Ingrid

I have renewed my RRV (5 year) several times in the past, but on applying this time I noticed to be eligible, you need to have spent 2 of the past 5 years in Australia. I have been out of the country a lot in recent years, and I'm not sure if I have spent just under or over the required 730 days. I only have "arrived" stamps in my passport, no departure dates. Any advise on where I can find my departure dates?

I have a furnished house available in Mullaloo from Mid Febuary 2017 (neg). PM me and I can email the details. I'd rather save the agency fees and drop the rent a bit. Good luck

Hi Slev, the market is very weak at the moment, you may be able to put an offer on a house that wants a longer term lease but if it's been empty for a bit and you can pay three months in advance and have references, I'm sure you won't have too much trouble renting. Having the dog will restrict your options though.

Well done, best of luck with it all.

Hi, I think paying six months in advance would definitely help you negotiate a rental. Whether the owner is prepared to take that much less, I expect would depend on how long it has been empty, so I would keep an eye on the properties / area you're interested in and warch how long they are advertised for before (presumably) being rented. What areas are you looking at ? If you are looking Northern suburbs, you could probably get a rental for under $300 in places like Merriwa or Clarkson. A friend just dropped their rental to $280 in Merriwa, although it was filled in a few days. When are you coming over? I've got a furnished / unfurnished house in Mullaloo available from Mid Febuary PM me if interested. Also, in the current market you could be in a vacant property in a week. Some owners will definitely want references, however for most, six months in advance will suffice.

I have just returned from London and was shocked to hear how low the pay was there for home social care. My grandfather has had two carers in and out each day. They receive no travel time, zero contract, no benefits and if they were able to get a company car, they had to pay the £1500 insurance! I don't know how they survived on £7 odd an hour and definitely no double time for Sundays! They are all so lovely too. If you are looking for a place to live, I have a house in Mullaloo (furnished or unfurnished now). You can find it in real estate to rent on this site. Best of luck with it all

If anyone is arriving or has friends visiting, I have a furnished house in the beachside suburb of Mullaloo (about 25kms to the CBD North of the river) available to rent from early July to late October.. whilst I go visit the family in London. Message or email me for info

It's true that insurance is not compulsory (personally I think that's ridiculous!). When you pay your vehicle registration you are covered for third party medical expenses, but not for the cost of any damage to vehicles so definitely worth getting at least third party insurance, which is all I have (as my three cars are all 10 years old!) I found SGIO cheaper than RAC and HBF for insurance and they give you a discount if you have multiple policies (home and contents or more than 1 vehicle). I do have 60% NCB and each policy is less than $150 per year. Fortunately I've never had to make a claim on the car insurance but I did on the house insurance last year (fence blew down in a winter storm) and they were really good. Regarding real estate, there are plenty of places available now compared to a couple of years ago and the prices have dropped too. If you see a place has been available for a while, don't hesitate to make an offer. A friend of mine done this recently and saved 10% or about $2000 over the course of a year, not bad for just asking the question! If your looking for short term accommodation try ozhouserental.com (you can check them out on Facebook too) I know a few people that have used them and were really happy. You probably still have to have police clearance etc but deal directly with the homeowner which cuts out a lot of the red tape of dealing with real estate agents. If you're a single guy/girl flying over to try and get organised before the family join you and don't mind sharing for a bit, look at flatmates.com for a cheaper option. For short term car rental I often use car rental.com when travelling over east, but my friend just told me about a company called "hot wire" which was cheaper still. She hired a car this week for 4 days , unlimited mileage, for $15 a day!!! Hope this was helpful