‘We’re done’: Queensland influencers’ huge call about living in Australia
A Queensland family have made a major decision about their future – following in the footsteps of a growing number of Aussies.
A pair of Queensland influencers and their two children are leaving Australia “for good” – a decision that an increased number of people have made in recent months, no longer able to hack our nation’s soaring house prices and cost of living pressures.
Brent and Molly Orwell, who rose to social media fame by documenting their two-and-a-half year trip around Australia in a caravan, shared the news with their followers this week.
“WE’RE LEAVING AUSTRALIA. FOR GOOD. (Not for a holiday. Not for a break. Not for a visa. We’re done),” they wrote in a lengthy Facebook post.
“We’ve sat with this decision for months … years!! Wrestled with it. Played out every scenario. Listened to every doubt, every judgement, every ‘what if’. But deep down, we know what’s right for our family, our business, and our future. And it’s not here … in this country.
“Australia will always be home. But it’s no longer where we’re meant to grow and raise our children. Because when you’re: Taxed to the eyeballs no matter how much you make or ‘write off’, slammed by (the) rising cost of living no matter what state you live in, crushed by the weight of tall poppy syndrome if you dare dream bigger, seeing policies and laws change faster than you can adapt, watching our cities struggle to keep up with decisions we didn’t vote for, watching systems shape your kids in ways you didn’t choose … and watching opportunity for entrepreneurs get smaller, not greater … You realise you can either stay silent and conform … or do what’s best and make a move.
“We chose to make a move … This isn’t a flex. It’s a call to anyone who’s ever felt like they didn’t belong in the system. We have given ourselves approx (sic) 8 weeks and we are out!
“We have so many emotions right now as we pack our first few boxes, but there is no point living a stagnant and truth be told – unhappy life where we are currently at in Australia.”
The Orwells are yet to disclose where they will be moving to – instead, urging their followers to guess. But migration data has shown they aren’t alone – with many other Australians seeking an alternative, and potentially cheaper, lifestyle.
According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures, migrant departures – people leaving Australia to move overseas – increased by 8 per cent to 221,000 from 204,000 between 2023-2024.
Since the coronavirus pandemic, the only major demographic group to consistently leave the country is Australian-born citizens, with a further 57,100 leaving in 2023-2024 and just 35,590 coming home. The median age of those moving overseas was 31.
Many who have left the country have taken to Reddit, where they blamed high property prices as the sole factor for their departure.
“I’m one of those Aussies who left. I moved to Japan. The job pays about the same as I’d make in Australia but the cost of living is way lower. Got a loan and bought a home only 20 minutes from two capital cities,” one Redditor said.
A second one wrote: “I moved overseas and won’t return unless the housing prices go down or become accessible. I literally will never afford a house back in my home country until it does. I’ve purchased a 2 bedroom apartment overseas in a city with fine living conditions (although I miss the beaches) for a good price.”
“Wish I could return, but it’s not worth it to live in poverty or without prospects of a future. Congrats, Boomers,” they added.
‘Crazy’ place Aussies aren’t heading to
The Orwells’ move comes just months after fellow Queenslander Kat Clark – who has a combined TikTok and Instagram following of more than eight million – announced that she, her husband and youngest daughter would be relocating to the US.
“We have had some opportunities come up in America and we are going to give it a go,” Ms Clark explained, adding her family intends to stay in LA for the next two years.
The 38-year-old’s announcement came as a surprise to her fans, many of whom questioned why the popular influencer and businesswoman would ditch Australia for America, particularly given President Donald Trump’s increasingly controversial – and concerning – government policies and strict border stance.
“Moving to America in this political climate is crazy,” one follower wrote, while another added, “She thinks living in America will be like visiting America for a holiday. Can’t wait for the ‘we’re moving back’ video.”
Addressing the backlash in a subsequent episode of her Basically Besties podcast, Ms Clark said the family’s relocation had been in the works for at least a year, and had been prolonged by the process of securing a visa.
“I didn’t want to tell people where we were moving until we got confirmation, but I also didn’t want to tell people because I knew (they) would get mad at me – which happened,” she said.
“I understand where everyone is coming from. Living in Australia, we get a lot of negative media about the US – you see all the US shootings, you see crazy people that live in America – so, I get it.
“But a lot of people don’t understand with our jobs and what we do, there isn’t as much opportunity in Australia than there is in America – and that’s one of the main reasons we are going there, for our work … If it’s the biggest mistake I’ve ever made in my life, I am going to come back home.”
Australian travel businesses have seen bookings to the US drop significantly as Australians, Canadians and Europeans choose to holiday elsewhere, amid experts’ warnings and cases of tourists being denied entry on arrival (and, at times, strip searched and thrown in prison) spooking travellers.
Earlier this year, US International Trade Administration statistics showed the number of visitors from Down Under had plummeted 7 per cent in the 12 months to March 2025 – the steepest decline since the same time four years ago, when the coronavirus pandemic was at its peak.
Flight Centre CEO and founder Graham Turner told news.com.au it was an “unsettled climate” impacting business travel, while tourists worry about passport control or simply don’t want to visit the States “because they don’t like what Donald Trump’s doing”.
The President’s trade and entry policies were a “significant” contributing factor to Flight Centre revising its 2025 financial year profit guidance from $365-$405 million to $300-$335 million. Mr Turner said it was also the one major factor that is “outside (Flight Centre’s) control”.
Mr Turner said he hoped Australian and global travel to the US will start to recover between now and September “depending on what Trump does”.
“It depends a lot on what actually happens to these tariffs … which obviously we can’t predict,” he said.
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