scutterUK

hellow fellow forumites. I've been looking at house prices and the exchange rate in auz lately and have come to conclusion that by the time i get to auz i might not have enough money to buy a house. Or should i say, with my deposit and the maximum i can borrow with a mortgage i still wont have enough to buy a house in canberra or surrounding suburbs.

I've seen and heard that housing in 'Rural' areas are cheaper.... has anyone ever seriously considered buying a house in a rural area or is it just me? How far out of a city would i have to get to become rural?

Also is there anyone out there with any first hand knowledge of good/bad areas around canberra and its suburbs?

Any advice, jokes, leg pulls would be very welcome.... and yes i do know canberra isn't the hotspot of social activities, but you go where the job is don't ya?.

thank yaz.

Leigh

Sorry got bored at work and thought i'd see what you all think.

Badge

I have a fair amount of experience of living and working out in rural areas. Both outback and nearer to main highways.

I am also planning to go "rural" - or at least somewhere out of a state capital/suburb.

The quality of life is exceptional - especially for bringing up kids - you could buy a block of land and then get a small mortgage for your build.

As there is a land rush on at the moment everywhere is expensive now.

Even in Dubbo - South Central NSW - not even technically outback - but pretty isolated in the UK sense of the world - you can buy land for say 35-70k - some *huge* blocks still available - but most would not want to live there...

horses for courses..

Of course if you are a theatre type person and like to compare everything with the UK then you may not like the slower pace of life.

I am lucky in that I have friends and family in these areas so was able to establish myself quickly.

Post/PM if you want more info.

badge

WBB

i must admit i like the thought of the rural life, having spent 7 months up in far north queensland i know how remote some of these places are and it does get kinda boring, but as badge says this is only if you compare to uk city living.

what about a job in a remote area, schools for the kids, medical centre's etc etc.

mind you it would be nice to have the flying doctors at your disposal.

cadman

I too would like to live "rural" but inevitably if you're not changing your lifestyle/career then ultimately you have to live close enough to a city to get work depending on your profession.

So, you choose somewhere on the edge of the city or just outside but then the city spreads and you get enveloped by the 'burbs.

I'm hoping to live as far out as poss. and get work on the outskirts of the city or towns nearby but it's impossible to know wether the I'll be able to get work in the "towns". I've been a CAD draughtsman here on contract for the last 15 years (N.W. Egnland) and haven't had to work in city centre Manchester for example, have managed to get work outside city centres.
Wether firms locate on outskirts in OZ I don't/won't know till I get there I suppose.

My wife just thinks I'm dreaming and is convinced we'll have to live in a suburb, even though she hates them as much as me.

bundy

We're intending to go rural (once I actually get round to putting in my PR appl of course - minor point). Heading out to Nundle which is about 60km south east of Tamworth (country music capital of Oz, no less). Nundle is in the New England/Northern Tablelands area of NSW and is a very rural community with its 300 strong population mostly living off the land (sheep, cattle....).

Personally, I'd much rather live out in the middle of nowhere - I spent a year living in Nundle (where my other half comes from) and loved every second of it, hence the return.

We've looked at house prices and rental prices out there: renting a 4 bed detached property with a couple of acres in downtown Nundle costs A$150 a week. Not sure about buying...you could check out ljhooker.com.au for some kind of idea in that region, which might help you get an idea on regional prices generally.

Cost of living in a rural area is one of the main reasons where going back there...esp compared to central Cambridge where we are now!

Badge

Nice area

The New England Plateau - Tamworth and Armidale gets cold during the winter - colder than the UK - daytime temps above freezing - less than 10 - nighttimes more so.

An area I will eventually be considering.

The crux of the "rural vs suburb" debate is the "isolation vs job availability". Problem is that this equation is made more problematic in aussie cos of the greater distances....it's an equation that a fair amount of equity and job skills flexibility solves..

I think buying a franchise of a shop is maybe the way to go.

badgers

PS Maybe in time isolated areas will saturate - and the money supply/jobs will improve. By the time us 30s old retire the suburbs that we have chosen as being out of the rat race will be busy.

Grab it whilst you can!

bundy

To right it gets cold - minus 12 in the winter...and it snowed. But it doesn't drizzle - when it rains, it rains. ANd it gets as hot as it gets cold - up to 45 degrees. You should consider the area - it's fantastic (nope, not on commission for the New England tourist board!). Just make sure you can cope with endless Shania Twain...and dig out your tight jeans - this is cowboy country.

bundy

On the isolation front, that too is balanced by the fact that you could end up in a rural community where everybody knows each other and helps each other out. I never felt isolated out there. Getting around wasn't a problem, esp as fuel prices are so much cheaper and everyone drives old bangers.

Mind you, I'm a country girl so maybe that's whay I felt at home there. I've never been happier or healthier that that year I spent in Nundle

crabtree

We will be looking to go rural in Western Australia.
Prices are very much lower.
250kms south of Perth but still close enough to Bunbury to set up business.
Typical price. 4 bed 2 bath home, 5 acres grass land $175,000. to $250,000.
However, rural is not everyones cup of tea. Fortunately!!!


Tony C

scutterUK

hi there and thanks for the input so far.

My biggest problem at the moment, apart from the lack of money, is knowing where i will be working. Hopefully i have a job waiting for me in canberra, not sure exactly where, but there abouts. If this falls apart and i have to find work else where then australia will be my lobster.

Everything is such a long way off, i've only just applied for TRA assessment so i've got a long wait. However, looking at house prices etc it's not looking too promising. IF everything goes well i should have about $100,000 to invest, then top up with a mortgage to buy a house. The maximum i can borrow is only $150,000, which with my deposit JUST covers a first time buyer type of house. How high house prices climb over the next 6, 12 or 18 months could see me coming up rather short.

What i would like is to be far enough outside canberra to benefit from lower house/land prices, but not so far that i spend 3 hours a day travelling to work and back. I guess what i'm looking for is semi-rural... Do you think i'm just being daft, or is there a compromise between middle of nowhere rural, and suburban living?

I must admit living out in the middle of nowhere would suit me down to the ground, but i know it wouldn't be totally practical, unless i could find another job further afield.

Not having a glass ball available to me, i'm trying to plan ahead. I guess it will all come down to when/if i get my visa and what the market will be like at the time. If i get out there i know i will be able to find 'something' but its how much i have to compromise to find somewhere nice to live.

... i guess i should just shut up and keep my eye on things eh?

By the way, does anyone know of any microsoft autoroute type software for australia? I've been looking for a while but can't find diddly!

thanks again!

Leigh

cadman

Same as you m8, would like to live totally rural. Problem you'll find as I say is that if you go semi-rural, the suburbs get built round you!
What do you do then? move further out again? then you're further away from the CBD of Canberra/wherever.

I won't be going for another 3 or 4 years so am hoping that the house prices crash/stop rising in Oz while going into another boom here!

What sort of job do you do?

cresta57

Try this for a rough guide
Sean
http://www.whereis.com.au

Badge

Hazard a guess..

The problem I reckon is that there's not much in between;

either you're rural - (Uk v rural) or you're suburban, very, very edge of a city. Long b4 you're out back.

Not much in between.

hevs

We are going for the middle ground and going semi rural. About 3/4 to an hour out of Melb, but in the foot of the dandenongs. Not quite as expensive as in the city, but heaps more land for your house.

scutterUK

hello again...

cadman - i'm a web developer and graphic artist. Been offered a job by a friend who's set up his own business. He's not put anything in stone but promised he'd 'sort me out' when i get there. So it's either a job or he's going to kick the shite out of me.

I don't have a problem with living in the suburbs, if i can find somewhere just on the outskirts now but would be part of a suburb in a few years, then i'd like to think the house price would go up accordingly. I could live with that.

badge - Thinking about it you're probably right. From what i can remember of driving round canberra last time i was there, one minute you were in the suburbs, the next you were out in the middle of nothing. I'll have to have a drive around when i get there, but pay more attention to my surroundings. Until i get there i don't think there is much i can do. I drop in lucky and find a do'er'up'er, that would be ideal.

cresta - thanks for the link. i'd found something similar at http://www.multimap.com. i was hoping i could find something a bit quicker and more complete though. I think autoroute is great, i would have thought they'd be something similar for auz. Anyway, i shall keep looking.

Thanks again folks.