slapphead_otool

The status quo will be one of two things, depending upon who you believe:

Either wealth is infinite and that the third world can join us in living standards without lowering our own.

Or wealth is finite and we will go down in living standards as the third world goes up, until we meet somewhere in the middle.

My money is on the latter. Recent history is supporting my view...

isgraham

Third option is a cull. That's the one that worries me.

abi31

To OP - yes there is a huge amount of negativity on this forum - some people who no longer enjoy their circumstances and we all know misery loves company However, as some people here have said, you must look at the situation from your own point of view.

Yes, read and absorb the aspects that are negative as I suspect rose tinted glasses pre arrival are the one thing that are sure to have you craving return flights within the first year, but there is a hell of a lot of positivity on here as well, many many people love it (and not just the people who got there in the 'golden era' ie any time longer than 10 years ago by the sounds of it). Get the info from your friends on what things really cost - you can work out the proportions to your new salary to see if they make you happy or sad.

One point - unless you're going into a job that's ridiculously in demand (and not sure there are very many of them really left) - at least do extensive research into how many jobs are available and if the hoped for salary is realistic or in the high end - speak to some agents if you can at the very least (doubt it will be possible to secure a $60k job before setting off but might be worth a try) - you must consider the kids and small savings will be sucked dry before you've said 'blimey it's a bit wam' (ykshire accent there )

Two things that genuinely interest me - 1. why are you paying $150 per year in 'school fees' in the UK - not including trips and uniform - intrigued as to what these are?
and 2. someone has said you can rent a 4.1 house (as per OP) in the SW for £500 pm - where exactly? I can only assume it's a farmers cow shed on the middle of exmoor

slapphead_otool

To some extent this has repeatedly happened in the past. WW1, to some extent WW2, the Influenza epidemic of 1918/19..

There are also precedents in places like Cambodia (Pol Pot) and China (the Revolution), and in Africa and Russia.

If we start squabbling about resources and standard of living - which is already underway in Greece where they riot on a nightly basis in response to EU inspired austerity measures - then I wouldn't be suppressed to see some radical action taking place.

renth

Starting with a false flag terrorist attack at the London Olympics.

slapphead_otool

Interesting to read the following:

Mr Usher, 48, who is originally from Darlington, made £192,000 after putting his three-bed house near Perth in Western Australia and all its contents on sale. The eBay lot included his Mazda car, motorbike, jet-ski and parachuting gear.
The keen sky-diver also included an introduction to his friends and a trial at his job as a sales assistant at a rug shop.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz1rmdaDrew

So: the guy is a shop assistant in a rug shop, and his house and entire contents are sold for under 200K pounds. That includes a car, motorbike and jetski.

Seems:

1. cheap living to me......

2. Car, house, motorbike, jet ski, and only a shop assistant. It seems he was doing ok.

Just commenting....

renth

He came to Perth when any Pom could buy a nice big house by the sea with the proceeds of a UK house sale and have change to spare and get a 4x4 plus other toys.

slapphead_otool

Fair enough but you miss the point slightly: Four years ago you could buy this guys entire life for under 200K, which seems cheap to me. what was the exchange rate in 2008?

renth

Thats probably half, his Mrs would have got other half.

Amazulu

I see your point. As 3D printer technology advances, a lot of manufacturing will move back to the West. This technology is advancing at a frightening pace and will be the death of a lot of cheap manufacturing in the 3rd World. Why would you make products on the other side of the world, and then ship them at high cost, when you could make them in a factory that employs, at most, 20 people just down the road? China is making big efforts to move away from export manufacturing - they want internal demand, aka rising living standards to drive their economy.

slapphead_otool

No, he sold his life for that.

In other words if you wanted to be Ian Usher, motorbike rider, jet ski fan, Mazda car driver and owner of a house near Perth, you could do so for under UKP200K...

Edited to add: Ok, I did some googling. The car was old, the bike wasn't new, and neither was the Jetski.

but the house was described as:

The house is almost new. It was built by Homebuyers Centre and completed November 2006.

It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and covered, secure parking for two cars. It is ideal for a single occupier like myself, a couple, or would make a great family home. The main bedroom at the front of the house has a great en suite, the other two bedrooms towards the rear having their own bathroom and WC.

The front of the house faces west, and looks out over natural bushland, and benefits from some beautiful sunsets. Sides of the house, including the main living areas face north and south. In summer, vertical blinds can be closed to keep living areas cool, and opening these blinds in winter keeps the house warm by gathering heat from the winter sun.

A laneway at the rear of the house allows for vehicle access, and an automatic roller garage door opens onto a double parking area, and there is also plenty of extra parking space for other toys, such as the motorbike and the jet ski.

There is also a good sized storage shed at the rear, for tools, bicycles, water ski gear, etc.

Among my favourite features of the house is the north-facing courtyard, which is protected from the wind and catches plenty of sun all year round. I have a large spa in this courtyard, which is very relaxing.

The living area is large and comfortable, and has a projector and DVD surround sound system, and movies look awesome on the large screen, which can be powered away when not in use. The spa and screen are set up so that movies or music videos can be enjoyed from the comfort of the spa!
Now that's lifestyle.

The house is built on a good sized block, an area of 399 sqm. The house itself covers an area of 143 sqm, the carport is 32 sqm, and the store room is 5 sqm.

The garden is mainly paved in poured limestone, with some flower beds which are watered by an automated reticulation system. All plants are hardy Australian natives, which thrive in Perth's hot sunny climate. The whole garden was designed to be minimal maintenance, and apart from occasionally brushing away leaves from the beautiful big gum tree in front of the house, there really is nothing to do in the garden other than relax and enjoy.

The house is brick construction, external walls 250mm cavity brickwork, internal walls 90mm thick brickwork.

The roof is metal, which reflects the heat well in summer, and there is insulation to all roofspace.

There is a gas hot water system, a gas hob, and a gas bayonet for a heater, which is very rarely needed, even in the depths of winter. Everything else is powered by electricity supply.

Of course, the house is fully furnished, and all that is in the house, absolutely everything, is included in the auction.

Luthien

Every picture tells a story.

moneypenny20

If I remember at the time he just wanted out and probably took anything that was offered. Had he spent more time selling stuff separately, he'd have made way more. Considering what he got and how he's lived his life since, I think he got a good deal and he's certainly happy.

Dorothy

That explains a lot. The house was built by Homebuyers Centre which is bottom of the rung building. You get very basic everything with them - 1 powerpoint in each room, plastic sinks and laundry tub, bare minimum tiling, lowest cost benchtops, etc. It's only a 3x2 and if it's built by Homebuyers it's small. Especially if it fits on a 399m² block.

It doesn't say what suburb the house was in either. If that home were in someplace like Burns Beach or Iluka then it was a great deal - even just for the land. If it were in someplace like Girrawheen or Gosnells then not so much.

Amazulu

Wellard, wherever that is.