Hi just wonder what exp do u Hve in that chinaman company?

Please do not feed that troll. We edged him out for a reason; he just came here to cause trouble, and not to provide help/ insight/ constructive feedback.

used to work with semiconductor as a process engineer but more to project role. Already have equipment procurement lead title for a project that cost USD 500k. currently working under this chinaman company but working as a subcontractor for Petronas and Technip. Delivering piperacks and also pressure vessels

for those who are on 1 year contract, how easy was it for you to jump from 1 contract to another ?

Ooh, another good thread! I'll busy myself with the informative posts here...

taikor, we'll need your feedback cos you are very experienced

Bro,

Don't lah sing high praises of me when it's scarcely deserved. I'm already facing a terrible dilemma with regards to making a permanent move, and it is I who need feedback and insights from braver and more committed souls who have taken the plunge and made the move, successfully so.

My biggest issue is letting go. It's a damn good life here in Singapore. Too good. Despite what all the naysayers keep saying, I'm not the HDB, MRT-taking, pigeon-hole living type in Singapore. I run a multi-million dollar business in Singapore, and while it would be way too far a stretch to call it an "empire", it certainly feeds me well enough. My boutique property development in Sydney (and previously Melbourne & prior to that, Auckland) makes but a fraction of it - come on, the fact that from 3 cities it has now been downsized to just one should be enough proof as to which is my bigger/primary business. And the medical centre business that I got into with my brother and a few other partners has just started less than 6 months ago. I have yet to establish myself in Sydney, and to be honest, I'm not sure whether I can, at this point in life.

If I do make the move permanent, it will be likely a case of giving up my business interests here in Singapore. Sure, you could say that I could travel and continue running the business that way - but that would defeat the purpose of moving to Australia and enjoying life there. Moreover, it wouldn't be fair to my other shareholders who are putting in 110% of their time and effort in Singapore. Essentially, I would end up being a sleeping partner, and I wouldn't want to be feeding anyone like that, hence I cannot expect the same for myself. If I'm going to do the same shit in Australia (i.e. be away from home, be away from my spouse), I might as well continue doing it in Singapore and taking home my present income, as opposed to potentially taking home 10% of what I'm making now.

Because 10 - 15 years ago, when I was busy establishing my business in Singapore, that's exactly what I made - less than 10% of what I'm making now. Such is the harsh/hard reality of starting from scratch. And, to be honest, when I head over to Sydney, although admittedly I would be in a slightly different (and it can be said, better) position than most migrants in the sense that I will have no debts, a ready house in Sydney that we absolutely adore (it's just a stone's throw away from the water, and I'll have a decent view of the New Year fireworks from the Bridge) modest amount of savings, and a steady rental income from my personal properties already in Australia, not to mention money generated from passive income streams in Singapore, I will still be starting all over in terms of my businesses, and I would be lucky to break even for the first 5 years.

So, if I do make it to Australia permanently (and not like what I'm doing now, on my 888 Visa - just some 40 or so days per year), I will have to learn to adjust and adapt to a very different lifestyle. The real question is, will I like that lifestyle or not, and once I make the move permanently, there's no way of turning back. Once the shares in my Singapore business is sold/returned/distributed (as per the common law amongst the shareholders), I can't be expected to buy my way back in should I change my mind about Australia some 2 or 3 years down the road. I'd be royally fcuked.

My only hope, as I see it, is to amass a big enough war chest to generate enough passive income, so I can essentially forget about working in Australia (hence my other thread in the financial forum in lowyat). I've given myself another 5 years to do that in Singapore. Perhaps then, and only then, will I make my move permanent and allow myself to luxury of smelling the roses.

Good luck with your move, and keep all of us posted!

to me personally, the more money you have, the more quality life you will get... if you can live comfortably in Singapore, it makes little sense to leave all that... i wouldn't if i was in your shoes...

my uncle was in a situation similar to yours, he has a public listed property development company in Malaysia... 10-15 years ago he made a move and applied PR for the sake of the kids' education... until now he's still in Malaysia with his wife, my cousins are in Australia...
in order to sustain his business PR, he went into property development in Melbourne... buying older piece of land and turning it into townhouses...
both of them fly to Melbourne almost every few weeks to spend time with the children... its tiring but they seem very happy with their life now

as for my case, mine is on a much smaller scale compared to you. Since my wife and i are working, if we stay on, we should be able to retire in less than 10 years living a simple life off the rental income...
the big move now practically wipes out all that... and we start all over from zero upon migration... but we don't have much of a choice cos we don't have that much money to buy the kind of quality life like you... and we are earning MYR which is dropping much faster that we can earn
the longer we wait, the worse the situation

thanks bro, good luck to you too on your decision

What an interesting coincidence - your uncle and I thought of the same "trick"! That's exactly what my boutique property development business does in Sydney (and did in Melbourne, before it became so overcrowded with new developments - our last development was in North Melbourne, a small set of townhouses near Buncle Street, if you're familiar with that place). However, unlike your uncle, we don't have any children to worry about their educations, so the move is strictly and only for ourselves.

And, your uncle had an a double advantage, in the sense that he set up a business (establishing monetary & taxation ties to Australia) as well as his children are studying there (establishing family ties to Australia). It will be way easier for him to renew his RRV based on these factors. In my case, and if my migration agent is to be believed, they have plans to make it harder for Visa 888 holders to maintain their ties soon - it is rumoured (if it already hasn't happened) that Visa Subclass 888 holders will soon be subject to the same 2 out of 5 years in order for RRV renewal. When/if that happens, in order for me to keep the PR, I will have to make a decision to move over permanently, and give up my life here in Singapore. Essentially, I have 5 years more before I have to make the (final) call, as I just got the 888 renewed.

Decisions, decisions. This is what my friends chide me by naming it "first world problems". Good luck to BOTH of us then, mate!

As I mentioned before, what is yr end game? Is it lifestyle or kids education?

I mean if u r financially successful then there is perhaps no issue with sending the kids overseas to study?

If u r unable to let go of the success of yr life in SG then no point to move. U will make yrself and every1 around u unhappy.

Personally, I think its easier for middle class Msians to consider the move, as good education there costs a bomb. And many hv lost faith in the future of the nation.

yeah, my uncle has an upper hand since his children was able to fulfill the RRV requirements...

then your choice is very personal, depends on your ultimate goal boss... Malaysians leave Malaysia for education and safety, Singaporeans leave Singapore for retirement... those factors don't even affect you... and if you stayed back in Singapore and build that war chest, in future you can still re-enter Aussie via the super investor/retirement visa...

well yeah just enjoy yourself flying in and out of melbourne, less of a worry unless you are thinking of having children in 5 years time

What is the reason you want to move to Australia? If you are already doing well and happy with what you have now, why come here? You don't need a lot of money to 'retire' really, especially considering what you mentioned about your financial situation. And since you are already experienced with property development in Australia, why not continue doing that?

And replying to your comment on overcrowded development here, it is only overcrowded for new apartment development in certain suburbs. They are marketed to foreigners and/or locals who still thinks like foreigners. There are still a lot of money to be made in development, but you'll need to look at it from a local point of view, not through a foreigners glass. Yes, there are a lot more competition for lands with development potential, which means you need to be careful not to overbid on purchases. That is probably the hardest part cause as the saying goes, you make money in property here when you make the purchase, not when you sell it.

Look further away from the inner city circle, employ a good buyers agent if you are not familiar with the market. Keep close contact with the BA and learn as much as you can.

Your biggest problem when you move here will be financing the development. You are probably getting really cheap finances from Singapore for development, so if your war chest permits, keep all the properties you developed here. Assuming you ride the latest property wave couple, financed at a low interest rate (that is even lower if you financed from Singapore) and you developed it (I'm hoping you did your due diligence with a 20% margin and still able to maintain most of it?), I'll be surprised if it is not positive geared enough to maintain a decent lifestyle, especially when you have no mortgage.

I suppose what you need now is to have enough money to keep developing so you can maintain the lifestyle you enjoy right now. You either need enough to do it with cash, or you need to be creative in accounting. On the later, you only need a good report for 2 years. Which comes to my other point.... you'll need a good mortgage broker and accountant, which are all hard to come by and you need to understand the local marker to be able to interview them, and interview a lot of them before you get a good one.

Yes. Migration is not for everyone. I thought it was good to come here but later I find out that I could have done better elsewhere. I'm returning to sg after end of the year with no regret. Happy counting down. What's an expensive lifetime experience for me, spent $5k plus in total to get the visa and not planning to come back in foreseeable future.

Anyway for the forumers here, I hold pr visa subclass 190 VIC state sponsor, since July 2016 and valid till June 2021. I would have had stayed in Aus for 6 mths by the end of the year. Assuming if I return to aus in Jan 2021 and continue staying and working here, what are the chances of getting my pr for renewal in June 2021?

enter Aussie again before June 2021 and stay for another 1.5 years, should be able to get the RRV

Thank you for replying. Appreciate much.

no worries bro, mind sharing what you didn't like about Aussie compared to Singapore?

met a sg uncle here who's real estate agent here. had a chat and throw him a question, sg should be better than oz in economic way...why are you here? The only answer he gave me, family time.
A computer engineer back home, end up here coz he'd enough on the adhoc worklife and long hours. Single, you can go anywhere and work everywhere where the money is, once got family, mentality would be different.

Migration is not for everyone, it's a choice

I totally agree with you on this, met a guy recently both husband and wife were making big money one in marketing other in IT for MNC with 3 little kids. Just came less then a year wife is stay at home , husband just got a job. I asked him if they regret , his answer in no because his wife is so happy gets to stay home to raise the kids, walk them to school etc. and on his income alone they are happy very happy. so go figure end of the day its what your goals are ...to each his own

100 ppl don't like australia, 101 don't have an appropriate job here. working in chinese restaurant is not classified as "appropriate" job.

This post has been edited by gdryan: Oct 31 2016, 02:17 PM