It's hard to live without any finances. My parents gave me some Australian cash before we left as a Christmas present, which came in handy for the few hours after we arrived. Let's just say $100 between two hungry and tired travelers lasts about as long as a pizza at 3am. Fortunately, ATMs and credit card transactions are actually reasonable on fees - better than many of the currency exchanges you see on the streets. To try to set up something a bit more sustainable, we acquired a bank account, which was surprisingly easy, considering we didn't yet have a permanent address. We're still waiting for our checks and ATM cards which brought up an interesting point - how do you fund an international bank account? I think most people have some passing familiarity with EFTs and wire transfers but probably wouldn't have any idea how to go about setting one up internationally. Per suggestion from my co-worker Damian, we set up a FX account with XE Trade, an online currency trading site. The primary use seems to be for recreational international currency trading but the site happens to work very well for expats who keep most of their currency in their home country's accounts. A few clicks here and there (and a few days of processing) and the money gets transferred over at a rate a percentage point or two from the mid-market rate. As our new Brit friends would say, 'brilliant'! Still, I wouldn't exactly call this a long term solution. We need paychecks! Unfortunately, that too takes some time when moving to a foreign country. We have to apply for tax IDs, my company has to process our banking information and importantly, we need to pass on our LAFHA information. Our Living Away From Home Allowance (LAHFA) is basically a tax deduction set up by the Australian government to make most of our rent and food tax free. From what I understand, it makes a significant difference in take home pay.
Housing is another fun little adventure. Its similar to the apartment hunting we're used to, only a little different. Rent is quoted in weekly rates but usually paid fortnightly (every two weeks) or every four weeks. Apartments are either furnished or unfurnished but the definition of unfurnished here is a little different than what we're accustomed to - most unfurnished places don't have a washer, refrigerator, or microwave. Smaller studios often don't have dishwashers. From what I understand, Queensland is one of the few provinces where air conditioning is more common, but more usually just in cities. As Carol mentioned in her last post, if you want to look at an apartment, it's called an inspection. Depending on which unit you're inspecting, there could be a whole crowd of people vying to put in an application. Applications have a standard '100 points' of identification required, which are usually made up of passports, bank statements, health cards, drivers licenses, salary stubs, or a host of items which count from 10 to 40 points each.
Once we figured out how the process worked, we started looking at units. My company is putting us up for two weeks in a hotel, which has been very nice. It is close to the office and to my client site, has a nice balcony for eating dinner and a pool on site for hot days. Our goal was to sign a lease and move into an apartment before the end of our two weeks. We looked at several studios, one bedroom and two bedroom apartments, some nice and some not so nice. Most were unfurnished and the ones that were furnished had pretty terrible furniture. Think floral print couches. Weekly rent ranged anywhere from $300 - 450 weekly. Like most cities, it is much cheaper per person if you're willing to get a roommate. Most two bedroom units were only a little more per week than one bedroom units.
After inspecting a few places and lodging a few applications, one of our applications was accepted and we move into our new apartment on the 2nd of February. We'll be located in the very east corner of the CBD (Central Business District aka downtown) almost into Fortitude Valley. The big selling point for us the magnificent view looking over the Brisbane river from the balcony. The unit is on a high floor of a high rise in a very modern building that also has a pool and exercise facility. I wouldn't call the unit a bargain but it's certainly affordable between two people. Unfortunately, the apartment is really just a temporary situation; it is totally unfurnished and we have absolutely nothing to put in it.
Which leads in to our next adventure - furniture, appliances and all the things we take for granted on a daily basis. If you were going to start buying a new life, where would you start?? We decided we needed somewhere to sleep, so we started mattress hunting. We found a good one and decided to purchase but unfortunately delivery won't happen until a week after we move into the unit. However, we already decided we wanted to get a futon for guests and we're able to have that delivered the same day we move into the unit. Looks like we're going to be enjoying the comforts of a futon for next week.
While our home stocking adventure has been pretty unremarkable, I can offer a few good places if you're looking to buy some items. We got a great deal on a refrigerator and washer by going to a warehouse of factory seconds. Just next door was a furniture shop full of furniture formerly used in display homes. There are several of these types of places scattered around the city. If you're looking for new furniture, Super A Mart and Fantastic Furniture have been good online resources. IKEA is popular too. Shipping isn't cheap for most items, around $70-80 dollars within the city, but is better than paying the same for renting a ute (aka SUV) for the day, making multiple trips and breaking your own back.
We have yet to get most of the little things but we're slowing accumulating more items. We've acquired several items from Damian, including a bike, a mobile phone, his broadband card and some odds and ends like beach towels, hangers, alarm clock, and a laundry basket. The past few days of shopping have certainly been expensive and the next few days likely will be too but assuming things continue as planned, we should be in good shape in about a week.
