My wife is an architect and recently she got a very tempting offer from one of the firms in Melbourne to move to Australia for 5 years and to lead a few very interesting projects (yeah, unlike me, my wife is a freaken superstar). Apart from the obviously flattering offer and the amazing opportunity to live in a very special and a different place, we are a bit concerned about the financial part of this offer. While on paper her future salary seems substantial, we have almost zero information on Australia, we don't have any friends or family there and the more I read, the more I understand, that we need a first hand input on the financial situation there. The plot thickens since I ran a web design and development business, which I'll probably have to close, and we aren't sure that I'll be able to get a work permit in Australia. I might be able to freelance a bit, but we obviously don't want to do anything illegal, so we can not count on it. This may leave us with my wife's salary as a sole source of income for our family.
My question is this: from your experience what kind of "real life" cost of living are we looking at? We've been reading a lot in the past few days, but all we can find is gov't statements, averages and promises from my wife's future employers, but not from "real" people. We understand that cost of living is a bit subjective, but given the fact that we are looking for an "interesting experience" more than living the "good life", we are prepared to compromise on our standards. We just don't want to go broke, haha. Also I'm interested in any thoughts you may offer regarding living in Australia, not necessarily financial. Anything you can think of, that can help us reach a decision.
The reason I'm asking here is because apart from the watch aficionados I find this place filled with interesting people with wide scope of opinions, plus a more mature audience, if you know what I mean.
Seriously, guys, any input will be highly appreciated!
Cheers.