Kane and Cara Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 Hi We are a family of 5 who emigrated to Brisbane in 2016. We lasted 7 months before returning to the UK, which was obviously never long enough. There were a lot of factors in this decision, which we have now come to regret. We think we have decided on Melbourne but don’t know a lot about the areas so was wondering if anyone could suggest some for young families, so we at least have a starting point for our research. Many thanks in advance! Any help would be very much appreciated. Cara and Kane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 Melbourne is a sprawling place. How long a commute are you willing to put up with? Do you have any preference for the kind of area you want to live? Housing in Brisbane is only two-thirds the cost of a house in Melbourne (so a house that costs $500,000 in Brisbane will cost you $750,000 in Melbourne, for instance). Have you factored that into your budget? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 Consider Geelong. An hour by train to Melbourne if you need to work there, close to some great beaches, and all amenities available. Best regards. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 Yes we were impressed by Geelong when we stayed there recently. Very vibrant suburbs too. It must have changed though as everyone said “what on earth are you going there for? It’s a sad dump!” There are lots of places that Aussies reject out of hand, been there it was awful etc. They often are talking about 15 years or more ago and many towns have improved rapidly as prices near the city soar out of reach. The people that live there don’t shout too loud though, they know they are onto a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 https://www.therealestateconversation.com.au/news/2018/11/29/geelong-has-been-named-the-countrys-strongest-regional-market/1543446408 Get in while you can! Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane and Cara Posted January 21, 2019 Author Share Posted January 21, 2019 Thank you so much for everyone’s input. We are aware that housing is more expensive, but like I say we are only considering. Will take a look at Geelong, it’s nice to have a recommended area to start. An hour commute driving would be fine, my husband is a carpenter so would need to drive van rather than get public transport. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber Snowball Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 43 minutes ago, Kane and Cara said: Thank you so much for everyone’s input. We are aware that housing is more expensive, but like I say we are only considering. Will take a look at Geelong, it’s nice to have a recommended area to start. An hour commute driving would be fine, my husband is a carpenter so would need to drive van rather than get public transport. Thanks again! Depending on time of driving and where in Geelong you are and where in Melbourne you are travelling to it will be longer than an hour driving. The train is an hour. The road is a pain in the arriss. Geelong is a nice place for a family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieMum Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 7 hours ago, Amber Snowball said: Depending on time of driving and where in Geelong you are and where in Melbourne you are travelling to it will be longer than an hour driving. The train is an hour. The road is a pain in the arriss. Geelong is a nice place for a family. But that's only to the CBD and depending where in Geelong you're starting from, eg, northern suburbs vs further along the ring road/train line vs nowhere near the ring road/train - most tradies who live in Geelong also work here or perhaps in the western suburbs unless they specifically work in commercial construction (and even then, there's been a lot of work in that area in Geelong in recent years with Epworth, TAC, Worksafe, etc, building here). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 8 hours ago, Kane and Cara said: An hour commute driving would be fine, my husband is a carpenter so would need to drive van rather than get public transport In that case I wouldn’t go for Geelong if he’s thinking of working in Melbourne as the commute would be much longer than an hour to some areas of Melbourne. However he might find there’s enough work in Geelong and western Melbourne anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 There is lots of construction work in the Wyndham and Armstrong creek areas, plus other smaller subdivisions around Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula. Best regards. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber Snowball Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 4 hours ago, AussieMum said: But that's only to the CBD and depending where in Geelong you're starting from, eg, northern suburbs vs further along the ring road/train line vs nowhere near the ring road/train - most tradies who live in Geelong also work here or perhaps in the western suburbs unless they specifically work in commercial construction (and even then, there's been a lot of work in that area in Geelong in recent years with Epworth, TAC, Worksafe, etc, building here). Yes, the first line of my post did say it depended on where you are travelling from and to. I was just responding to the 1 hour drive they wanted into Melbourne. It would be better to find work in Geelong if that is where you are living. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane and Cara Posted January 22, 2019 Author Share Posted January 22, 2019 Thank you everyone, you have given us great info. Does anyone know what Werribee is like? That’s quite a bit closer to Melbourne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 But further from the Surf Coast beaches ... Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 7 hours ago, Kane and Cara said: Thank you everyone, you have given us great info. Does anyone know what Werribee is like? That’s quite a bit closer to Melbourne Rough 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane and Cara Posted January 23, 2019 Author Share Posted January 23, 2019 9 hours ago, Marisawright said: Rough That answers that then. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane and Cara Posted January 23, 2019 Author Share Posted January 23, 2019 13 hours ago, Alan Collett said: But further from the Surf Coast beaches ... Best regards. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ballaratburd Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 It depends on whether you are looking to rent or buy. We have very recently moved from Melbourne to Ballarat (hour and half drive/train from Melbourne CBD) As house prices in Melbourne are absolutely ridiculous. Geelong is a lovely place and initially we intended to buy there however with our small budget and the increase in Geelong house prices it wasn't meant to be. We really like Ballarat however it is a very big commute and we underestimated just how hard the commute would be on a daily basis. We have lived all over Melbourne and know the place pretty well so happy to answer any questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 Ballarat is much colder in the winterthan Melbourne or Geelong though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mcguinnessp1968 Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 Anyone who thinks geelong is an hours drive from Melbourne in the morning is off their trolley. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 Just now, Mcguinnessp1968 said: Anyone who thinks geelong is an hours drive from Melbourne in the morning is off their trolley. I drove to the CBD last week. Left home in Highton at 6am and was parked on South Bank by 7. Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 4 hours ago, Alan Collett said: I drove to the CBD last week. Left home in Highton at 6am and was parked on South Bank by 7. Best regards. I'm guessing McGuinness was referring to someone heading to the office for a 8.30 or 9am start. That would be a very different kettle of fish from leaving at 6am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 7 minutes ago, Marisawright said: I'm guessing McGuinness was referring to someone heading to the office for a 8.30 or 9am start. That would be a very different kettle of fish from leaving at 6am. The OP 's partner is a carpenter - most tradies start work early in my experience. Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mcguinnessp1968 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 The OP 's partner is a carpenter - most tradies start work early in my experience. Best regards.Lot of supposition going on there Alan. Anyway the op should check into all of these things before deciding. Btw I live in geelong, it’s a fantastic place to live Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane and Cara Posted January 29, 2019 Author Share Posted January 29, 2019 Thank you everyone for your comments and feedback about the travel distance / time. My husband would definitely be starting work as early as possible, here in the UK he mainly leaves the house at 4am or 5am to get to jobs (no always because of distance but to beat the London or motorway traffic) so early rising would never be a problem for him. Thank you also for the feedback regarding this suburb, it helps a lot to have comments from various people. kind regards Cara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beffers Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Depends on your budget and lifestyle too. I was recommended Bayside as the must have area, and we hated it! We now live in the Dandenong Ranges, have been here for 18 months and have just bought a house. People say its too from CBD, one hour Belgrave line, but we don't work in the City. There are always massive assumptions that you need to be within reach of the CBD, but I go into the city once every couple months and that's all. We've just bought a big 3 bed with a self contained studio below on 3000 square metres for 550K. Our rental was a 2/3 bed cottage on 2000 squ metres for $350/week. I know we couldn't have done either closer to the CBD and the quality of life up here is far greater than anything down in the suburbs! My advice: think about your lifestyle and your budget. And start from there, if you don't mind a half hour drive from beach, then why pay a premium to live there? If you want green parks and open spaces then not all suburbs will offer this. Do you prefer modern housing areas, then this will give you options from Altona / Werribbee etc in the west or Officer etc in the East. Do you want a large garden for your kids to play? Lots of plots are small in the suburbs, so be mindful of it. And lastly, budget and proximity to schools - budget will dictate a lot and schools are generally zoned and will need research depending on how old your kids are. Its a bit of a minefield! Also check out Facebook page UK Mums in Melbourne - lots of advice on there once you're further along in your research and/or once you've had your visa granted. Good luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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