Considering Adelaide move in March 2017

[Gloscouple]

Hi , advice/experience needed

 

we are a uk based couple, considering a job offer.

 

The work will be based 5km from city centre

any advice on

good areas to live

bad areas

property rental prices per month

how your moves went

whats the hardest thing

The things you learnt in the first year

 

we have no kids yet but a mother in law is a dependant :-)

 

any comments would be great..

 

thank you

[NicF]

Welcome to the forum.

 

When you say the work will be based 5km from the city centre, which area would that be in? I ask because it's very difficult to commute across the city in some places (not so bad in others) and the area you are working may narrow down the areas it is worth considering.

 

Property rental prices tend to be advertised by week, not by month, and paying $400 a week for a rental is not unusual. Some places you can pay much more, others less. Be wary of anywhere really cheap as there is likely to be a reason why it's so cheap. Have a look at realestate.com.au for an idea of rental prices in different areas.

[snifter]

Hello and welcome

 

What NicF said re whereabouts will the work be will help us in giving suggestions as to where to consider living. And of course the price will vary depending on the suburb. Suburbs close to the city may well see less house for your money. Further out some great suburbs that may be cheaper but some could cost too.

 

To to try to answer your other questions, how did our move go... It went fine Shipping arrived on time and only one dish broken. We flew via Singapore with Singapore airlines and had a dip in the rooftop pool in the terminal while waiting for our connecting flight We settled in well and tbh didn't really miss a beat. My husband was working from a few days after we arrived and I focused on making sure home was organised and our son happy and enjoying school and life.

 

The hardest thing, it's of course a personal view as everyone will have their own experience when migrating, but for me it was living with family the first 6 months or so. I like my own space and living in someone's else's house for an extended period made me pretty miserable. For the rest, honestly, none of it was insurmountable or so bad I could not cope or was unhappy. I had spent time here before, husband is from here and I don't really think we felt like we were migrating the other side of the world. It just was, we landed and got on with living life Does help neither of us hanker over what we left behind nor do we get homesick and we both cope well not seeing loved ones for extended periods of time.

 

Things I learnt in the first year...

 

*Aus driving is pretty sucky. The big main roads and the speed limits can be an interesting combo and honestly, I tire of the weekly near miss with some ******** driver who just moved lanes with no indication or checking his mirrors.

* The fuel cycle is annoying as anything too. 30c jump in price is just silly. Have a steady price not one that can change so vastly so quickly.

* Don't set the bar too high expectation wise. While I love it here, I am constantly amused at how things like events, places to visit etc are thought big or great here but often end up feeling rather small or dated or a bit of a let down on the expectation front. So I lowered the bar a ways and it's all good.

* Slip, slap, slop. Sunnies, shade and air con.

* Aussies think nothing of driving 5 hours or so each way to go somewhere for day out. Distances are vast here and it isn't until you experience the solitude of a city like Adelaide or Perth you can appreciate just how blooming big Australia is. I have no issue with Adelaide and the distance to the next big city generally but it does frustrate and grate on me sometimes that I can't just nip up the M4 to London for the day or be over in Wales in the hills within 45 minutes. I drive 45 minutes here I can get to Victor Harbor or St Kilda play park and it isn't quite the same level of change of scene as I like in the UK. But this is a minor thing and Adelaide has plenty to keep us occupied

 

What visa are you coming on? How you settle often ties in to finding work or having a job to come to and can make a move a lot easier in many respects. But a temp 457 is only a temp visa and could end at any time. So being able to gain PR is a good thing if you hope to call Aus home in the long term. If you are only thinking of it for a few years it's a great experience and make the most of it. Also your MIL as a dependant could make it harder if she doesn't like it, can't get out and about or cope with the move, the heat or cold houses in winter.

 

Good luck with it all anyways

[victoriasquare]

Hello Gloscouple, i agree with NicF that it would be helpful to know where your job opportunity is located. Adelaide is more spacious than UK cities, so the distance north, south, east or west is worth knowing for anyone to help you. The wide roads especially would be one of your biggest surprises if you move to Adelaide to live, they are totally different from the UK.

 

The following website will give you some information about suburbs up to 10 km from the city centre, but I'm sure that other members of Poms in Adelaide can be helpful with information specific to your needs. http://myboot.com.au/sa/10/suburblist.aspx

 

Your first year will be spent coming to terms with the differences from your life the UK, and learning to accept this as part of your new experiences. Making comparisons with the UK is natural, but if they are not complimentary to Oz, don't do it with someone born in Australia, it will not be appreciated. Don't be insulted by being called a Pom, it is what we are.

 

If you are sports minded join a club or two, and you will find that clubs for Aussie Rules football have good facilities. This brand of football is more spectacular than soccer, and scores can be enormous! I played tennis, badminton and table tennis in clubs within weeks of arriving, they can certainly be helpful meeting people. In fact a table tennis team member introduced me to his family at Hope Valley, and I was amazed to find that I had met his sister's boyfriend 8 years earlier in Devon when he had visited England with a group of other young teenagers!

 

I was a £10 Pom and stayed for my allocated 2 years in Australia and returned to the UK. However within a year I was glad to be back in Adelaide. During my year back in the UK I couldn't find any of the people I had previously known, like me they had all moved on to places unknown. Two and a half years later my parents joined me in Adelaide, as did my eldest sister and her family, also a family friend (another sister and her family were already there), so I'm always curious why the programme "Wanted Down Under" shows a video to its participants where family and friends generally react as if Australia is on the far side of the moon, and they will never see their loved ones again. I travelled back to the UK many times, and if you have the right mindset, the long flight isn't as bad as it appears. Adelaide Airport is easy to go through, and is only about 4 miles from the city near the seaside suburb of West Beach. You descend over the city, and take off over the sea.