BonnieH

Thats a long wait....But I wish you the best of luck when you get there

x

Flixy

Thanks Bonnie! Good luck with your applications!

magic_stag

Be careful folks before you move. Don't sell your house and burn your all bridges. We moved 5 years ago and came back after 6 months. We went to Brisbane, the kids hated it (2 boys boys aged 7 & 9), I could not find work and the wife hated me! Came back to UK effectively bankrupt but at least I am happy here.
I sold my house in Scotland and had £30,000 which was about $AUD90,000. That all ran out with air-fares and house contents relocation. No job, then you cannot get a mortgage or rent. And I was in IT, in fact I did a temp job and was sent home after half a day because "I was too qualified".
Good luck and prepare.

Flixy

Oh God, that's depressed me more than the Wanted down under revisit I watched yesterday! Glad to hear you are happy now though!

magic_stag

Thanks for your reply. Don't be depressed it was something meant to be. The boys hated the humidity in Brisbane, I did not care for it either. Also the outdoor life is over-rated, you cannot get out in the sun unless you Slip-Slap-Slop! Very dangerous melanoma, the boys hated wearing UV shirts when swimming.
The boys are a lot happier here in Stirling, they can play football, they love the snow, they don't fall asleep with the fans whirring overhead in the classroom (No air-con for children up to 40 degree heat!).
I don't regret going otherwise I would not find out. Consider it a probation period. Only mistake was I should have listened to my brother-in-law. He suggested don't sell the house and go first and try to look for work, then when everything is settled, bring the family say 6 months later. Don't uproot them unnecesarily. Only thing is the visa was granted Oct 04 and last entry April 05 for everyone, very tight deadlines. Not sure why the authorities insist everyone come together instead of staggering the entries.
Never mind, all worked out. Que sera sera!!

MrCro

hope you don't mind me asking but as you are a new member on here I can't understand why if you have 'been there, done that and didn't like it' you have now joined an Australia emigration forum?

magic_stag

If you read my original post it is a response to the misleading information in Relocation: Phil Down Under. I just want to warn people and make them prepare. This is a discussion forum therefore there are many opinions. Quite obvious really!

bobbyfaescotland

Still did not answer the question as to why you have now joined an emigration to Australia discussion forum when you did not like it

Bermudashorts

Jeez give him a break. We don't have to justify our reasons for joining BE.

Anyway it is good for would be immigrant to hear different points of views.

J.P

And because he did not like his experience in Australia he has to keep away from the forum? It's open to anyone.

We need balanced information within the forum, pros and cons, likes and dislikes. Emigrating is not going on holidays, where everything seem to be Utopia for the period your are enjoying yourself.

magic_stag

Why did you join? What are you experiences good and bad? Care to share with others on this forum? So we can learn and benefit from others experience. Did you actually read my first post? And I did not say I don't like Australia, I said it did not work out for me and my family.

magic_stag

A comment in the original programme intrigued me. The couple who went to Dandedong Hills, Melbourne had £200,000 (I think?) in cash from their house sale. This is a tremendous amount of money, most of the country cannot get that increase from selling a house. The south east of England and London had over-inflated houses but here in Scotland the boom never got that high.
I want to emphasise that unless you have a job or savings, you cannot maintain that expense. There are also property taxes, utility bills (air-con!) etc. I had small savings but they ran out. I was very angry at myself for not being able to get employment (I am in IT). Just be prepared, have a back-up plan, migrating can and does go wrong.
Thanks for saying I don't have to justify being on this board. I feel I answered the question posed to me. If others disagree then I would like to hear their experiences. I have also lived in the UAE (7 years ) and USA (4 years) and Singapore (6 months) so actually I have been a practising EXPAT by definition! I do know what I am talking about.

Flixy

We are fortunate that we do have some money behind us, well not so much fortunate - we have worked bloody hard for it over the last 30 years And yes, we do live in the South East of England which helps, although I am originally from Scotland so am a bit canny!
Nevertheless I don't underestimate how hard it can be to get work, especially as my OH will be 46 when we get there. For me it is not so much about the money though, but leaving friends behind, I don't have any close family here but I do have some very good friend. Luckily we have 2 young children 4 and 9, so hopefully we will meet new friends through that. We have already met up with 5 families who are going (or gone) to the same area as us. We have all had BBQ's etc and have all got on well - Hi Janna!
Still I do not underestimate how hard it is going to be, to be honest I have been concentrating on the negatives so that at least I am not going in with rose-tinted glasses on.

magic_stag

I am originally from Guildford in Surrey and somehow ended up in Scotland about ten years ago. I wish I was canny - You can work hard but money from house sales is basically unearned income!
Now about age, I think I was too old to start again. I went when I was 46 years old. I got the application through after 3 years (2001-04) and I lost momentum a bit after that. My boys were 7 & 9 and the younger adapted but the eldest did not. To return was a family decision, if I had a job we would stay, if the boys were adamant to stay then I would respect that. I really like the sports emphasis at the schools and the informality of life there. But it was a combination of things that decided it.
As I look back it was meant to be, not right or wrong. I had lived in the USA before but was always sponsored to work on H1-B visa. Straight away the cash is flowing! I worked in UAE for 7 years I was invited to work there, same again, no problem. But these were temporary situations and I had a yearning to be a permanent resident. So I did achieve the Independent Migrant status and that was good but it does not guarantee anything.
That's why I get annoyed with programmes like Relocation etc, so glib. There was another program a few years ago, No Going Back, I think that was more realistic.
Good luck to you, I sincerely hope your enjoy your stay.

hantsfamily1

I think its good that people with bad expereinces reply to balance out view points.
I moved to Brisbane and ended up on the Gold Coast 2 and a half years ago and the weather has been different all the time. I personally think that it takes more than 6 months to get used to new surroundings and would suggest 2 years a better amount of time.
The couple that bought a place in Melbourne last week are friends of mine and have bought a big place on an acre for $500k, sounds like a bargain to me. Even with house prices dropping a bit in the UK its still way better than a now typical 3 storey town house the developers seem to be building with a postage sized stamp garden to keep your blade of grass in.
Everyone in Australia makes ends meet and they are not all multi millionaires, its a case of getting stuck in and taking a few years to build up what you have left in the UK. It wont happen overnight and certainly not in 6 months.