You will certainly have to adjust to a very different life when moving from Oz to Geneva. The availability of housing [any housing] is at a premium. If your work permit allows, you might try looking in neighbouring France where many commuters to Geneva city live. There is a wider availability of housing across the border, and the rules and regulations are not so strict as in CH. Many people cross the border every day and there are regular buses which take the commuters backwards and forwards. Life is somewhat less expensive this side of the border too.

Your relocation company would be able to answer all of your questions and also recommend areas that fit your lifestyle.  

3 bedroom ground floor (although you still might have up to 10 stairs) flats in parts of the city start at 2200/2500chf a month for not great quality (not always an equipped kitchen) to 3000+ for better quality (and less competition).

Normally families base where they live on which side of the city their work is as it adds quite a bit to the commuting time if they have to cross the Mont Blanc bridge. On the 'right' side of the city you could have airplane noise as the airport is on that side.

Within a 10 km radius you could find a small 3 bedroom house or flat with a garden from about 2800/3000.

Bike paths aren't bad, but the drivers are, so you have to watch out.  

Hi Dev N, I moved over in Jan, have found riding around not too bad, with most of the small "towns/suburbs" around geneve being easy riding distances with a lot of bike paths going alongside the road/on footpath.  As mentioned before work location can have an impact on travel timee, our relocation agent sees this as a big thing and suggests living close to one of the tram lines as handy, especially as we are going to try and get away without a car for a while as well. We had most of our stuff shipped over (still to arrive) I regret not going out and buying a really nice coffee machine before leaving, over here it seems to be mainly nespresso machines (not that I am an expert on shops over here yet might be looking in the wrong places) from what i have read on  other forums the other main thing seems to be matresses people complain about and most people suggest getting things on classifieds as people are allways coming/going.  PS on the car thing there is a system called mobility that looks okay where you can get cheap rentals, have not heard and +ves/-ves about it yet but something out agent let me know about.

Hi

I have rented an apartment in the heart of Grand Lancy and 15 minutes from P+R Perly, France. After staying here for around one and half years, i feel this is the best spot you can live where you have access to school, tram/bus , restaurants, coop/migros all within 100m distance It is a residential location with parks around and a day care facility right in front of the apartment.

  I am leaving the apartment and looking for a substitute to take over . The location is very good  and it is a two bedroom apartment with equipped kitchen. I have the basic stuff to sell too. If you are interested, please drop me a note and I can share more details.

Thanks and Regards,

Aparna

Hello Aparna,

Thank you for reaching out. How many rooms files your apartment have? Is it currently listed on any sites for rent? Do you have photos that you could email through?

Regards,

Dev

Hi Mat 

Thanks for sharing. I'm shipping my bikes across! :-) . Yes, a few people have mentioned the cheaper on demand rental car option. We might try it out to start with add well and see how it works out with our little one and whether it is practical for visiting, shopping, etc..

Dev

Hi Dev, 

It is listed in classifieds with the below heading under Grand lancy 1212.

You may view the photos there.

"Beautiful bright and spacious apartment with 4 rooms on the 2nd floor balcony"

Thanks

Aparna

Hey Dev,

Mobility is a great option if you have quick errands that you want to run but it can get expensive if you want to use it to travel overnight somewhere.  Mobility may not have baby seats that come with the cars so that is something to keep in mind.  

But, owning a car is pretty expensive in Switzerland as parking is at a premium, insurance costs are high, and the authorities ticket like crazy.  Likewise, having a car does allow you to see other parts of Switzerland that you would normally not see by bus, tram or train.  And a car makes it easier if you want to go to France to pick up groceries (way cheaper in France). If your apartment has a guaranteed parking spot or a garage space then I would consider getting a car.  Otherwise you may be better off with public transportation.  For public transportation check out their website tpg.ch and sbb.ch.  

In terms of appliances and furniture, I would advise you to buy the stuff in Australia and bring a converter so it works in Europe.  Everything in Switzerland tends to be double the price of other countries (at least that is my experience).  

If you have any questions regarding insurances (health, renters insurance, 3rd party liability) let me know as I work for an independent broker in Geneva/Lausanne.  As you have a baby, you probably want to find a doctor for checkups.  A great website to check out is: http://www.doctorfmh.ch/index_en.cfm.  

Cheers,

Deepak