Definately an opportunity, we have a great little high street where we now live and I think something in a local area like that would be great, the subhurbs need a little character especially the newer areas, older ones like Leederville, South Perth etc all have good high streets with great little cafe's.

Living in Leederville I can tell you the rents were raised by the landlords over the past year or so that a some of the small business here has had to relocate to remain viable.
Not sure a breakfast place could afford to charge a rate so cheap that the hords would flock. One such place that has cheap for Perth prices,'Sienas' where GBP 7+ Pizzas during cheap nights Mon through to Weds pulls the punters in. A breakfast place, i would suggest, would not have such pulling power.

His world.

It's not impossible to find that in some sectors.

All variable.

This year, I'll probably earn at least 4 times my last UK salary (05/06).

But I thought you wanted to move to Blackpool!

Kicking your arse on this one SAFFA. Sold my house in Oz and took advantage of the ex rates, semi retired now...except, I'm still consulting to an Oz Independant Oil Company at the day rates I had when I left Oz, but converted to good old British pounds. I'm earning 8 times more than I earned back in 2004...and compared to my earnings when I left Perth I'm to the good about 2.5 times.

Absolutely but it was a general statement that wages are 2 to 2.5 times what they are in the UK which is obviously incorrect. SOME maybe but then SOME are way higher there.

Bully for you champ, I'm not trying to compete with you!

This is all well and good if you want to live in the UK, which I don't.........

I Would rather be a piss poor pommie immigrant living in shockingham than go back to the uk right now

Felixstowe beach just aint got the pull of the WA coastline...

Fishing off of clacton pier aint the same as taking a boat up north and catching sharks and King emporer for the lad....

The chlorine filled crown pools i n Ipswich aint the same as stepping into our own saltie here

Our barbie is big enough to feed ten, not a round thing the size of a dinner plate and roadkill is SO much more interesting... Tastes much better for a few hours in the heat to marinade it....

And the bangers we drive wouldnt get through an MOT back at home

LOl my OH says that but then add's "I also have work 4 times as many hours to do that" and bless him he does.

I fully agree with you, when we first arrived in Perth we actually thought it was expensive (14 years ago) even then but we did go out like a lot of our friends use to do but over the years our "get togethers" with friends (going out etc) got less and less as everyone tightened their purse strings, I think in our last 5 years in Perth we noticed a huge price rise from things like having an "ice cream" at Hillarys or Mandurah to dinning out. I think a lot of that is for a few reasons.....the isolation of Perth, the thought that a lot of West Aussies earn high incomes when some do but a lot more do not and the lack of competition does not help either and it also seems to now be more of the norm to stay in a drink and have BBQ's etc, its cheaper and easier, not our cup of tea but for most it's great.

I just read your quote about "going out" and I do have to say that I think its not a country (think I said this once before lol) but its the people we have friends and family here in the UK who like us take their children with them 99% of the time (our two are still come on Holiday etc with us) I commented to a friend in Perth when we first arrived about if she needed a night out to let me know (they were having a few problems marriage wise) and she nearly cried lol and her words were "most of us here have to take our kids everywhere as we dont have any family etc to ask" I minded their children (never again..they were climbing the walls..as was I by the end of the night lol) I basically think it's who you mix socially with, usually its the same type etc.