TheJohnstons

Hi there, we are a family of four (me, hubby and 2 girls agred 4 years and 2 years) who currently live in the North West of England in a very small town called Morecambe. We have been looking into emigrating to Australia but there is so much to look at we dont feel like we will ever get through the abundance of information. We would like to meet new people and talk to anyone who is in the same position as us, who have taken the leap or anyone who can either just provide help or would like to offer advice. We look forward to speaking to you
P.s we are thinking of going in the next 3 years.

northernbird

Plenty of information here with a very good search facility. Firstly start with whether you qualify for a visa and work from there. I am from Carnforth so can understand you wanting to escape!!

Welcome to British Expats.

TheJohnstons

Hi there, thanks for your reply. We do qualify for a skilled worker visa, well my hubby does; he is a project manager. We have done the initial online assessment with the **************** which says we qualify. Dont really know where to start on here for our search of information. We are not sure which areas to look at in WA, we would like to be the same distance from the beach that we are now and not too far from schools and work. We dont know what schools are good/bad? We dont know how much we need to be earning to get by with a comfortable lifestyle etc... Also, we are looking at going with my parents too but dont know if they will qualify?

northernbird

Get yourself here first and then worry about your parents. Getting parents here can be a lengthy process and expensive. www.aussiemove.com is a good website for maps and suburb descriptions. www.realestate.com.au is similar to Rightmove. The search facility at the top of the page is good. Search cost of living Perth, salary Perth, schools Perth and a whole heap of information comes up. I will be honest and say it isn't cheap to live here anymore. You need to do your homework for sure, good luck.

HelenTD

Hi, you said that your OH is a project manager - does this involve being based in a CBD office, or travelling a lot to different sites? Most public transport heads for the CBD, and if travelling elsewhere it can take a lot of time on public transport. This is partly why so many people drive to work/study/etc (the car is king here). There are lots of great suburbs, but some of them require huge amounts of money to buy into. You can rent in some great suburbs for very reasonable amounts of money.

Australia_bound?

Your first step is to find out if it's possible to get a visa. Is project manager on the SOL list? Some of the online tests are simply there to get you to hand over cash even if you can't get a visa.
As for your parents no they'd not be able to come with you, they could possibly apply for a retirement visa, if they're very well off, but it's a bit of a minefield as it has to be renewed every 4 years & goes on how healthy and weathly you are. Wouldn't want my parents getting booted out of the country as they couldn't afford to live here or due to health reasons.

As for where to live, if you plan to come out in 3 years time come out here for a holiday and look around. Not everyone will have the same opinion as you on where would be a nice place to live. Better finding out yourself.

robo500

Hi,

Im based in Manchester just down the road from you in Morecombe, we are in a similar position our family is me, the wife, & 2 boys aged 6 and 7months ive got a telephone interview on Thursday with a company in Perth.

having never visited Australia before its a big step out into the unknown however i feel its a positive move as i really want to bring my kids up somewhere nicer near a beach and lovely weather i suppose its all the same reasons the vast majority of people have emigrated for.

where we live at the moment is a safe cul-d-sac and we know all the neighbours and say hi to each other and have the occasional chat and theres other kids in the street that my kids play with i suppose if i could lift this area up and plonk it down in Perth id be happy as id hate to move and end up in a really nasty area, theres loads of suburbs to chose from and ive only just started to try and narrow my search down oh and we still dont know wether to sell our house here yet or rent it, also im not sure on the cost of living in Perth either so i cant gauge on how much i should be looking at paying for a house lol

Blond1e

hi,
Hubby has just secured a job in Perth and we are just in the process of selling our house and negotiating relocation etc.

If anyone in the same process would like to pm me to share info/experiences please feel free to do so. I am extremely nervous and tend to over analyse everything. Would be lovely to chat thru similar concerns with others in the same boat. eg. what areas are you looking to move into, have you found any great schools etc.

Good luck everyone and if I find out any more info I'll be sure to share.

TheJohnstons

Hi robo500, we too live in a little cul-de-sac where everyone knows each other. We holiday with our neighbours and although the kids don't play with the others on the street just yet, we live right behind the local primary school. We are also 10 min walking distance to the beach and would like that again really. I have looked into loads of different areas and the ones that keep popping back up are Fremantle and Mandurah. Dont want to be too far from where the work is either. I know, we want it all lol. My hubby is a project manager and I am a childminder at the mo. I have been informed that my hubby's job is on the list and in demand and that we shouldn't have any problem in getting a visa.
Also, my brother is looking at moving there too eventually (there are only us 2 children to my mother) with his fiancee and she is from Australia.
We have never visited before either but are planning on trying to get there next year to do a bit or fact finding and visit a few of the different areas we have been looking at.
Would love to keep in touch and see how you get on? xx

TheJohnstons

Hi Australia_bound?
We have looked into visas and have been informed that my hubby's job is on the list. The test I took online was from a reputable company that is recommended by the Australian Immigration site so I think they should be trustworthy. They have been really helpful so far and I haven't handed a penny over yet.
As for my parents I have seen others have had sucess stories and would like to know how they did it? We have been told there are a few different routes for them but we dont know which are best? They are pretty well off so that aspect wouldn't be an issue really. As for health, my mother id diabetic but otherwise they are both in good health.

I agree that as to where to live we all have a different idea of where is suitable but would really prob like which areas to avoid? We would like family friendly areas. Your right, we do need to find out ourselves so we are going to try and get there next year and check out a few different areas.

Thanks for all your help and advice so far everyone.

Dorothy

I think you're confused. What Australian Immi site recommended a migration agent? Certainly not the DIAC (Department of Immigraion and Citizenship) site.

The other success stories from people who have brought parents are those whose parents qualify in their own right. Either a retirement visa or balance of family aged parent visa or business owner.

If you really cannot live without your parents close by and need to know that you're going to go on holiday with your neighbours, the move to the other side of the world just doesn't sound like the right move.

Exactly why do you want to move to Australia? Why WA if you've never been here?

Bermudashorts

Is hubby a construction related project manager? Otherwise I don't see project manager on the list. Which list are you looking at?

robo500

Hi The Johnstons, I would like to do a visit beforehand to check everywhere out but its just the cost of the flights etc, i too would like somewhere not far from the beach maybe in walking distance would be nice ive got loads of suggestions from very helpful peeps for suburbs to look at on my other topic on here titled 'sorry perth suburbs question' (i figured its a question asked a lot lol)

so taking into account of the salary the company is offering and together with my OH salary im trying to narrow down the search a bit, i need to do a bit of research on how much the cost of living is and how much your likely to spend on bills etc. before i come to a figure i can work with

ive worked out that with my salary being 80k per year thats about $4700 per month my OH is around 50K per year thats about $3200 a month giving us a total of $7900 so ive been looking at renting somewhere that costs about $3000 a month im just wondering if ive set my sights a little too high?

Also im wondering if im doing things back to front in getting a telephone interview before sorting out the stuff with our house in the UK and all the other associated things with our life here lol its certainly brain scrambling at times

Australia_bound?

There are many successful applicants for getting parents across. But would you mother be prepared to lose her partner to follow you? And how would you find a few years without your mother? As you can't sponsor her until you're out in Aus? Seems it's a big issue for you, so you'll need some very good advice on the subject. My parents would never leave the UK so wasn't an issue for myself, miss them both an awful lot, so holidays back to the UK will happen every few years.
As for where to live, what kind of employment opportunities are you looking for? We'd never live in Perth as I can get work anywhere and OH is a teacher, so is pretty much assured of employment where ever we end up. We both find the country more appealing than the City.
For finding the right place, rent and get the lay of the land, then move to the part of the town/City where ever you end up. Are many nice suburbs and many not so nice suburbs.

HelenTD

Are there plenty of teaching jobs in the South-West or Great Southern?