Living in Australia

Some Basic Information About Living in Australia


Australia is often described as "the lucky country". When you look more closely, the reasons for this description become clear.

In quality of life surveys, Australian cities such as Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney are consistently ranked in the world's top ten best cities.

In 2005, Melbourne was rated as the best city in the world to live in by The Economist Intelligence Unit, with other Austrlian cities only slightly behind.

Australia's cities offer a variety of lifestyles and climates. These could be roughly summarised as:

  • Laid back and mediterranean in Adelaide and Perth
  • Bustling and temperate in Sydney and Melbourne
  • Relaxed and sub-tropical in Brisbane.
As if the opportunity to live in world-beating cities was not enough, the Australian government makes sure first-time housebuyers get off to a good start. They do this is through the First Home Owner Grant.

The First Home Owner Grant is worth $7,000 to everyone buying a home in Australia for the first time - we're talking about the lucky country remember.

Most migrants settle well in Australia and one quarter of Australia's population is now made up of immigrants.

In the biggest cities - Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth - over one third of the populations are migrants.

Australia's migrants come from everywhere in the world with the UK acting as the biggest single source.

Australians enjoy an outdoor lifestyle and, although it might seem like a cliche, having friends around to enjoy a barbeque is a very popular activity.