Moving to Jozie?

cerebus said:
I got contacted about a possible role in Jozie, Fourways area. Obviously the opportunity is a very good one or I wouldn't consider it. However I'm still in complete turmoil about it. It seems like lunacy to move from where we are in WC up to where people are moving out of in droves. So since I'm not all that familiar with it can you all please provide some input to what we could expect there?

- How is the Northriding area? It seems affordable and a good distance from Fourways. Otherwise what reasonably priced areas should I look at in that proximity?

- Obviously, big question, what is safety really like? I currently bike to work and love it; could I still manage that safely in Jozie? We haven't had to deal with crime much at all in my time here.

- Cost of living, comparable, higher? Housing seems about the same where I'm looking, and schooling is actually a bit cheaper. What about other factors?

-Quality of schooling?

-Anything else to consider?

Thanks!
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TL;DR: having grown up in Somerset West, I only realised later in life that we don't live in the "real South Africa"

I grew up in Somerset West and have lived in the area (between SW, Stellenbosch and Bellville) all my life. One of my friends from university, also from CT, moved to Bryanston recently. He is very happy, but he had to change his lifestyle significantly.

Salaries are generally signifcantly higher, cost of living is slightly lower (although property is significantly cheaper than in most of Cape Town). Traffic is INSANE. I drive between Somerset West and Bellville (N1-R300-N2) every morning and it's a breeze compared to a good day in Joburg.

Money is great (I get offers for nearly double my current Somerset West salary on a monthly basis), but, personally, Joburg would make me so miserable, no amount of money in the world would be able to fix me. Every time I travel to Gauteng for work, I realise how lucky I am to live in the Western Cape. But obviously that's just me. If you like the "big city" vibe, and wouldn't miss the scenery, wine farms, the beach, hiking etc., your experience may differ.

Oh, and one last thing: something which gets me every time, is the fact that stores close unbelievably early in many parts of Gauteng. It's like everybody goes to sleep at 7pm.
 
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Lol everyone going on about crime. It's no different to most other cities in the country, although Somerset West would probably be safer.

Traffic is schit depending on where you work and where you stay. If you can find a place close to work, it shouldn't be an issue.

JHB is an awesome place to succeed, the coastal lifestyle IMO forces you into a comfort zone where you lose your drive to push yourself. It's cool for a holiday once in a while, but it's not somewhere I'd settle down in during the career phase of my life...
 
Edwe said:
TL;DR: having grown up in Somerset West, I only realised later in life that we don't life in the "real South Africa"

I grew up in Somerset West and have lived in the area (between SW, Stellenbosch and Bellville) all my life. One of my friends from university, also from CT, moved to Bryanston recently. He is very happy, but he had to change his lifestyle significantly.

Salaries are generally signifcantly higher, cost of living is slightly lower (although property is significantly cheaper than in most of Cape Town). Traffic is INSANE. I drive between Somerset West and Bellville (N1-R300-N2) every morning and it's a breeze compared to a good day in Joburg.

Money is great (I get offers for nearly double my current Somerset West salary on a monthly basis), but, personally, Joburg would make me so miserable, no amount of money in the world would be able to fix me. Every time I travel to Gauteng for work, I realise how lucky I am to live in the Western Cape. But obviously that's just me. If you like the "big city" vibe, and wouldn't miss the scenery, wine farms, the beach, hiking etc., your experience may differ.

Oh, and one last thing: something which gets me every time, is the fact that stores close unbelievably early in many parts of Gauteng. It's like everybody goes to sleep at 7pm.
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Thanks. It seems like most everyone is leaning in one direction on this apart from hamster... ai. The choices.
 
cerebus said:
Thanks. It seems like most everyone is leaning in one direction on this apart from hamster... ai. The choices.
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He's not wrong. You can accumulate a decent amount of wealth for your children and your retirement due to the salary vs. cost of living.

I live 8.5km from work, a 20 min commute every morning. Traffic is no longer an issue for me, and shouldn't be for anyone who lives somewhat close to work. My monthly petrol bill is R1,000 - R1,500; and it could be even less if I wasn't a single person who goes around gallivanting every weekend...
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
JHB is an awesome place to succeed, the coastal lifestyle IMO forces you into a comfort zone where you lose your drive to push yourself. It's cool for a holiday once in a while, but it's not somewhere I'd settle down in during the career phase of my life...
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This is true, if you are the type of person who gets motivated by being surrounded by other driven people. If you have your own drive, it doesn't really matter where you are.

Also, Cape Town is currently experiencing a tech boom; I believe it is currently the SA city with the most start-ups per capita, with initiatives like Silicon Cape (link: http://www.fin24.com/Tech/InFocus/Cape-Town-recognised-for-tech-growth-prospects-20150114 ) driving growth in that sector. So, it's not like all of us conform to the stereotypical laziness.

Although, I have to admit, the pace of things sometimes get frustrating, even to locals. Another difference I forgot to mention is that Capetonians are a lot more patient in terms of service, queueing, bad driving etc. Here it's not unsual to find someone driving 80km/h in the fast lane with nothing ahead, and people will just patiently queue up behind him. In Joburg, people will pretty much try to run someone like that off the road. I also find service at stores and restaurants to be a lot more efficient in Joburg, and the staff is usually much friendlier. In fact, people in Cape Town are generally quite cold/unfriendly.
 
cerebus said:
Thanks. It seems like most everyone is leaning in one direction on this apart from hamster... ai. The choices.
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You mean all the Capies are saying don't go to JHB. It is in our interest that you stay where you are - makes our traffic one car better :p
 
Edwe said:
Here it's not unsual to find someone driving 80km/h in the fast lane with nothing ahead, and people will just patiently queue up behind him. In Joburg, people will pretty much try to run someone like that off the road.
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It's against the law to hold anyone up in the fast lane no matter what your speed. Get your slow ass out of the way into one of the other 5 slower lanes. Don't be a dick boet!
 
Hamster said:
It's against the law to hold anyone up in the fast lane no matter what your speed. Get your slow ass out of the way into one of the other 5 slower lanes. Don't be a dick boet!
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Truthfully I think he's imagining the level of patience that Capies are having to sit behind that car. It's certainly not coming from our car sitting in that line behind the unidentifiably spray painted 1984 Opel lurching around the fast lane at 60kms on the N2.
 
i dont think distance would be an issue for you seeing you stay in SW and a trip to town is like 40kms or something

everything in jhb is like that distance
 
If you can work flexible hours and / or work from home, Joburg is a great place to stay. It certainly helps me cope with traffic. Something that you will no doubt be discussing with your spouse / partner. You both need to buy into a slightly different way of life.
 
Hamster said:
It's against the law to hold anyone up in the fast lane no matter what your speed. Get your slow ass out of the way into one of the other 5 slower lanes. Don't be a dick boet!
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Yeah.... have you ever been to Cape Town? The N2 has only two lanes, except for the last few kilometres between the airport and city centre. Typically the left lane has heavy trucks, tractors and hybrids (not of the Prius variety, but more along the lines of a Cortina engine in a Ballade body with doors off two different coloured Conquests and suspension held together by duct tape and dreams).

The right lane therefore caters for everyone who can go faster than 20km/h. So if you're stuck behind a senior citizen who doesn't realise that her Honda has fourth and fifth gears, you're pretty much going to stay behind her for the next 30km. But I degress.

You may like Johannesburg, if you don't like Cape Town very much. If you like Cape Town at all, I can pretty much guarantee that you will hate Johannesburg.
 
Well if you are looking to move to work in fourways, Northriding isn't a bad area at all. Theres also Jackal Creek Golf Estate that isn't priced badly at all for what you get.
 
ChocolateBadger said:
Well if you are looking to move to work in fourways, Northriding isn't a bad area at all. Theres also Jackal Creek Golf Estate that isn't priced badly at all for what you get.
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I'd add Broadacres as well, especially if he's going to be working just off Cedar. Would miss all the Witkoppen traffic...
 
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