StraighttothePoint

Dean we have been in business here for nearly 10 years and been through exactly what you apper to going through. We also provide resources (people) into companies and what we worked out was that if you deal with a supervisor here you need to change that and deal with the person two grades above, if you deal with a so called manager change that and deal with somebody two grades up and so on. Also follow the money first. Find out who signs the cheque and you can get some real shocks. In many cases Perth companies need to refer the release of cash to one person regardless of how big the company appears to be and also in many cases to the eastern states. The bottom line is that business in Perth is a game of smoke and mirrors. It is hard to get to the real deal makers and therefore the real decison makers even in what you think are established businesses. I think I replied to one of your many post before ending "well good luck with all that" !! I am sure now that you have been here a little while you are may be getting a better idea of what it is all actually like and why people keep saying good luck

When in Rome........ Tighter border controls, is that not what all the Brits are calling for up their way?

As I am sure you know with all money you receive via pensions that is classed as income. The issue is not where just where you get it paid into a bank but it is as much about where is the best place for you to pay tax on all your income. For example if a person lives permanently in Oz, and is registered here for paying tax, then regardless of where they receive income from, and where it is banked, then it should be declared on their Oz tax return as income. Obviously I have no idea as to your circumstances, both in terms of where you reside, what your visa status is and where you pay tax if at all, but regradless of all that you can pay the penison into a UK bank and transfer it to Oz or just as easily you could have it paid direct to a Oz bank account. All depends on where you need to have the money and what you want to do with it. I live between Perth and Scotland and so have bank accounts in both places but declare all my income, and pay all my tax, here in Perth. It may be better to work out your overall tax situation first and then decide what to do? Just a thought.

PM role now filled but still need a BA.

Hmmmm not good if you want to live in Perth because of the heat. A lot is done very early before it gets too hot. Up early walking / jogging, in work by 8.30am latest means leaving houses at sometimes back of seven and so on. Good luck.

Looking for a Senior PM with ERP experience. 12 month contract. Immediate start. $110 to $130 per hour inc super. South of the river near Curtain University. Easy to get to by train. Also part time BA. Client management system standardisation project. 6 month contract that may extend. 24 to 30 hours per week. $75 to $90 per hour plus super. Shenton Park area. PM me please if you are interested or know somebody who is with their contact details.

Yep that's Perth summed up pretty well. We all love it. You get used to it. Does not make it right but when in Rome and all that.

The people that cannot get onto the trains are further down the line and this problem is not an issue going from Joondalup to the city. It can be problem returning after work depending on when you leave the city. If you can stagger the leaving times away from peak times, or use the Esplanade station, then you increase the chances of getting onto the first train dramatically. This is the same for any major city in the world and is no different for folk living in Joondalup. Another benefit of Joondalup suburbs is depending on where you choose to live the walk to Currambine station is the same as going to Joondalup station. Car parking at any station in Perth is a nightmare because the city will not invest in multi story car parking nor can it afford to buy bigger parcels of land. Again not a Jonndalup issue. As for an increase in violent crime the bulk of these incidents are happening in the Joondalup centre, late at night and in or near the pubs. Assuming that the person who is asking these questions re the suburb is not an absolute pi##head who goes pubbing every night until the wee small hours then their chances of being involved in any nasties is remote. So it is all sunshine and roses. It just depends on if you believe the glass is half full or half empty.

I tend to agree with you on that as long as you can get that 3:1 ratio on wages a lot of posters talk about on these threads. If you say earn $30k in the UK and get $90k here then maybe you will be in the same boat financially on that example. You may not be better off but no worse off. However the problems I notice here are that not all people coming across get the job, and therefore the salary, they thought they would and end up taking a lower paid job. Suddenly that 3:1 ratio is out the equation and every week that goes past more and more dip into their cash savings. Cash savings dip, income lower than expected and therefore not good in the short to medium term. Also there are hidden things here that hit you. Healthcare and dental care both optional but things that you get pushed towards, car purchase tax which is just a way of slugging you for more tax, higher taxation here, education costs because some people feel that the WA State schools are not for them, two cars because they live in the sticks due to having to buy a cheaper house, a pool because what is the point of coming all this way and not having a pool, a bigger house because they are and so by default bigger running costs and so on. Yes I know that the above are mostly optional but they are things that are here and people either strive for them and borrow to get them quicker. This is probably why we get the feeling it is more expensive here because our wants and needs are greater than from where we came. I always think struggling or being poorer in Perth is a very hard thing to be. It is shocking at any time but being in that state in a very wealthy city must hurt that bit more.

There has got to be more opportunity here for the kids to be outside doing stuff surely? It is a sporting heaven for them as well as having all the other usual outdoor amenities. The problem though is at what age they "turn" and go to teh dark side. When they go to teh dark side you will notice it staright away. I have no idea the age of the kids in question in the posts above but mine "turned" when he hit 14 and three quarters!! Up until then it was beach, bike, park et al. At the point of "turning to the dark side" he got lost in technology, garage bands, football on Fox, Facetube, Twatter and Youbend. He just became a teenager. Out of it now though and at uni, job and lumps of common sense in his satchel. He came through it and saw the light. So maybe the question is not is it better here, which I honestly believe it is, but how do you help them not "turning" and "going to the dark side"? I am sure that many here may stay on the straight and narrow and become sports buffs and outdoor fanatics but not all will. Peer pressure here is the same as anywhere and so good luck to you all trying to keep them going for that early morning cycle, the Friday nights at the indoor volleyball and the body boarding. I just failed but hey I can live with it........

B&Q, Tile and Grout cleaner, several brands available. It it is really bad then a Commerical tile and Grout cleaner will proabbly be needed and that can be be bought direct from any good tiling shop.

The point being I suppose that when you are contracting for tiling work that you are aware that some tilers offer a fuller service than others. Tiling jobs finish with a clean up. Clearly some tilers here do not do that, or want to do that, and so for anyone else reading this maybe it will help them ask what is included in the tiling job. People can then decide on what they want. I prefer not to get on my hands and knees and clean. Up to everyone to deicde what thety want though. Hope that clarifies things.

Our tiler came back and finished the job as paert of the fixed agreed rate Sounds as though yours fancied a day at the beach!!

It should be all here Jo. http://www.salarypackaging.com.au/

I go back every year. Fantastic. No Perth winters, real ale by the bucket load, golf on real courses, going to the football, having a laugh with folk that have the same sense of humour, dealing with the weather as everyday is different and best of all seeing my dear old 83 year old mum !! Then back to real nice Perth weather and the beaches. It is all in the planning. Plan long term and think ahead. Buy small here or rent, use your Ozzie dollars to buy a small flat in the UK (everything so cheap because nobody can sell em) and off you go. Simples I do not work in the resources sector and I do not have a well paid job but simply used my imagination, and what little cash I had, to build a future based on two locations and not one. Think out the box and who knows what happens always seemed a good idea to me. Also why, when you go back, do you need to all go? Never undertsood that one, way too exspensive. The kids hate it. You may have to stay cooped up with rellies because you cannot all afford a hotel. You could end up not liking the holiday and it all then seems so worthless. Nah if one of you is feeling homesick or just wants to have a good old shop in M&S or just wants a decent pint consider going back seperately and get it out of your system. Would that not work? I know if it is a wedding or something special you may think you all need to go but really deep down do you? Take turn about and maybe that way the "we do not want to go back" turns into "ïf my OH wants to go back then they go", if I want to go back I go"" and then if we both / all want to go back we do that". Everyone's a winner and so much cheaper. It means that return trips become much more affordable." I am sure that there a large number of people who already do this and so this is not a new view point. Of course there are a number of people who have no interest in every going back and no problem with that at all. Everyone has to decide to do what they want to do. This is not about the good and bad points about Perth and the UK. It is just anotheer dimension to the way we life. Maybe though for those people thinking of coming all this way agreeing on the principals surrounding return visits is something that should be discussed as part of the emigartion process? That way it is all part of the bigger picture, it is out in the open and it does not mean any difficult conversations once here. It is a small world now and the days of coming here in a boat that takes six weeks is long gone. Less than 24 hours now door to door in a lot of cases between Perth and the UK and that means for some it is very easy to do for a lot of folk.

The first bank that I found out about paying weekly re-payments was the Clydesdale in Scotland. This was way ahead of others in the UK although I think they were affiliated to the Midland Bank so they may have offered the same service. My old mind tells me at some point in the Clydesdales history it was Ozzie owned so that may have explained why they offered the product. They also allowed you to make a number of lump sum re-payments per annum with the same product. I also think that other Scottish institutions followed this lead. It worked for us. Then when we re-mortgaged again to the Nationwide a number of years later we asked for a similar product and we got one from them where you paid a monthly payment and as many lump sums as often as you liked which was in effect a way of paying as many additional regular amounts as you wanted to. Not quite weekly but the principals were the same because it vastly reduced the duration of the mortgage. This was long before the days of comparison websites, choice and assistance from the institutions. It was down to you to find the best deal. He who dares and all that......

Sorry when you said in your original post you had "no debts" I thought you meant you had no debts Of course a mortgage is a debt. Funny how many people forget that. Maybe it is because we all think it will just go away. Anyway on a positive note and a point that takes us back to the start if this thread and the cost of living. Because many people here take the option of paying their mortgage payments weekly or fortnightly over here in Oz the duration of the debt can be considerably reduced. Even getting the debt down to 20 years from the standard 25 years is a massive plus. Many of us, including me before I came here, originally signed up to mortgages that would only allow monthly re-payments. It was only when I re-mortgaged years later, and had researched the various options, that I signed up to a loan that allowed me to make both lump sum and regular re-payments. Mind you that was a long time ago and so no doubt it was because originally the more flexible options were not in the UK market to sign up to.

Are there are any jobs going at your OH's place of work!! If you came out with less that 10k and now own a car, a house and have no debts then you either have been here for a good number of years or the OH's wages must be blooming amazing Good luck to you because getting to this point, mortgage free, is what I think most of us aim for as quickly as possible.

Don't shout at me when I say this but my view is that struggling in a location where a lot of people are in similar situation is a lot easier than struggling here in Perth. I live in both countries at different times throughout the year, lucky me by the way and I know it, and so I see both sides of this ever ongoing debate. Sunny weather is fantastic but it don't put bread on the table. I honestly think this has a lot do with where you are based, or were based before coming out to Oz, and that can affect your thinking. That has been said on this site countless times and I strongly believe it is true. Also the media is a nightmare and suburban'ites fall for it hook, line and sinker. They are telling us it is terrible so it must be true. If they said everyday was wet some people in the UK would honestly believe it. An inner city location, a town with bigger social problems than others, a place where you cannot see a doctor easily or have good public services are all factors when deciding its time to jump ship. However living in other circumstances, and other locations, means that those people will have other views. If the UK (hate that term), because it is no more united than sticky toffee, is that bad then why is there anyone left? The number of people leaving the UK is not that great in terms of the population size and so what if people are arriving. Anyone coming to Oz had better get used to that because this is a multi cultural country with people arriving all the time from all other the world. I do agree with you that people are losing sight of why they want to move and, as I have indicated above, reality is sometimes not what people think it is. They get blinded. I also agree that coming out here and starting off small and growing is no bad thing. The issue here is though that many people do not need to do that becasue of the amazing lifestyles some people have over here. Also how can a family come out to Oz and not e-mail photos back of their new big house, their new big car and the pool? The alternative is saying we came out here and we are no better off or we are worse off. How can they possibly say that to the ones left back home? No human nature as it is many people will talk themselves into the move, get here and hate it and many will do the same and love it. It is all horses for courses. I say good luck to everyone who makes the jump regardless. Just make sure you know what you are doing, why you are doing it and make the most of it when you have done it. Oh and honestly if I was in rural Aberdeenshire, and I know it well, don't think for one second rural WA is like that. It is 110% completely different apart from maybe a few bits of the south coast around Albany and Denmark where the cooler weather and the landscape is a bit like the Moray Firth.

In our experience when we are trying to place people in jobs here in Perth for IT jobs our network of employers are looking for bullet point CV's, no long text based stories, last three or four recent positions and not a full blow by blow history, limited personal stuff, no self trumpeting, i.e. how great you have performed in your past jobs, qualification listings, previous Perth jobs are highly desirable regardless of scale and Perth based referees. Hope that helps.

If it is just another text based message that is set up then it will probably have no more value than what is already available via searching all the posts. My idea is not too technical but is excel related and therefore does need some clarification by somebody in relation to seeing if it would work. Rob? Could you clarify what user name I use to contact him please. Thanks

Ali I will pm you this week about how to go about this.

Sorry my error was answering a few posts and got muddled a bit, age. Got the background a bit wrong and made maybe one error in that thought you were an overseas new one. As for being brand new you are a relatively new person to the area, Perth / WA that is and therefore to this job market so you have no Perth based work on your CV.

Maybe read this thread as well. Where to live - road and rail links - and why you need to be careful It is in the news and gossip pages dated 21/12/11 I think.

Tried Sard yet?