Maximmm

Hi all

My wife and I have been in South Australia for a year now and I just wanted to pass on a few of my own observations to any prospective migrants. These are purely my own views so please feel free to disagree with me on any point.

We came out here to start a new life in what is widely considered to be one of the most laid-back and safe areas of Australia to move to (many Aussies refer to the place as boring). Having been here a year, I can now say:

CONS :curse:
1) If you're not a skilled worker (medical, mechanical etc) then don't bother coming, unless you don't want a job at all. I used to be a well-paid office administrator in Local Government in England but it took me 10 months to find any employment here despite many, many applications. I now work as a part-time Postman driving a motorbike around every day. It is NOT a dream job for me, it's just the only thing I could get. Also, if you've not got a degree then this hampers any possible employment options still further - most admin jobs request that you have a degree in a relevant field even when it's a pretty basic position with little responsibility.
2) The driving standards and ettiquette here is appalling and so therefore the level of roadrage borders on anarchy. When you couple that with the total lack of any roadworthiness test for any vehicle here (i.e. no MOT), there are regular driver deaths every week on 40mph roads that, in England would be considered pretty damn harmless. Also, there's no requirement to have any car insurance as the basic road tax includes 3rd party liability cover (only in the event of injury to a person, NOT to property).
3) Adelaide has one of the highest murder rates in the world of any city. This is not hype, just fact. This violence goes hand in hand with the severe drug problem Adelaide has and is exacerbated by the road rage.
4) The cost of living here in many respects is more expensive than the Uk. Food and alcohol are more expensive as is electricity. Petrol however is about 50% cheaper than England.
5) Most skilled workers like nurses, mechanics etc will find their wages to be a fair bit lower here than in the Uk despite the higher food and living expenses incurred.
6) The main argument people have about moving to South Oz is the climate. Let me tell you that the winters here, whilst not actually being physically as cold as the Uk, certainly feel colder when you live in a house that's designed to put up with 40 degree heat. I don't even know if you can get central heating out here - my house has a wood burning stove in one room that, with the air conditioner in the same room, forms the only means of heating we have.
7) Adelaide is a generally pretty boring place to live, period.

PROS
1) If you are a skilled worker and are not too worried about the location you work in (i.e. will consider rural and mining areas) then you'll probably have no worries getting a job within the first month of arrival.
2) If you are a skilled worker prepared to work in the mining areas, you can earn a fortune, even by Uk standards. This will usually mean that you've got to work 2 weeks on (12 hours a day for 14 days), 2 weeks off, fly in/fly out.
3) If you work 10 years in the same job with the same employer, you get 'long service leave' which I believe is around 3 months paid.
4) There are a lot of National Parks within easy reach of the city that are very beautiful and have areas for sports, barbecues you can hire out and other stuff. Some, such as Belair National Park are just fantastic and are full of wildlife.
5) Whilst the house prices have skyrocketed over the last 3 years, you can still get a great house for what you probably sold your British one for. Anything beachfront or with a seaview however is easily £500,000+ as you'd get in England so don't be fooled.

Now, I've ranted on for too long and I'm sure most people have either a) stopped reading or b) decided to write a response that's none-too-pleasant so I'll shut up. I'm afraid that a lot of the above has been bothering me for a while so I've had to vent.
On reflection, I wish that my wife and I had been more patient and had taken the decision to move to Canada instead of here. As it is, we're considering moving to kangaroo island ( a pristine and beautiful wildlife haven) or out of the state completely, as soon as we're able...

ROSHAN

Very Informative,

Thanks for sharing your experiences. I agree on most of the things you said and feel have got this feedback earlier too. You have just re-assured the same. One piece of advise, why dont u guys shift to a better city say Melbourne or Brisbane, if you cant coz u r on SIR Visa do it after your PR, where u would find jobs related to the level of education and experience you have.

Finally I wish you all the best for your future ahead in whatever you do.

Maximmm

Thanks for that mate.
We're on the STNI PR visa by the way, which means we're supposed to stay here (SA) for 2 years or the visa's technically invalid. Ho hum...

Wendy

Not entirely true.

I'm not going to comment on your first post - each to their own and all that.

ellie10990

hi there

I thoroughly agree with everything you have said.
I am a skilled worker and can only earn less than half I earned in the uk and thats without holidays and sick pay.My husband has managed to get a reasonable salary (although less than his uk one).But it means that he has to work from 7.15am until 9pm so all dreams we had of havung more family time have gone out the window.!!

As for the weather yes I agree I am colder here than I was in the uk,many people here wear coats in the house and thats much of the year

As for laid back lifestyle,youve got to be joking.I have never known any where with so many regulations and rules.Even simple things Like how many dogs you can have(i used to breed them in Uk,didnt realise I wouldnt be able to here.)and trailers have to be registered,you have to park on the road facing the correct way.I could go on

Driving too,terrible always right up your backside.Hoons doing donuts all night and keeping us awake(and were in a respectable area).Many people I speak to seem to have lost a relative/child in a road traffic accident.quite shocking!!

I believe that the stni sponsored visa is only a moral obligation though,so it is possible to go elsewhere,just not sure if they are any better

Flixy

Hi Maximmm,
We are at the early stages of the process and are hoping to come to Adelaide. It was good to hear your honest views. Can I ask where you came from in the UK, and do you think this has a bearing on your views?
Cheers
Flixy

Maximmm

I came from Peterborough but have worked throughout much of England so have a good understanding of life in England as a whole. Peterborough had drugs and petty crime like you wouldn't believe and I have to say that the petty crime here is a lot less. For example, lots of people don't lock their cars or houses at night. However, the driving and murder rates were FAR better in Peterborough, as were the roads! Adelaide's roads are the far side of crap! They have the most ill-conceived transport system - it's all intersections (i.e. traffic lights every 100 feet) and no roundabouts. The roads almost all have a 40mph limit on them but take huge volumes of traffic for many miles. This means that any journey takes double what it would in the Uk. Bear in mind that there are really only 2 actual freeway/motorways here with a 60-70mph limit on them, and that's to handle 1,000,000 people. I suspect that you may heard the myths of the 'Mediterrenean climate' (think Egyptian desert not the Costa Brava), the cheaper cost of living (balderdash) and the friendly people (they aren't too bad on the street but hate everyone in cars no matter who they are or where they're from). Don't be seduced by promises of faster visa processing to come here - yes it's probably quicker than for elsewhere but there's a reason everyone wants to go elsewhere! I would very seriously consider coming here(Adelaide) for a good long trip before you decide to move here. I wish I had.

Wendy

Not true again...

Flixy

Thanks for taking the time to reply, definitely food for thought!

Vin 'n Bin

I think you should go to Kangaroo Island or Canada...now they are cold places Having lived in Adelaide for 31 years I can honestly say that I have NEVER worn a coat. The driving and roads over there are much better than here, I don't think I'll ever get used to these roads and the most ignorant drivers here in Perth ...and I've been driving for 40+ years.
Adelaide is not one of the worst cities in the world for murders, it was the serial killers who bumped the rate up...3 that comes to mind.
It seems to me that someone is getting killed around here very often
Bevan Spencer Von Einem, it has just been revealed, will be spending the rest of his life in prison and in September was interviewed about the Beaumont children. (He and the rest of 'The Family' are among the few serial killers).
People, please don't be put off going to Adelaide ...I would gladly live there again if I could.
And, you can get 'Lancashire Tea' far cheaper than you can here and I will be stocking up when I go back in January....my brother gets it from a warehouse at Holden Hill. Here in Perth it costs $11.25 for a box of 80 He gets it in Adelaide for half that price. Why????
Hope things pick up for you soon, but I doubt it.

tyke

It's because the importer is here in Adelaide if memory serves me right ( I do a bit of food broking on the side).
Shipping to Perth and Darwin is very expensive and romps ups the price!!

allankate

It's good to hear a story with the rose tinted glasses taken off. Thanks for your thoughts

Allan

pumpkin blossom

Can I just point out to everyone who hasn't just moved to Oz that food prices, well fruit and veggies anyway have been going up quite a bit in the UK recently. Just uner £2 for a pommegranet!!! We have been watching the food prices in Adelaide for a while and the only thing which seems to be more expensive (other than the odd thing, and that works both ways) is bread!
Our food bill certainly wouldn't be any different to here in the UK.


It was reported on the radio earlier today that pizza prices here are due to sore as flour and cheese prices are going up!!!

I can't wait to get to Adelaide. If it is anything like I remember it is a wonderful place, but does seem to have a slighly higher than average number of nutters. LOL.

MRS G

We are hoping to head out to Adelaide at the end of next year. We have spent a bit of time there on 3 occasions and we also have family there. We have never had a problem with the place, we really liked it and my OH got a short term job ok (would have been a full time job if we had been staying). My only problem with the place is the winter climate as ideally I would like somewhere a bit warmer.

Mrs G

tucker

Ace post! just finishing off 175 application and heading for adelaide. very informative and a nice change from the many "paradise on earth" posts. cheers