Bix

I know a bloody good fish & chippy

tripawaymars

What more do you need???? Will get the details when we get there!!

killamarsh

Six kids - hope you got a discount with the airline - or your own plane

stjames

Your spot on anyone moving to oz to make there fortune is going to be disappointed.if u are going there for the life style,weather,space then great.
we were there for 12 months and realized it was not for us with 3 teenagers.
But when you say lifestyle depends what someone means most people we met had never been able to leave oz for a holiday.And thought we must be loaded because we had been to other countries including usa.when it really hurts financially is when you want to return back to the UK even for a short visit,or your children come back for work and stay in the UK we met quite a few in these circumstances.
Having said that i miss oz and have been back in the uk for 3 years and only just started to feel happy here but wife and kids very happy 2 be back.

Annie_

I'll just stick my 2penneth in

My husband and I arrived over 4 years ago in Brisbane, initially we were very disapointed with the job/wage situation. I could only secure casual work (admin) and my husband (trades) had 3 jobs within a year, poorly paid and casual.

It took us time to find something well paid within a stable company but we are now earning the equivalent of what we were on in the UK and both very happy where we are. Financially we are better off and find our overheads here in Brisbane lower.

So my only word of caution to the new arrivals would be just dont expect well paid jobs to fall into your lap as soon as you arrive, a lot of jobs in Brisbane are filled by who you know rather than what you know.

Hutch

In my more limited experience - I'd say that was true for the whole country. Time and again I hear about folks getting jobs because they know somebody. Seems to be a far more widespread system than in the UK.

wardy2

We are more worried about hubby getting a job rather than it being well paid.

I agree with Stjames our reason for moving is not to get rich but to live somewhere where we can live outdoors enjoy the great sporting facilities for our sons and be able to enjoy spending time with each other again.

Timber Floor Au

Quite surprisingly your leisure time... isnt as available as you would think

sarahlou

couldn't agree more, we are going so we can spend quality time & a life experience together,we are barely in the same room at home,as OH comes home i sometimes leave,wet weather weekends dampen moods ect,
sarah

snow-white

can i just add been here 8 weeks hubby got a job through someone he knew rather than what he knew pay is good but his work load and hours are hard and long.
i never thought it would be easy for a second but just want to make others aware to make a decent wage hes still working 5 days 12 hour days and sat morning overtime to bring home enough to live. be prepared! living on goldcoast most will have a while to go before they get to the family leisure time we thought we were going to get on living here.

tripawaymars

I feel very lucky then that I will be on a 4 day week after 3 months and earning $80-100,000 dollars. After a 3 year hard degree course to retrain as a mature student I think I should be enititled to that though..it will make up for what I havn't earnt in the past 3 years!!

Good luck to those of you who havn't got jobs sorted before getting to Oz..you are very brave. I couldn't do that myself..I need my security!! I guess if you have plenty of savings and money to live off it is o.k but not the case for me. Will be going out there with enough money for a runabout car and a rental deposit...but at least I know I will be bringing in enough to pay the rent and live on until OH finds work too.

wardy2

Believe me will will have enough leisure time to enjoy We will make sure we do.

As we are bringing quite a bit of equity from the sale of our house we are in a good position to start with a clean slate. This will ensure our leisure time this is the top of our list of priorities if we dont enjoy our family now we are a long time dead.

Hi snow white just saw your reply thats a lot of hours dont mean this to sound rude, I know things can come accross wrong when writing things, but my hubby is having to work 7 day weeks 12 hours on 5 days and 10 hours a day saturday and sunday. This does give us a bit extra to have a few luxuries but we arent rich by any stretch and leisure time is non existant. This is not all year round but have to earn what he can now to see us through rest of the year.

I am not coming to Australia with "rose tinted glasses" I know it will be hard work and I know we will struggle to settle in and gain work etc. I have no expectations of our move except that we can be together more, maybe idealistic but the amount of sadness that has happened to our family in the last 4 years has made us reasses our own family life and changes will be made to how we live now.

I am the 40 year old daughter of an expat family and believe me I have experienced it first hand, thats why I know that at all costs even if we have to scrimp and save we will have our leisure time together.

Kaye x

tripawaymars

Kaye

Exactly our reasons for moving!! We don't have any kids (not through choice) so are in a different situation financially but we are also moving to ahev quality leisure time. my OH works shifts here..whenever we get invited to something they are working so hard to build up a decent social life. If I work for myself I will have to work 6 days a week (which I may choose to do in a few years but having spent 3 years full time study I want a break). We don't expect to be rich but we know when we sell house here we can pay debts off and move and start new..if we stay here we will have to plough the equity straight back into another house..and keep the debts on.

We just want wide open spaces, beaches to walk the dog on and quiet roads to ride the motorbikes on..simple things that don't cost anything but that we can't have in the U.K....and to have time to make quality freindships. people may think that is yukky but we miss having time to socialise and I don't mean going down the pub evey night and getting pissed..I mean having time to invite friends round for dinner, popping round for a coffee, not stressing about how going to pay for food shopping every time you go to the supermarket etc etc...do you get where I am coming from??!!

We are both lucky enough to be in professional jobs so will probably be on above average wage but that will be used to have quality time and to save some (which have never been able to do in my 40 years of living).
Liz

wardy2

We to like the free things in life and with the better weather and better open spaces we to will enjoy them.

Put me first on your list for a dinner party no special dietry needs.

sarahlou

that is exactly what i mean, we want the option to go for a walk/beaches ect, just being together,ok if OH has to work roughly 60 hrs a week then brill cos at present he works 70 + and i work 40 hrs nights so we never see each other or our kids,but we have enough money from the sale of the house (about £160,000)to bring with us to give us a fresh start,
sarah