koalakim

I like Perth but the city centre also needs to up it's game on cafes.....said the person from Melbourne ha ha...

I went over to South Perth on the ferry and they've got it sorted there but I was surprised at the lack of outdoor cafes in the two shopping strips, maybe it's too hot?

I love the South West corner of WA and have toured that a couple of times as you have everything, outback, beaches, forests etc.

The other funny thing I noticed about Perth, they don't like putting signs up for the ahem..."facilities"! Even in a shopping mall there were no signs and then I started noticing it in other places as well, what's all that about? Be prepared to cross your legs in Perth

Beoz

Wayhooooo. Just found 4G in Perth. Not the quickest 4G around.

One thing about this place is the cost of some stuff. Food and booze for example. Pint of Super Dry was 12 bucks. A simple breakfast from the Coffee Club not much change from $25. My crappy hotel, because anywhere decent was booked solid because of the cricket, $320 per night. And they say Sydney is expensive. Doesnt even come close.I'm glad all this is on expenses.

isgraham

The assertion that London is more expensive than Sydney really depends upon what you do for a living. In my case given the relatively poor salaries available in Sydney compared to the cost of property and everything else make London a much better option, that's why I moved back. Certainly the lifestyle is different but I still go kayaking which I used to love in Sydney but if I want a trip to the beach it's much more difficult. When I've been asked by friends and colleagues about moving down to Australia I point them at places like domain and seek and they all go off the idea.

Beoz

Correct. Demand dictates the salary. I'd say being an accountant in Sydney you'd be fighting off more contenders than you would in London, therefore Sydney could afford to pay accountants lower salaries

In my case I can't get near a proportional salary in London, though I have recently spoken to a few people who do what I do in London and apparently things are on the up.

Have a read of this thread. Your salary alone is not the only contributor to whether one place is more expensive than the other. There were some interesting figures that came out of this thread.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/barbi...arison-840035/

Bermudashorts

Yes and no. Accountants didn't all take a pay cut when the market started to tighten up as it has last couple of years. As far as I can tell, and it is hard to tell, rates are on par. But it would certainly be far easier to find an accountancy job in London than Australia at the moment.

I think Sydney accommodation related costs are more expensive than London. Central London vs Central Sydney maybe not. But the thing with London is that (despite some grumbles), the transport links are pretty good and you can easily get in from Kent, Surrey, Hertfordshire, Essex and more. So you can live in a reasonable sized property and easily commute 40 miles or more. Try that from Sydney. No thank you ..

Beoz

Not as easy, but the same distance will cost a lot less around Sydney. You just have to be more disciplined in Sydney in getting the time table right. See link above. Of course if you live on the northern beaches your screwed no matter how you look at transport. Except on Saturday mornings when you wake up and can say "hey I'm on a 2 day holiday in Summer Bay".

Who took pay cuts?

Bermudashorts

I find my commute easy, plenty of buses, it is only 23km. Maybe that is too much for some, but the house would cost well over $2m if I bought it.

So I am saying, in London, you can live further out, much more than 23km, find nice housing and commute in very easily. Very expensively yes, but you can commute much greater distances.


Nobody has taken a pay cut, that is my point. Salaries for accountants have not shrunk in Sydney recently because we did not all take pay cuts..

Beoz

That's the beauty of renting in Australia. You can afford to live in a $2m house. On current exchange rate, rent on a 1.1mGBP house would be unaffordable for most in the UK. Not so in Oz. This was one of the topics in the thread in the link. Despite the fact I think NG is a bad thing, as a renter in Oz it helps my back pocket and my living standard. What I can afford to rent or buy in and around London is of far less quality than what I can afford to rent in Sydney - buying in Sydney is another story.

Bermudashorts

My rent is $1,300 a week, is that affordable for most?

Beoz

It is on the northern beaches apparently.

If you were to buy then you could do a deposit of $400,000 @ 20% for your $2mill property at a weekly repayment of about $2000 per week, $1300 for rent of a $2mill property is nothing.

You can thank negative gearing for keeping $400,000 and an extra $700 per week in your pocket.

Or put it another way - it allows you to live in a $2mill property that if you had to buy you may not be able to be able to afford.

Bermudashorts

I was commenting on cost of living London versus Sydney. And responding to your comment that it is not easy for most to rent a $2m house in Sydney. Was not comparing renting versus buying.

Beoz

So was I, and you brought up commuting so that's why I pointed you to that thread. It does show some good costs effects of travelling from outside the centre of both cities. You also brought up the cost to buy your dwelling - are we not discussing the aspects of that too?

chris955

That would be more than the vast majority earn so definitely not affordable for most as was stated in an earlier post by Boez.

Beoz

On your history of living in Geelong and Brisbane you are in no position to judge whether the northern beaches is worth the money or not. For what its worth its a gorgeous place so for BS and those who live there its worth every cent.

spouse of scouse

Nice and cool for you, Beoz. I live about 10km out of the city and have 4G through an iiNet mobile device. Fast as, even with my old fashioned technology

Enjoy your stay

Oh - just realize you posted this 3 days ago. If you've gone, hope you enjoyed your stay.