Accommodation in Australia

Finding a place to stay in Australia is extremely easy. There are so many places available in the market to suit any budget or lifestyle, such as; temporary accommodation whilst travelling Australia or during your studies, or even buying a unit (depending on the size of your wallet) to live in and invest money. For Travellers, Australia offers a high standard in tourist accommodation, and even the simplest rooms are usually very clean and well presented. Negotiating prices is not a common practice (and some times interpreted as rude) but with the recent influx in Australian society of Asians and other cultures, it has become more widely accepted. Well there’s no harm in trying.

Most Australians prefer to live in houses, not apartments constructed by wood with details in the plaster, 3-bedroom houses are usually the most standard. The kitchen is usually open and located in conjunction with the lounge, in the corner, without walls. Most modern houses have 2 bathrooms, one at the main bedroom and another one divided in two separate rooms. One for the toilet and the other one with for the shower/bath and sink. The water is heated through an electric boiler, usually located inside the laundry. Most of stoves are electric (without flames), but many new houses are now receiving gas points. Usually there are 2 lawns, one at the front of the house/apartment and the other one located at the back, providing a good leisure area, ideal for kids/pets. Most places have a double garage but now the average house has space for 4 cars. Many houses do not have fences and the property is open to the sidewalk and passing pedestrians. The architecture is standard and the houses are very similar for practical reasons like construction and costs. Australia still preserves old houses however, in Victorian style called "Queenslanders." They are beautiful old large houses with balconies around the house, decorated with interesting details on the wood.

Apartments or units are more and more common and in demand, mainly in big cities, especially for couples without children, pensioners, people with high maintenance careers and for holiday getaways. Apartments are constructed in concrete buildings, but most have interior divisions in wood with acoustic isolation. With the stability of the Australian Dollar, many foreigners buy property in Australia for investment, and therefore, the construction of new higher building has been constant. Another obvious reason is the lack of space in big cities and the convenience to live close to the workplace. The building called "Q1" in Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast, (photo) is the biggest building in Australia, with 250 meters of height, almost including the antennas in the top. There are plans to construct some other ones like that in the future reaching even higher lengths. The incredible thing, it that 1000 apartments were sold out before they even started construction on the building. Big cities are the ones that have higher propriety prices, the most expensive being Sydney followed by Melbourne, and the other capitals Perth Adelaide and Brisbane, with approximately the same platform of prices. An interesting characteristic in relation to the way Australians live is that most don’t feel rooted into staying in the same place for long periods of time. It is a common practise to move around, as a result of job offers or changes in their lifestyle. For many Australians it doesn’t matter what city you live in, once they are getting a good salary.

Some expressions used in the Australian newspapers

slug	Single Lock Up Garage
dlug	Double Lock Up Garage
Carport	Just a roof on the top of the car and open by the sides.
Off Street	Off Street Parking
furn	Furnished
unfurn	Unfurnished
p.w.	Per Week
lge	Large
ens	Ensuite = Room + bathroom together
brm	Bedroom
bthrms	Bathrooms
f.fenced	Fully Fenced
d/washer	Dish washer
Unit	A unit or apartment in a building
Complex	Many blocks of apartments
Home	Simple house with one or two stores
Town House	House with a building shape
Granny Flat	A very small apartment at the side of a house
ent. room	Entertainment Room
Study	a room for reading, study, etc...
Incl.	Included or Inclusive
BBQ	Barbecue area
Tiled	The floor is not carpeted
Cul-de-sac	No through road.