clarec2002

Hi
We've been waiting for a visa to go to Queensland as we have family on the Gold Coast and they love it, but with all the waiting we have also applied for state visa for Canberra. Some people think we'd definitely be better going to Canberra as we have small children, love mountain biking and dressage (horseriding). However others have said it's really cold there and we'd be better off waiting for the Gold Coast. The other thing I've heard now is that the standard of education isn't very good compared to UK. Our main reason for moving is to have a better standard of living, in the sunshine and outdoors as well as wanting a better social climate too. The exchange rate is so poor at the moment that it would be financially quite tight for us and I've heard that actually it is MORE expensive to live in Australia which means our standard of living (nice wines, cars, decent house with a bit of land for horses) would be very difficult. My husband is in IT but wants to start his own business too. I would really appreciate advice / comments from people who don't have any agenda (ie friends / family!). Many thanks

Kapri

Hi Clare

Welcome to B.E

I'm sure those in Australia will be happy to share their experiences soon.
In the meantime there is an excellent search facility on here. All of the issues you have4 mentioned have been discussed on here recently and would be useful for you to read

tiredwithtwins

for every plus, you have given several minuses ... you sound like you need a trip out there to see for yourself as no one elses experience or opinion will be the same as yours.
id say go for a look around - if you go this time of year its cheaper - go to canberra and gold coast and see what you think.
yes a trip out there is expensive, but you havent got anything to lose - especially if you go for state sponsorship to somewhere like canberra, then find you dont like it and are stuck there for 2 years.
you and your kids are still young and you have many years ahead of you to save and plan - dont jump in feet first without serious consideration of every option, and base those options on your own experience rather than what other people think.
good luck

quoll

What do you mean by a better standard of living? If you want to move from the slums of some large midland town then sure it will probably be a better standard of living otherwise it is probably going to be much the same with a bit more sunshine (and dont discount the impact of hotter days - it can be too hot and fly ridden to want to be anywhere outside).

Canberra is as good a place as any to bring up kids - it gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer but is generally quite dry and not the oppressive humidity that you can get further north. Problem with Canberra (and most other places in Australia) when it gets cold (and we usually get -7C nights during the winter at its lowest) is that the houses arent built for cold - they are single brick or weatherboard, dont have central heating and probably have pathetic insulation as well.

Education - probably evens itself out by the end of honours (degree) and ACT like to think it is the bees knees educationally but the new myschool website didnt seem to agree despite all sorts of surveys which say it is doing OK. I know of several families who have returned to UK because they have been concerned by their kids' educational progress here.

Unless you can walk into a job in Canberra I would think seriously about leaving any sort of steady employment in UK. Canberra is a public service town and so most vacancies with the public service are going to be for citizens (that can be hard for a newcomer). IT isnt an easy field to get into although if you want to start a business it may be easier - bear in mind that many local contracts have security levels required and a non citizen could be struggling to get the level of security required.

Canberra probably isnt what most aspiring migrants "think" Australia is going to be like (not on the beach for starters) but it is one of the better places to live - defined seasons, less incompetent government than most of the other states, quite high incomes (and high accommodation and other expenses to go with it), a good mix of city with big country town, couple of hours to excellent beaches or the snow fields, pretty good horse country (according to friends who own and compete). It's a new town and people will compare unfavourably with Milton Keynes but it is a planned town with a view of the bush from wherever you are, green spaces, generally uncramped, reasonably good transport systems, no traffic jams, lots of high class facilities eg pools, gyms, theatre etc, good suburban restaurants. Not so good with young peoples' bars (not that I would know, well beyond that age!).

Dont know that a better "social climate" is going to happen anywhere in Aus - your social climate is what you make it, so if you are outgoing and friendly you are as likely to have a nice social life in UK as in Aus. We have not so nice people here as well, users, shallow, materialistic - just the same as UK really but IMHO less "genuine" and more transient.

Canberra is a very suburban city and to have house and land for horses you will need to be out of the city - that can be very expensive both in terms of land purchase and travelling into town and that may put you into NSW or you will have to live in the suburbs and find agistment somewhere which will mean a daily trek out to some horse paddocks.

Mountain bike riding - no problems.

You could do much worse than Canberra but nothing beats a visit to check it out. If you dont like winter then I suggest you come in the winter months to see just how different it is from a UK winter.

Upsticks72

Hi, What area in the UK are you from?

I have just moved to the Gold coast and was in Canberra last week for a visit. They are very different places.

The Gold Coast is a party place, there are some area's that are quieter than others but essentially the Gold Coast is where a lot of Australians come to party on the weekend. There is more to the Gold coast, the beaches are amazing and the hinterland behind the Gold Coast is perfect for horses and has a cooler climate. The Gold Coast is still in the high 20's at the moment, humid and we get a fair amount of rain. Fuel in general is much cheaper than the UK, food and eating out is more expensive than the UK. Unless you buy designer clothes the quality of clothes is not as good in UK. Housing is not cheap, unless you move to the middle of nowhere, although you get more for your money here. You will end up paying similar amount for a house here as you would in the UK but you are likely to get more for you money here, up to $500,000.00 is considered the first time buyers end of the market here (do'er uppers, apartments, 3 bed basic homes).

I haven't been on the Gold Coast long, so by no means an expert but I hope this helps.

I just visited Canberra and it seemed like a very modern clean city. It was nice to see autumn as we know it, leaves falling off tree's, jumpers in the day and coats in the evening. I was suprised how many restaurants and cafe's there were. It is a city based on business and politics, very different from the Gold Coast.

My only advice, it's hard to meet people and make friends, if you have family here then maybe that's where to start. But have a look before you make the leap!

Trevski

Hi
If i was to be onnest with you, i find i had more money left in my pocket each week in the UK than i have here in Brisbane.
With regards to the weather here in Brisbane,its very nice to wake up to sun but it does p#** you off when you cant go out in the day unless slip slap slop and when you kids dont like it, it makes it harder to do things in the day,the humidity is very hard some days, we do find our selfs smiling when we get rain/storm, and with the humidity you get the bloody mozzies coming out in the eve so yet again you have to cover yourself with the AUSTRALIAN PERFUME, mozzie spray
but with all what i have said if you dont try it, you will never know what its like
YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE
all the best

northernbird

I have been in Australia 5 years. If I was offered the opportunity to come now, knowing what I know now (if you get my drift) I would not be moving anywhere. If you have a comfortable life in the UK then stay put, coming to Australia from the UK at the moment could be financial suicide.

coolshadows

Wise words. Certainly make sure you don't come with rose tinted glasses.

4500 Times

Some very good advice.

Some people would advice a visit first, which i understand. But for us it was all or bust.

We had a very comfortable life in the UK, but felt we had to spread our wings and felt our son would benefit from the lifestyle Australia offers you.
We had advice from numerous people about what we should do, but we felt if we were sure we wanted to try Australia, then we would do it 100%.

We had never visited, and knew no one here in Brisbane, so we arrived with 4 suitcases and all our belongings in a container somewhere on the ocean.

All i can say "RESEARCH & RESEARCH then RESEARCH some more". Although nothing will compare with seeing the place and experiencing the place, knowledge is a great tool.

That being said,i had a few wobbles early on in our adventure, but they soon passed (luckily) and now could never see myself living back in the UK.

Our lives are so full here, and more importantly our son is thriving. He is 9 yrs old and we have no complaints whatsoever about the standard of his education.

Good Luck with whatever you decide........

brissybee

Don't move anywhere until you have at least spent some time there as a visitor. Canberra is very tidy and hosts politicians and public servants, but I think it's too far removed from the East Coast. Australia boasts it's identity as a land for those who love the sun, the sand and the surf. However, I lived on the Gold Coast for a while and did see evidence of drugs and I soon got over the beach as a fun destination. Have you ever been to Australia in the Summertime? It's REALLY hot sometimes and not everyone loves that. Canberra also gets really cold in Winter. Speaking from my experience, Do Not MOVE To Australia until you have had a good look around, in SUMMER.

ozhappy981

Well, we moved to Australia in Nov 2007 and we had never visited.

But, I did a lot of research. I don't mean a forum like BE. But looking at job sites (to see what the job market was like for us in all Australian capital cities). I looked at www.bom.gov.au to reseach the climate all year round in the different areas. I looked at real estate websites to see what types of houses sell for.

And I considered the kind of hobbies, leisure time activities, holidays we like and new things we might like to try - and then looked again at what each capital city had to offer.

We then had to balance all the factors. For example jobwise Sydney would have been best. But we would have had to live a long way out because of the house prices there.

In the end, Perth seemed the best option for our circumstances. We came here without every visiting. And we love it here. And yes, even now with the way the exchange rate is, I would still do the same thing again .

My advice would be: Don't just go to the Gold Coast because you have family there. Yes, in the short-term it might help to have family when you have just arrived. But in the long-term there will be many other factors which decide whether you like living there or not.

Do your research taking into account jobs, climate, house prices, schools, hobbies etc - and then decide which area will be best for you. Then - if you can afford it - come for a visit.

northernbird

We also came with no prior visit and only had 8 weeks between job offer and landing so not a huge amount of time to plan or research. I love living here but if I had to sell my house for less and exchange the proceeds for less potentially spending more on a property here then I would most definitely have to think long and hard before coming here now.

You need to have a decent amount of cash behind you and if you don't then I would stay put.

clarec2002

Hi - thanks all - some great comments.

We visited Gold Coast Oct 08 and I did like it, not quite what I was expecting but still good, and of course we were staying with relatives so it was mostly just holiday. We have a good life here in Oxfordshire so it would be hard to leave but still it feels like we need to try it. I think maybe we would be best to view it as a two year working holiday. My husband would probably be able to get redundancy with a year's pay so that would help us and we have good equity in the house - which we've thought about leaving in sterling until exchange rate improves, and renting in Oz. I do love the heat - but we are a blonde fair family so the sun concerns me. Also I hate being cold a lot!

Wendy66

Good post.

Just got back from Canberra and enjoyed it, has everything you'll need plenty of acreage properties in surrounding areas as there are on Gold Coast if that's what you want. They are two quite different places you'll get seasons in Canberra whilst we were there Saturday was lovely and warm with blue skies, Sunday was windy and Monday looked lovely again - the Queenlanders I was with were freezing on the Sunday LOL although it wasn't cold with a light coat on.

We live semi rural in NSW and love it, suburbs aren't for us but everyone is different so best to visit both and see what you like and do as much research as you can on both areas, on the plus side you have narrowed it down to two areas, we had many more LOL

mindblower

[[/QUOTE]

Correct Northernbird.