Sydney - to stay or to move?

Question

Hi, I arrived in Sydney two weeks ago with my family from India as permanent residents. I am still struggling to find a rented place. The same with school admissions. Meanwhile a friend who owns three houses in BRisbane is advising me to move there saying he can give me one of his houses on rent immediately. He also says it will be a better place for my family and we will spend less time in traffic and have a cheaper cost of living. Is this true? And will jobs be tough to find there? Please give me some unbiased advice - I need it!

Answer 1

I have lived in Sydney all my life. It is more overpriced, overcrowded and polluted than ever before. Previously I always thought Sydney was the best city in regards to lifestyle etc, however after I had been to other cities I saw I was wrong. I think Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane are far superior in every way in regards to lifestyle. Housing is affordable, roads are less clogged, transport is cheaper and easier etc. I am however not sure about work. I think there are more jobs in Sydney, but it is a harder life. Basically you need money to have a life here. I cannot afford to take advantage of the best this city has to offer, but my family is here etc. Go to Brisbane - your friend is right.

Answer 2

Sydney is big and Brisbane relatively small.

Brisbane gets very humid and hot in summer.

Yes less traffic time due to smaller population. Rents are cheaper but I didn't find food in Brisbane any cheaper.

Harder to find a job in Brisbane but depends what you want to do.

Answer 3

You should go to Brisbane.

I live there and it's a great place to live with Australia's best climate and family lifestyle. Rental accomodation is generally in short supply, so if your friend's offer is genuine, go for it! Our cost of living is rising, but it's still cheaper than in in Sydney. Our traffic is getting worse, but it's still better than Sydney's and I'd be very surprised if you have any trouble with school admissions unless you've been looking for something unusual.

The job question is a bit harder to answer, but Brisbane is Australia's fastest growing city and Queensland is one of Australia's 2 boom states (WA is the other). There is plenty of work here, though without knowing your occupation or experience it's not possible to be more specific about your chances of finding what you're looking for. Look on http://www.seek.com.au/

http://www.careerone.com.au/

https://jobsearch.gov.au/Login/Login.asp...

and any specialist job sites for your occupation to get an idea of what's around.

Come on up!

EDIT:

Below, I've attached some climate data for Brisbane and Sydney. Our daytime summer temperatures are around 3 C higher than Sydney's but the difference is less at night. Contrary to popular belief, Brisbane's humidity is actually lower than Sydney's throughout the entire year - summer included. Our winters are glorious - 6 months of blue skies, sunshine and short sleeve weather. No contest!

http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/t...

http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/t...

Answer 4

Living in Sydney, I know what you are saying. The rental market is impossible, and completely overpriced.

...I would find it really hard to move without having guaranteed employment though, do you already have a job in Sydney or are you looking here too?

If you are looking for work here, you may as well move up north where you will at least have the stress of being 'homeless' removed. I work in Real Estate and people that are Good tenants, with excellent rental history's are having an impossible time finding a decent (or in some cases ANY) place to live.