Where to go?
 

Hi all,
I'm new here so hoping for lots of helpful replies! Hubby and I are in the very early stages of considering emigrating to Oz! We have never visited before (we do intend to in the next year when we have saved a little more) but our research so far has highlighted Adelaide/SA as somewhere that appeals to us. We have considered the areas around all the major cities and in very simple terms, we feel Perth is too isolated, Queensland climate possibly too hot, Sydney area too expensive/commercial and Melbourne very similar. The more mediterranean climate and lifestyle of SA appeals to us.

We currently live in Birmingham UK and really want to get out of the city! In saying that though, we wouldn't want to be too far away from the amenities and cultural highlights of a city. Complicated I know!

We have researched the Mclaren Vale area of SA and it seems to be what we are looking for. We are both 28 and have no children, although would like to have a family in the next few years.

So, getting down to business, here are my questions:
We want to visit Oz soon for a reccy, but don't want to waste too much time and money by sticking to a place that isn't suitable. Does anyone have any suggestions about where may suit us given the info I have provided so far?

What is the employment market like in SA? I am a teacher and hubby is an electrician.

What sort of lifestyle does SA offer? We would love to be by the coast and have a more laid back lifestyle. We enjoy cities and countryside equally, but would not want to be too remote.

Finally, is it easy enough to secure rental property on arrival? We are not homeowners and would not be for a number of years.

Thank you all in anticipation!

Re: Where to go?
 

Don't live in Australia, only been on holiday.

But Adelaide, a small city with everything and nearby countryside, although all Australia has that and Perth would be high up my list.

But wherever you have to be able to accept flies during the summer.

Re: Where to go?
 

Jobs will be the key.

SA has significant unemployment, as does WA.

Your husband will need to undergo licensing and this varies by state, but generally, he will need to work as a trade assistant for a while - a bit like an apprentice and undertake some courses (these can be expensive).

What do you teach?

Re: Where to go?
 

A mate just moved to the Adelaide Hills on an acre or 2. He drive to the office in the city in 20 minutes. ......So he sells it to us. :)

Re: Where to go?
 

Thanks for the info. How easy do you think it could be to secure work with an electrician as a trade assistant? I am qualified as a secondary humanities teacher (history and geography) but have been a Special Needs teacher for the last couple of years.

Re: Where to go?
 

Sounds amazing!

Re: Where to go?
 

I know Adelaide very well, and contrary to what ex reg says, it is not a small city, but has 1.3 million people in a metropolitan area more than 700 square miles. It is relatively easy to drive around, and where I lived, vehicles are rarely parked in the road.

I would certainly recommend living there, and an interesting point to note, is that the mile square city centre is virtually an oasis surrounded by parkland before the suburbs begin.

Re: Where to go?
 

This is exactly what appeals to me about it! Thank you for the reassurance:-)

Re: Where to go?
 

Permanent teaching positions are very hard to come by.

They are on the skills shortage list but there is no actual shortage, just an "imbalance" - a substantial oversupply of teachers competing for jobs in the big cities, but few people willing to go to the country (McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills do not count as "country" - think Coober Pedy and Whyalla).

Your chances of finding a humanities job anywhere are very, very low. Special Needs is better but not good.

Remember, you will not just be competing for those jobs against people locally in Adelaide (or Perth or Sydney . . .) but also the teachers in Coober Pedy and Whyalla who want to transfer into Adelaide. They have current Australian experience and Australian referees. There will also be graduate applicants from trusted Adelaide universities applying. You, in contrast, are an unknown coming from overseas, probably with no local referees.

I would think, you will probably have to do relief for a while, until the schools can put a face to your CV and you have some Australian experience you can point to. However, if you do relief and are any good, that can help a lot.

The situation is not better in Sydney or Perth. I live in WA and as another poster said there is high unemployment here right now - yet we still get teachers from Sydney and Tasmania rocking up trying to find jobs because the market for secondary teachers is so bad in those places.

It is better in Melbourne, or at least it was a few years ago, there were quite a few jobs popping open circa 2012-2013 but it seems that's dried up a lot lately.

I do want to add - this is a new development. 10-15 years ago you could just rock up and get a job, and Education Departments were giving out temporary work visas to overseas teachers. I can't see those days coming back anytime soon.

Re: Where to go?
 

Thanks for the information, I had heard that was the case for teachers. I would be very happy to do relief and get a variety of experience in different schools and areas. Likewise, I am open to a different career entirely so I suppose the key is being realistic and open minded!

Re: Where to go?
 

cjk . . . I'm pleased to see that you are willing to to be open minded, too often when participants of "Wanted Down Under" look at career opportunities, they are critical of not being able to slot precisely into something identical to their UK jobs. I wonder if it is their mindset, or if they don't wish to look as if they've failed to their family and friends "back home."

Before I emigrated to Australia I was in accountancy, but once in Adelaide I didn't touch that work again, nor even in Melbourne where I also lived for a few years.

Emigrating is always a big adventure, little or nothing is the same as where you've left, and new experiences should be met with enthusiasm.

Re: Where to go?
 

I like your mindset! I too love new opportunities and experiences. My current job is as a teacher but this is certainly not what I want to do until retirement, there are so many options! As long as I could secure work a couple of months after arrival I'll do anything. As you say, it's an adventure.

Re: Where to go?
 

Perth is a bit isolated from the rest of the country, but you would enjoy being close to places like Singapore or Thailand, not to mention a shorter distance from Europe (Qantas will even have non-stop flights from Perth to London).

Queensland is massive, bigger than the UK+France+Spain+Portugal+Italy combined. I don't want to sound like "so-called president" Trump, but it's huge. It really is. :) Not sure about too hot, certainly towards the southern border of the state where in the Gold Coast you will see lower temperatures during Jan+Feb than in Adelaide for instance.

Sydney and Melbourne are the two big, metropolis-style cities in the country. That's where the jobs are, which is why most people end up there.

I've only been to Adelaide in SA and for some really strange reason I felt like I was in Canada, like some city close to Vancouver somewhere. As mentioned before, get ready for some hot summers and chilly winters as the temperatures there tend to split off quite strongly between the seasons (as in hotter summers and colder winters).

I would say no, especially compared to the UK where it's more of a straight-forward process. From my experience in Australia the landlord is king and the tenant is like a subject when you look at the entire process. It's unlike the first-come-first-serve basis you might be used to. Here the agent will collect applications for a while, then sift through them to see who he or she (or the landlord) likes the most, then there's the whole "show me your finances" thing to see if you can afford it, then character references to see if you're a stand-up person. At the end of the process you'll feel like the horse that has just completed the entire show jumping circuit.

Re: Where to go?
 

Astera is correct about the rental process. The landlords seem to take a much more hands-on role here, behind the scenes with the agent fronting it. The flip side is if you are reliable and pay on time they try very hard to keep you - not changing the rent for years etc even if they could get more, because they want to keep someone who doesn't damage the place and always pays on time. Of course I do live in a country town . . .

If the education profession isn't your lifelong yearning, consider other fields. In teaching you will be doing the same 50-60 hours a week here, including at least a half day on the weekend, that you do in other Western countries.

Re: Where to go?
 

The possibilities to gain a place as a electrical trade assistant in Adelaide are not great. It is an area of high unemployment and that will climb significantly in the near future. One of the largest employers is preparing to close. This will have a significant knock on across the area.

Re: Where to go?
 

The same gloom and doom forecast was mooted when Mitsubishi closed some years ago, but the southern suburbs prospered despite this.

Workers at GMH at Elizabeth have had years of warning, so many workers have already been looking elsewhere, or have retired. I'm sure that other employers will be attracted to the area, though for a while finances will probably be tight resulting from a knock on effect.

We can also consider that DSTO (formerly Weapons Research Establishment where I worked) also died a slow death, yet Salisbury and Playford didn't fall apart. In fact both council areas have grown.

Re: Where to go?
 

I am in exactly the same position as you. Also a teach in UK of 9 years. Husband to be is self employed plumber / property renovation. Have a 13year old daughter with us too. So much to think of and not sure where to start but want to make it happen.

Re: Where to go?
 

Hi again, it's your friendly little concierge following you around like a mother hen :wave:

How it works on BE is if you want to ask a question, you need to start a new thread as your posts on existing threads just get lost.

If you look at the main Australia forum page again, the second blue heading says Threads In Forum - Australia. At the top of that is a button that says 'new thread', click on that and you'll have your very own thread. Hopefully you'll get some information to get you going with your research :starsmile:

Re: Where to go?
 

Just two weeks ago today we arrived in Adelaide after emigrating from Edinburgh, Scotland. Our logic for Adelaide was quite similar to yours, but we had been to Oz several times previously and kind of knew that if Adelaide wasn't for us within the first few weeks we'd just head up to Brisbane as we know it well...

So far we are absolutely delighted with Adelaide; it's clean, very laid back, enough shopping for some weekend consumerism, traffic seems to flow, and the beaches are beautiful! Whilst the city centre might not be huge (reminds me a bit of Liverpool size-wise), most suburbs have the shopping potential of a small British town, so everything seems to be available. Today we went to the Botanic Gardens - easily the equal of Edinburgh's - then down to Norwood for a spot of retail therapy; lovely shops & restaurants, people enjoying the sunshine, all with no hassle. It was a pleasant 22C today - although we had a 40C heatwave midweek!- but the humidity is low here, so it actually feels cooler than you expect it to.

We're renting in the CBD for the first month and after ten days of hard searching have just found a twelve month rental in a place called Semaphore, where with beach views and city access within 20 minutes we think we'll be very happy. Furnished places seemed very hard to come by, and money talks unfortunately; we had to offer six months advance rental and have impeccable references because we were in competition for the house - but this is probably a bit unusual.

We're in our fifties and have retired, so can't comment on work opportunities, but I can say that Australia feels 'expensive' at the current exchange rate - this is the only downside for us; if you are paid locally this won't be an issue though - but we'd suggest having a decent lump sum of cash to get you through the early days.

All in all, Adelaide should be enough of a City for anyone if you don't want or need the adrenaline rush of the 'London's and Sydneys' of the World. Whilst no doubt we'll find some downsides, we're currently loving it here.