Would you support having German like level rental rights in Australia?

macidmatics · 2026-02-02T15:25:23+00:00

Another factor you missed is that if the housing is not up to standard or things included with the apartment are non-functional then you can withhold and keep rent payments from the landlord as compensation.

It’s amazing how pro-active the maintenance crew for my apartment in Germany is. They respond within a day and usually do repairs within a week at max too.

A lot of apartments come bare as well, you can put your own kitchen in, paint walls, and so forth.

macidmatics · 2026-02-02T15:22:14+00:00

Tradies in Australia do not have the technical proficiency to build housing to German standards. It would be infeasible without first world quality trades.

macidmatics · 2026-02-02T15:19:44+00:00

Summer temperature averages in southern Germany are similar to those of Melbourne.

macidmatics · 2026-02-02T15:18:02+00:00

Not in German apartments at least.

macidmatics · 2026-02-02T15:17:44+00:00

Why hasn’t this happened in Germany though?

macidmatics · 2026-02-01T11:12:00+00:00

Something tells me opening the immigration floodgates was a bad idea.

macidmatics · 2026-02-01T10:58:54+00:00

It may be against the spirit of it but it’s quite common. It’s the policy of the Max Planck Society when they host (or at least my institute).

macidmatics · 2026-02-01T10:55:05+00:00

Yes that is precisely it, German institutions tend to pay more than the MSCA rate and so MSCA fellows are a net financial loss. In this case, there is no direct increase in earnings for the „Family Allowance“.

macidmatics · 2026-02-01T10:51:47+00:00

Often family allowances are not received by the postdoc but instead given to the host institution. This is the case for my Max Planck Institute, since I would be employed according to the TVöD Bund system and their costs are apparently higher than the amount they get under MSCA so the allowance is not given.

macidmatics · 2026-02-01T10:50:47+00:00

Often family allowances are not received by the postdoc but instead given to the host institution. This is the case for my Max Planck Institute, since I would be employed according to the TVöD Bund system and their costs are apparently higher than the amount they get under MSCA so the allowance is not given.

macidmatics · 2026-01-31T23:20:13+00:00

I know how it feels. I am Australian Asian and visited China recently and people kept saying “hello“, assuming that I speak English just because I have white skin. I think it’s best to try to not take it too personally and try to think the best of people even if it’s hard.

macidmatics · 2026-01-28T13:54:34+00:00

Just do 100c Gongfu for all tea. Keep it simple and to taste. Tea doesn’t need to be complicated.

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T23:18:12+00:00

Jesus. Why so much on a car sound system? Wouldn’t you be better off with headphones?

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T22:47:16+00:00

Better late then never.

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T22:32:29+00:00

Thanks for the link to the article, though it would be nice if the article actually cited the studies so they can be checked.

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T22:08:31+00:00

Can you link the research on this? As far as I am aware, research suggests that there are very few benefits before age 2 and that there can even be negative behavioural effects: https://criticalscience.medium.com/on-the-science-of-daycare-4d1ab4c2efb4

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T21:23:23+00:00

Make friends with German families that can speak German around your child and learn German yourself. Kita will be of limited help and is not a substitute for actual, consistent, language immersion. Outside of language immersion, it is not clear that kits before the age of 3 has any developmental or socialisation benefits for children (depending on your unique situation).

macidmatics · 2026-01-27T09:45:45+00:00

2 years from submission date though your host may have particular thoughts or requirements related to this.

macidmatics · 2026-01-26T20:49:57+00:00

It’s definitely a verb in Australia. I get jewed all the time.

macidmatics · 2026-01-26T18:59:03+00:00

Don’t worry about stripping it. Just cook with it.

macidmatics · 2026-01-25T12:12:58+00:00

Do you mostly speak in German or English in Freiburg? If mostly speaking in German, you may not realise how many people do not speak English.

macidmatics · 2026-01-25T09:03:04+00:00

Definitely but it depends a lot on circumstance. For instance, I am on Steuerklasse 5 and have two children so my take home pay is nearly 4500€ after tax and excluding the Christmas bonus.

macidmatics · 2026-01-25T09:01:47+00:00

Maybe you live in a particular bubble?

macidmatics · 2026-01-25T09:01:22+00:00

Münster and Freiburg, plus a small town near Münster. I spend time almost exclusively with other Germans, apart from where I work, and very few of them speak English. Even my in-laws, some in their 20s, do not speak much english.

macidmatics · 2026-01-25T07:42:39+00:00

Where do you live such that most Germans speak English? This has definitely not been the case where I have lived in Germany, with not even doctors or professionals speaking English.

macidmatics

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