Hello folks. I hope to get to know you all through my visits to this site in the coming weeks.

So, I have a job coming up in Australia (PERTH) and the company is organising my 457 and flights / shipment etc - sooooooooo incredibly lucky, I know. I'm in Scotland just now.

The confusion is I've never been to Perth before and so there's a lot of things I'm totally clueless about. I think I've worked out that the cost of living is about 1.5 times the cost of living in Scotland. Am I right? It's hard to work it out as most of the cost of living information I've found on line is a few years out of date.

But there are a few things messing with my mind!:
- where to live?!?!! I'm a single female in my early 30s, so would like somewhere I feel safe but close to the 'action' so it's easier for me to get out and about and make friends! What are your recommendations of what would suit my needs? FYI - I'll be working not far from the convention centre.
- what to do with my car?!?! There's enough space in my shipment for my car but I'm not sure it's worth it (car is about £4k) and it's always nice to buy a new car for a new life! What are your recommendations of importing v's buying locally?
- if there were any do's and don't's that you would dish out to someone in my situation, what would it be??
I've lived abroad before (in the Middle East for 3.5yrs), but for some reason I am more nervous about this move than I was about the last move!

I'm pretty sure these questions have been asked a million times on here, so please humour me and allow me to be the 1,000,001th time!

Thank you so much!

Hi, I'm moving to Perth also on a 457. I leave in 4 weeks although I'm not so fortunate with the package I got.

There are alot of nice places in Perth although I'm only familiar with the Rockingham area (Sor) so I don't really know areas closer to the Cbd but I would expect that rental prices will be a good bit higher.

On the subject of the car, concensus is that unless it's unusual or of high value then it's not worth shipping it as it will have to go through australian type approval and then be registered. Cars in Oz are dearer although they tend to hold their value very well. You can pay nearly as much for a 2-3 year old car as a new one. If your living close to the Cbd then a city car would be better and a Hyundai getz 1.4 2009 can be bought for around $9000 with the remainder of the manufacturers warranty.

Prices for most things with the exception of petrol are dearer. Food is one of these although it tends to be better quality than the Uk. Like most things if you shop around you will be able to get somethings at cheaper prices.

If you drink, then off licence wine is available in 5lts for around $20 but if you drink beer then it's alot dearer than the specials that Asda etc used to have.
Going out will be dearer with a pint costing $9 upwards.

Are your company giving you Lafha as this can be very beneficial especially if your in a higher salary bracket.

No. Maybe for central London. For Scotland it will be closer to 2.5x min. Then factor in that the WA budget is about to increase water and elec costs 7% this year and carbon tax to add an unknown quantity to that.

Perth is not cheap by any means and I think not a great place for a single.
Well not for a single male at any rate.

I live in the Inner City which is better than the Burbs in the sense of being closer to the action,which tends to be rather limited here anyway.(especially for those over thirty)
Buy a car here if you must as i wouldn't ship one over.

Of course a lot depends on the location of your work place with regards to where you rent.
Perth is rather sprawling so you perhaps wouldn't want to live south in say Rockingham if you are working in the north and vice versa.

Hi, have only just spotted this post. As a single, you have a great choice of suburbs and unless you particularly wanted to live near the beach or miles away in the bush, I would recommend choosing an inner-city surburb. This would give you a shorter commute to work with plenty of options, or cycle if you want, plus much cheaper taxi fares if you were out at night.

Examples north of river (NOR) are Leederville, West Leederville, North Perth, Mt Lawley, Highgate, Inglewood, Subiaco, Shenton Park, West Perth, East Perth, Nedlands, Claremont, Mosman Park, Mt Hawthorn, Wembley, Maylands, Bayswater (last 2 have good and not so good parts).

A few other suburbs are close in, but not so many cafes/restaurants, such as Daglish, Jolimont, Mt Claremont. Beach and cafe lifestyle: North Fremantle, Cottesloe, Swanborne, Scarborough, Doubleview, Trigg, North Beach.

South of river (SOR) suburbs: perhaps just South Perth - get the ferry across the river to work, maybe Como or Kensington. A bit further out is Fremantle and lots of nice places along the river on the south side, but transport more of a problem, eg train line to Fremantle and another line down the freeway to Canning Bridge, but you would need a bus or car for suburbs between these 2 train lines.

You would have to think about the sort of things that are important to you, such as beach, public swimming pool (some unit complexes have their own), public transport, cycle lanes, good shops, cafes, etc. It is still pretty easy to get around Perth by car, or to/from the CBD, but it can be time-consuming if you try to go somewhere that's not the CBD by public transport.

Hello, ScotsSal.
I was in Perth at the end of Easter for 3 weeks, just caught the last of the good weather my friends said, had rain since, it is Autunm now..
I did live there for 18 years, [been back in the uk for 3] cost of living has gone up but not as much as the uk..and as some else said on here depends where you shop.
The ecomony is going great as it;s fueled by the mining sector so house price's have gone up, but you do get more for your money, i sugest you look at 'the west australian newspaper' on line and check it out..
As for cars they are a lot more expensive than the uk, i know as i am a mechanic...when you buy the car from the dealer, you go and get it registered in your name, then you have to pay a stamp duty for the pleasure, so make sure you stick to a budget, ok this may sound as a plug for this car yard, [John Hughes]victoria park, perth, but i did work for this guy for 10 years and he is honest, unlike some...good luck with the move...

John Hughes is the biggest car dealer in Perth I believe, a sort of Aussie version of Arnold Clark.