Should I move with 3 kids from Perth to Singapore for 12 mon

[AussieNat]

Hello - We are a family in Perth having relocated from Melbourne in 2011. My husband works in gas and oil so and we moved when his company closed. We are again facing the same issue. He will be out of work either just before, or just after Christmas. There appears to be zero mechanical engineering jobs in Perth at the moment and most seasoned gas and oil workers are telling us that Perth will improve late 2014, early 2015. So, we have 12 months to fill in! If he accepts a position in Singapore for 12 months, should we all go, or just him? (Our children are 6,4 and 1 years old.) We think his contract will pay for International Schooling but we will need to pay accommodation. Any suggestions? If we didn't join him, we would spend all holidays in Singapore and a few long weekends here and there. What to do...ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!1, the kids are just starting school and have just re settled from Melbourne. But family is so important...... Help

[JR8]

12 months, no fixed job, on spec. condo, schools etc.

No I wouldn't do it.

[sundaymorningstaple]

For a year? Uprooting children from school is traumatic enough without having to do it 12 months later as well.

[Beeroclock]

Worth considering as an experience living overseas. Clearly either way will be tough but I believe it's really important to keep your family together. Also as you say you will be spending all holidays, long weekends in Singapore.... How many 5 hour flights with 3 small children ? If staying in Perth option, then I was expecting you to say husband will fly back for all holidays etc. Financially I'm not sure how it works out overall, but maybe some saving possible if all together under one roof and less travel back and forth (?). Good luck

[Fortan]

Think of the kids. Don't go for 12 months....

[Beeroclock]

Also you never know, a lot of intended 1 year stints in Singapore end up being much longer. If it ends up working well you can try find the option to stay a bit longer and make the uprooting effort more worthwhile.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Also you never know, a lot of intended 1 year stints in Singapore end up being much longer. If it ends up working well you can try find the option to stay a bit longer and make the uprooting effort more worthwhile.

Yeah, I'm ex-oil & gas as well. I came here on a 12 month contract in 1982. That was 31 years ago. Still here! Go figger! Course I was single when I got here and have been married for 30 years with a 25 year old son & 29 year old daughter now.

But with three kids, I don't think I'd do it out of concern for the kids.

[katbh]

It is the perfect age to spend some time overseas with children. They are young enough that they will enjoy the experience (and you too) and young enough to be flexible. Go for it!

[bgd]

12 months apart is a long time. If you haven’t had extended periods apart before you might find it hard, especially with 3 young kids. How will the kids cope not having Dad around? Kids of that age are adaptable and 12 months living in another country won’t have any adverse impact in the long run.

Oil and Gas, from the little I know, can be pretty unstable. Who can really say that you will end up back in Perth in a year, if at all.

Personally I’d say move. Come and live in Sg for a year, or however long things last. Having been in a similar situation (although the kids were older) I would, with the benefit of hindsight, always opt to keep the family together.

[AussieNat]

Thank you all for taking the time to give me your thoughts. It was great to receive such a mixed response. We have lots to think about and TONS of questions. I hadn't really stopped and thought 'what if Perth doesn't pick up'. We will be in the same situation in 12 months trying to get back to a jobless market. Maybe we should consider staying longer.

Dumb burning question that needs answering please....... can you rent a house? With a yard that the kids can run in? I grew up semi bush and all we do as a family is camp and fish. Living in an apartment with 3 wild boys (4 including the hubby) scares the life out of me.

[JR8]

Yes you can, but it's a small island with lots of wealthy people, so it wouldn't be cheap. Use the search buttons at the top of the page to get an idea...

[Dert42]

I don't know if I'd do it for 12 months.
Longer, I would say yes.

Your husband could work here, get his own small place and send back tons of money.

Can you rent a house with a yard? Maybe. It would be crazy expensive. And the yard would be a fraction of the size you're thinking of.
There are tons of parks all over the place. If you do come with kids, live in a high rise and go to the parks.

[AussieNat]

Hello

Does anyone have their children in the Aust International School? We would have 2 kids in there if we come and basically want to know a) Is it worth $60K or b) should we hire a home school tutor?

WOW! Renting with a small courtyard, let alone a yard is very expensive.

Thanks again to all helping us.

[bgd]

Look at renting near East Coast Park. You will have 20Kms of park and beach. You won't need that yard.

[Strong Eagle]

I don't know if I'd do it for 12 months.
Longer, I would say yes.

Your husband could work here, get his own small place and send back tons of money.

Can you rent a house with a yard? Maybe. It would be crazy expensive. And the yard would be a fraction of the size you're thinking of.
There are tons of parks all over the place. If you do come with kids, live in a high rise and go to the parks.

There are quite a lot of older semi-detached houses around that can be rented for $4500 to $6000 per month. The catch is that most of these seem to go by word of mouth. For example, we moved into one that was being vacated by expats we knew, and when we left, our neighbors had friends who wanted the place.

So, it was a win-win... the landlord saves agent fees and has no break in rent and the tenant gets a better deal. But you really need to be in the community to become aware of these deals.

The right condo would be good... pool facilities and more are offered by many.