You might remember, last year, we became a one car family.
We love our little red car!
We were very content with our little red car. Almost a year on, it has never provided any sort of issue. We have always been able to work out any need to be in two separate places at once, and the whole journey has gone very well.
However, we are now officially a two car family again!
Why, if we were so happy being a one car family?
In a word: necessity.
Exctingly, I have recently been selected for a promotion at work. I was fairly inexperienced for the position, so didn’t hold high hopes of being selected but when I was, we were both ecstatic.
We knew that we were likely moving at the end of this year, so it seemed like good timing. The promotion is for a position in Sydney. Yes, Sydney! Not a place we ever thought we’d move to!
It comes with a very decent pay rise, as well as the usual increase in workload and responsibility. Also as part of the package, all of my relocation costs will be covered which, after we moved ourselves up here last year, we’re very grateful for.
We are lucky in that Poopsie’s job is extremely flexible and he can almost work from anywhere. Once we found out about my promotion, he quickly spoke with his boss and was able to secure a transfer to Sydney as well.
The catch: we will be working in offices thirty minutes apart.
For the opportunity that I’m taking, this is definitely worth it to us. However, public transport is not a convenient option in the area these offices happen to be in.
Enter: a new to us car.
In another bout of fortuitous timing, my dad has recently retired and was looking to sell his car. He was putting it off though, as he hates selling things and dealing with potential buyers. His eyes literally lit up when we suggested we could buy it from him.
He gave us a good deal and for $5000 we purchased a 2012 Hyundai i-30 with 200 000km on it. My dad’s job required a lot of driving, hence the high kilometres. However, the car is in excellent condition and will do the job nicely.
Our plan is to live quite close to my workplace, so only one of us will be doing a big commute. Poopsie will take the little red car to work, about 30 minutes each way. I will have a 5-10 minute commute in the new car.
We are extremely excited about this opportunity. The increased salary will certainly speed up our savings, but the new challenge for me is also something I’m looking forward to.
As I said, we never thought we would end up living in Sydney. I lived there quite a while ago, straight out of university. It’s a big and busy city, which we usually don’t like. However, we’re excited about this new chapter in our lives!
Have you ever lived in Sydney? Any recommendations?
We will not be including the $5000 purchase of the car when calculating our savings rate. We pulled the full amount from our savings and paid my dad. Our savings rate is used to calculate how much of our take home pay we’re able to save, and including this purchase would not provide an accurate picture of the amount we are saving.
Congratulations on the new position, the purchase and the upcoming move! It’s just delightful the timing your Dad was looking to sell his car. That you know you can trust the seller is a bonus! I’ve never lived in Sydney, but to be able to live within 10-30 minutes of work there is luxurious. Well done 🙂
Thanks Wealth from Thirty! It was such good timing to be able to buy the car off my dad. We are very pleased that Poopsie’s commute won’t be any longer than the commute we have now, we feel very lucky indeed!
Congratulations on the promotion and pay rise, that will definitely help you get towards your goal sooner.
I’ve lived in Sydney Still do! I’d like to ask where abouts you’ll be to offer some possible recommendations, though not sure you’ll want to mention it here. Feel free to email me if you want.
Best of luck with the move, having your expenses paid is a great perk, take full advantage of that!
Thanks Miss Balance. I will get in touch once we’ve moved to get your tips!
Oh wow, that’s huge news! Congratulations on the promotion and it’s always exciting to take up new career opportunities, I think. The only things I can recommend for Sydney is eating out recommendations as we only go to Sydney for quick visits for musicals so it’s probably not very useful but if you want yummy food recommendations let me know!
Thanks Pia! Ooooh, I do love me a good musical with dinner afterward. I will definitely hit you up in the future to get some recommendations!
Congrats on the promotion and for solving your new transport requirement within your family circle. That extra promotion pay should fill your stash quicker and it is great that Poopsie can come with you. Newcastle is that much closer now too. Happy times!
Thanks Ozstache. Very true, just a short drive to Newcastle. Much easier to go house hunting!
You’re coming to Sydney! Although, Sydney, ugh. Congratulations, that is massive news. Getting a promotion is fantastic, I can’t wait until you start and we see the impact on your plans. Bring that FI date forward. Of course, for now it’s about focusing on the move, then the new job. Lots of opportunities for blog posts
True! How could I ever run out of content. There will have to be a “AWP and the ETTs meet” post in there somewhere 😉
Congratulations! Sydney is a beautiful and bustling city… though there are so many road and buildings works happening at the moment which I’m not loving. Best of luck with the move.
Thanks Miss Money Box!
Congratulations on the promotion and everything else that came with it! Such great timing that your dad was selling his car, too. My boyfriend lived in Sydney for a year and so, I also did for about 4-ish months. We both enjoyed our stay there but we always say that Sydney isn’t for us. I hope you guys settle in fine and that you make great new memories there. 🙂
Thanks J. I have lived there before and I agree, it’s not for us. But, it’s a few years and it’s a great opportunity so we intend to make the most of it!
Public transport in Sydney is excellent. 1/2 my Sydney staff do not own cars.
Thanks for dropping by Mr Home Maker. I have lived in Sydney before and agree, the public transport is pretty good. It doesn’t really service the area we’ll be working though, so it’s cars for us.