Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Things seems to have gone very well so far...

We arrived in Brisbane at the end of Feb after a few days in Auckland, i had business there and Sara had shopping. You may know from previous posts that we have come out on a 457 visa after a job offer i only got in December. We had a very mad time getting ready to leave and sell everything we own (well except the house and the car - but i am not gonna think about that just yet). We came here with very little money and nothing really to come from the house sale and only came with 2 suitcases each so it was worrying and i guess a bit gutsy, but who dares wins rodders and all that.

We got very lucky with our apartment, rentals are mad at the moment with up to 50 people going for each apartment. I thought we would struggle but 2 days after arriving we were first at a new viewing and applied on the spot (while others were arriving to see it) we were accepted based on nothing else but my job offer. $415 a week though, but is a great 2 bedroom with a balcony and a stones throw from the CBD. We actually stayed in a hotel for a further 4 nights after that as we had no furniture and were busy driving all over Brisbane looking for furniture shops. Our hire car was not very big but did not matter as apart from Ikea no-one keeps any stock anyway, usual wait for a delivery seems to be 3-4 days.

We did buy some stuff from Ikea but am already throwing it out and we have replaced with something a bit better, I am not a fan of Ikea at all. I would recommend the homemaker city in Fortitude Valley, they have loads of good stores including OzDesign, Freedom and others, the bed shop down there has a really good sale on at the moment, we just picked up a double bed for our spare room for $199 with mattresses at £249, good quality as well - Bagain!! So we have managed to furnish our whole apartment including very cool massive fridge, washing machine, LCD TV, Kitchen stuff including coffee machine and microwave and pans, plates etc.., 2 beds, massive sofa and dining room table etc.. for around $10,000 which aint too shabby at all, all decent stuff.

I got a new car last week, again based on my job offer, i was surprised to be honest, i expected a much tougher time but is a decent enough car and the finance is pretty good. We already had opened a bank account with WestPac so the first thing we did was sort that out, i have got my Queensland drivers license already - helps to have local ID. I have started work and going okay, Sara is going to start looking soon.

We love Brisbane, what a great city! not been out for a night out as yet, we do go into the city for food and a few drinks but we are just so tired at the moment - has been a hot couple of days and it is draining. We have been out for a few drives, we are scouting suburbs as the plan is to try and buy before the end of the year. But plan to stay in the city till then and take things easy for a while. There are some great bars and restaurants in the city and Fortitude Valley is a cool place to go for a meal. Shopping is great, much better than expected, lots of good clothes shops.

Anyway, thats about it for now, just thought i would check in and share our new life so far. If anyone has any questions about Brisbane then let me know, i could not have done this without this site so would be glad to give something back.

Cheers Murph


P.S. everyone is right, the TV is crap! and i am STILL Waiting for Telstra to give me some broadband (am stealing the wireless from a nearby hotel at the moment ;-) - so not everything is dandy.

BUT i have yet to see a single spider or snake as yet, so all those sleepless nights worrying were wasted!!! :-)

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Glad things are going well for you and long may it continue.

Andreaxx

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Sounds as if it's all going great for you :thumbup: thanks for the update :)

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Hi Murph,

Glad to hear all is going well, and that you have landed on your feet.

Have you any tips for finding a rental proprty, we come over next month and are starting to worry about it a bit, especially after what you have said.

Cheers - Bob

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Glad you are enjoying it, hope you carry on enjoying it:thumbsup:

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Sounds wonderful, we hope to live in Brisbane too as we fell in love with the area when we visited.:thumbup:

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Glad to hear your settling in ok.It makes all the stresses leading up to the move over worth it when you get here.

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Glad to hear everything is going well.

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Here are some tips for you. The estate agents will tell you that you cant rent the house til you have seen it. They will arrange a viewing on a specific date for you and everyone else. get to the agent ASAP and fill out an application form long before the viewing date. Drive to the house you are interested in then go back to the agent and offer them $10 to $20 above the weekly rental. I lost out on 5 houses before it clicked as to what the agents were doing. Most of the houses on the website have photos of the interior so you will have some idea if it is the house for you.
Best of luck!!
Louise ;)

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Nice one Murph,

Cant wait to get to Bris ourselves, keep updating your post. Will be an interesting read.... Good of you to give up your time! ;) S-j x

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Hi good to read others opinions. Glad things are settling down for you and you love Brisbane. All the best. :thumbup:

Donna & Neil

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Yes. bit of a pain really, we were really hoping to have a rental sorted out before we got here but no-one would rent to us unless we had viewed first.
Having the forms filled out first sounds like a good idea, if you are first to view and you have already been approved i can see this being a big advantage.

I know i am not the most experienced person to give advice but one think i had in my head was that this was like a job interview, i.e. we were trying to impress the rental manager, look like people who can easily afford the rent and not going to trash the place etc.. It helped having a job already though.

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

You can fill out the foms at the agents office too. Have your bank statments to prove that you can pay the rent, any job offer letters, 2 character witness statments, they can check these via e-mail and very probably will do. All passports showing visas plus your driving license. If you have a pet, most of the landlords will want them kept outside. I was very luck as I was the only person to offer more money. I also put in writing that my dog had frontline applied monthly ( fleas are a problem here) and that I would 'bomb' the house for bugs when i left!
:}
The best thing to do is take ALL your documents with you when visiting the agent.

:)

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Hi guys, all seems to be going well Congrats!
Are you anywhere near Samford?? We will be moving in June hopefully, & my job is in Samford. Have you any idea about house prices within 20 mins of there?? Sounds like rents are expensive, so I think we'll buy right away. My hubbys a painter, do you think he'll have any problem getting a job???
Thanks,
Lorraine

Re: Our first 2 weeks in Brisbane....
 

Hi Murph,

I was pleased read your expereince in Brisbane.

I'm thinking about moving out to Brisbane myself. I've got a job sorted but I'm a little nervous about this plan particularly after reading some of the others experience down under.

So what's you experience been now that you have been there for a few months already?

Look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks

Jeysen