thebears

Hi Darren

I would say go for it - budget for 3 months and take 6 months cash with you plus return airflights.

You can do a lot of things to save money:

In you case leave the shipping of items until you get yourself established and take enough for a month - you can buy clothes etc as you go. By choosing the right time of the year and airline you will save on the flights. Fly direct and you also save on the stopovers. - Stay in cheap hostel etc while you look for rental. My priority would be Car, House, Job.

The big items are:
Establishing a rental home (bond, weeks in advance, furniture etc)
Getting a decent car - perhaps take 30% deposit and finance through bank or car manufacturer like Toyota.
Initial period awaiting first paypacket you need funds for shopping, travel, utilities etc.

It would be hard but feasible and either way you would have a safety net.

Depending on your destination there are plenty of us to provide "local" advise ie cheaper places to shop or friendly face to lift you on those odd days.

Also put it this way alot of Ozzies and kiwis make their way to London with £2K and thats it - no job, no accomodation just a backpack and a return flight to Heathrow.

Kiwi

cranni

I agree, it is stressful enough, without worrying about money.
I personally would want to be more secure and have you thought about setting a job up before you come over.Do you have to get a ticket, everyone else does, you need a ticket to scratch your arse here.
I just dont want you to get here and not see the good things because you are so worried, and remember you have kids, you have to get them into school, buy uniforms, comtributions. Honestly you spend a fortune when you get here on things you dont expect.
I am on your wifes side here. PLEASE just think about what you are doing.
And i really do wish you all the best.
Denise

thribble

We came out with backpacks and 9k sterling to do some travelling. 3 months later we got to Melbourne to settle. Our major set-up expenses were:

$2500 shipping
$1400 bond
$1400 months rent in advance
$1600 bed (we're not shipping our furniture, just books, DVDs, kitchen stuff)
$500 ish in Ikea to get the cheapo essentials - crockery, pans, and a workstation and chair, a couple of bar stools...

We had a car for travelling, which cost us $4k (old station wagon).

We also spent, when we were economising, around $50/week on food, so I guess a bit more than that with kids.

We ran out of money about the time my first wage packet came in (I started work 2 weeks after we got to Melbourne), so it worked out pretty well. However, we had spend a lot of money travelling - having driven perth, southern WA, Kalgoorlie, Sydney, Uluru, Adelaide, Melbourne, we spent most of it on petrol and hostels/motels!! Unfortunately I can't remember what the balance was when we arrived here.

I have to send a bit back, but not a lot, so I do it in lumps every few months to save faffing.

I think if it's your chance to come out here and enjoy it, do so. I would definitely recommend selling everything you can before you come over. I set a target amount I'd be comfortable with, and got about 1k sterling by selling stuff on Ebay and Amazon (and to mates!) - books, DVDs, pretty much anything that could go in the post, including my back catalogue of Empire magazines!! Even TVs, lamps, anything I wasn't attached to. In retrospect I could have sold a lot more, as we haven't bothered shipping everything (we spent about a month living in Melbourne before organising the shipment so we had an idea what we'd need, and the rest is in my parent's attic, poor things!). We've rented our house furnished, but all the little things went!

It's up to you. It is a risk, with kids, but I think on a PR you're entitled to some child benefit as soon as you arrive (someone with kids help please?!), so you would have some extra. Plus, if it doesn't work out, you can always go home, and you've got a house. Isn't it worth trying anything to follow your dream?

JackTheLad

But did these Ozzies and Kiwis go to London with 2 young children, and a partner who's not certain about Australia?

To the OP, I agree with Cranni that it's a big risk you're taking, especially when your wife's having second thoughts about the move. £10K doesn't go far if that's including your tickets and shipping. If anything goes wrong here in Australia, will you be able to handle all the pressure? What if you can't get jobs for a couple of months, or perhaps longer? If you are paying 6 months rent upfront, will you still have enough to furnish the house and get all the basics for the family? Have another chat with your wife and see if she's willing to take the risk as much as you are.

Good luck,
Mrs JTL

woogle

Hi
I've been thinking about this & I would just like to add that it seems,from the outside, you're going to be making it easier to give up & go home, than you are to make it work & stay here.
If you're making the break, surely it's easier to do it 100% & put all your eggs & $ in one basket, rather than trying to do half a job. If you get here & really struggle, you'll be so tempted to jack it in & go back. You've got to comit totally,all of you, otherwise it will be £10k spent on an expensive recci.

thebears

With a sense of humour, a sense of adventure. And two large backpacks filled with nappies.

acbh2

Hi there Darren,

My hubby and I are only just starting out but have spent years talking about all of this and researching our options. We are the same with 2 children and don't want to sell our house as feel its a great investment for our childrens future with house prices going up like they are!!

Have you thought of travelling alone first to get everything arranged before wife and children join you? food stuff and a hovel to stay in whilst you get a job and organise things would be more doable for 1 than 4.

I plan to live with relies whilst the hubby moves out. Kids will stay at scholl etc etc..(IF we gat our visas?!!).

Anyway just my 2 cents worth

Best of Luck

Andrea
xxxxx

MJK

If I had been given the chance to have lots of personal items(furniture electric goods) and £10k to start off my married life i would have ripped their hands off!!
I don't see what all the fuss is about. It costs nothing to walk on the warm sand beach
If you want to work then you will get a job doing anything no matter how crap the money is. Also I understand that if you have PR then child benefit (means tested) is available
You only have one life, so why not go for it!

buck-egit

Well guys This has been a popular Thread!!!!!!

I thank you all for your input and the negitives are just as welcome as the positives that was what I started it for in the first place.

with each reply I have gotten more different ideas.

I am 99% sure of having a job fitting kitchens when I get there the guy who owns the company is from Belfast he is coming home in Sept so I have to go see him for a chat. As for my wife she is MORE cumfy in the thought that the house is here if it all goes tits up. But I do aggree that me personally would rather sell all up and give it a good go " to easy to just say sod it im off home " but Im not single and have to think of my wife and the kids( i recon the kids would have a far far better life out there but the OH isnt as free a spirit or as nuts as I am " somtimes just as well " ) have thought of going it alone for a few months but dont know if i could manage without them I have never been away from them for more than 2 days before???

so to recap i would have the £4000 on arrival i will be able to get a job almost straight away ( although someone said about tickets what are they ???)
it would depend on weather i went alone or took family with me
I know it is all a big gamble but I am more of a would rather have failed and tryed than never tryed and wondered

Again thanks for the replys keep them coming as a few other poeople have made there interests in this one known

also thanks to those that PMed me

Darren ( pulling his hair out)

JackTheLad

Sense of humour and of adventure won't put dinner on the table. And £4000 or even £5000 will disappear before you'll know it.

Now, Kiwi, you're not trying to tell us you went to London with an unwilling partner, 2 young kids, and only 2000 quid in your pocket, oh, and a sense of humour, a sense of adventure, and your 2 large backpacks filled with nappies, are you?

Mrs JTL

Amazulu

It does not really matter if 10k is enough. 10k is what you've got. If you really want Oz, you'll make it work.

Good luck.

leigh&ivan

Thanks for the advice Pearly & I hear what you're saying, however, we have 457 visas & OH employers are expecting us September. He may lose the job & therefore visas if we don't go then, and as we haven't had anyone even view the house it's not looking like we're gonna sell & complete by Sept! Therefore renting our property & sending money back may be our only option or the dream is over
Leigh

thebears

No actually i went to london with a £1000 overdraft and £20 in my pocket.

But i do know of some good friends who gave up 6 figure salaries and moved themselves to London with their 2 and 6 year old sons to spend 10 years living in London. They had £2000 between them (they left their house for something to come home to) and had no jobs, no accomodation booked. They had one change of clothes each - I met them on the Tube.

JackTheLad

Surely someone with "6 figure salaries" would have the brain to bring more than £2000 between them to start a new life. Don't tell me they spent every cent of their "6 figure salaries" and couldn't manage to save up a bit more for contingency. The least they could've done was to work a couple more months to bring a little extra with them. The facts just don't add up.

Mrs JTL

Dried Graze

Right or wrong, this is our attitude but might be viewed somewhat wreckless given that we have five kids. Luckily, the community we are moving to are very helpful. A number of contacts are running around like blue arsed flies on our behalf. Thankfully, the wife has a job to go to and many of our relocation costs will be covered but we hardly manage to raise £47.26 even with the kids' money boxes

Whatever we amass up until the day we fly out, will be enough. We will make it work, even if I have to resort to turning tricks