CliveReilly Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Hello all, I currently live in Ireland and have a small family, house, mortgage. You get the picture. I would like to move to Australia but need to do lots of homework firstly. I am VERY interested in hearing peoples experiences moving their families from Ireland to Australia. Why you went, why you did not stay here, employment, lifestyle, cost of living, fitting in etc ... etc ... Looking forward to speaking to you all. Cheers, Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest vickey Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Hi Clive I am from Dublin and moved here in Feb 2010 so here nearly a year and it has flown by. I am married and have 2 little boys. We also had a house mortgage etc but we both lost our jobs so we were very lucky that my husband was offered sponsorship. I am not working as yet because my son is starting school in a few weeks and the childcare was so expensive for 2 boys we decided to wait for me to find a job until the eldest starts school. The childcare is very expensive. I am looking fiorwrad to going back to work but i want something part time because i wont be able to work full time and get my boys to all there activities like soccer rugby swimming. It is amazing the amount of things to do for children. It really is a childs world over here. The cost of living is the same if not slightly more than Ireland i think anyway, i was suprised how expensive rents and childcare are and how hard it is to actually get a suitable house in sydney. We are all loving it here but do miss having all our family and friends close by but i have a feeling there will be alot more following us the way Ireland has gone. I am also a member of the IMGDU (Irish Mothers Griup Down Under) which has been amazing for meeting people. If there is anything i can help with just let me know Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveReilly Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 Hi Vickey, Thanks for the information. I think the perception is the Oz is cheaper to live. From what I have seen and what you have said it looks like it is only a myth. Curiousity - how much is childcare? It is far from cheap over here. We both have jobs (for now). I would have to apply for a state sponsored visa to be in with a chance of obtaining a visa. If I were to go it would not be to Sydney. I would be thinking more along the lines of Perth or Melbourne. Do you think Sydney is more expensive? Do you know people in Perth or Melbourne? I have read Aussies are a bit racist, but have no idea. Is there any thruth in this? I have also heard it is very Americanised. Also heard it is difficult to get a job. On the other hand I have heard it is next to paradise. I honestly just do not know how to go about making a decision about the move. I can see pro's and con's - but nothing tells me it is absolutely the right thing to do. Ireland is going through a bad patch, corruption, taxes, increasing voilence / drug problems etc ... but we also had that in the 80's - then the celtic tiger came along [i heard it was shot, skinned and it's for sale as a rug on ebay - but nobody is buying it]. Cheers, Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannyCoyles Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Hi Clive We (my wife Clare and son Tiernan) moved here from the north coast of Ireland 2 ½ years ago. All my immediate family are here any my father joined us a few months later. I am the youngest of 6 and the others all others at least 10 years older than me and moved over a 15 year period so I wanted us all to be in the same country for a while even if we didn’t like it here long term. My main reason for moving was that it was getting very hard for us to get anywhere in N.Ireland. We both had good jobs in the Health Service and the Council but couldn’t get a mortgage for any more than £140,000 and with house prices going up around the time we were applying (2007) our prospects seemed better in OZ. We also wanted to try something different and enjoy the sunshine and explore the country, if we liked it we would stay if we didn’t we would come home. We did however decide to build a house and bought some land 3 weeks after arriving in Melbourne and 2 years later our house was built. We done this partly to help us settle and partly because the Australian housing prices were on the increase and we knew it would provide us with some cash if we wanted to come home again. We were both lucky to find jobs within a month both earning 2.5 times what we got in Ireland. We got approval for a mortgage after 6 months and we were able to save some money for a change. We did have to borrow the deposit for our land from my brother until we saved it up but apart from that we had £4,000 in the bank when we moved after flights and shipping costs. That covered the cost of a second hand car and our first month’s rent and just before my first pay day we had no money at all left. So basically everything we have now our house, new car etc has come from our earnings here. We didn’t get any financial help from my family other that the loan of the deposit for the land ($10,000) and some second hand furniture but you could get enough of that from the member on this forum. I hear some people worry about moving over with job sponsorship on a $140,000 salary with relocation costs paid for and think, what planet are you on. I have always found a way to get things done and make the most of what we have so moving here with next to nothing wasn’t a big deal. Childcare in our area is about $300 per week but if you are a Permanent resident the government give you 50% back every 3 months up to $7500 per year per child. So that’s good in my opinion and half what my brother-in-law is paying in Ireland. We slowly found our way with how things work and the hidden costs such as private health insurance, we took it out for a while and did use it, our son needed grommets in his ears, on the public system he would have to wait at least a year, but with private health he was in straight away, it still cost us about $1400 even with the health insurance as they only cover so much per procedure. Brief explanation of how private health works for operations, every operation has a code, you call up and find out how much they cover for that operation, you can then shop around and see what each hospital charges for that procedure and then find out if they accept your private health insurance company. Not so simple. During that time we realised how good it was having the NHS in the UK and how terrible it would be if we couldn’t afford the health insurance, our son was holding his ears every day and it was starting to affect his speech etc, we nearly decided to go home at that stage, the not so well off can suffer a bit here especially with medical costs. There are some people that find it a paradise if you can live in a coastal area with sea views etc (That’s my paradise!) but for most of us you will live in a normal house, in a housing development, which in the newer areas has lakes and parks and walkways, free BBQ areas etc and that is a fantastic way to live. You can get affordable housing within 10 – 15 mins drive to the beach, countryside, mountains whatever you choose and be perfectly content with your life. Pay a bit more for being close to the city’s. There are some truly fantastic places to live or just visit on your days off and if you are content with what you have and where you are you can be the happiest man/woman alive. You still have to work unless you are very lucky but your time away from work can be fantastic and you can have a mini holiday every weekend if you want to. Its hard to know if you will be better off here or there, depends on your earnings in Oz and the standard of life you require etc. Overall we are happy with where we are, we don’t get out and about near as much as we should but we are getting better. We have had some really low times where we think what have we done and some really great times like sitting on the balcony of the holiday home we stayed in on our trip to the snow, looking at the mountains drinking a beer thinking why would we ever leave this. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions over the past 2 ½ years and with everything that we have done and not much time off work I am exhausted. But things are starting to settle down a bit now, apart from the week old baby in the house! We are glad we made the move and don’t think we will be back, but it takes time to get things sorted. Sorry I went on a bit, hope this helps. Danny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest vickey Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Hi Clive In my experience its definitely a myth that here is cheaper. Childcare ranges from $85 - $120 a day. i used to pay €210 for 5 days back in Ireland for one child which i taught was crazy until i got here. We are sending our son to a catholic school and thats $2500 a year but the public schools are free. The schools are fantastiic well the one our son is going to is anyway but from what i hear they are all of the same standard. My husbands Brother lives in Perth and he loves it over there but said it was more expensive fro rent and alcohol over there. He is young free and single so the alcohol really matters to him. I know people in Brisbane and its much cheaper up there for everything. for example we pay $700 a week here for a 3 bed ground floor townhouse and in brisbane you would get the same for half that. we have been to brisbane and loved it if we get residency in a few years we hope to buy up there as its crazy money for a house down here in sydney. I allso love that you are so close to so many beautiful places in brisbane like the gold coast frazer island etc. I do think the aussies in general are very rude and very hard to get to know in my experience anyway. i have met a few, as in a handful of friendly aussies but these are married to Irish people so i suppose they have to be nice. I am hoping when i start work i will figure them out a bit better. If both me and Philip still had jobs at home we probably would not of done it but i have always wanted to and now i am glad we did, We both miss our families and friends especially the grannies for babysitting as we have only been out once together without the boys since we got here. I came over not really knowing if i would be staying so i didnt sign contracts on my house or anything but i have done now. The weather is crazy some days its so hot and others it lashes out of the heavens, it rains a hell of alotmore than i taught it would and in winter it does get cold where as i taught it was fab weather all year around. Perth is meant to get alot hotter so i definitely could not move there because i find it hard enough but melbourne i think is the sam climate as here. I have seen Ireland for sale alright and to be honest i am glad i am away from all the doom and gloom it can be very depressing. I hate that the country is gone so bad because i do love Ireland but i hate the way its been ran and its so backward as in if you do things right as in get married work hard you get screwed and if you are a lazy bum or a foreigner you get free everything from houses to cars to medical and i have seen this with my own eyes so i know its true. I dont know your situation but it has worked out for us fingers crossed it stays like that. Its a hard decision so good luck with it. Again if there is anything else just ask Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveReilly Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Firstly, I am new to this site - so apologies if I post stuff in the wrong place etc ... It is good to hear peoples experiences - you get a real picture then and not a picture of a bed of roses - so your stories are really appreciated. I have started engaging with an agency to apply for a visa - but have found that the costs are sizeable - AUD 6,000 ish. Can someone explain to me what you mean by company sponsorship - does it mean you apply for positions and if the company want to employ you they arrange / help with the visa application process. I applied for a position yesterday, just a shot in the dark to see what happens. I work in I.T. if that is of any relevance. Just at this moment in time looking for a route in the maze. Does you have an opinion on the following? I heard about the floods in Queensland. Yesterday I read about bush fires in Perth. Last night I happened to flick on to a program about Irish going to Australia. I found it really sad to be honest - especially waving goodbye at the airport. This morning my radio alarm woke me up to the news that people in Brisbane were told to evacuate their homes due to flash floods. I have not yet spoken to family about Australia. I honestly do not know how to approach them about it. I am on a major roller coaster ride at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveReilly Posted January 19, 2011 Author Share Posted January 19, 2011 Hi Folks, Is there any other folks out there who moved young families from Ireland / UK, sold their house to live in Australia, more specifically Perth? Maybe you are in the process of doing so, or like me, on a bit of a see-saw with my decision on the most wise thing to do. I'd like to meet people on here and maybe we could help each other out with our experiences. Looking forward to chatting. Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lindam Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Hi Clive, Moved here to the Gold Coast from Co Kildare at the end of November. My husband came in July to source work and then I followed with our 2 kids. We are happy here we have our house rented out and that covers the mortage.The kids have started school and are very happy. NO regrets so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gill1362 Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Hi Vicky where are u living in Sydney? Hubby has interview no 2 for s job out there tonight. We just can't afford to stay in Ireland any longer. Been looking at rentals around Glenwood Kellyville. I've decided to not overthink this whole move if it's for us it won't pass us. My kids are 1 and almost 3 so if we are going want to do it while they are still young Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrisDubBris Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Hi Clive I do think the aussies in general are very rude and very hard to get to know in my experience anyway. i have met a few, as in a handful of friendly aussies but these are married to Irish people so i suppose they have to be nice. I am hoping when i start work i will figure them out a bit better. I would strongly disagree that Australians are rude. If you talk to expats that have made friends, they will tell you it is down to you make the effort & have the right attitude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ClareRoche Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Hi Folks, Is there any other folks out there who moved young families from Ireland / UK, sold their house to live in Australia, more specifically Perth? Maybe you are in the process of doing so, or like me, on a bit of a see-saw with my decision on the most wise thing to do. I'd like to meet people on here and maybe we could help each other out with our experiences. Looking forward to chatting. Clive Hi Clive We are a family of 5 twins of 5 and a girl 7 and are heading off at the end of March to Adelaide after 15 months of State sponsorship visa application etc etc .We used an agent that was based in Dublin but who went back to Sidney mid way through the application we paid approx that much you mentioned and had to have the money in the bank for the State sponsorship . By the look of things out in Adelaide it is expensive but when you are going nowhere here it was the best option for us just to let you know when we were applying for the visa OH had to be working when we applied for it hes a carpenter ... Will let you know what happens Mover here Wed week Every thing in a heap and really and truly relieved to be getting out of here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Seipeal1 Posted February 26, 2011 Share Posted February 26, 2011 Hi all. We are an Irish family living in Adelaide for almost 2 years now. We like it here. Moving is tough but worth it. Beautiful city, lots to see and do. Great place to bring up kids, lots more opportunities for them. Climate is great and lifestyle is much better than at home. Never going back! Kids are 13 and 3. Let us know if we can be of any assistance in answering any particular issues. We will try our best to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkylm Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Good to hear about the lifestyle always wondering if we are doing the right thing and although everyone is different, the majority seem to like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HopefulDee Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Hi all, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HopefulDee Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Hi there, Clive I really feel for you. My husband, our 4 children and myself moved to France 5 years ago to farm. France has been cruel to us to put it mildly. We work so hard and all we have gained is that we are both here 24/7 for our children. But we are so exhausted physically and mentally that we feel we are actually in prison. So we have begun researching moving to australia. I am going through mental torture because I know zero about australia and the best places to settle. Our kids are 7, 10, 11 and 13. We need a bit of space around us but not to be stuck out in the middle of nowhere either. Please someone help advise of a decent place to bring up a family. I have office experience and my husband is machine operator, construction experience, farmer, general all rounder. How do we go about getting ourselves out there legally. We would be able to scrape money to buy a house but nothing left over. Really appreciate any help or advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennlx Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Just to throw in my two pence about Australians being racist and rude - I can't see how you can apply a gross generalisation to an entire nation. I'm from Melbourne and never experienced any overt racism from people I knew and my school was very multicultural - Chinese, Mauritius, Japanese, Ireland, England, South African, Korean students etc. Just because people have bad experiences from a few ignorant people, it shouldn't then be used to apply to an entire nation. Just for the record, I am married to an Irishman and his family are very racist, constantly complaining about immigrants of different race - never once did I presume that all Irish people are racist because of this one family! Sorry to get on my high horse, but general comments like 'Australian are rude' and 'Australians are racist' really offends me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joebloggs Posted March 1, 2012 Share Posted March 1, 2012 Just to throw in my two pence about Australians being racist and rude - I can't see how you can apply a gross generalisation to an entire nation. I'm from Melbourne and never experienced any overt racism from people I knew and my school was very multicultural - Chinese, Mauritius, Japanese, Ireland, England, South African, Korean students etc. Just because people have bad experiences from a few ignorant people, it shouldn't then be used to apply to an entire nation. Just for the record, I am married to an Irishman and his family are very racist, constantly complaining about immigrants of different race - never once did I presume that all Irish people are racist because of this one family! Sorry to get on my high horse, but general comments like 'Australian are rude' and 'Australians are racist' really offends me. Have to agree with you Jen it is very very offensive, I have seen many similar remarks on other websites. I cant understand why some people would move to the other side of the world and then just bag the Citizens in their own country, funny thing most of these people are only mere guests. Its exactly like being invited around to someone's home eating their tucker & drinking their grog and then bagging them the crap out of them, it would be considered very rude and you would soon be shown the door. Aussies are grand once you come out of your shell and get with the program, maybe a bit straight to the point, brash and not very politically correct but I would rather have that than the pompous PC BS you get back home. You break down in the outback and it wouldn't matter where in the world you come from or what colour you are the first Aussie will always help you out (sorry - No Wolf Creek jokes) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlom Posted April 28, 2012 Share Posted April 28, 2012 hi all My wife and i are from Dublin and moving to Sydney in August with our 6 year old daughter. we'd love to hear from irish already in sydney or still in ireland and going anywhere in oz. there is so much to do/think about, would love to share experiences regards karl and sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JIMMYTOBIN Posted June 17, 2012 Share Posted June 17, 2012 Hi all.. we're in the very early stages of making a move down under & would love advice from any other irish families & their experiences. we have 2 small children, aged 2 & 4. we have no job offer & no contacts in australia but we both have been there previously & know we like it, the people, lifestyle etc. problem is we're not sure how to go about gaining sponsorship. this seems our only option of getting in (we dont appear to qualify for any alternate visa type) we have a visa agency working on our visas & recruitment however this leaves us slightly in the dark as we dont know exactly how much involvement we will have in the recruitment process this way. we're thinking of the gold coast area due to family life, rent prices etc & would like to get our kids settled in school outside of a major city. if anyone has gained sponsorship this way we would love to hear about it! Thanks everyone J&L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murta Posted June 17, 2012 Share Posted June 17, 2012 Hi there We are from the north and are hopeful of the move down under to bring some excitement... leaving family is the only thing now stopping me from screaming from the rooftop (apart from negative equity, crap exchange rate hahah) love the idea of sydney but keep researching brissy due to lower financial costs. 2 kids 6 and 2 .....lodged 175 last week Murta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martina5ft2 Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Hi guys we are a irish family.. I have been here 3weeks loving it so far.. my partner been here 4 months so he had all sorted for us ( me & our daughter 3) we are in Warner outside Brisbane.. Close to city close to beaches.. Seems to be lots of work abt.. Havent meet any friends yet Planing on going to mother & toddler group this week.. So hope to meet some people there.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveReilly Posted November 5, 2012 Author Share Posted November 5, 2012 Hi Martina, I started this thread a while back. Spent so much time wondering if I should go or not. Two years later we are still foing one day and not going the next. Still like the idea of Brisbane. What do you and your husband do for a living? Maybe you can be our inside (wo)man in Brisbane. Tell me about the place, the people, jobs, family life, cost of living, cost of a house relative to wages. We both have decent enough jobs, but just really barely gey by each month. What made you go? What was the straw that broke the camels back. Chat later. Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murta Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 Old thread but reusing it just Puting it out there if any other Irish IN Oz or thinking of going to Oz from Ireland wishes to share their progress to date? Or some on here did you make it fninally what you sup to? Ireland seems to have picked up a little does this put you off going or make you think about returning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pommy Jimbo Posted April 26, 2016 Share Posted April 26, 2016 Yes, watch out for generalisations.:policeman: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrickdinsmore Posted April 28, 2016 Share Posted April 28, 2016 Old thread but reusing it just Puting it out there if any other Irish IN Oz or thinking of going to Oz from Ireland wishes to share their progress to date? Or some on here did you make it fninally what you sup to? Ireland seems to have picked up a little does this put you off going or make you think about returning? Hi Murta We are young family of 4 living just north of Belfast. Moving to Sydney myself on 30th may and family following early July. Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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