Originally Posted by Francisco

Thankyou to everyone for your suggestions and comments, you have given me more to think about! I think I will wait until we arrive until I order anything, see what i can find second hand if thats a good option as suggested.

I accept we are very lucky to have an allowance from hubbys employer, however that is a fixed amount and everything is deducted, including the trip we made in July for 10 days to research areas etc(hotel, flights, food for 3 of us - I'm using it up fast!)

I have always been in two minds about shipping furniture. We have a five bed house here but am only shipping two sofas (brand new and expensive, wont get much second hand), our bed and our sons bedroom set (again expensive and all matching). Three other beds and all appliances are being sold/donated so apart from clothes and some household items eg things I have collected over years we aren't bringing too much.

I am not prepared to spend 3 or 4 years in rented accomodation so am happy to sell our house and take our chances. We will need the equity to buy in the area we are looking at.

Hubby has a pretty senior position with a global pharma marketing company, for which he was head hunted by one of the top men who has worked with him before. It is a strategic role so I am hoping he wont be kicked out any time soon!

When we return it wont be to the same area, we will be going back home to the north (my family is from Preston, hubbys is Manchester/Birmingham) so we would need to sell anyway. So we are either brave or mad (don't bother replying to that.....)

His company have an office in Cheshire so thats where we are likely to end up in a few years. Unless we like it so much we decide to stay! We will start applying for GC asap.

Thanks again, most helpful. (As usual, your a lovely bunch......although one or two are a bit scary sometimes!)

Englishmum, I have sent you a PM.

Originally Posted by mandpete

I briefly mentioned this before but do remember to bring plenty of bedding over. Decent duvet covers are very hard to come by and twin size duvets/covers do not exist over here. Whenever I go back to England I always bring back cotton sheets and duvet covers.