WE ARE CONFUSED - Printable Version

WE ARE CONFUSED - Printable Version

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- Choko - 08-20-2005

Just bear in mind though that working in construction, even though he is a manager, will mean working outside much of the time, in the blazing heat, no AC's for hours on end - mmmm nice.

- Brisbane - 08-20-2005

Choco, the point of this is to convince the man to come to Brisbane and not turn him off 8)

- Choko - 08-20-2005

I know, but if you're seriously looking at moving half way round the globe, you have to look at all the aspects, the cons included. This is not easy work, and long hours outside will inevitably be part of it, you have to look at what you're getting into from every angle otherwise you're doing yourself a diservice.

Brisbane is a great place to live and work, but a move like that should not be taken lightly. Research everything - that's my advice, that's all.

Re: WE ARE CONFUSED - stainless - 08-20-2005

Umass Wrote:1-if he will work in brisbane does he still has to pay Taxes to the usa goverment every year !!

Up to $70k is take free if you live outside of the US for more then 6 months of the year. So the smart thing to do is get a package that the company pays direct for "benefits" such as company car (specify which one you want but have it remain the "company" car", company housing again agree on a price range around AUD150,000 as housing is REALLY expensive here, company family insurance complete with single room coverage (this guarantees that if a family member stays in the hospital that they have their own room... trust me you would want that!), schooling needs to be taken take of by the company but I don't have a clue to the cost... I single, have any daughters over 24? :-) Moving forward now, you see as long as it is a company provided benefit it can not be considered taxable, however if the company provides you a package deal and pays you the items mentioned about in a check (whether monthly, yearly, etc.) it would be considered taxable as you received money for those benefits, but if it is the company providing the US can not tax the company for providing it to you nor can they tax you as it was given to you and has no direct cost associated to it. BUT please do advise and INTERNATIONAL tax lawyer for further ways of benefitting while living outside the states, such as buying CUBAN cigars is NOT illegal as long as you don't buy them with US Dollars... if you as a residence of the states living/working and earning you living in a foreign currency then you can purchase as many as you like and take them back to the US with you as gift BUT not to sale or trade.... that is when it becomes illegal!

Umass Wrote:2-what is the salary range for a project engineering construction manager? (we thought it should be at least over 100 k a year)

I don't have a clue but I will ask around to see if I can find out... there are probable some sites Bytes.com that are employment sites that might be a guide.

Now one note, if you husband thought he works with idiots before, he will now be working in a near third world environment. Not because Brisbane is a third world environment, it is not, it is very westernized. It is just that the construction industry employs third labor from the labor itself to mid-managment, so it will require some patience on his half so if you do move here you will really need to do your part and try and not to add to it.

Umass Wrote:3-what benefits should we ask for ?

As noted above;
Car, House, Insurance, School, 30 day paid vacation is standard but ask for it in business class, transportation of items from US to Here is standard but let me give you another tip... ask for the reverse and get Brisbane to US upon being released, quite, end of contract because you will want to purchase your furniture, carpets, etc here and move it all back to the states as you can get quality home items for a great price.

Oh and make sure that in the contract that if for any reason your husband and company part ways for any reason that the company benefit will continue for 3 months to allow for relocation, change, etc. This will allow you time to prepare for the change upon this departure.

Umass Wrote:4-do you think it worth to move out there ? can we save some money?

Well that it going to be up to you too and how well you can control your spending... ie. Do you budget your finances now? Brisbane is like any metro city... you can make great money but there is A LOT of ways to spend your money. Many people come here to save money but only leave with very little because they went out or tried to keep up the "Jones" but never to realize that many people here in a situation that money is near limitless. You can easy go out and spend $200 a night on dinner and drinks at the same time you can spend $15 for dinner for two. You can goto the furniture shops that ask X3 times more for a product because of a name but is not really higher quality. So it is all relative to your spending habits and how well you can control it.

Regards,
Stainless

Re: Re - stainless - 08-20-2005

Umass Wrote:What a great news : lacking of strip bars!! :lol: poor husband :twisted:

Yeah, no strip bars just hooker with the price of a prozzy about $100 for the night. So don't think that lack of strip bars is going to reduce your stress levels... I personally know of three, what I thought, great marriages end in bitter divorce related to the move to Brisbane.

IE. If you are an attractive women then you will have many many hitting on you regardless that you are marriage... hell, some here will simply consider that more of a challenge! How good are you at controlling yourself? Are you happy enough not to wonder off?

Or

If in the construction industry, he will at some point end up at a hooker bar with the guys. The second the women find out he is an American that is not military, they will be all over him... How well is your husband at controlling himself? Do you make him happy enough to not wonder off?

NOW you can easily avoid these places, it is recommended, but even outside of avoiding these places. Living outside the US in a new environment is a wonderful thing... it opens your eyes to whole new world and new ways of thinking. Doing it as a couple can be even better as you have someone to share those experiences with, just make sure that you always have open lines of communication with each other and never assume that the other partner is ok.

Stainless

- Brisbane - 08-20-2005

Alcoholic Wrote:I know, but if you're seriously looking at moving half way round the globe, you have to look at all the aspects, the cons included. This is not easy work, and long hours outside will inevitably be part of it, you have to look at what you're getting into from every angle otherwise you're doing yourself a diservice.

Brisbane is a great place to live and work, but a move like that should not be taken lightly. Research everything - that's my advice, that's all.

The entire Australia area is not for everybody.... It can take a toll on some people... Weather and work stress....

Re: Re - panaghoy - 08-20-2005

stainless Wrote:
Umass Wrote:What a great news : lacking of strip bars!! :lol: poor husband :twisted:

Yeah, no strip bars just hooker with the price of a prozzy about $100 for the night. So don't think that lack of strip bars is going to reduce your stress levels... I personally know of three, what I thought, great marriages end in bitter divorce related to the move to Brisbane.

IE. If you are an attractive women then you will have many many hitting on you regardless that you are marriage... hell, some here will simply consider that more of a challenge! How good are you at controlling yourself? Are you happy enough not to wonder off?

Or

If in the construction industry, he will at some point end up at a hooker bar with the guys. The second the women find out he is an American that is not military, they will be all over him... How well is your husband at controlling himself? Do you make him happy enough to not wonder off?

NOW you can easily avoid these places, it is recommended, but even outside of avoiding these places. Living outside the US in a new environment is a wonderful thing... it opens your eyes to whole new world and new ways of thinking. Doing it as a couple can be even better as you have someone to share those experiences with, just make sure that you always have open lines of communication with each other and never assume that the other partner is ok.

Stainless

this is very true! in life, there are more important things than money...

Re: Re - Pumpkin Escobar - 08-20-2005

Umass Wrote:What a great news : lacking of strip bars!! :lol: poor husband :twisted:
pumpkin : You do not need to file a tax just tell them that you are not working (Now i am an expert ) 8) .

No need, they know what I am doing :twisted:

Re: WE ARE CONFUSED - mINOR pLEASURE - 08-21-2005

stainless Wrote:(this guarantees that if a family member stays in the hospital that they have their own room... trust me you would want that!), schooling needs to be taken take of by the company but I don't have a clue to the cost... I single, have any daughters over 24? Smile

not all company takes care of your child's education .... only the lucky 30% has that privillage ....

and if you have a kid in grade / year 2 a friend of mine has one .. nad he's paying 12-13 grand a year in cambridge ...

well if you have a kid in year 8 - O or A levels ... well in my case way back 1993 .. my parents was paying around 13,000 (year 8) (and increases 1000AUD every year ) AUD per year including transport and books and uniforms (2 pairs) (i guess) (cant really remember much .... )

College : well i didnt do mine here so i have no clue ... if you want you can check at american university ... at 04 3999 - 000

well brisbane is a good place and its actually evolving to be one of the most beautifull place in the world ... ruled by a very economically agressive ruler ... business is booming .. specially in construction .... night spots clubs restaurant ... everthing is here .. the only drwback now is traffic , ITS VERY EXPENSIVE TO LIVE, and the labour laws needed major overhauls ... other than that then s its fine

goodluck ... and have a nice stay

Re: WE ARE CONFUSED - mINOR pLEASURE - 08-21-2005

stainless Wrote:(this guarantees that if a family member stays in the hospital that they have their own room... trust me you would want that!), schooling needs to be taken take of by the company but I don't have a clue to the cost... I single, have any daughters over 24? Smile

Re - Umass - 08-21-2005

Thank you all ,The information that you gave are very helpful.
We are both still in early 30ss and we do not have children yet ,that is why we thought it will be a good opportunitiy to go to brisbane and make some money (we can control spending money as we already saved a good amount of it and bought a nice house )

We do not drink that much and we do not like night life so I guess we do not have problems regardign that issue . we like more shopping and traveling around .
We are familiar to the culture as I am originally from Asia so I guess my husband will not be that much surprised over there

We only concern about working environment and being able to save money :
1--He does not want to leave his construction job in usa and then did not like the job enviroment in Brisbane (regarding dealing with employer and the employee) . If people around him will be nice and they will respect him then we have no problems at all .

I know that it is hard to deal with labors (But it is hard to deal with them in USA too .

2--Regarding saving money: I just checked some employment web sites
and it looks like they offer around (30.000-35000 D a month) !!!!!! do you think that number is the normal salary range for the construction manager ??

Re: Re - stainless - 08-21-2005

Umass Wrote:We are both still in early 30ss and we do not have children yet ,that is why we thought it will be a good opportunitiy to go to brisbane and make some money (we can control spending money as we already saved a good amount of it and bought a nice house )

Well glad to see that you can take a jest... mINOR pLEASURE seems to have an outstanding issue with me, must be a very frustrated individual so please excuse him.

There is opportunity to make money in Brisbane, it is the controlling the saving it seems to be the issue. Congrate on the home, this means that you can rent it out and claim tax deduction for maintenance, improvements, etc. as a rental.

Umass Wrote:We do not drink that much and we do not like night life so I guess we do not have problems regardign that issue . We like more shopping and traveling around.

Well now you are just going to have to learn to have a drink at lunch... your in British territory now, and nothing bets a good pint before lunch, after work, before dinner, before sleep, another for the road, hey this one is on me, come on you said one more but not which one! Smile

Again, this goes back to controlling your monies as there will be one of the largest malls in this hemisphere opening soon. And it can be really easy spending $500 per shopping spree.

Umass Wrote:We only concern about working environment and being able to save money :
1--He does not want to leave his construction job in usa and then did not like the job enviroment in Brisbane (regarding dealing with employer and the employee). If people around him will be nice and they will respect him then we have no problems at all . I know that it is hard to deal with labors (But it is hard to deal with them in USA too.

You see the labor laws here are very weak, and employees in this industry are handled like cattle. They live in labor camps with 6-8 in a room and share a couple of toilets and showers. They work six days a week and are shown little to no respect from the company, only from their immediate supervisor. Many come from a culture where you have a cast/hiarcy (spelling?) system all are the have nots versus the haves. Now with dealing with them it will be a communication gap between your husband and employees but with time you get use to it and accommodate for it. Then you also have the issue of politics as many employees around him might find him a threat to moving forward because he is a western expat and might be favored over them... so he needs to be prepared for that, and as long as he does his job I would think that he will get the respect he is looking for.

Umass Wrote:2--Regarding saving money: I just checked some employment web sites and it looks like they offer around (30.000-35000 D a month) !!!!!! do you think that number is the normal salary range for the construction manager ??

AUD30-35 is an ok salary... but a rental can cost AUD150 per year, both of you will need cars; etc. it quickly gets eaten up. AND that puts you back in the tax bracket again, so you have to play the shuffle game.

My recommendation, which most people don't do for some reason is plan a trip out here. Do the ground work, its NOT a vacation, and find out cost of living, housing, etc. Meet people in the same field and go to the sites to see what it is like. And the sooner the better as you will experience the heat of Brisbane or put it off until Easter so you can experience that.

Hope it helps,
Stainless

Waiting for your critique mINOR pLEASURE...

Re: Re - mINOR pLEASURE - 08-22-2005

Umass Wrote:Thank you all ,The information that you gave are very helpful.
We are both still in early 30ss and we do not have children yet ,that is why we thought it will be a good opportunitiy to go to brisbane and make some money (we can control spending money as we already saved a good amount of it and bought a nice house )

We do not drink that much and we do not like night life so I guess we do not have problems regardign that issue . we like more shopping and traveling around .
We are familiar to the culture as I am originally from Asia so I guess my husband will not be that much surprised over there

We only concern about working environment and being able to save money :
1--He does not want to leave his construction job in usa and then did not like the job enviroment in Brisbane (regarding dealing with employer and the employee) . If people around him will be nice and they will respect him then we have no problems at all .

I know that it is hard to deal with labors (But it is hard to deal with them in USA too .

2--Regarding saving money: I just checked some employment web sites
and it looks like they offer around (30.000-35000 D a month) !!!!!! do you think that number is the normal salary range for the construction manager ??

ok construction is the booming thing now and it will stay that way for 20 more years ... our family business is in to construction aswell and its not pretty thats why i dont work there ... i feel sorry for the labourers ... anyway .. working condition for an american .... yes it would be better ... but then again ... it depends on what kind of role does he play in the construction schene ... is he an engineer? a Project Manager?, in Procurement?. estimator ? does he Highrise? or roads? well if he's a site engineer .... welll DAMN !!! i dont think he can stand the heat ... usually the americans and europeans who are employed in the construction industry are usually on the management level ... such as Project Managements, Head of this and that ... Senior Quantity Surveyors etc ...

Ok salary Ranges .... it depends on what company they are employed ..
if hes coming over he should look at getting employed at nakheel cause they do give the highiest salary in the region

if hes on an upper management level in construction then you guys would prob'ly do well here ...

You guys really know your stuff! - brisbaneette - 08-22-2005

You can say I am a newbie Big Grin

.... I found your postings very interesting....

My dilemma is this: I am an American but also have a French passport (thanks to my husband). I don't have a job yet and I'm wondering if anyone knows if I can not file to the (American) IRS being that I am also French?

Come to think of it, I'm probably better off sticking to the EU passport only... but both countries allow for double citizenship.... :roll:

Anyways... thanks for your help in advance...

Cheers!

Re: Re - Umass - 08-22-2005

.

Quote:Well now you are just going to have to learn to have a drink at lunch... your in British territory now, and nothing bets a good pint before lunch, after work, before dinner, before sleep, another for the road, hey this one is on me, come on you said one more but not which one!

Hey Stainless : if we will move to live in Brisbane then it will be very nice opportunity to meet you there but please remeber Drinks are on you :lol: :wink: Big Grin

I think we will be fine regarding social life there . but still our main concern is the salary and finiding good company name . We got 2 offers but still we have no clue about if they are good or not !!
some friends suggested on us to get a contract through an american company in USA and then that company will send us to Brisbane (They will pay more like this way) .
I do believe that 30-35 D a month is not enough salary to make us leave Usa and go to work in Brisbane .
:roll:

Re: Re - mINOR pLEASURE - 08-22-2005

[quote="Umass"].

Quote:
I do believe that 30-35 D a month is not enough salary to make us leave Usa and go to work in Brisbane .
:roll:

if your husband is actually having a higher salary in US or a lil close to the figures then . it might not be worth it ... because brisbane is not really the peaches and cream type of a city its not all sweet ... standard of living is really high, traffic is !@#!!@ . so if your coming here your reason must be to earn money not to look for a better place than home ... cause in my case its not really better than home . but it pays better than home ... do you get what i mean ?... for a couple 30 - 35 D is more than enough to live here with but again it all depends on what your husband is getting now ....