sparkeygirl

Hi,

Can anyone tell me what Wodonga is like.

Would you live there - are some parts better than others?

Thanks

tynajon

Hi,
Im also checking out the Wodonga area. Sorry I dont live there so cant give any first hand opinion but the area has been recommended to me by my migrant agent who is doing my visa application. This is because my job is considered to be in demand there & is not so built up (which I prefer) but not as cut off from civilisation. What job/area specifications do you have if any?Have you checked out the Wodonga website? http://www.wodonga.vic.gov.au/index.htm it gives basic info, links to employment are limited but its a starting point & has links to people to contact. Good luck with your search,
kind regards
tyna

stu-carol

Albury Wodonga is a nice part of the country and you are near the mountains if you like skiing. However, Wodonga is in NSW and Albury which is only 5 minutes away is in Victoria. If you live in NSW you pay more taxes, so I am led to believe. Also. I have been told that it has a large drug culture, but I have only been told this, therefore I can't confirm if this is true or not.

NickyC

No you've got it the wrong way round.

Wodonga is in Vic - Albury is in NSW!

And you pay the same tax in all states. The only difference I'm aware of is that QLD subsidises petrol prices but that won't help you if you live in NSW/Vic...

sparkeygirl

Thanks for the replies. So it is an ok place to live then? I suppose you get drugs everywhere ....just depends on how big a problem.

Are there many jobs in education there?

quoll

It's a Victorian country town with a bit more industry. It always appears to me to be the slightly bogan side of Albury Wodonga but I am happy to be wrong - just an impression. Still pretty dry and dusty looking at the moment, dont think it has had much rain even though there has been rain sort of all around it.

I always think that A-W doesnt have much to recommend it - unlike Ballarat or Bendigo, it has its identity because it sits on the crossing point of the Murray, it doesnt seem to have the history that some of the towns in the Golden Triangle have, nor does it have the agricultural aspect of places like Shepparton.

Interesting that Albury doesnt exist in Victoria - none of the highway signs point to it, they all point to Wodonga and Wodonga doesnt exist in NSW - all the signs point to Albury. It will be interesting to see how the economies of those towns fare now that there is a bypass on the Hume - I think they used to rely on the through traffic for quite a bit of the economy of those towns.

NickyP

I live in NE Victoria and will be teaching in Albury this year and I love it here. Wodonga is fine and there are plenty of teaching jobs in this part of Victoria, personally I prefer the smaller towns that are in the surrounding area though. There is a lot of house building going on in Wodonga and you can get a nice house there pretty easily but it is more exensive than the surrounding area as it has the 'city' status. Compared to Melbourne it is still generally cheaper though. They do have lots of things going on for the kids through the year and there are a wide choice of schools, both provate and public, in the area.
Wodonga and Albury both have University campuses so you have access to Charles Sturt (Albury) and La Trobe (Wodonga) if that is any interest.
Just PM me if you want any specific info.
As far as the lack of water goes, we live about 45 mins drive from Wodonga and rely on rainwater for our water supply and so far we haven't had any problems so it isn't all doom and gloom up here regarding drought and water. Where we are is actually fairly green at the moment which is highly unusual for the hottest part of the year.
Good luck.
Nicky

Geelong Gent

Hi Nicky

The employer does pay different employee related taxes (payroll) depending on states. There are also different rules for accruing long term service leave). This would have no bearing on the individual but may have a bearing on the company moving state to suit.

Shane

NickyP

If you are a teacher then a big advantage to living in this area is that you have the choice of two states for employment and NSW teachers earn higher salaries than in Victoria. Taxes such as your car rego are different in each state as are the local taxes involved with buying a house etc. I am sure that there are other things that are different but these are the only ones that I have come across so far.
NIcky

sparkeygirl

Thanks for that. If we go over on a 475 visa ( 3 years of which have to live there 2 years and work for 12 months), then do I have to work in Wodonga, Victoria, as this is the state that will be sponsoring me not NSW?

Thanks

NickyP

Will you be tied to Wodonga or can you look at surrounding areas within Victoria? Just wondered as that will make your search a lot easier. If you are here on a 457 then who is sponsoring you? A specific school or the dept of education? Just wondered whether you have to find your own job as we came over on a 457 with hubby's work and he was tied to that employer until we got PR (which was still pretty quick).
NSW will be there for the future should you want to change schools further down the line and it is nice to have that choice.
Nicky

sparkeygirl

Won't be a specific school think it is a regional sponsorship so that will mean Victoria.

NickyP

That's good then I would check out the surrounding areas of Wodonga as well for work as some of the smaller rural schools are lovely around here. Do you have to work in a state school or can you look at the independent and Catholic schools?
State school jobs can be found here (don't know if I have already posted this) http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/hrweb/c.../advacsSCH.htm You would be looking in the Hume region when you are trying to narrow things down. I also find that having a window open with whereis.com.au a real help in trying to work out where some of these schools are.
Good luck.
Nicky

taffy 62

Hi I have lived in wodonga for 17 years. pm me and i will tell you as much as i can of what you want to know.

MartinLuther

As you get near, there are a couple of signs for Albury on the Vic side. No point signing both until you get close.

On the other hand as you leave Melbourne you get signage for Sydney but not the other way around. Also as you leave the ACT (into NSW) heading for Melbourne the road shrinks to a single carriageway whereas it's dual all the way to Sydney. Do you get the impression Sydney doesn't want anyone to go to Melbourne?