Hi,
today, I am basically posting about a book that I recently bought called "0 to 130 Properties in 3.5 Years" by Steve McKnight.
I am not too into punting books, but once I arrived, having not sold my property in the UK, I was faced with the situation of trying buy a property in Australia with no deposit(well very little).
I picked this book up quite by chance in a Sydney book store as it was a best seller and the title was quite catchy.
I really, really can recommend this book. Its very motivational, it is inspiring (I just wanted to go out and start property investing). Its very well written, ie not too complex, holds a lot of simple experience and is written by a guy who is quite religious so there seems to be no hard sell.
It has examples and basically is written by a local Australian who has bought hundreds of properties in Australia and New Zealand.
For me it shows various things like how to buy Australian properties to make a profit, how to buy with no deposit, how to rent out properties, how to develop properties, how to renovate/flip and so on.
So if your new or local to Australia its a must have. Its cheap and make easy reading.
The reviews by various people on this book are quite amazing.
I have a link to it here and if you buy it through this link I do get a commission. :)
Well I hope it helps.
Later
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Monday, February 15, 2010
How do I Immigrate to Australia?
There are a number of ways to immigrate permanently to Australia.
Australia has a number of different visa's that you can apply for.
Workers
Australian Employer Sponsored Worker Visa
People with certain skills can work in Australia by being sponsored by an Australian or overseas employer.
Australian Professionals and other Skilled Migrants Visa
This is a non sponsored visa program that applies to people who have specific skills that are needed by Australia
Australian Business Person Visa
Australian visa for a business-purpose visit. This is for people to create, manage or develop a new or existing business in Australia. This also applies to investing in Australia.
Australian Specialist Entry Visa
An Australian Visa For people to participate in specific professional, cultural, social or research activities.
Australian Doctors and Nurses Visa's
There are visa's available for Doctors and Nurses who wish to immigrate to Australia.
Australian Regional Employment Visa's
There are various immigration visa options available as Australia is wanting skilled migrants to live and work in areas outside of Australia's major cities.
Australian Skills Expos around the World
Due to Australian skill shortages, Australia holds expos around the world. Skilled workers can register to attend an expo in their region to meet with employers and state and territory governments about employment in Australia.
Australian Air and Sea Crew visa opportunities
Australia has visa options and entry requirements for air and sea crew coming to Australia.
Australian Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme
If you are from Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and Vanuatu you can seek to work in Australia under the Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme (PSWPS).
Migrants
Australian Family Members
Australia has migration options for fiance(e)s, partners, children, parents and other family members of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens.
Returning Australian Residents
There are visa options for current or former Australian permanent residents and former Australian citizens to re-enter the country.
My most commented post on the blog is here - Why do immigrants leave Australia?
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Australia has a number of different visa's that you can apply for.
Workers
Australian Employer Sponsored Worker Visa
People with certain skills can work in Australia by being sponsored by an Australian or overseas employer.
Australian Professionals and other Skilled Migrants Visa
This is a non sponsored visa program that applies to people who have specific skills that are needed by Australia
Australian Business Person Visa
Australian visa for a business-purpose visit. This is for people to create, manage or develop a new or existing business in Australia. This also applies to investing in Australia.
Australian Specialist Entry Visa
An Australian Visa For people to participate in specific professional, cultural, social or research activities.
Australian Doctors and Nurses Visa's
There are visa's available for Doctors and Nurses who wish to immigrate to Australia.
Australian Regional Employment Visa's
There are various immigration visa options available as Australia is wanting skilled migrants to live and work in areas outside of Australia's major cities.
Australian Skills Expos around the World
Due to Australian skill shortages, Australia holds expos around the world. Skilled workers can register to attend an expo in their region to meet with employers and state and territory governments about employment in Australia.
Australian Air and Sea Crew visa opportunities
Australia has visa options and entry requirements for air and sea crew coming to Australia.
Australian Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme
If you are from Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and Vanuatu you can seek to work in Australia under the Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme (PSWPS).
Migrants
Australian Family Members
Australia has migration options for fiance(e)s, partners, children, parents and other family members of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens.
Returning Australian Residents
There are visa options for current or former Australian permanent residents and former Australian citizens to re-enter the country.
My most commented post on the blog is here - Why do immigrants leave Australia?
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Friday, February 12, 2010
How do I research my move to Australia?
So you are thinking of or are in the process of moving to Australia..
There are many factors that will influence your decisions. Some of these factors that effect your decision will be climate, social aspects, employment, cost of living, schooling and just general background. Obviously the long process it takes to aquire a visa from the Australian immigration board gives you a lot of time to do your homework.
Obviously the first way to do research is to surf the internet via something like google.
There are many online blogs and diaries out there, such as mine that focus on Immigrating to Australia.
Another option is to buy a few books on Australia which can be used as bed side reading. This will often give you a heads up on why things are the way they are in Australia, how to survive, what to expect and also general info on where to holiday and so on.
A do's and dont's book about Australia that I can recommend is
Didgeridoos and Didgeridon'ts: A Brit's Guide to Moving Your Life Down Under
A truthful book about moving to Australia
The Australian Alternative The first candid book about moving to Australia-the good points as well as the bad
Another excellent book on exploring Australia is :
Fodor's Exploring Australia, 7th Edition (Exploring Guides)
This book is a great guide to Australia :
Australia (Country Guide)
Forums
There are many excellent forums that you can use.
The first one I use is Poms in Oz. This is an excellent forum with endless information and communities to talk to and to share their experiences. Although this is mainly a UK to Australia immigration/moving forum, it is populated by people from all over the planet and is an excellent source of information around immigration, visa and Australian experiences
The second major forum I use is sa-australia.org. This is mainly for South Africans moving/immigrating to Australia. This is also an excellent source of immigration material. In both the above forums there are warming and heart rending stories of peoples immigration experiences. Good to read as there is something for everyone.
Lastly, if you can network with people, friends and family who are in Australia you will find that you will gain a lot of insight. Beware though, as peoples opinions about their move to Australia are skewed by their personal experiences and circumstances. I had one old lady tell me that the Northern beaches were full of racist thugs. And this was so untrue and misleading. A viewpoint she has held for 10 years because 10 years previously there had been a drunken racial punchup outside some bar? go figure. Compared to many other places the idea here of thuggery is nothing.
Any way happy researching and remember you will not be able to really feel it out until you live here..
later..
Byron
There are many factors that will influence your decisions. Some of these factors that effect your decision will be climate, social aspects, employment, cost of living, schooling and just general background. Obviously the long process it takes to aquire a visa from the Australian immigration board gives you a lot of time to do your homework.
Obviously the first way to do research is to surf the internet via something like google.
There are many online blogs and diaries out there, such as mine that focus on Immigrating to Australia.
Another option is to buy a few books on Australia which can be used as bed side reading. This will often give you a heads up on why things are the way they are in Australia, how to survive, what to expect and also general info on where to holiday and so on.
A do's and dont's book about Australia that I can recommend is
Didgeridoos and Didgeridon'ts: A Brit's Guide to Moving Your Life Down Under
A truthful book about moving to Australia
The Australian Alternative The first candid book about moving to Australia-the good points as well as the bad
Another excellent book on exploring Australia is :
Fodor's Exploring Australia, 7th Edition (Exploring Guides)
This book is a great guide to Australia :
Australia (Country Guide)
Forums
There are many excellent forums that you can use.
The first one I use is Poms in Oz. This is an excellent forum with endless information and communities to talk to and to share their experiences. Although this is mainly a UK to Australia immigration/moving forum, it is populated by people from all over the planet and is an excellent source of information around immigration, visa and Australian experiences
The second major forum I use is sa-australia.org. This is mainly for South Africans moving/immigrating to Australia. This is also an excellent source of immigration material. In both the above forums there are warming and heart rending stories of peoples immigration experiences. Good to read as there is something for everyone.
Lastly, if you can network with people, friends and family who are in Australia you will find that you will gain a lot of insight. Beware though, as peoples opinions about their move to Australia are skewed by their personal experiences and circumstances. I had one old lady tell me that the Northern beaches were full of racist thugs. And this was so untrue and misleading. A viewpoint she has held for 10 years because 10 years previously there had been a drunken racial punchup outside some bar? go figure. Compared to many other places the idea here of thuggery is nothing.
Any way happy researching and remember you will not be able to really feel it out until you live here..
later..
Byron
Rent free smart home in west Sydney, Australia
Hi,
I quote from the Energy Australia website tender. Where families are asked to fill in a tender/application as to why they should stay in the house.
Rent free in Sydney!! With a free smart car too!
"EnergyAustralia and Sydney Water are looking for a "Smart Home Family", including a resident writer, to occupy and write of their experiences in the Newington Smart Home located within the Newington Smart Village Project.
A house is being developed to showcasing both current best practice and be a real life laboratory testing new technologies to reduce household energy and water use and greenhouse gas emissions.
The Smart Home will be integrated with an intelligent electricity grid and its key objectives include:
· To provide a feature location for education on sustainable energy and water usage, smart metering and publicising the Newington Smart Village trial;
· To showcase and test 'best of breed' appliances and quantify the potential energy and water savings;
· To demonstrate the opportunities and benefits of a Home Area Network (HAN) environment;
· To explore alternative electricity supply and storage options, such as micro generation and battery storage technology; and
· To showcase the use of an electric vehicle and monitor its charging patterns, and potential integration with the battery storage.
· To provide a feature location for education on sustainable energy and water usage, smart metering and publicising the Newington Smart Village trial;
· To showcase and test 'best of breed' appliances and quantify the potential energy and water savings;
· To demonstrate the opportunities and benefits of a Home Area Network (HAN) environment;
· To explore alternative electricity supply and storage options, such as micro generation and battery storage technology; and
· To showcase the use of an electric vehicle and monitor its charging patterns, and potential integration with the battery storage.
Smart Home Family will increase the educational benefits of the house through living and reporting on their experience. A full description of the project and requirements of the family is provided in the Smart Home Family brief. "
Dig around on this website https://www.tenderlink.com/energy/ for the tender if you are interested...
happy days
Byron
Sunday, February 7, 2010
South Head, the Gap - a famous Sydney tourist site
We took a drive to the picturesque South Head. This is a famous peninsula about 20 minutes from Sydney CDB in the Easter Suburbs. It is basically the southern piece of Land when entering the Sydney Harbour water ways by sea.
Its a great place to visit for a quick drive, a walk or as a day at the beach.
The inner side of the South Head is away from the sea waves. So picture grassy parks alongside calm clear water. Safe for kids of any age to swim in. Its an ideal picnic spot.
There are various restaurants and Hotels. Just type Watsons bay into your GPS system to get there.
The head is actually called the Sydney Harbour National Park and you can take a nice coastal walk through there.
On the seaward side there are some cliffs with waves beating up against them. There is a notorious cliff called the gap that has had some shipwrecks and is known as a suicide spot. See picture below.
The South Head has a Light house called Hornby, which you can walk to. Apparently built some time ago after two shipwrecks.
Any way thats another nice day out for us Sydney arrivees. Its a really, really safe place for kids to swim on the harbour side of the head.
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Its a great place to visit for a quick drive, a walk or as a day at the beach.
The inner side of the South Head is away from the sea waves. So picture grassy parks alongside calm clear water. Safe for kids of any age to swim in. Its an ideal picnic spot.
There are various restaurants and Hotels. Just type Watsons bay into your GPS system to get there.
The head is actually called the Sydney Harbour National Park and you can take a nice coastal walk through there.
On the seaward side there are some cliffs with waves beating up against them. There is a notorious cliff called the gap that has had some shipwrecks and is known as a suicide spot. See picture below.
The South Head has a Light house called Hornby, which you can walk to. Apparently built some time ago after two shipwrecks.
Any way thats another nice day out for us Sydney arrivees. Its a really, really safe place for kids to swim on the harbour side of the head.
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Friday, February 5, 2010
Why you should not immigrate!
Ok, so we all want something new, exciting and inspiring!
Easiest thought is to go for the fact that life "will be better" on the other side. Somehow, you think to yourself, your life will be happier than before. More money than before. Easier than before. Simpler. More Time. Sunnier, Warmer. Friendlier.
Very often this is not the case, it gets less simple, can be lonelier, more stressful as you learn the ropes and set up your new life "over there". It call also be very very expensive.
Some people have very legitimate reasons to leave. The've lost their jobs, maybe they are ready for new adventures, maybe things are "more" where ever they are going, maybe they are escaping crime or some un-tennable situation.
But we forget that we bring ourselves, our same skills, our inner problems (emotional etc). The things that bug us in one place often bother us in the other.
We forget the social networks we leave behind (no matter how small you may think at the time), the familiarity, the knowledge and comfort of knowing how things work.
We forget about our kids social networks, - their friends, girlfriends, supporting teachers and so on.
Family get left behind, family who are bereft.
It can takes years, if ever for new social networks to be built up.
There is always a trade off somewhere.
Why not just move house, take a long holiday, study for another career or start a new hobby?
Unfortunately, once the bug has bit, its very hard to remove it.
Later!
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Easiest thought is to go for the fact that life "will be better" on the other side. Somehow, you think to yourself, your life will be happier than before. More money than before. Easier than before. Simpler. More Time. Sunnier, Warmer. Friendlier.
Very often this is not the case, it gets less simple, can be lonelier, more stressful as you learn the ropes and set up your new life "over there". It call also be very very expensive.
Some people have very legitimate reasons to leave. The've lost their jobs, maybe they are ready for new adventures, maybe things are "more" where ever they are going, maybe they are escaping crime or some un-tennable situation.
But we forget that we bring ourselves, our same skills, our inner problems (emotional etc). The things that bug us in one place often bother us in the other.
We forget the social networks we leave behind (no matter how small you may think at the time), the familiarity, the knowledge and comfort of knowing how things work.
We forget about our kids social networks, - their friends, girlfriends, supporting teachers and so on.
Family get left behind, family who are bereft.
It can takes years, if ever for new social networks to be built up.
There is always a trade off somewhere.
Why not just move house, take a long holiday, study for another career or start a new hobby?
Unfortunately, once the bug has bit, its very hard to remove it.
Later!
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
Thursday, February 4, 2010
The first Thing to do in Sydney! - Visit the Tower
Hi,
The first thing you need to do in Sydney, is visit the tower. I wish I had done this when I first arrived in Australia.
The thing is, you cant really appreciate Sydney, nor get your Sydney bearings without going up there. Obviously its not going to make you "know" Sydney, but this gave me an immediate idea of where to go, how much waterway there was and identified the main tourist sites etc.
The view is stupendous. It's not busy in the week and there are a couple of things todo. You can go to the enclosed viewing platform, go right up top outside or use the restaurant. The viewing platform also has some snacks and souveniers(if your into that).
Its a quick trip - 45 minutes at the most if you are just viewing.
http://sydneytower.myfun.com.au/
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
The first thing you need to do in Sydney, is visit the tower. I wish I had done this when I first arrived in Australia.
The thing is, you cant really appreciate Sydney, nor get your Sydney bearings without going up there. Obviously its not going to make you "know" Sydney, but this gave me an immediate idea of where to go, how much waterway there was and identified the main tourist sites etc.
The view is stupendous. It's not busy in the week and there are a couple of things todo. You can go to the enclosed viewing platform, go right up top outside or use the restaurant. The viewing platform also has some snacks and souveniers(if your into that).
Its a quick trip - 45 minutes at the most if you are just viewing.
http://sydneytower.myfun.com.au/
How I got my visa, Life, Lumps and spirit, Hate your new country? Your not alone! A good Furniture Rental company in Sydney,Why do immigrants leave Australia?, Sydney - Scotland island - hidden gem, Malls in Sydney, Living in St Ives, Arriving in Sydney, Driving through Sydney - first day, How expensive is Sydney
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