Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
Apr 26th 2006, 2:24 am
#1
Sarita
Thread Starter
Joined: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Posts: 8
Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
Hello Peeps,
Wonder if anyone could throw some pearls of wisdom my way. I've been in Oz for a month now. Staying in Adelaide with relies as a base from where to do the job search etc. After a month of applying for jobs, hounding the agencies (let's not go there, that'll be a different thread altogether, and not a very Nice one!), I finally secured an interview with a company in Melbourne last week. I had a telephone interview and the face-to-face after which I was offered the job (Junior Project Manager - Telecoms co.). I accepted the job and bit the bullet of earning around 500 pounds less per annum than if I was in the UK. I start on Monday 8th may with a salary of $70K. The job is based in the Northern suburbs (Broadmeadows to be precise) and after a year and a half the company will be moving to the CBD. As part of the offer, they will give me the company apartment to live in, rent free for 2 weeks while I find more permanent digs. Then the usual 9% super and a chance to do a salary sacrifice thing for a car. There's a company bonus scheme which is half paid if the company is profitable and the other half is paid based on your own performance. This job will offer me the chance to fill in the missing gaps in my skills set, namely full budgetary control, and the company also expressed an interest to fund the Project Management certification exams.
Now comes the dilemma... The day I was offered the job, I got a call from another agency for a job (Associate Project Manager - Pharmaceutical co.) that I applied to the first week I arrived in Adelaide. The job was a good 90% similar to the one I was doing in the UK and I was also account managing this company as my client (which is essentially why I applied in the first place!) when in the UK. The job is based in North Ryde, Sydney. I have a telephone interview with them on Friday (2 days time - eek!) and if they like what they hear, they'll invite me for a face-to-face interview in Sydney. The salary is a good 5-8K more than what I'm offered in Melbourne. Skills set wise, I don't think I will get to fill a huge amount like I would in the Melbourne role. From the job spec, I can say I could pretty much do the job with my eyes closed and could easily command a good few grand more based on my experience. I was told the salary package would be between 70-80K base. Then you have the 9% super on top and I think there's also a car allowance as well. The agency wasn't too clear about the perks.
If I go on the assumption that I will get a job offer from the Sydney co. the question is, "what should I do?". I I've been to both Melbourne and Sydney on holiday. My heart skipped a beat when I was in Sydney and I loved it. I enjoyed Melbourne as well admittedly a tad less than Sydney. But then it's different when you're in the holiday mode isn't it? I guess it comes down to what my money can do for me as well. Melbourne is cheaper than Sydney and ideally I would look to buy a property in a year's time. I have no strong alliance to either state. I came to Oz for a better quality of life that meant I wouldn't be slogging my guts out in an office until the wee hours of the night for little reward. I want to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle, the cafe culture, and have always dreamt of living by the water (or at least within a short drive away from the water).
Over the weekend, I logged onto realestate.com.au I chose a couple of suburbs in Sydney verses a couple in Melbourne (both Northern suburbs). Typed in a maximum house price of $300K just to see what my money could buy me. In Sydney I was lucky if came across a 2 bedroom place. I'm not really an apartment type of gal and that's all Sydney had to offer in my search, one bedroom apartments. In Melbourne, my money got me 2 bedroom units and in some areas even 2/3 bedroom apartments and the odd villa.
I'm so confused... You get to the point where your mind goes blank and I don't even know if I've considered all the considerations that you need to when you compare one state for another.
Any help will be gratefully received. In the meantime, I shall prepare for my telephone interview this Friday.
Hope to hear from you good people soon and thanks on advance for reading and sharing my plight.
Best,
Cea
Wonder if anyone could throw some pearls of wisdom my way. I've been in Oz for a month now. Staying in Adelaide with relies as a base from where to do the job search etc. After a month of applying for jobs, hounding the agencies (let's not go there, that'll be a different thread altogether, and not a very Nice one!), I finally secured an interview with a company in Melbourne last week. I had a telephone interview and the face-to-face after which I was offered the job (Junior Project Manager - Telecoms co.). I accepted the job and bit the bullet of earning around 500 pounds less per annum than if I was in the UK. I start on Monday 8th may with a salary of $70K. The job is based in the Northern suburbs (Broadmeadows to be precise) and after a year and a half the company will be moving to the CBD. As part of the offer, they will give me the company apartment to live in, rent free for 2 weeks while I find more permanent digs. Then the usual 9% super and a chance to do a salary sacrifice thing for a car. There's a company bonus scheme which is half paid if the company is profitable and the other half is paid based on your own performance. This job will offer me the chance to fill in the missing gaps in my skills set, namely full budgetary control, and the company also expressed an interest to fund the Project Management certification exams.
Now comes the dilemma... The day I was offered the job, I got a call from another agency for a job (Associate Project Manager - Pharmaceutical co.) that I applied to the first week I arrived in Adelaide. The job was a good 90% similar to the one I was doing in the UK and I was also account managing this company as my client (which is essentially why I applied in the first place!) when in the UK. The job is based in North Ryde, Sydney. I have a telephone interview with them on Friday (2 days time - eek!) and if they like what they hear, they'll invite me for a face-to-face interview in Sydney. The salary is a good 5-8K more than what I'm offered in Melbourne. Skills set wise, I don't think I will get to fill a huge amount like I would in the Melbourne role. From the job spec, I can say I could pretty much do the job with my eyes closed and could easily command a good few grand more based on my experience. I was told the salary package would be between 70-80K base. Then you have the 9% super on top and I think there's also a car allowance as well. The agency wasn't too clear about the perks.
If I go on the assumption that I will get a job offer from the Sydney co. the question is, "what should I do?". I I've been to both Melbourne and Sydney on holiday. My heart skipped a beat when I was in Sydney and I loved it. I enjoyed Melbourne as well admittedly a tad less than Sydney. But then it's different when you're in the holiday mode isn't it? I guess it comes down to what my money can do for me as well. Melbourne is cheaper than Sydney and ideally I would look to buy a property in a year's time. I have no strong alliance to either state. I came to Oz for a better quality of life that meant I wouldn't be slogging my guts out in an office until the wee hours of the night for little reward. I want to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle, the cafe culture, and have always dreamt of living by the water (or at least within a short drive away from the water).
Over the weekend, I logged onto realestate.com.au I chose a couple of suburbs in Sydney verses a couple in Melbourne (both Northern suburbs). Typed in a maximum house price of $300K just to see what my money could buy me. In Sydney I was lucky if came across a 2 bedroom place. I'm not really an apartment type of gal and that's all Sydney had to offer in my search, one bedroom apartments. In Melbourne, my money got me 2 bedroom units and in some areas even 2/3 bedroom apartments and the odd villa.
I'm so confused... You get to the point where your mind goes blank and I don't even know if I've considered all the considerations that you need to when you compare one state for another.
Any help will be gratefully received. In the meantime, I shall prepare for my telephone interview this Friday.
Hope to hear from you good people soon and thanks on advance for reading and sharing my plight.
Best,
Cea
Apr 26th 2006, 2:32 am
#2
Drunken Aussie
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: Brisvegas
Posts: 1,080
Re: Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
for me, melbourne. many reasons, but the most obvious one is that the 5-8K more in sydney will be more than lost by the living costs.
Originally Posted by Sarita0020
Hello Peeps,
Wonder if anyone could throw some pearls of wisdom my way. I've been in Oz for a month now. Staying in Adelaide with relies as a base from where to do the job search etc. After a month of applying for jobs, hounding the agencies (let's not go there, that'll be a different thread altogether, and not a very Nice one!), I finally secured an interview with a company in Melbourne last week. I had a telephone interview and the face-to-face after which I was offered the job (Junior Project Manager - Telecoms co.). I accepted the job and bit the bullet of earning around 500 pounds less per annum than if I was in the UK. I start on Monday 8th may with a salary of $70K. The job is based in the Northern suburbs (Broadmeadows to be precise) and after a year and a half the company will be moving to the CBD. As part of the offer, they will give me the company apartment to live in, rent free for 2 weeks while I find more permanent digs. Then the usual 9% super and a chance to do a salary sacrifice thing for a car. There's a company bonus scheme which is half paid if the company is profitable and the other half is paid based on your own performance. This job will offer me the chance to fill in the missing gaps in my skills set, namely full budgetary control, and the company also expressed an interest to fund the Project Management certification exams.
Now comes the dilemma... The day I was offered the job, I got a call from another agency for a job (Associate Project Manager - Pharmaceutical co.) that I applied to the first week I arrived in Adelaide. The job was a good 90% similar to the one I was doing in the UK and I was also account managing this company as my client (which is essentially why I applied in the first place!) when in the UK. The job is based in North Ryde, Sydney. I have a telephone interview with them on Friday (2 days time - eek!) and if they like what they hear, they'll invite me for a face-to-face interview in Sydney. The salary is a good 5-8K more than what I'm offered in Melbourne. Skills set wise, I don't think I will get to fill a huge amount like I would in the Melbourne role. From the job spec, I can say I could pretty much do the job with my eyes closed and could easily command a good few grand more based on my experience. I was told the salary package would be between 70-80K base. Then you have the 9% super on top and I think there's also a car allowance as well. The agency wasn't too clear about the perks.
If I go on the assumption that I will get a job offer from the Sydney co. the question is, "what should I do?". I I've been to both Melbourne and Sydney on holiday. My heart skipped a beat when I was in Sydney and I loved it. I enjoyed Melbourne as well admittedly a tad less than Sydney. But then it's different when you're in the holiday mode isn't it? I guess it comes down to what my money can do for me as well. Melbourne is cheaper than Sydney and ideally I would look to buy a property in a year's time. I have no strong alliance to either state. I came to Oz for a better quality of life that meant I wouldn't be slogging my guts out in an office until the wee hours of the night for little reward. I want to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle, the cafe culture, and have always dreamt of living by the water (or at least within a short drive away from the water).
Over the weekend, I logged onto realestate.com.au I chose a couple of suburbs in Sydney verses a couple in Melbourne (both Northern suburbs). Typed in a maximum house price of $300K just to see what my money could buy me. In Sydney I was lucky if came across a 2 bedroom place. I'm not really an apartment type of gal and that's all Sydney had to offer in my search, one bedroom apartments. In Melbourne, my money got me 2 bedroom units and in some areas even 2/3 bedroom apartments and the odd villa.
I'm so confused... You get to the point where your mind goes blank and I don't even know if I've considered all the considerations that you need to when you compare one state for another.
Any help will be gratefully received. In the meantime, I shall prepare for my telephone interview this Friday.
Hope to hear from you good people soon and thanks on advance for reading and sharing my plight.
Best,
Cea
Wonder if anyone could throw some pearls of wisdom my way. I've been in Oz for a month now. Staying in Adelaide with relies as a base from where to do the job search etc. After a month of applying for jobs, hounding the agencies (let's not go there, that'll be a different thread altogether, and not a very Nice one!), I finally secured an interview with a company in Melbourne last week. I had a telephone interview and the face-to-face after which I was offered the job (Junior Project Manager - Telecoms co.). I accepted the job and bit the bullet of earning around 500 pounds less per annum than if I was in the UK. I start on Monday 8th may with a salary of $70K. The job is based in the Northern suburbs (Broadmeadows to be precise) and after a year and a half the company will be moving to the CBD. As part of the offer, they will give me the company apartment to live in, rent free for 2 weeks while I find more permanent digs. Then the usual 9% super and a chance to do a salary sacrifice thing for a car. There's a company bonus scheme which is half paid if the company is profitable and the other half is paid based on your own performance. This job will offer me the chance to fill in the missing gaps in my skills set, namely full budgetary control, and the company also expressed an interest to fund the Project Management certification exams.
Now comes the dilemma... The day I was offered the job, I got a call from another agency for a job (Associate Project Manager - Pharmaceutical co.) that I applied to the first week I arrived in Adelaide. The job was a good 90% similar to the one I was doing in the UK and I was also account managing this company as my client (which is essentially why I applied in the first place!) when in the UK. The job is based in North Ryde, Sydney. I have a telephone interview with them on Friday (2 days time - eek!) and if they like what they hear, they'll invite me for a face-to-face interview in Sydney. The salary is a good 5-8K more than what I'm offered in Melbourne. Skills set wise, I don't think I will get to fill a huge amount like I would in the Melbourne role. From the job spec, I can say I could pretty much do the job with my eyes closed and could easily command a good few grand more based on my experience. I was told the salary package would be between 70-80K base. Then you have the 9% super on top and I think there's also a car allowance as well. The agency wasn't too clear about the perks.
If I go on the assumption that I will get a job offer from the Sydney co. the question is, "what should I do?". I I've been to both Melbourne and Sydney on holiday. My heart skipped a beat when I was in Sydney and I loved it. I enjoyed Melbourne as well admittedly a tad less than Sydney. But then it's different when you're in the holiday mode isn't it? I guess it comes down to what my money can do for me as well. Melbourne is cheaper than Sydney and ideally I would look to buy a property in a year's time. I have no strong alliance to either state. I came to Oz for a better quality of life that meant I wouldn't be slogging my guts out in an office until the wee hours of the night for little reward. I want to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle, the cafe culture, and have always dreamt of living by the water (or at least within a short drive away from the water).
Over the weekend, I logged onto realestate.com.au I chose a couple of suburbs in Sydney verses a couple in Melbourne (both Northern suburbs). Typed in a maximum house price of $300K just to see what my money could buy me. In Sydney I was lucky if came across a 2 bedroom place. I'm not really an apartment type of gal and that's all Sydney had to offer in my search, one bedroom apartments. In Melbourne, my money got me 2 bedroom units and in some areas even 2/3 bedroom apartments and the odd villa.
I'm so confused... You get to the point where your mind goes blank and I don't even know if I've considered all the considerations that you need to when you compare one state for another.
Any help will be gratefully received. In the meantime, I shall prepare for my telephone interview this Friday.
Hope to hear from you good people soon and thanks on advance for reading and sharing my plight.
Best,
Cea
Apr 26th 2006, 3:11 am
#3
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: Sydney beachside
Posts: 3,505
Re: Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
Originally Posted by brisnick
for me, melbourne. many reasons, but the most obvious one is that the 5-8K more in sydney will be more than lost by the living costs.
However, if Sydney pulls the heartstrings and the Sydney lifestyle appeals more then go for Sydney, though you'd have to wait until the salary rises a fair bit befor you could afford to buy anywhere. You could always rent somewhere nice to live in and buy somewhere further out (but affordable) for an investment?
Apr 26th 2006, 5:17 am
#4
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: Hill overlooking the SE Melbourne suburbs
Posts: 16,622
Re: Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
I had a love affair with Sydney for 18 months, I then married Melbourne and have never regretted it once. In fact, I have a chuckle at my good fortune and willingness to try the other.
Apr 26th 2006, 6:11 am
#5
Forum Regular
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 234
Re: Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
I live in Sydney and am very fond of it. But I would go to Melbourne if I was you, unless you can afford to live in a good area of Sydney. Housing in Melbourne is more affordable and plus the Eastern suburbs are generally nice and leafy.
If it wasn't for our ties in Sydney I would be tempted to move there myself.
The only thing I would miss about Sydney is the sunshine and the stunning beaches and harbour but that's about it.
If it wasn't for our ties in Sydney I would be tempted to move there myself.
The only thing I would miss about Sydney is the sunshine and the stunning beaches and harbour but that's about it.
Apr 26th 2006, 11:45 pm
#6
Sarita
Thread Starter
Joined: Jun 2005
Location: London, UK
Posts: 8
Re: Tough Decision - Melbourne or Sydney, Please Help
Thank you for all who have replied. Looks like Melbourne is winning hands down! Seriously though, I'm finding I can't sleep from thinking about it all. Moving to Oz was a big enough decision and now I'm set to make another which will pretty much shape my future here.
I have my telephone interview tomorrow with the company in Sydney so I think I'll just be bold when it comes to the "do you have any questions for us" bit and get to the nitty-gritty of what they will offer on top of base salary and then take it from there.
I can get a one bedroom rental in Melbourne for nothing over $200 (mainly Northern suburbs which would be close to work) and I wouldn't have to pay for bills either. I bet I'd be hard pushed to find the equivalent in Sydney...
It's a shame in a way that both jobs are permanent, I mean if they were contract positions I could have tried out both cities fair and square. Still, I mustn't grumble. It's a hard decision sure enough but I count my lucky stars to be in this position. Adelaide can be very dismal when your single and unemployed...
Thanks again all, Regards,
Cea
I have my telephone interview tomorrow with the company in Sydney so I think I'll just be bold when it comes to the "do you have any questions for us" bit and get to the nitty-gritty of what they will offer on top of base salary and then take it from there.
I can get a one bedroom rental in Melbourne for nothing over $200 (mainly Northern suburbs which would be close to work) and I wouldn't have to pay for bills either. I bet I'd be hard pushed to find the equivalent in Sydney...
It's a shame in a way that both jobs are permanent, I mean if they were contract positions I could have tried out both cities fair and square. Still, I mustn't grumble. It's a hard decision sure enough but I count my lucky stars to be in this position. Adelaide can be very dismal when your single and unemployed...
Thanks again all, Regards,
Cea
