tripawaymars

At last..we can see what the lion looks like!!
Liz

youngy73

we used to have 2 varieties of passion fruit, bananas, pawpaw (red and green), pineapples, lemons ,limes and oranges plus a veggie patch for toms, lettuce etc. my neighbour had the obligatory mango tree so i used my pool scoop to grab those when we fancied one.

wardy2

definately going to try growing some of this stuff

Looking forward to Oz

Are there many accountancy firms and jobs in Cairns? Ive just qualified as an accountant and im thinking of a country move to Cairns but im not sure if there are any medium to large accountancy firms that are financially stable (given the credit crunch and current economic climate no company is safe!).

Also, does Cairns have the feel of a city or the feel of a town?

I currently live in the heart of a city with over 400,000 people and i read somewhere that Cairns population is 130,000. Which is fine (probably great even) but does it have the feel of a small town - i.e. lack of coffee and buzz!

One last thing! Are the residents of Cairns chilled and friendly or is everyone nameless with no eye contact at all let alone conversations?

Thanks.

P.S. - dont think im some snooty city accountant girl cause im really not! Just struggling by in UK. Seen a job advertised at $58k incl of super (therefore around $53k excl super) - does that sound reasonable or are they just wanting cheap labour! i keep reading here how people are on $70k + and its beginning to worry me as to whether i would be able to survive or not!!

Sorry about my massive message - at least its all off my chest now!

wanderingwombat

Careerone website has 11 accountant positions advertised in Cairns.

Feel of a town with the benefits of a city

Very chilled & friendly

WW

Bix

I agree with WW.

Cairns to me is like a large sprawling country town.
It has the buzz in the main CBD day and night but equally calm and relaxation all around it.
The beauty is there are so many diverse things in such a relatively short travel time.

Coffee shops ? Yes, everywhere. There are 5 alone in the main shopping mall.

It's very cosmopolitan and yes, very friendly and chilled.

Accountancy jobs are always available. What the requirements and wages are I'm not sure. The system is different to UK though so probably you will need to do some work on obtaining a rematch of your skills in line with what is required here. That will be the case wherever you go in Aus.

Check it out on the accountants forum here.....
http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=87
GinaUK may be able to advise you on that.

I put another expat in touch with an accoutancy firm a couple of years ago and they got a job based on a telephone interview.

If you're interested i'll send you a link.

Looking forward to Oz

Just to let you know - (the guilt is getting to me!) - I have been offered (and accepted) a job in Cairns and im currently working on the 119 visa. Guess im getting a few cold feet now. They have offered me $53k exc super (which im now wondering whether is ok/good). So far on this site I havent seen any salary numbers quoted below $70k!! arghhh.

Also, I was wanting to know about other accountancy firms so that I could change employers in a few years. If there were no others then id be stuck working for the same company for the rest of my life...which is ok if you like the company!!

I was/am beginning to wonder whether i'll feel trapped in cairns and perhaps should go somewhere bigger like Syndey. Its difficult for me cause i havent visited cairns (nor australia!) so really cant picture life out there! - gosh, i sound so stupid dont i! PLUS what would i do about the job offer!! oh silly little me.. i always get myself into little pickles! .

Shaun&Dee

Cairns is very chilled, there is a big accounting company in The Cairns Corporate Tower in lake Street which has 2 floors, can't rememebr their name though, they are also in the UK, perhaps a search of google

moogle

My boyfriend and I are looking to move early - mid next year. Initially thought of getting a camper van for a few weeks to allow us to view Cairns and decide on a location that we would like to rent / buy a house.

He has his own business at the moment but years of experience in Sales Management so he can apply on a skilled migration visa and then eventually set up the business over in Cairns. He deals in porcelain tiles for consumer and business, do you think there is a good market in Cairns areas, as I assume not many people have any carpets over there!???

Also could someone please tell me if / when we do go to rent / buy a house how do things compare over here. Typical example, we see a 3 bed house with a pool. We then progress to rent / buy. Then what else do you pay for? Is there council tax / maintanence charges for pool / how much is electricity / gas bills. Do they have tv licences / water rates etc. I could just do with knowing how similiar it is compared to uk.

If anyone could shed any light on certain things? Thanks so much in advance.

Bix

Tiles everywhere Moogle.
Would be a rarity if you found a house fully carpeted. I've not seen one yet. At most it would be bedrooms and lounge but a lot have no carpet at all. Floortiles are the order of the day as well as walltiles in bathrooms, kitchens and laundry rooms.

Usual state of affairs is:
Council tax - landlord pays
Water rates - landlord pays
Water "excess" usage - Tennant pays.
Electric / Gas - tennant pays.
Pool - negotiable. Often landlord pays for maintenance but tennant pays for chemicals used.
Garden & grass upkeep - negotiable.
TV licence - doesn't exist.
Phone - tennant pays.

Looking forward to Oz

Woohoo!! Something at last is free! The money we save on a licence can be put towards the medical care!!

Burbage

You need a licence for almost everything else however

Never seen a place with so many licences. Bike licences are next I reckon.

moogle

Thanks all for your replies.

When we get there do we need to resit our driving licences?

How long can you drive with your UK licence before having to renew?

Any ideas on costs etc?

Head is fuzzy there is so much to think about isn't there! I can't get any work done these days as I'm too busy researching our future

windog

No..you dont have to re-sit anything ....you just need to show your UK license ( and pasport, proof of adress etc) and they will issue you with a Qld license...cost I cant remember but thats because it was relatively insignificant like $20 or something

Looking forward to Oz

I'm 26 and moving to cairns as a loner on a PR visa. Are there any 'safe' areas that you can recommend for a female loner to live/rent?

I've never visited cairns before so have no idea where is good/bad. Unfortunately google maps aren't that informative!