Contracting: London Vs Sydney (or Melbourne)

[kingcook]

It is but once you have waved them off and boarded the plane it gets much easier

Why didn't I think of that first!!

[SarahL2012]

Working with a couple of Australians at the moment - market in Sydney is dreadful apparently & its got really expensive to live out there.

[Mav]

Working with a couple of Australians at the moment - market in Sydney is dreadful apparently & its got really expensive to live out there.

As an australian... rates are great
Cost of living is epic.

[JoJoGabor]

There will be more opportunities in Sydney
As most head offices of international companies are based in Sydney.

Rates in Perth will prob pay the highest. Especiall if you work for a Oil/minning company

Permie salary is excellent in Australia - worth considering if you want to settle there.

MOST head offices of international companies are in Sydney? Yeah right, I can't think of one. Athough many international companies have a office in Sydney, the work ethic in Australia would prevent most companies putting their head offices there.

[Moscow Mule]

MOST head offices of international companies are in Sydney? Yeah right, I can't think of one. Athough many international companies have a office in Sydney, the work ethic in Australia would prevent most companies putting their head offices there.

I should think he/she was referringto the Australian head office, rather than the global head office...

[bluedrop]

Thanks for the inputs everyone....

Dh is a permie - makes £60k
I make abt £500 a day...

But our lifestyle is not very impressive. Particularly the kind of houses £400k can buy.We've saved a deposit of £100k but all we can get is a £1200sft house in a decent London suburb.... Not to mention the weather here...

We are evaluations options whether we are better off moving to Australia or Canada.... From a lifestyle perspective without taking too much of a hit on the money making side...

You are welcome to share ur thoughts ...

[bluedrop]

Why do I need to work for google just to use a resource that had over 1 trillion pages indexed back in 2008.

Surely you would be stupid not to use it?... particularly if you are supposed to be an IT professional. My grandmother I could forgive

Oh chill please! You know why i asked on this forum - don't you ? The world is not full of contractors - but this forum is!

[Mav]

Hi Bluedrop,
Sounds like you're looking for these places, that will tell you about lifestyle.
ExpatWoman: the best guide to expat life in Dubai & the Middle East
Expat Forum For People Moving Overseas And Expats Living Abroad

When it comes to cost of living, again google will give you a great resource: Numbeo
Cost of Living


As an australian, do it. IT's different to what you're used to.
I'm sure you'll endlessly complain about the lack of class however

Thanks for the inputs everyone....

Dh is a permie - makes £60k
I make abt £500 a day...

But our lifestyle is not very impressive. Particularly the kind of houses £400k can buy.We've saved a deposit of £100k but all we can get is a £1200sft house in a decent London suburb.... Not to mention the weather here...

We are evaluations options whether we are better off moving to Australia or Canada.... From a lifestyle perspective without taking too much of a hit on the money making side...

You are welcome to share ur thoughts ...

[TheFaQQer]

Not to mention the weather here...

Someone who worked for me some years back contracted in Australia from September to April, then in the UK for the rest of the year. He was British, his wife Australian so they had no passport / visa issues.

We are evaluations options whether we are better off moving to Australia or Canada.... From a lifestyle perspective without taking too much of a hit on the money making side...

You are welcome to share ur thoughts ...

If you're the right age, Canada is a lot easier to get into. Live for three years (I think) in Canada and you just apply for permanent residency and it's granted. Live there for another five (I think) and you get citizenship if you want it. It's a lot more welcoming than Australia - Oz seems to welcome you while you work, but chances of you being able to stay once you get to retiring age are slim.

Canada can be bloody cold, though. And Quebec is particularly unfriendly if you don't speak French, unless you marry a native (as a mate of mine did).

[TheFaQQer]

IT's different to what you're used to.

I thought IT would be pretty constant wherever you are in the world.