Originally Posted by Eddie_W (Post 10528297)

I originally come from Melbourne, but moved to the UK 12 years ago and am now about to move my family of 4 (kids 8 and 4 +1 on the way) to Perth, my experience has taught me this so far (this is an opinion subjective to me only)and also take into account the being away from family is the same both ways for us:

UK
- The winters are very long and do effect your mental state, especially with the extended darkness, leaving the house and coming home in the dark is very draining
- The longer days in the summer do not counter balance this because as someone else pointed out the kids still need to get to bed.
+but when it is nice over here, people appreciate it it more and definitely make the most of it, it is an extremely pleasant place when the weather is good (20+ and the suns out is all you need) because people really do have a good time
+ people are more capable over here in making the most outdoors even when the weather isn't ideal (although I still can't enjoy it as much as they do even after all this time) I'm talking about things like a walk on the beach on a cold day.
+ The UK work life seems much more supportive of the family situation (I know Australia is catching up, but it is still behind) things like paternity leave better maternity pay on offer by most companies, less pressure on you when your kids a sick. And in turn you feel supported therefore I think work a bit harder for those companies (again remember this is only my situation, there may be plenty of examples where this isn't true)
- people are generally not very positive over here and do not appreciate what they have, they are constantly complaining about where they are, there is no inherent love or patriotism (and I don't mean in the US sense, sorry to generalise)
+ and - Education is more structured here, I am yet to believe this is a positive or a negative, I do believe there is too much pressure over here (in the UK) for kids to perform academically too early.
+We do ok financially and have a pretty good understanding about the cost of living and it seems to weigh in more favourably that Australia
+The NHS is better, no doubt, the more complete offering that is government and tax funded is better than the model in Australia (IMHO), but from what I know and can remember the quality of care is comparable and even pretty much
+access to Europe for Holidays is much more cultural diverse if you can afford it
-Where we live our kids can't just play on the street, but that is specific to us and location
- In my industry (IT) you are much more expected to commute longer distances. Even with the shorter distances between towns and cities, the larger volumes of people mean a five mile commute can still be an hour long easily

Australia
-Australians (including me for a long time) are convinced that theirs is the best place to live and why would anyone want to live anywhere else. This can be a good thing in small doses (see note above about love for country), but sometimes there is too much arrogance about it, its just not that straight forward.
- and + The heat can be as oppressive as the cold in the UK, but you can still use the cooler ends of the day to effect as someone stated earlier
+"Generally" people are friendlier and less cynical
+ You tend to default to an outdoor lifestyle more because it is more accessible, in the UK you have to "try harder" to make the outdoor lifestyle work, in Australia you make assume the weather will more likely be good on any given day etc (although growing up in Melbourne I may be stretching the truth a bit here, but we are going to Perth)
+ Outdoor stuff is always cheaper if you plan properly (go to the beach, go to a forrest), take your own food etc, because when you are indoors someone is having to pay for the building and therefore pass the cost on to you
+ People in Australia (this may have changed in my 12 years away) will tend to help each other more without expecting it in return, in the UK you always feel like you are managing an unwritten "balance sheet" of support, this may just be me or the area we live in
+ Australia manages diversity more openly and better (but I am about to contradict this a bit), mainly based on growing up in Melbourne
- Australian are generally more racist (but not as Xenophobic, but its a close call) as the UK, my "feeling" is there will be much more lumping together general statements of people based on their shared race, rather than a fear of the unknown (and yes I completely see the irony of that in what I have been saying) I think in the UK generally people think they aren't racist or Xenophobic, but they are and are just practised at hiding it, whereas Australian's are a little bit more honest and tend not to hide it and deal with it more head on.
+ In Perth the commute will inherently never be as long as in the UK


There are many other points that could be listed and I may add more after I re-read (I reserve the right to contradict myself :))

Generally though when it comes to the practicalities of day to day life, there isn't much in it, there are pro's and cons both ways and generally if you are living in or near a big city; life is not going to be that different. I agree that the whole "the weather is better" statement is so much more insignificant than people realise when it comes to raising a family. It only means something if you make the most of it.

Originally Posted by Gill73 (Post 10528646)

All good points Peepster!!! Thank you.

If we do emigrate, we probably would rent out our UK house. I then worry though (and I am a worrier about the detail!) that when we do come to sell, how difficult would that be to organize from 10,000 miles away and would tennants keep it in good condition so it could be re-sold without work being carried out on it?

My head hurts thinking about it all! I think if we were both 100% sure that a move back to Oz was for us, we would get on with it and live with the consequences - schooling, rates of exchange, housing, jobs etc....

I'm just not at that 100% sure stage at the moment :blink:

Originally Posted by Eddie_W (Post 10528297)

I originally come from Melbourne, but moved to the UK 12 years ago and am now about to move my family of 4 (kids 8 and 4 +1 on the way) to Perth, my experience has taught me this so far (this is an opinion subjective to me only)and also take into account the being away from family is the same both ways for us:

UK
- The winters are very long and do effect your mental state, especially with the extended darkness, leaving the house and coming home in the dark is very draining
- The longer days in the summer do not counter balance this because as someone else pointed out the kids still need to get to bed.
+but when it is nice over here, people appreciate it it more and definitely make the most of it, it is an extremely pleasant place when the weather is good (20+ and the suns out is all you need) because people really do have a good time
+ people are more capable over here in making the most outdoors even when the weather isn't ideal (although I still can't enjoy it as much as they do even after all this time) I'm talking about things like a walk on the beach on a cold day.
+ The UK work life seems much more supportive of the family situation (I know Australia is catching up, but it is still behind) things like paternity leave better maternity pay on offer by most companies, less pressure on you when your kids a sick. And in turn you feel supported therefore I think work a bit harder for those companies (again remember this is only my situation, there may be plenty of examples where this isn't true)
- people are generally not very positive over here and do not appreciate what they have, they are constantly complaining about where they are, there is no inherent love or patriotism (and I don't mean in the US sense, sorry to generalise)
+ and - Education is more structured here, I am yet to believe this is a positive or a negative, I do believe there is too much pressure over here (in the UK) for kids to perform academically too early.
+We do ok financially and have a pretty good understanding about the cost of living and it seems to weigh in more favourably that Australia
+The NHS is better, no doubt, the more complete offering that is government and tax funded is better than the model in Australia (IMHO), but from what I know and can remember the quality of care is comparable and even pretty much
+access to Europe for Holidays is much more cultural diverse if you can afford it
-Where we live our kids can't just play on the street, but that is specific to us and location
- In my industry (IT) you are much more expected to commute longer distances. Even with the shorter distances between towns and cities, the larger volumes of people mean a five mile commute can still be an hour long easily

Australia
-Australians (including me for a long time) are convinced that theirs is the best place to live and why would anyone want to live anywhere else. This can be a good thing in small doses (see note above about love for country), but sometimes there is too much arrogance about it, its just not that straight forward.
- and + The heat can be as oppressive as the cold in the UK, but you can still use the cooler ends of the day to effect as someone stated earlier
+"Generally" people are friendlier and less cynical
+ You tend to default to an outdoor lifestyle more because it is more accessible, in the UK you have to "try harder" to make the outdoor lifestyle work, in Australia you make assume the weather will more likely be good on any given day etc (although growing up in Melbourne I may be stretching the truth a bit here, but we are going to Perth)
+ Outdoor stuff is always cheaper if you plan properly (go to the beach, go to a forrest), take your own food etc, because when you are indoors someone is having to pay for the building and therefore pass the cost on to you
+ People in Australia (this may have changed in my 12 years away) will tend to help each other more without expecting it in return, in the UK you always feel like you are managing an unwritten "balance sheet" of support, this may just be me or the area we live in
+ Australia manages diversity more openly and better (but I am about to contradict this a bit), mainly based on growing up in Melbourne
- Australian are generally more racist (but not as Xenophobic, but its a close call) as the UK, my "feeling" is there will be much more lumping together general statements of people based on their shared race, rather than a fear of the unknown (and yes I completely see the irony of that in what I have been saying) I think in the UK generally people think they aren't racist or Xenophobic, but they are and are just practised at hiding it, whereas Australian's are a little bit more honest and tend not to hide it and deal with it more head on.
+ In Perth the commute will inherently never be as long as in the UK


There are many other points that could be listed and I may add more after I re-read (I reserve the right to contradict myself :))

Generally though when it comes to the practicalities of day to day life, there isn't much in it, there are pro's and cons both ways and generally if you are living in or near a big city; life is not going to be that different. I agree that the whole "the weather is better" statement is so much more insignificant than people realise when it comes to raising a family. It only means something if you make the most of it.

Originally Posted by verystormy (Post 10529546)

There are a few i would disagree with:
People in Oz are willing to help you out more. Not in my experience. Most Ozzies i know wouldnt give a glass of water to a man dying of thirst.

People are friendlier. Nope. Having lived in half a dozen countries i find them the most unfriendly. Even Londoners are marginarly better.

Outdoor life. Nope. I was and most of the people i know were, far more outdoors in the UK. The rain never bothered me, but for some reason it does here and then i summer its too damned hot.

Going out to forests and beach. Nope. Live next to the beach and havent even been once this summer. Forests can be pretty, but your not going to let the kids run around in them like they do in the UK - snakes.

My commute is a LOT longer. Around 2 hours each way.

Originally Posted by verystormy (Post 10529546)

There are a few i would disagree with:
People in Oz are willing to help you out more. Not in my experience. Most Ozzies i know wouldnt give a glass of water to a man dying of thirst.

People are friendlier. Nope. Having lived in half a dozen countries i find them the most unfriendly. Even Londoners are marginarly better.

Outdoor life. Nope. I was and most of the people i know were, far more outdoors in the UK. The rain never bothered me, but for some reason it does here and then i summer its too damned hot.

Going out to forests and beach. Nope. Live next to the beach and havent even been once this summer. Forests can be pretty, but your not going to let the kids run around in them like they do in the UK - snakes.

My commute is a LOT longer. Around 2 hours each way.

Originally Posted by Zen10 (Post 10529666)

Sounds like it's time for you to move away then. No sense in being that unhappy every day.

Originally Posted by Dorothy (Post 10529954)

And another thread asking for help ruined by petty bickering.

Originally Posted by Japonica (Post 10529960)

:nod: I'm surprised newbies bother to post questions anymore.

Originally Posted by big_matt (Post 10529079)

Great post. This echoes my feeling after spending long periods in both countries that they both have many positives and negatives, and at the end of the day they are quite close in terms of the experience you have in each.

And I never understand the daylight hours stuff. Both countries have darkness before and after work in the winter and Brisbane has it almost all year round. Maybe my memory is a bit hazy, but I don't ever remember noticing having significantly more daylight when I was in Melbourne.

Originally Posted by verystormy (Post 10529546)

There are a few i would disagree with:
People in Oz are willing to help you out more. Not in my experience. Most Ozzies i know wouldnt give a glass of water to a man dying of thirst.

People are friendlier. Nope. Having lived in half a dozen countries i find them the most unfriendly. Even Londoners are marginarly better.

Outdoor life. Nope. I was and most of the people i know were, far more outdoors in the UK. The rain never bothered me, but for some reason it does here and then i summer its too damned hot.

Going out to forests and beach. Nope. Live next to the beach and havent even been once this summer. Forests can be pretty, but your not going to let the kids run around in them like they do in the UK - snakes.

My commute is a LOT longer. Around 2 hours each way.

Originally Posted by chris955 (Post 10530098)

I definitely agree with some of your points, I dont see any evidence of Aussies being any friendlier at all. Being an Aussie probably accounts for some bias in the direction ;) I dont see one country being friendlier than the other to be honest.
We lived literally next to a hugenational park and the kids (voluntarily) spent very little time there. We would go as a family, often looking for snakes ironically :lol:

Originally Posted by Peepster (Post 10529083)

It's totally understandable to be not 100% given the circs. But don't worry about the house side of things, yes it's not ideal to sell from Aus but it's deffo do-able, we've done it and will be doing it again when we go back. The main thing is to do all the odd jobs/works that you've been meaning to get round to doing before you leave, otherwise the tenants will moan (and rightfully so!) and you'll end up forking out extra £ for the contractors call out fees etc, cheaper and simpler to do it all before you go. Any Lease you have make sure you have a landlords break clause in and have it written in to the Lease that the house will be on the market for sale and the tenant agrees to permit viewings on pre-agreed days weekly until under offer with extra visits afterwards for measure ups, surveys and so on. When it's on for sale get it on the agents gardeners rounds so the outside is kept good and also photograph it for sale before you leave so it'll definitely look good in the photos (in case the tenants furniture is a bit tatty!). Be strict and say no dogs, nothing worse than trying to sell a house that smells doggy. We have always reduced our rent to tenants when we've been selling, it's only fair as it's a real inconvenience to have the agents and viewers poking around every other day. The NRL1 form is easy to fill out before you go. Give a couple of keys out to people you trust just in case. Have a contingency fund in case they mess around with the rent and take out full landlord insurance to include loss of rent. You can give your solicitor power of attorney to sign on your behalf but if not registered post for the docs only sets things back by a couple of days. Phew, what a ramble, hope this is all making sense! Basically what I'm trying to say is don't let the house side of things be an issue, it's no drama really. The day you leave it you just have to think of it as an asset, not your family home. Easier said than done but it can be done! Righto, I've even bored myself with this rambling :lol:

Originally Posted by Zen10 (Post 10529666)

Sounds like it's time for you to move away then. No sense in being that unhappy every day.