JKLSYD18

Hello all

Hoping for some help. I may have a job opportunity in the above area and I'm looking for some advice. I've read around a bit and can see that these areas are very much satellite towns with perhaps not much about them, but I'm interested in the realities of living there. It wouldn't be our 'forever home' just a stepping stone. Whilst access to the city occasionally will be nice, it's not our priority. Weekends we would want some coastal time or green areas for walking. I'm also wondering about local facilities - shopping, kids' parks, decent places to eat etc?


Any help would be appreciated.

Jx

Kiwikaye

Hi, and welcome to the Forum.

I don't live in the immediate area, but not far away in Frankston. The areas you have specified are very much satellite towns with lots of new housing stock - mostly new build estates. Berwick does have an older section with a town centre.

From there you will have quote a few coastal areas within an hour's drive (or less in some cases) - Westernport, Gippsland and the Mornington Peninsula. All are lovely and have areas for walking, beaches and places to eat - probably more suited to weekend.

If you haven't already www.realestate.com.au and www.domain.com.au will provide you with an idea of the housing stock available in those areas (both rental and for sale), so you can see what you will get for your budget. Prices should be fairly reasonable by Melbourne standards, although almost nowhere is cheap these days. Most of the new estate areas have some small green spaces built in with parks, etc. for smaller children and would be walkable/bikable for older ones.

I can't provide any tips on the schools in the area, but there is a mixture of public and private, particularly in Berwick. If I had a choice of those areas I would go for Berwick, simply because it is a bit more established. Officer has only really been developed in the last 20 years or so, so the infrastructure is probably still a bit lacking.

A train into the city from there will be roughly 60-75 minutes depending on whether it is weekend or weekday, and the time of day. There are "express" trains on the Packenham line, which shortens the commute somewhat. If you have a look at www.ptv.vic.gov.au, that will give you train timetables, etc. Driving into the city is a bit more complicated and not recommended at rush hour (think 2 hours at least).

If you are coming from the UK, these areas will seem very different. As far as local eating out places, there will be cafes, takeaway places, etc. It won't be the same variety or quantity as the inner city. www.tripadvisor,com.au or www.zomato.com.au will provide some reviews, if that helps.

We moved out of the city down to Frankston about 3 years ago and love it, especially now I am working locally rather than commuting.

Feel free to come back with any more queries and I will help if I can. I'm sure others will be along with some tips too.

Good luck with the job offer.

JKLSYD18

Hi,

Thanks for the quick reply! I am coming from SE Asia (UK originally) and we currently live over an hours drive from the main city, with very few services around, so to be honest these areas still sound like a step-up infrastructure wise! I will have an opportunity to briefly visit when I go to interview, so I'll get a flash in the pan type snapshot! Nice to hear about access to the great outdoors! I can see on Google Maps that it appears to be at the very edge of the urban sprawl out from Melbourne! We may be in a position to choose between this area and rural NSW. So potentially some tough decisions ahead, if I am lucky!

Thanks
J

Pollyana

seek out threads by BadgeisBack, he's from up that way.

BadgeIsBack

:-)

The area is a complete dive unless you live North of the Princes Highway, in Old Berwick, (around the center), Beaconsfield or in the villages to the north.

I can not recommend any estate south of the highway, anywhere in Officer or Pakenham: it is Boganville amd a tale of 2 cities.

Berwick is still the jewel in the crown. Established Berwick (maybe Berwick Springs). Beaconsfield has really caught up in last 10 years ; in some ways nicer with newer homes.

Some people hate estates..some people love them. Traffic south of the Princes Highway is an order of magnitude a lot heavier.

spence501

I live Pakenham. Have done for the last 3 years. We really like it here. Maybe I'm a bogan and just don't realise it

ozzieeagle

Do you go up to the CBD of Melbourne often? The reason I ask is that seems a hellish drive to me.

Also, what is about Pakenham that you like? I've been there a little bit, not much, but it is one place over that side of town, I've been to a few times. It's very very different to where I live in Melbournes Inner North. No old architecture for a start. There are definitely vast swathes of Australian living that are similar to Pakenham. It's got that going for it.

spence501

Yeah we do now and again, in fact I was at the GF parade on Friday. We usually get the train takes about an hour and a quarter. If we drive for a show or whatever we can do it in around 45 mins.

We like Pakenham because we can get to wherever within an hour whether it be the beach, the city, the Dandenongs etc and while it's not everyone's cup of tea we live in a nice quiet modern estate which was just what we were looking for when we got here

ozzieeagle

Lovely countryside once you get out around Warragul and beyond that's for sure, nice rolling hills. Bought my Poptop Hiace out at Warragul and my last two trips in it have been out beyond Warragul, so I reckon it's a great spot to base yourself for some very pretty acessible countryside. Very dry and flat over this side for miles..... But it's also very cosmopolitan here, with activity and plenty of places to go. Viva la difference eh

Good to hear your happy with where you are.

BadgeIsBack

I was harsh!
Parts of Paky do give me the feel of an end of the line town.

I am sure suburban living on a nice estate might suit. Some of the estates have got more cramped in recent years.

But Berwick and Beaconsfield definitely the pick by a country mile.

spence501

There are some parts for sure I wouldn`t live in. Berwick and Beaconsfield I`m with you there. I love the High Street area round Berwick and I wish we had something like that here