but the school did there best and got a special desk and chair for him which stopped him fidgetting around so much. He also had a helper in class, provided by the education system.

We have now enrolled him in private education where they have a program for kids with learning difficulties and he is doing OK.

 

The eldest was pretty straightforward. Went to a local secondary school, never wanted to go to uni so did enough to get his TEE (which means he could have gone if he had wanted) went straight into an Electrical Apprenticeship and has just finished that. He is now thinking of going for some offshore work or working up North where his salary will be upwards of $100,00. He has already had a couple of jobs, during his apprenticeship where he has been earning more than my wife who is a qualified Nurse, midwife, health visitor, much to her disgust.

 

He has a lot of friends who went to Uni and are just finishing their degrees. Differnece is they have a lot of debt due to the loans for their degrees and he is driving around in a V6 turbo ute and is about to go on his 3rd trip to Bali.

 

I'm not aginst Uni (I have a degree myself) but it's not the be all and end all. There are a lot more opportunities for people of my sons age at the moment than there seems to be in the UK. I think we have something like 5.1% unemployment rate nationally and 4% in WA. There are incessant reports about labour shortages here, especially skilled labour. The forecast is it's going to be like that for a good few years yet. The forecasters could be all wrong though, they didn't see the last crash coming. At the moment times are good though.

 

I think the education system here is just fine and the Unis are second to none, if that's the way your kids go. Have a look at the University of Western Australia on line. I work near there and it looks and feels like a good university should (think Oxford or Cambridge). I work with a lot of graduates from there and other Uni's around the country and the graduates are as good as anywhere. I worked with a lot in the UK too and as usual, there are good and bad amongst them.

 

It's all about what your kids are cut out for, as much as I would have liked ours to go to uni there was no way I was going to persuade our eldest and what do you do? force them to go? He can always go later on if he feels like it.

[Guest Batfinktasha]

Thanks for all your advice Paul and Rach. My Partner has the potential earnings of $80 -$120 plus any job I can do which I cant imagine would be much as I do customer service and ceramics/painting strange combo I know ;-). We are going to rent first but really unsure where. North of Perth we have not explored but would be a good thing to do by the sounds of it.

Brighton has had its day for us. Been here many years and just dont go into town anymore as too hectic and very crowded! Alot of Friends have kids now and are moving away also. We do love the different things going on here, but year after year we seem to see less of it as our hearts are telling us to try something new. Its not going anywhere so thought an adventure was on the cards and to try WA for a change. Im a bit worried about them not giving out mortgages that easily. We thought we would rent somewhere for a few months have a good look around and then decide and buy... Ian doesnt have a job yet but has failed to get interviews or any interest till the visa's come through, which is any day now. He has been sponsored by the state so we know he is is in demand hopefully. We dont really want to move out there till he has a job secured as I can see all our deposit disappearing on rent otherwise! I would love to hear more recommendations of places to live that arent as far away as Mandurah if anyone has any.We definately dont want to go any further than that as I have cousins in Perth and a Uni buddy in Innaloo (think thats spelt right) just outside so would be good to be no more than an hours drive away. We are both happy to have a quieter life. We have no kids yet but hope to in the not so distant future. Beach life is just what we need to relax especially Ian as his job is over stretched and stressful every day here in the UK. Also with the goverment making cut backs he is likely to have no job by the end of the year as most of his work is to do with University buildings and Schools!! I look forward to hearing any tips back from people. Oh and Ian has said that we will more likely have $30,000 left over once we sell up , fees etc... is that enough??

[Paul1Perth]

Thanks for all your advice Paul and Rach. My Partner has the potential earnings of $80 -$120 plus any job I can do which I cant imagine would be much as I do customer service and ceramics/painting strange combo I know ;-). We are going to rent first but really unsure where. North of Perth we have not explored but would be a good thing to do by the sounds of it.

Brighton has had its day for us. Been here many years and just dont go into town anymore as too hectic and very crowded! Alot of Friends have kids now and are moving away also. We do love the different things going on here, but year after year we seem to see less of it as our hearts are telling us to try something new. Its not going anywhere so thought an adventure was on the cards and to try WA for a change. Im a bit worried about them not giving out mortgages that easily. We thought we would rent somewhere for a few months have a good look around and then decide and buy... Ian doesnt have a job yet but has failed to get interviews or any interest till the visa's come through, which is any day now. He has been sponsored by the state so we know he is is in demand hopefully. We dont really want to move out there till he has a job secured as I can see all our deposit disappearing on rent otherwise! I would love to hear more recommendations of places to live that arent as far away as Mandurah if anyone has any.We definately dont want to go any further than that as I have cousins in Perth and a Uni buddy in Innaloo (think thats spelt right) just outside so would be good to be no more than an hours drive away. We are both happy to have a quieter life. We have no kids yet but hope to in the not so distant future. Beach life is just what we need to relax especially Ian as his job is over stretched and stressful every day here in the UK. Also with the goverment making cut backs he is likely to have no job by the end of the year as most of his work is to do with University buildings and Schools!! I look forward to hearing any tips back from people. Oh and Ian has said that we will more likely have $30,000 left over once we sell up , fees etc... is that enough??

 

I haven't been in the housing market for a long time so I don't know how hard it is to get a mortgage at the moment. It's been reported in the local paper recently that house sales have dropped substantially and a lot of places are proving difficult to sell. We have had several rate increases here and it's slowed things down a lot. Apparently it's a buyers market at the moment but that quote is probably coming from a real estate agent who has a vested interest. There is certainly plenty of choice in whatever area you fancy.

 

I would have a look at Google maps and the street view function. You can get a good look at places and suburbs on there. It's almost like getting a helicopter flight.

 

If you have a friend in Innaloo they can explain what it's like North of the river and the good areas. Innaloo itself is pretty good, quite close to scarborough beach and the freeway, it is also pretty lively around there too. My eldest goes to a pub near there most weekends.

 

The Northern suburbs go a long way now but they are mostly nice, especially if you can be near the coast, as in walking distance. We live about 5 mins. away by car from Hillarys boat harbour and it's good to have that on the doorstep as it's a nice place to visit for a drink and bite to eat. There are bike paths up and down the coast and around the city for miles, a good way to have a look around.

 

We have some friends who moved to Yanchep as they could afford a big house with sea views there. They love it. The husband works in Wanneroo and I think his wife works in Joondalup so they don't have far to travel.

 

I travel about 30Km to work every day but it's not a drag as the traffic is nowhere near as bad as the UK. The views along West Coast Highway are much better than most trips to work, anywhere in the World.

 

All the best, You'll love it.

[Paul1Perth]

Moving on from the interesting points about 2nd hand cars[and they are very cheap here]and returning to vegetables---I recently purchased three iceberg lettuces on Bedford market for a pound--is that a record??[one small, two medium sized].Interested to know the average cost of similar in Oz.Thanks

 

Only problem was you used one and threw the other two away. Go on admit it.

Have you noticed that when you go to a barbeque there is always loads of salad left and all the meat has gone?

[Guest Batfinktasha]

Thanks Paul all really helpful, we will definately have a look at google, hadn't thought of that! and the North. Fingers crossed we can get a mortgage.. we are giving up our house here which is our first buy, sad to say goodbye to it as we have made it our home, but looking forward to starting over again with another too. Im sure we will love it.. scared, nervous, apprehensive, excitied all rolled into one at the mo. We went to Hillarys Bay I think as that was where we got the crossing over to Rotnest, really nice around there and glad you love it to. Thanks again and most likely speak soon. Txx

[Guest rachellh]

Thanks Paul all really helpful, we will definately have a look at google, hadn't thought of that! and the North. Fingers crossed we can get a mortgage.. we are giving up our house here which is our first buy, sad to say goodbye to it as we have made it our home, but looking forward to starting over again with another too. Im sure we will love it.. scared, nervous, apprehensive, excitied all rolled into one at the mo. We went to Hillarys Bay I think as that was where we got the crossing over to Rotnest, really nice around there and glad you love it to. Thanks again and most likely speak soon. Txx

 

If you're looking up North then Mindarie is a lovely suburb. It's only about 15 minutes further up than Hillarys - or 10 minutes on the freeway - and houses do get a bit cheaper the further north you go!

 

It is one of the few suburbs where you can walk to somewhere - many you need a car just to get out of the housing areas! It's very well laid out with lots of trees and a nice park. There is also a nice marina with restaurants, ice cream, shops, bars and pubs. Also a shopping centre across the road and a good primary school. It is only a few minutes drive from Clarkson train station and from there it takes about 20 mins into city - 30 minutes on freeway.

 

Rachel :biggrin:

[Paul1Perth]

We were in the same boat when we emigrated in 92. Bought our house near Stockport in 88, had to just about rebuild it over the next couple of years, which kept us broke.

Had our first child and couldn't afford our couple of weeks in the sun, got laid off from my job and the whole summer in the UK that year was crap.

 

We started thinking "Is this as good as it gets" so we applied to emigrate on the points system. 6 months later we were on our way. Never been to Australia before, only knew a couple of people here and we hadn't seen them for years. We came in February so from cold weather to 30 degrees. From day one I thought this is the place for me. It was easier to emigrate then as we were able to sign on and get dole. We couldn't believe the help we got actually.

 

We hadn't realised we could sign on before we came, and expected it being like the dole office in the Full Monty, I had been used to going to a place like that in the UK.

Not a bit of it, We had a appointment with a consultant, sat in a nice waiting room with TV's and magazines. Went into his office at the right time where we filled in several forms and were advised on what we could claim.

 

We got help with the rent, were able to put our son (two at the time) into day care for free as we had to attend interviews and look for jobs and were still able to save a bit. My wife got a job after a couple of weeks but we still got help with rent and day care after that.

 

The economy here was no better than the UK when we came (pretty bad) and I was out of work for 5 months. Luckily I got a job filling in for someone on long service leave at an IT dept at a hospital and once in work you get to know people who know other people who have opportunities. I've never been out of work since and neither has my wife.

The economy is booming here at the moment so I don't think you will have a problem work wise.

 

Enjoy the adventure, we did and haven't looked back. It's been the best thing we ever did.

[Paul1Perth]

My mistake Paul, I'm just used to some people leaping on everything you say and having a go! I'm glad you enjoyed the blog though, and took it for what it's supposed to be - a humorous take on Aussie life, not the gospel or a universally shared opinion!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

 

Hi Rachel,

I had another browse through your blog. You don't sell the notion of having kids very well. I reckon one of the main reasons you didn't settle in Perth is you had 3 kids in tow and never get time to "sit back and smell the roses".

I reckon if you got stressed on one of the few rainy days we had in Perth last year you might have a lot of stress coming your way in Sunny old Norfolk.

 

I was impressed with your resume. You've been around. It's surprising that you've been through the "debt" bit, I expected someone with that resume to be living somewhere on City Beach in one of the mansions.

 

Good luck..... I reckon you'll need it.

Paul.

[Guest rachellh]

Hi Rachel,

I had another browse through your blog. You don't sell the notion of having kids very well. I reckon one of the main reasons you didn't settle in Perth is you had 3 kids in tow and never get time to "sit back and smell the roses".

I reckon if you got stressed on one of the few rainy days we had in Perth last year you might have a lot of stress coming your way in Sunny old Norfolk.

 

I was impressed with your resume. You've been around. It's surprising that you've been through the "debt" bit, I expected someone with that resume to be living somewhere on City Beach in one of the mansions.

 

Good luck..... I reckon you'll need it.

Paul.

 

Hi Paul

 

Rather strange comments you made. For the life of me I don't know where you found my 3rd kid from in my blog, I only have 2? As for trying to sell the notion of children, everything is written tongue in cheek about the extremes of parenthood. Would be pretty boring to only cover the easy stuff don't you think?! Besides, I don't think I'm going to put anyone off kids if they want them and if I did, they probably wouldn't be cut out for it anyway..

 

Stress or not sitting back didn't have anything to do with us not settling, that was more down to us being totally unimpressed with the place. The rainy day I think you're talking about was the one where my hubby was away, my daughter and I were both throwing up and sick as dogs and the garage door blew off in the storm - it was a pretty stressful night!

 

As for the debt bit, don't you know most writers are worth more dead?! Besides that my F-I-L moved in with us and died 2 months after we arrived in Perth- leaving us with a mountain of his debt to sort out - I don't discuss everything on my blog for obvious reasons.

 

So thanks for the luck, but I personally don't we need it. We've had enough bad luck to last us a lifetime and it already all happened in Perth!

 

Rachel :biggrin:

[Guest Batfinktasha]

Thanks Rach and Paul for all the info, sounds like you two have got your wires crossed somewhere, poor you Rach sounds like a terrible time you have been through, bad luck it all happen over there, hopefully the uk will bring you a happier life? Typical day in Brighton today...took 50 mins to get 5 miles as its a Friday!!! not gonna miss this at all. The town you mention Rach sounds lovely we will definately look it up for sure.

[Guest flo&mags]

I second all that Klong said - its expensive & the wages DO NOT reflect it. I am a qualified education assistant & my wage is $31k a yr - and they want me to cloth & feed my family with that!!!hahahaha....but I wouldn't want to be anywhere else at the moment!!!

[Guest MongooseB]

Hi,

I'm not currently living in Australia but hoping to in the near future. I won't comment on the cost of living in Oz, but what I can say (from experience in moving countries 3 times), is that the cost of living in a country is relative to your income. Yes, cars may be expensive in Oz, but, do you have to MOT them every time you re-licence? I am not sure on this one, so would be grateful for an answer.

Also, one thing everyone has failed to mention is the SUPERSONIC taxes we pay in the UK (probably to accomodate for every Tom, Dick and Harry on benefits in this country!). From what I understand (from family and friends who live there), tax is nowhere near as high as the UK. Clothes in the UK can be cheap, but remember, you get what you pay for! The weather in the UK also encourages a "throw-away" society, we buy things seasonally, unlike in warmer climates - so you may think you're paying twice as much for a garden furniture set, but you'll probably not have to buy another one for 10 years! If you look at world wide economics, it's normal for countries with lower spending habits to be more expensive and likewise, countries like the UK where people turn over cash more often, to be cheaper.

Having come from a warm country, and lived there my whole life, I honestly find the UK unbelievably expensive!! There's nothing a person can do without it costing a quid - and having looked at groceries in Oz, I honestly don't believe I would find T-bone steaks for £6.50 per kg in the UK - current price in Oz is $13.00 per kg. Beer (always a good measure of the cost of living) in Oz, generally around $30 for 24 x 500ml - not any different to the UK which is £15-£18 per 24, and, relative to salaries, it works out at half the price to what you pay in the UK.

 

Basically, it's a big NO-NO to compare the cost of living before living in the country. Only once you are earning local currency and no longer spending your £'s can you really do a costing. Each country has its ups and downs, but one thing I will say is that when living in a warm country, you spend WAY less on entertainment. You also spend WAY less on holidays ABROAD, as you don't have to go sun chasing across Europe.

 

Don't compare. Once you've left a country, move on, don't go looking for what you had "back home", it's not going to be there and it won't cost the same.

 

:notworthy:

[Guest chris955]

I do take your point when you say don't compare but that is exactly what you are doing in your post.

Some States don't have an MOT and others do. I did see that if you book one online it's 35 quid, hardly a fortune. What we do pay is yearly registration and CTP which can be more than $1000.

If you think that the UK is a throw away society and Australia isn't then it's clear you haven't lived here I'm afraid.

I do understand that as someone moving here people will see exactly what they want to see, that is human nature.

The overwhelming consensus does seem to be that this country is expensive and has become expensive very quickly.

[Guest MongooseB]

I do take your point when you say don't compare but that is exactly what you are doing in your post.

Some States don't have an MOT and others do. I did see that if you book one online it's 35 quid, hardly a fortune. What we do pay is yearly registration and CTP which can be more than $1000.

If you think that the UK is a throw away society and Australia isn't then it's clear you haven't lived here I'm afraid.

I do understand that as someone moving here people will see exactly what they want to see, that is human nature.

The overwhelming consensus does seem to be that this country is expensive and has become expensive very quickly.

 

Point taken. However, my post may have been misinterpreted - I wasn't meaning to compare, only trying to say DON'T compare. And yes, clearly I haven't lived in Oz, but then I did say so in my post. There is much to be learnt, and clearly anyone living in a country would be an expert on the cost of living. But, when all is said and done, I do believe that it IS all relative to income and, if you're really happy with where you live you'll not find it necessary to spend your life comparing to what you've had or left behind.

I have read so many threads where folk complain that Australia is so expensive compared to the UK -well, if it's THAT bad, move back to the UK!

Oh, and might I state, I am defending Australia here, NOT the UK. The UK is NOT God's gift to mankind and be it expensive or not, Australia will always be my first choice to live as it's an amazing country both in beauty and people.

To any person(s) wishing to move from the UK to Oz, my advice, when you leave, leave your "fish and chip" shops and shopping malls galore behind you - you're going to be getting a much better exchange in superb weather, people and lifestyle!

 

And on that note, wish me luck in my eternal dream of living down under.:v_SPIN: