Average middle class people in SA

[Smartie]

Hi there,

I would be interested to hear from those people that did NOT leave SA with alot of money as to how they coped financially and emotionally in Australia on one salary.

We have spent all our money on this emigration process and are now living month to month in SA??

The only money we are gonna get will be when we sell our small simplex.

I hear alot of people on this forum talking about how things cost in Oz. Just wanna know please from an average salary earner - do you manage? And what sort of thing did you cut down on?

My husband and I skipped Wimpy lunch on Saturday and sat inside one of the malls eating our pies coz we were starving. We both had a good giggle when I told my hubbie we are preparing for our Ozzie life style !!!!

[Nilo]

Don't worry Smartie you'll have a coffee shop brekkie every saturday here in Aus. What's you hubby gonna do over here? Have you got work lined up yet? You tell me then I'll tell you.

[Smartie]

Hi Nilo

Thanks for your reply !!

Hubbie is in retail and I won't work coz I have a 3 year old so its not worth me working and I need to be with my little one for settling in purposes.

I am just really scared Nilo !!!

Edited March 10, 2008 by Smartie

[Guest natalie3]

I reckon u guys should just be positive about the news lifestyle..in oz that is.

Yes...it will take time to adapt when u arrive (financially)..but consider this :

you are arriving with a clean slate...no debt!

you will move up in your job (No AA etc)

your entertainment could be a walk in the park!! (literally)

everything is new and exciting (even buying groceries!)

these are just a few things i can think of...we are also hitting maer dae with the whole cost of immigrating.,.but i stay positive and keep me chin up...

think of it this way..u will end up the same or better off financial in oz..eventually..but if u see how costs of living are skyrocketing in SA...wouldnt u rather be "poor" and safe, healthy etc...than "rich" and unhappy?...and not rich for long..

[Smartie]

Thanks a million. I enjoyed your words.

xxx

PS: Not rich at all !!

[Nilo]

Smartie, I promise you if you don't try to walk before you can crawl then you guys will be fine.

For starters move into a small place and buy a cheap car. This can all be traded up with in a few months.

And if you guys move to Brissie I'll pick you up from the airport and help you settle. Promise. Even shout you to a Coffe Club brekkie.

You'll be fine.

[Mikej]

Dont worry Smartie

You will never go hungry in Australia.

There is place for you here to live and work other wise they would not give you a visa.

Just get here and you will see, nothing is perfect and Australia has its problems but going hungry will not be one of them.

When we first arrived we were shocked at the prices in restaurants and coffee shops and it took us a month before we first ate out. But once we were earning dollars we chilled a bit and are enjoying life more everyday.

Michael

[Guest The M's]

Thanks a million. I enjoyed your words.

xxx

PS: Not rich at all !!

Snap Smartie. We are middle class... no holiday homes, or 'investment properties' or RCI timeshare (much to our friends horror this w'end... what? No timeshare? LOL)

My hubby has already told me NO CAR! Shock horror.... what you mean no car?!! Well, we are also learning to tighten the buckles..... coz we are in for a bumpy ride!

I'm with you Smartie....... frightened to death!!!! I also got 2 small kids, so working is not an option for me... I just hope public transport is as accessable as they say!

[africascuba]

Do not fear as it will all be better. I left over 13 years ago as a single mum, with two 5 years olds, two suitases, and US$2000-00 to the States. No car, credit card or history. I did not know i had a job or where we will live. We slept on the apartment floor for months as I could not afford furniture and the boys played the game. Had no support or a partner to help, eventually, I got there as life was definitey better. I could put meat on the table and the boys had milk that I did not water down. They eventually had a full plate of food and could participate in sport. After several years and the hopes for immigration being dashed due to giving illegals amensty for citizenship...they wanted their votes...it would have taken me too long, I packed up again and moved to Canada. The boys did not even know where we were moving to. The stress was incredible. Now, I am in Oz....and if I had an oppurtunity then to come here, I rather would have done it then. U will survive. Just help each other as the stress is huge but live is definitely sooooooooooo much better and from what I have experienced, life here is soooo much better than Canada. I love the people, the temps...of course...and life is actually really easy. Entertainment is cheap..u can go for a walk in the park or jump on public transport and go to the beach. The happiness I have seen here is fantastic. Dont overthink things and u made the decision, just go for it as your life will be better and eventually, u will know your child has a future.

[Enrica]

Dont worry girls, not all of us arrived with hundreds of thousand or millions, and you know what you do cope.

If you know you have to tighten the belt in the begining, you adjust to your situation.

You cannot expect to replicate your life that you had in RSA in Australia straight away.

You learn to buy on special, and you need a lot less in OZ. Thank heavens that you dont have to keep up with the "jones", and you knbow what, know one cares about what you have or dont have. All of this just makes you a stroonger and better person.

Look at it as an investment in your future.

You are going to be fine.

An if you come to perth, I will shout you a coffee!!!

[chester]

Smartie, hier is baie mensies wat sal help, vra net, PM my as julle Sydney toe kom. Don't worry to much at this stage, just get out and be safe. Here you can start again, all you need is your husband and your kids.

[duToits]

Smartie, you will not be the only one. At the moment our plan is to be there in October and more than likely with maximum $2000 to start off with. We know it will be hard, but we also know that we will get through it eventually. It will take time to rebuild your life in australia, but 2/3 years down the line you might even be better of financialy than what you were in SA. It will all work out in the end.

[The 3 R's]

This is one of the most inspirational threads I have read, since i joined. So many 'what if's' go through my mind, and all of the above posts are very comforting.

Thank you everbody, you have made my day !!

[Stepchook]

You know, it's funny how I hear all the nay-sayers telling me that Australia is so isolated and that it's really far to travel from there. I tell them that South Africa is even more isolated because the Rand is so weak that only the upper-class can afford to travel!

So, we middle-class South Africans can never see the world anyway!

[DAVESA]

Whew - we were also sh....ting ourselves for the arrival, nice to know everyone never landed with their bums in it..

[Cagiva]

Thank you so much for this thread Smartie! This is exactly what we feel and are going through. We are selling everything we have to make this move and we will still be landing with almost nothing. I know we will make it though, we are both hard working and make a success of what we do but it horribly scary when you think you are the only person selling things off to pay for the skills assessment and every time the rand dives you wonder whether you will afford the next step. But we will do whatever it takes.

[Col]

from what I can c, it is going to be more difficult for the higher class okes to adjust then the middle class average joes...we used to budgeting, only eating out once every two - three months, buying the odd thing for the house or "accidently" dropping a top or skirt into you basket and hving to pay for it at the till and telling your husband u don't know how it got into the basket

One thing that SA has giving you is "how to survive" so I don't think u should stress to much, it will all work out

Col

[The 3 R's]

I agree DaveSA.

I always thought people who could do this must be 'rich' - It has been very conforting for me to know that there are many 'average' income earners doing the same thing. We are all making sacrifices for a promise of a safer life and better future. It is going to be hard in the beginning, but if we stay in SA, the life we know now will not be the same in 5 years time. We would need to adjust our lifestyles anyway. Bite the bullet now and take the plunge !!

I am not knocking any of the single or couples without children, I am sure the whole process offers as many challenges and fears, but as a parent, you keep asking yourself, how are you going to feed your child ?? But, ultimatley, we are doing this for our child.

[Guest natalie3]

Thanks a million. I enjoyed your words.

xxx

PS: Not rich at all !!

Rich is a mindset dol...to my domestic im rich ..to me ..the people living in a golf estate are rich,,,

but

.....u can never be too rich or too beautiful

is rather be poor than ugly and rich ne

[The 3 R's]

Smartie,

Problem is, no amount of money in SA can buy and guarantee safety, so what's wealth, riches or possessions really worth ? Nothing ! I wonder how many other South Africans would be doing the same thing, if they could just scrape enough together to do this, or if they didn't have pre existing medical conditions preventing them from obtaining a visa ? Seems to me, we are lucky. I am just closing my eyes and trusting that all will be well. Friends of ours are going to Wales, their conversion rate for us, is A - not an option, B - at least the weather in OZ is great !!

[Legalbuff]

Absolutely wonderful thread, thanks!!

My husband keeps telling me my cat and I will be living underneath a tree, with good ventilation, 'cause we've got no roof over our heads....

But I'm rather safe under my tree..... you know what I mean??

[Dan]

It does make it easier not to worry when I read threads like this one. I think the wow factor of Australia will keep you entertained for at least six months and by then I am sure that financially you will be allright to eat out and go on trips.Remember if you convert Rands to Aus Dollar you might go crazy ,wait untill you earn the dollars and you will feel different . Two years ago I bought two cups of coffee at Heathrow for 3 pounds ( Not a lot ) just don't convert it to Rand !!

I am sure their is a lot of us that is in the same boat as you, but it is still worth going.

Dan

Edited March 10, 2008 by Dan

[dixie]

We by no means fall into the" upper class" but what we do have has taken many years and damn hard work to get.

We are lucky to have the cars paid off and a house worth a little more than we owe. So we are able to scrape together enough for the move. The trying to save up to keep us going for a month or two when we arrive there is putting huge strain on us.

I do worry how we are going to cope with the kids, will there be enough? But I can survive on some dry bread and water for a while as long as the kids have all they need.

We have no debt besisdes the house to clear before we leave which does make it a bit easier.

[ronfire]

Whew!! And here I thought we were the only ones struggling to get the money together for when we move!!! ....and wondering how we'll manage.

Nice to know that not everyone going to Aus is taking hundreds of thousands of ZAR wiv' them! I still can;t forget speaking to someone I know a few months back - emigrating to Aus, and he was complaining that he can "only" take R4m with him ..........and some of us budget even for things like eating out! GOBSMACKED - is all I can say!!!!!

[Smartie]

I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for answering and ALL the offers of help.

you guys are THE BEST !!!

love

Smartie

xxxx