m4t_lee

Hi all, 1st post here,

I'm after some opinions from people who have moved to oz, i am 31, married, 2 kids under 3 yo, we are both in good jobs, nice house, nice area very happy here.

We are looking to move to oz mainly for the kids to have a better future, to use the equity we have to almost become mortgage free and anjoy the sun, beaches etc I work in IT as network server tech and on the face of it i can get the same job with pretty much the same pay so in theory we'd be better off.
It seems that the UK is far too PC nowadays, we are being flooded with illegal immigrants and all manufacturing and call centers and other parts of businesses are being moved abroad leaving a bleak future for our kids. house prices are insane and politicians are just idiots.

After looking around the forum there are so many people who have chased the dream and have regretted it and moved back, i've not even got to the application stage yet as i'm waiting for my acs skills assesment but it'd be good to hear from people to see if i'm way off the mark with my thoughts and OZ isn't the nice kid friendly relaxed place to live we were thinking of?

TIA,

Mat

Wendy

Welcome to the forum,

At the end of the day only you can decide the answer to that question. It works for my family, my kids are happier, I'm happier, my OH is happier (well as happy as a miserable bugger can get anyway ). But that's us, not you.

Emigrating isn't easy, and if you don't like leaving your comfort zone don't even think about it because it does turn everything upside down, for a while anyway.

Hutch

The problem with your question is this - everyone's different and lives under different circumstances. Some people move here and find what they were looking for, others hate it or find it hard to survive and move back. Some prosper work-wise, others eat up their life-savings and return home broke. Some get a great life for their kids, others find them getting into drugs etc. There is no one answer, no simple response - everyone's different and every where is different.

But ... a few thoughts for you to mull over:

1. Immigrants usually want to live in the nice coastal areas where property prices are much higher. Also, living on the coast doesn't work for everyone, particularly in the smaller towns - many miss the 'buzz' and get bored shitless within two months.
2. Work tends to be available in the large conurbations/cities and they suffer from many of the usual urban issues you'll find anywhere on the planet.
3. Depending on where you live, your kids could have just as bleak a future with just as many problems getting on the property ladder and securing meaningful well-paid work.
4. There aren't as many 'illegal' immigrants here, but an immigrant is what you'll be and as a blow-in you'll always be seen/treated differently to those who were born and bred here - water off a duck's back to some, fingernails on a chalkboard to others.
5. Many people make a lot of noise about living a better and more outdoor oriented lifestyle and then sit inside their legoland prefab identi-kit cloned homes pissing and whining about the quality of the television output - others buy a bike or a kayak or a surfboard and throw themselves into the more active parts of the Australian lifestyle.
6. Politicians are politicians are politicians.
7. Australia has its PC moments too ... and it's also a country that suffers badly from red tape.
8. You'll be moving to a country with about a quarter of the population of the UK, yet with about 15 times the land-mass. That brings in a whole raft of issue, including the costs of goods and services due to transportation overheads.
9. Fact-finding only gets you so far - rumours about the volume of work in this country are worthless - in fact all rumours and hearsay and 'I have a friend who told me ...' is worthless - you have to suck it and see.
10. If you want polarised opinion of a place, move to Perth - don't think I've ever heard anyone simple say 'it's okay'.

Ultimately, it's a big and highly personal balance sheet. Some (myself included) find themselves in 'credit' ... others go 'overdrawn'. I've made an effort to get out there and meet people, I haven't turned down any invitations, I spent a long time (nearly two years) looking for a good place to live and a good house to buy, I haven't got an Austar subscription and I'm not about to get one, I've joined all the local 'clubs' (bowling, RSL etc) and have joined several voluntary organisations, we are not anywhere near mortgage free (in fact we have the same sized mortgage here as the UK), we earn about the national average and have lean months when it's noodles for tea, not steak, I mountain-bike, surf, swim, walk and kayak, I made friends by not making an issue out of it but just getting out and meeting lots of people. Is my life substantially better than it was in the UK? Yes. Could that only have happened in Australia? Maybe not - but moving to a new hemisphere was the catalyst that I, and my family needed - and right now I wouldn't move back if you paid me. Others have done everything I've done and still hate it.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

themerlin

Thats the same here and everywhere in the world, but the unemployment figure here is very low and it's the same in the UK I think so it can't be doing any harm.

Amazulu

You will only know if you come and find out for yourself.
A few points:
Crime level is same as UK.
Manufacturing is moving to China.
Call centres are based in Bangalore.
Australia is very PC.
Red tape is pretty bad.
Aussies love regulation and rules.
There are loads of jobs here. Same as the UK.
Economy is strong. Same as the UK.
Education here has it's problems.

Australia is a great place to live and raise a family. Whether it's a better place for kids is not guaranteed. Not all kids are better off or have a better future. It depends so much on parenting and attitude.

NKSK version 2

Echoing others - you won't know for sure until you try it.

But don't be deceived about things being that different. They aren't.

We moved two years ago and enjoy it - very much. But I'm not fanatical about the place and would always consider moving on (but not back to the UK) when the time is right.

Not convinced that the issues of house prices, illegal immigrants and politicians are any better here. Immigrants certainly are a problem for some people - but I've found - contrary to many others on this site - that Australians have huge respect for the Brits and there are massive ties between the two countries. So if you are British and look British you will be fine...

Weather is a big plus. But personally I have major issues with education here in Australia, with house prices, with the cost of groceries, with unions and with service levels. But I still enjoy the place.

Other people have different issues and you will have issues also - my point is, don't move here to escape. Move for the experience and....don't sell your house until you are absolutely sure you have done the right thing!!

havinalaugh

I echo the previous posters. However, Australia does not have the problems associated with unfettered, uncontrolled migration. This is due to strict border control. Long may it continue!

NKSK version 2

Don't forget that although there is a problem with illegal imigrants in the UK (and all countries - how many visa overstayers are in Australia today?!), many "immigrants" are from the EU and are perfectly entitled to be in the UK.

Obviously this is not an issue for Australia - unless you count Kiwis.

Nomore

Well said, i agree with all of this.

We came expecting this and that, better life-style etc.....for some it works and for others it doesn't. For us it has been a mistake, but we are glad of the experience.

Amazulu

Don't vote for Rudd then.
As a socialist he is sure to go soft on this issue.

Amazulu

Sorry to hear that. For us it has been mostly all good.
Just shows you how different we all are.

k76

Is oz all it's cracked up to be? Pretty much Yes

Is moving to oz all it's cracked up to be? See Hutch's answer

northernbird

I am so glad I can't vote as it would be wasted as they are all tossers!!

NKSK version 2

I should be able to vote and I will be....at least twice!

Amazulu

I won't be able to vote this time (next one though) but if I could I would vote for Howard.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.