# Finding job/place to live before moving?



## moo (Apr 23, 2011)

How do you go about finding a job and a place to live before moving overseas? I have no qualifications, so I will only be able to get a 'normal' job, and I will be renting (alone).

Is it best to find a job or a place to live first? Is it possible to get both before even moving or do you have to meet in person?


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

moo said:


> How do you go about finding a job and a place to live before moving overseas? I have no qualifications, so I will only be able to get a 'normal' job, and I will be renting (alone).
> 
> Is it best to find a job or a place to live first? Is it possible to get both before even moving or do you have to meet in person?


Unless you go with one of those organisations that offer to find you a live-in job - generally not recommended as pay and conditions can be poor because they pay a large commission to employers, you have to wait until you get here. Nobody hires anyone here without a personal interview, and there are usually extra checks required before a job is offered, such as references, criminal record check (for certain jobs) etc. With the high level of competition for jobs, it may take a while to get fixed up, as there are nearly 3 million unemployed.

Same with renting a place. Nobody offers tenancy without interview and background checks, and as you have no UK credit history, you will probably have to have a guarantor - a UK resident owning property with steady income. Alternative is to pay 6 months' rent in advance, plus deposit (usually equivalent to a month's rent). As a single person, look for flat- or house-share, and you can network among friends and acquaintances. And there are loads of free publications in London for flatshare.

You can look up what's on offer on such sites as rightmove.co.uk.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Generally, it's not a great idea to move someplace and then start looking for a job. Very often, you'll have to return home to apply for your visa anyhow and, as Joppa has mentioned, you will run into problems finding a place to rent and other administrative stuff.

The ideal situation would be to start your job hunt from where you are currently resident. But from Oz, it's pretty difficult. You need to be able to make yourself available for interviews once someone expresses an interest in your CV - and that means at your cost. If you don't have any particular qualifications, it's pretty tough in the job market just about anywhere right now. Normally, to get a visa, you need to have some sort of qualification or experience that is not available in your target market. You might do better to work on developing some "unique" qualification or going after some sort of experience that might give you an edge in the international job market.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

Bevdeforges said:


> Generally, it's not a great idea to move someplace and then start looking for a job. Very often, you'll have to return home to apply for your visa anyhow and, as Joppa has mentioned, you will run into problems finding a place to rent and other administrative stuff.
> 
> The ideal situation would be to start your job hunt from where you are currently resident. But from Oz, it's pretty difficult. You need to be able to make yourself available for interviews once someone expresses an interest in your CV - and that means at your cost. If you don't have any particular qualifications, it's pretty tough in the job market just about anywhere right now. Normally, to get a visa, you need to have some sort of qualification or experience that is not available in your target market. You might do better to work on developing some "unique" qualification or going after some sort of experience that might give you an edge in the international job market.


I've assumed that as an Australian, the OP is getting a youth mobility scheme (formerly working holiday) visa or ancestry visa, neither of which requires sponsorship or resident labour test about shortage of applicants.
It shouldn't be too difficult to get a low-skilled job in retailing, cleaning or in care homes, esp in the London area, but poor pay means the OP will struggle to make ends meet on such an income alone.


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## moo (Apr 23, 2011)

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I'm a British citizen by descent.. I'm not sure how that affects this issue though. So what do you do if you don't find a place to stay straight away? Do you stay at a hotel and look for a place?


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

moo said:


> Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I'm a British citizen by descent.. I'm not sure how that affects this issue though. So what do you do if you don't find a place to stay straight away? Do you stay at a hotel and look for a place?


Or a cheaper hostel.
Your British citizenship is fine, and if you live for at least 3 years in UK, any children you will have anywhere in the world can be registered as British. You will also have the right to live and work just about anywhere in Europe without a visa.


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

If you have employment in Australia, why not wait and ride out the recession? At the moment there is high unemployment in the U.K. and finding work is difficult with plenty of strong competition.


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