Category: Villa In The Sun

Paying the Bills!

11/3/2023

The party is well and truly over, as they say. This week the first mortgage payment went out, which certainly isn't a milestone to be celebrated, but it does mark the beginning of our new life down under. Unlike the last five years, we now have responsibilities again, and have to knuckle down and pay the bills. We have taken out a wealth package with The Commonwealth bank and offset all our savings, saving us a significant amount of money per year. We are also paying a much higher amount each month into our mortgage, but with our home loan, only accounting for 16 percent of our joint income, luckily we can afford to do it.

In order to pay off our loan quickly, we have had to take out a variable rate mortgage, which was initially a concern. Only this week, the Bank of Australia raised the base rate by another 0.25%, which will inevitably add more money to our outgoings each month. However, for us, it isn't a problem; we are both working in well paid jobs, so this will not cause us too many difficulties. Nevertheless, I am well aware, this isn't the same for everyone.

Yesterday I was watching The ABC News on television and there was a story about a 75-year-old woman, who is having to sell her home, because she can no longer afford to pay the mortgage. This poor woman was given a thirty year, $650,000 home loan, only a few months ago. Yes you heard that right, a thirty-year mortgage was given to a 75-year-old woman; this just would not occur in the UK and to be honest I was shocked that this had even happened.

It does seem, however, that this is common practice, and substantial sums are being leant to people who just can not afford to pay it back. Having only just moved to Australia, even I was taken aback at how quickly we bought a house, with the mortgage being approved within a matter of days. Thankfully, it worked well for us, and we were able to move home relatively quickly once we were working. I am however sceptical about a system that allows pensioners to get a 30-year loan, who will be 105, when it is finally paid off. As my Mother and Father always said, 'live within your means, and you'll be fine.' Well, I learnt the hard way, but today I buy only what I can afford and no more; it has worked out well for me.

The Commonwealth Bank Wealth Package, also allows me to put as much extra money into the mortgage as I like each month, with no penalties, and it also permits me to withdraw that extra money if I so choose, rather than get a personal loan. This is handy to know for the future; we may decide to upgrade the kitchen or buy a new car, and there will always be money there to pay for it. I have no idea if this kind of mortgage is available in the UK, but I personally think it is a fantastic deal and should encourage a culture of saving rather than spending!

Of course, owning a home is an expensive business, as most of you already know. When we arrived in Australia, we had absolutely nothing, so we have has to furnish a whole house, which isn't cheap. On top of that, we are also having to upgrade the electrics in each room before we refurbish. There are quite simply not enough plug sockets in the building, so we are paying to have more fitted each time we decorate. On Monday we have an electrician coming round to fit new plug points in the family room as well as change all the light switches, at the cost of $500, it isn't cheap, but it is necessary for peace of mind. The electrics haven't been changed since this house was built in 1995; with the amount of electrical equipment we have in 2023, it is absolutely mandatory to upgrade as and when we can,

Also on Monday, we finally have our NBN appointment with IPrimus. It has taken this long to actually start the process of installing broadband at the house; it is like living in Britain twenty years ago. Even then, we are not sure if they will be able to connect us on that day; it is all dependent on the infrastructure servicing the villa. I am flabbergasted that it is quicker to buy a house, than it is to have internet installed, but this is Australia and despite all its amazing qualities, it also has many faults. I just hope we will finally have some form of connection by the end of Monday afternoon.

Darrell has also bought a new car finally, after finding something suitable, and it has been a long time coming. Cars are particularly expensive over here at the moment, after the pandemic reduced the number of new vehicles coming into the country. He could have continued waiting and waiting before buying anything, but he needs one now, it is important he has one to get to and from work. We have done what we have to, taken money from our savings and bought a Honda Accord; not a new car, but a great first step, as we continue to establish our life in Australia.

With private health care, ambulance cover, life insurance and utilities, life isn't easily affordable in Australia. Like the UK, we are also suffering from a cost of living crisis and there is no end in sight to the mortgage interest rate rises, so even though we are comfortable for now, we are well aware of what could happen in the future. As we navigate our way through this difficult economic period, we are learning from the mistakes of the past and no longer spend like each day is our last; we save for a future and the life we believe we deserve. This is our time to succeed in the embattled world, but this is also a time to lose. Avoiding the stupidity of previous failures and channelling energy into rebuilding our life is our overriding goal; when I write about this period in the future, I want it to be full of colour, positivity and hope, not negativity, disillusionment and despair; only time will tell if we succeed or fail at the first hurdle.

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Snake Season!

4/3/2023

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The snake season has arrived in Australia; not a particularly welcome part of the year, but an important date in the antipodean calendar I'm sure. Of course this isn't something I knew off the top of my head, or was made aware of when I moved here, this is an event that just happened to rear its ugly head and reinforce my dislike, of some of the more colourful wildlife here in Perth.

It was a typical afternoon at work, and I was due to take part in an online meeting with colleagues. It was a particularly humid day, clouds were gathering in the sky, and I was in the middle of eating my lunch. I had just taken the last bite of my cheese and Ozemite sandwich, when I heard voices coming from the back of the stockroom. A member of staff had come across a small baby snake. Without her glasses on, she went to pick up what she thought was a cord and was taken aback when it suddenly moved away from her; In her words, it was rather agile and active.

Having never dealt with such a situation before, I was initially unsure about what exactly to do. I began by evacuating the store room and moving staff to the front of the shop. After taking advice, we were told a snake catcher was on the way and to try and keep away from the back of the stockroom. Before we could do that, a member of staff quickly ran to the back and shut the roller door, just in case anyone ventured inside. On her return, she spotted the snake and instantly through a bin on top of it, trapping it inside.

It wasn't long before this rather rugged Aussie snake catcher arrived and went to detain the offending reptile. To be honest, not knowing much about snakes, I assumed it would be pretty harmless, especially being a baby - how wrong was I!

The snake was called a Dugite and is native to Western Australia. It has a greenish body and black head. These snakes are solitary and tend to live alone. This little babies Mother literally threw him or her out as soon as she was able, and boom, it was out on it own. I was expecting there to be more of them, maybe a nest or something, but no. The snake catcher explained that where there is a solitary snake, there will not be another. There may well be one next door, but certainly not in the same building. In a way that was reassuring, but as he stood there with the snake in a bag, I couldn't help thinking, 'when would our new resident move in.' Whether that is true or not, and as one snake leaves, another surely follows, I don't know.

Mr Snake Catcher continued in conversation, detailing the life of this little Dugite and confirming it was only passing through. This is snake season in Australia and endless eggs will be hatching, making them more visible than they otherwise would be. Generally they don't go inside people's homes, but having just hatched, unaware of their environment, it probably made a mistake, ending up in our back room.

.... Now for the chilling part. This seemingly harmless snake is highly venomous and yes, it can kill, even as a baby. That's when it actually hit me - I am in Australia, where the wildlife is so far removed from that in the UK, that I need to be on my guard at all times. These situations can happen from time to time, and I must make myself aware of what is dangerous and what is not. I could have quite easily tried to pick up this little critter and throw it outside, but thankfully I didn't, or this blog post may well have ended very differently.

Since the snake incident at work, I have to admit I have become a bit paranoid, checking for reptiles and spiders wherever I go. Every morning I check under the toilet seat, my shoes, in my knicker draw, and in the laundry room, just to make sure there is nothing lurking in the shadows. I have rarely seen anything nasty since moving here, and as a rule I don't go out of my way to find them.

It reminds me of the time I was living in Australia in 1997. We lived in a new build in the then up-and-coming suburb of Ellenbrook and were there for several months. Every day, numerous times a day, I would head to the kitchen sink, get a drink of water or do the washing up. All perfectly normal, so I thought. It wasn't until we left the house in Mid-Summer Circle, that Darrell told me the plants along the sink, on the window shelf above, were full of red back spiders. My mouth dropped, I couldn't believe he never said a word.

Looking back now, I am glad he didn't. If he had, I would have spent everyday looking for them, avoiding the sink and generally becoming a nervous wreck. If you can't see something, or are not aware it's there, you can generally function normally - give or take the odd mishap. Now, something's just can't be unseen, and although I am familiar with the venomous Dugite, I would have rather not experienced it in the first place.

I suppose my date with a snake, not unlike others I've had in the past, was a warning to be mindful of where I am. In time, I will forget it ever happened, but until then it is just part of the course, living down under. The further I integrate into Australian life, the more used to the extremes I will become. I look forward to the day when snakes and spiders will be like water off a ducks back; until then, I'll keep on learning, adapting and mastering, becoming part of the fabric of society and relishing the challenges that come my way!

This week we have managed to continue decorating the villa. With work commitments top of our agenda, we are having to fit home improvements in when we can. We have more or less finished the front lounge, with the new multicoloured rug, which matches Mollie's hair perfectly, and a few other finishing touches - a homage to the collector still in my heart. The family room now has a new sofa, and I am waiting for the new carpet to arrive tomorrow. This room will be a reflection of the 1960s and 70s, and I am going to try and make it as retro looking as I can, starting with a bright orange feature wall - who knows where it will end!

Despite work taking priority, we did manage to spend a weekend together, which will be the last one for a while. This is a very busy time for me and Darrell, as we continue building our careers in Australia. Moving from the UK was about improving our life together, but it was also about the quality of life we have together. The dark, grey, rainy days in Portsmouth may well be a distant memory, but if we spend all our time working, we will never experience the lifestyle we both crave.

For now, we have renovations to complete, furniture to buy and decorating to do, so it's time to knuckle down and continue to rebuild our life in Perth. We have a hefty mortgage to pay, a cat to look after, a car to buy and bills up to our eyeballs, so that elusive lifestyle will have to wait, just a little bit longer.

As we move from summer into winter, our new villa will come into its own; a sanctuary from the elements outside and a bolthole from the disparaging World around us. We are both happy to be far, far away from Britain and the dark, grey, depressing existence we had before we left, but we are conscious of our roots, even if they are sometimes painful to recall. This is the life we have chosen together, because we no longer have the patience to bother with other people; people who essentially never cared about us. The best way to show the detractors you have moved on, is to build bigger, better and show you are far happier than them - that's exactly what we are doing today!

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A house is not a home without a cat!

18/2/2023

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On Monday, we picked up the latest edition to our household, Pippa! Pippa is twelve months old and was being fostered by a lovely lady in Butler, about forty-five minutes away from where we are living in Midland. Darrell and I have always had cats, ever since we got together nearly twenty-eight years ago, so it was only fitting that we should include another one in our life together, here in Western Australia. Ideally, we would have brought our Spanish cats with us in 2018, but at a cost of $10,000 each, to transport them to the other side of the World, it would have been far too expensive for us at the time. After moving into Mathoura Street, it is time to once again have a cat we can spoil and look after; Neither Darrell nor I have children and Pippa will be our baby, as all our other cats were before her.

As I mentioned in my previous blog, Pippa has Hyperreflexia, a congenital birth defect. She was found dumped shortly after giving birth to a litter of kittens; from what I am told, it seems her condition may have been the reason for her abandonment. To be honest, most of the time you don't even notice she has a disability, and she has no problems coping with it herself. The only noticeable trait, is the significant dip between her shoulder blades and back, which make her look unique and slightly different from the norm. The reason we adopted Pippa, was because of her birth defect; it doesn't matter to us at all, what she looks like!

We arrived in Butler, to be greeted by Kerrie, foster Mother to many cats; she was a delight, spending time with us, talking about Pippa and introducing us to her other brood. Pippa was rather nervous and scared, and although she spent most of the time hiding, there were a brief few minutes, when she came and sat next to us on the sofa, as we continued to chat with Kerrie. She told us how affectionate Miss Pippi was, and the story of her rescue, several days after her newly born kittens were saved. It seems Pippa suffered trauma early on in her life, and it will be a challenge helping her adjust to a more normal existence. Having had rescue cats before, we are well aware of the difficulties ahead, but the rewards at the end are worth it. We hope to give Pippa the life she deserves.

Kerrie assumed Pippa would be living with her indefinitely, due to the nature of her disability; it seems people only want the perfect pet, but for us, it was about giving a good and loving home to a cat who needs it more than most. We are able to devote the time and effort to helping Pippa adapt to her new life, hopefully reducing the stress she obviously feels around other people. To see an animal so traumatised is heartbreaking, and we can only imagine the difficulties she went through before Kerrie took her in.

It seems the hyperreflexia Pippa suffers with causes no immediate pain, in fact she manages perfectly well with it, but in the future that may change. She may well suffer with arthritis as she gets older, like all of us, and may require extra care at that point. For now, she is able to enjoy a happy and healthy life, and we intend to spoil her rotten.

Currently, she still spends most of her time under the bed in the spare room. It is taking a while for her to get used to her surroundings. She is however getting far more daring and venturing out when she sees fit, just to let us know she is still there. In fact, she is probably the most affectionate cat I have ever known, and she loves being around me and Darrell. The empty villa we are living in, is a bit of a problem; the echo throughout can be rather disconcerting for Miss Pippi and once the house is suitably furnished and lived in, I am sure that will change.

Darrell and I have had a busy week and just haven't stopped working, so finding time to do anything else has been a bit difficult. We are progressing slowly at Mathoura Street nevertheless, and we now have most of the basics in place. Personally I am looking for retro, antique, bespoke pieces of furniture and art. I am not a 'live, love, laugh' kind of guy, and do not want to furnish my house with the usual Ikea cheap furniture - to Darrell's consternation.

With the front lounge more or less complete, we are turning our attention to other parts of the house. Today Darrell picked up a retro 1960s sideboard, which goes wonderfully in the family room, and tomorrow I am going to Guildford to buy a dressing table for the bedroom. Like the lounge, I want traditional furniture in the bedroom, not cheap flat pack alternatives. I suppose that's the British in me; I love homes with character and despite living in a 1990's build, I am determined to furnish it in individual style. The sideboard is certainly a statement piece and highly fashionable at the moment. Finding suitable 1960s accessories will be a bit of a challenge, but I have a good idea where to start.

Our new house is certainly starting to feel like a home now, especially with Pippa firmly in our life. It will be a slow process getting everything just as we would like it, but Rome wasn't built in a day and I don't have an endless supply of money. This has been an extremely expensive time for us and our anxiety levels are riding high. One has to remember we were travelling across the World just a few short months ago, and now we are back on the property ladder, working every hour that God sends and settling down in a way we haven't since we lived in Spain seven years ago.

It does feel good to be focused again and working towards goals. Yes, we are spending money, but we are also making a home in Australia. I have lost count of the number of restarts we have had, and this is the final one on that list. Only time will tell whether we made the right move down under, or another blunder on a long list of failures. Until then, we will continue rebuilding our life in Darrell's native home, surrounded by family, navigating new unchartered waters, in a country as far removed from the UK as you could get; whatever happens, at least we have tried to live the dream!

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It feels so nice to actually have a home again - After years of travelling, we've finally come home!

11/2/2023

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It has been a long time since we last had our own home, so long, in fact, that I can't remember what it's like to live as a couple. Darrell and I are now settled in a new house, another country and a World away from our life in Portsmouth. Sitting here now, writing this blog, I am annoyed with myself for not doing this sooner. In reality, we could have both emigrated here years ago, but the time never felt right. Today, our current circumstances feel normal, natural and if I am honest, what we have both wanted to do for a long time. Until today, we never really had the courage to take that final leap, today we are glad we did.

Official settlement occurred on Friday, when the house officially became ours. The last eye watering sum of money left my account and both of us became homeowners once again. Despite spending thousands of pounds over the last few months, there was no regret or bitterness from me, just a desire to rebuild our life and work hard to pay the bills. This is 'normality,' what most people do, but it isn't something we have done before, certainly not in recent times, and it really does feel like my life has gone full circle. At 51 years old I may well be getting older, but this new adventure into suburban living in Australia, has given me a new sense of direction and the will power to succeed, where similar endeavours have failed in the past.

The villa, as they call it here, is big, bigger than anything I have lived in before. There are three double bedrooms, one with walk in wardrobe, a lounge, family room, kitchen, laundry room and small garden - just what we wanted. This house is my dream home, something I never believed I would live in, let alone own, and it finally gives Darrell and I the space we have craved, for so long. Unlike most people, we have not begged, borrowed and stole, we have both worked hard to get good, well paid jobs, and a beautiful house, unlike anything we could afford in the UK.

So far, Australia has opened doors and given both of us opportunities we wouldn't have otherwise had. Both of us are just waiting for the first thing to go wrong, yet everything seems to be going our way. I hate feeling positive, but I actually have nothing to feel negative about and that has to be the first time I have felt this way in many, many years, if at all. I like to think I am in the right place at the right time, but only time will tell if that is correct or not. Traditionally I have never got on in Australia, so this is a new experience for me; like Darrell, I am getting used to the success we are now both enjoying. As the saying goes, nothing lasts forever, so we will ride this wave of satisfaction for now.

Last Sunday we began the process of moving into our new house, by once again going for Sunday lunch at the Stirling Arms. This would be our last meal there for a while; now we have a roof over our head, it isn't so important to get out. Nevertheless, we had a lot to discuss; although settlement occurred on Friday, we were actually given the keys on Monday, after the previous owner agreed we could move in early. This was a blessing is disguise - we both had the day off and literally threw everything into moving our belongings in. With both of us at work the next day, it was important to make the most of the time we had.

In the morning all the lounge furniture and new bed was delivered, later that morning, the white goods arrived and in the afternoon, the antique furniture I ordered from Guildford's Antiques were delivered. After all the cleaning, arranging of furniture, and shopping, we were both shattered by the end. In fact, I am still tired now, and we have a long way to go yet.

Like most moves, there are a few niggling issues that need to be sorted and on Wednesday we had the taps replaced in the laundry, and arranged for an electrician to come out this Monday and put in some extra sockets in the lounge. This is a house that was built in 1995, at a time when there was less technology in all our lives; consequently the electrics are not up to present day standards and will have to eventually be replaced completely. For now, installing extra plug points will suffice until we have the money to do everything we want.

Once the electrics are sorted we want to buy furniture for the family room, finish the bedrooms and finally get to grips with the garden, which needs a complete overhaul. All this will take time and a lot of money; with this in mind, we will have to take things slowly. As we are beginning to discover, it isn't cheap being a homeowner in 2023 and with all the utilities in place, we are looking at a substantial outlay each month. Like everything, it is all doable though, leaving us with plenty of money to spare for increasing the mortgage payments and saving money each month.

With settlement now complete, we are both officially homeowners again, able to live our life as we would wish. Living in a detached villa, we can make as much noise as we like; not that we are rowdy party goes any more, but it's just nice to be able to drill a hole in the wall, without repercussions from irate neighbours. This is what freedom is all about.

On Monday, we will pick up a new addition to our household, a rescue cat called Pippa. Pippa is one year old and will finally make our lives complete. She is also different from the other cats we have had in the past; she has a congenital birth defect called hyperreflexia, which causes problems with her back. In essence, her shoulder blades sit higher than her spinal cord. This makes it impossible for her to jump like other felines, but to us, it makes her even more special.

Darrell and I have always had cats in our life and when I saw this beautiful girl, I just knew I had to have her as part of my family. She needed a home, and we could give her one. It was unlikely anyone else would give her the opportunity we have, but after losing both Lily and Precious in Spain, we decided we would like to adopt a cat with special needs.

Despite the difficulties she faces, it is clear from her foster carer, that she is perfect in every way - loving, affectionate and well-adjusted. Now we have Pippa, it looks like we have everything we have ever wanted and couldn't ask for more.

Australia is the final stop for us, on a life journey that has taken us to nearly every corner of the World. It is important for us to keep travelling, but now we will have a base to call home. Pippa will likely keep us grounded for the most part and with both our careers now taking off, it is time to do the right thing and settle in a place we have both grown to love, and a country that has always featured prominently wherever we are. This is home, this is the future, this is where our journey stops for now!

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From a new life in spain, to an old life in britain, 'roaming brit' documents uncertain times!

Paying the Bills!

Snake Season!

A house is not a home without a cat!

It feels so nice to actually have a home again - After years of travelling, we've finally come home!

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