Hi guys, Thought of introducing myself to all of you. This is NOT my first post though. I'm originally from Sri Lanka. I moved to Melbourne this year. Currently in Oakleigh area, renting an apartment. I am married and have two kids. The younger one is only 1 month old! So that's a nice experience having a baby in a totally foreign country. I actually worked in Japan for 5 years in a subsidiary of Canon before moving here. That experience is what allowed me to apply for PR. Was lucky enough to land a job after only a couple of weeks of arriving here through a connection. Otherwise things would have been a bit rough with the new baby coming. Now I am a permanent emplyee at a hardware/software company. It's a single owner, small company, but hey, it is a good start and my salary isn't that bad for a starter. Higher than what I got in Japan, but the cost of living is lower there than here, despite being close to Tokyo. Rent is much cheaper there; less than half what I am paying here. But government support is pretty good here, so it kind of cancels out. Anyways, I am thinking of buying a new house soon, with the savings that we brought with us and the money I earned in the last 6 months. No point paying all that rent, when I can have a place of my own with a small figure on top of the rent I'm paying, right? I opened a thread here and the responses have been very good. Good chaps, you all are, especialy mcored and Colin Rice so far in that thread. mcored is in fact a school friend back in Sri Lanka. Hopefully I will be able to contribute with the answers in hte near future as well. But for now, you'll have to bear with all of my questions. Cheers
Welcome aboard Sri-Lanka to Melbourne via Japan - sounds like life has been interesting so far Cheers Jamie
In a decent South Eastern suburb of Melbourne. Well, I work in Oakleigh South (very close to current apartment) so reasonably close to that would be great. But I suppose realistically I have to move to Keysborough, Berwick or Cranbourne. To be precise, Sri Lanka → Japan → Sri Lanka (1.5 months) → Melbourne
Well if you're aware of the market at the moment. Some say Melbourne is overheated, some say still some good buys to be had. Different if it's your own place, but those same people say a PPoR is still an investment.
