Vernons

Hello
Watched Place in the Sun last night and we really liked the look of Perth (wish they would do one on Brisbane as we can't afford a holiday to check them out - I have been to OZ just not those two places!) and have been looking at house prices on the net. We love Hillary's and Ocean Reef but we would only have $350 000 - $420000 to spend as we don't want to cripple ourselves with a large mortgage. We would be looking for a new (ish) house (1 or 2 storey), 4 bed, 1-2 bathroom, garage, very open plan, big garden and on a nice quiet street. We know we could afford Jondaloop, Rockingham and Bibra Lake and from what we can see on the web they look nice.

Is there anyone heading that way? Anyone leaving their who can give us the low down or any other really nice areas which we could afford.

Thank you

PS All satuff sent to George Lombard so skills form should be sent off soon, he thinks no problem Ian being recognised as a mechanical fitter so should go through quickly, especially at the rate I get documents back to him!!!

Ialibu

Should be a great game! What is it Cockroach racing

Vernons

Sorry but i don't get that

kerry&co

I,ve visited all thoses places excpet bilbra, found Rockingham not very exicting, lots of straight roads with mc donalds etc and loads and loads of bunglows, although the was a fanstic island there penguin island which was beatiful load of widelife it,s also way out of perth jondallop is a better bet close to coast and perth centre plus there's not a bad shopping centre there.

Vernons

Thanks where are you heading?

rossfive5

Hi, we arrived in Perth a month ago and started off in Joondalup. We thought it had everything, the library is great, that's were we applied for our tax file number online, they also have a great childrens section. There is also a medicare office and transport office where we changed our british drivers licences to WA drivers licences. The train station is right next to a large shopping complex so plenty of free parking while you get the train into Perth city centre. ATMs everywhere. The trains run down the middle of the freeway which we thought was great as there is little chance of kids playing on the tracks like you so often hear in the UK.

Larissa

Hi
We live in Joondalup and quite quickly decided that Rockingham wasn't for us, although other people love it. I can't really explain why, it just didn't feel right.
Joondalup is set to become a second city to Perth, we even have a free CAT bus scheme now. Sometimes it feels quite Milton Keynesy though, probably due to the fact that it was largely planned from the outset. Having said that, the suburb of Joondalup is very leafy. Surrounding burbs are all good and you should get a good house in your price bracket.
As said by a previous poster, we have many facilities, it's getting better all the time. Got to be quick as now, but will just list some - various shopping centres, large stores in Winton Road for everything you need, Arena sporting complex, good clean beaches nearby, good schools, Edith Cowan Uni, a developing Cafe strip, Lakeside Joondalup set to extend up to the other Joondalup shops in a similar style to Subiaco, Neil Hawkins Park (kangaroos), Police training centre, hospital in Joondalup, stuff for kids like Skate International, Surf life savers at Mullaloo and Quinns, plenty of cinemas, indoor kids play areas, beaut parks, lovely gum trees, markets in Waneroo, train line to Perth with lovely clean facilities.... we have the lot.
I get the impression that Rockingham is still fairly cheap, lots of Poms are going there like Joondalup, close to the beach, but it didn't seem as pretty to us- you have the industrial area close by. Also, when you consider Jooondalup, realise it is actually quite a large area, not just Joondalup burb itself.
ATB
Larissa

Vernons

Hello

Thanks for replying, it is great to hear from people who are actually in Perth, From what I have seen on the web I prefer Joondalup too. What other areas inPerth or worth considering or ruling out? All advice is helpful.
We were considering Brisbane too but my husband lets the idea of Perth as it is a bit quiter - is that true? How much as internal flights to the east coast for holidays? Is there plenty to do on the west coast for holidays? I travelled from Adelaide to Darwin but did not stop off in Brisbane - kicking myself now as without visiting it is a hard decision but we just can't afford to do it.
Thanks

The Vallies

Hi Vernons

We are from Bristol too, and hoping to move over to Perth in a few months (got our visa, just need to sell our business and we are away).

We stayed near Joondalup on our Reckie last year. We fell in love with it, and Hilarys, Sorrento, Ocean Reef, Mindarie areas also looked fab. We only briefly went SOR and didnt give it enough attention.

We we go back, we want to spend a few weeks SOR, as well as NOR to get a better idea. We like the sound of Secret Harbour.

Good luck with everything and with your fact finding!



Nicola

boom_meringue

Hey guys, we lived in Filton for 5 years before we headed out here. Clare's uncle lives in Rockingham so it was our base for the first two weeks we were in Oz and we too have settled in Joondalup.

I work in the city which takes over an hour from Rockingham in rush hour, from Joondalup it is 25 minutes on the train. North of river is a little more spread out and has a better sense of space whereas south of the river you have nothing but industrial works from Freemantle to Rockingham - look out from Rockingham beach and your view consists of Kwinana Nickel refinery and the naval base.

There are some nice areas of Rockingham and it suits some people, it just didn't work for us.

mindblower

You lucky persons ross5 ! lol, wish we were there with yers.

sigh

Dave -Wendy

Vegemite Kids

Rockinham itself is pretty yukky but some of the suburbs south of it are nice.

Because these suburbs (Secret harbour, Port Kennedy, Singleton etc) are all fairly new and planned they have a similar feel to Joondalup, which is also fairly new and planned.

I would say the big difference is in the area of services. Joondalup has good access to city and better shopping facilities. Rockingham City Shopping Centre is CRAP. Its OK for groceries but if you need clothes, homewares etc, forget it. Most of the folk in Rockingham go to Booragoon or Westfield if they want decent shopping (both are over 30 mins away). With Joondalup you have everything on your doorstep. There is a trainline being built from Perth to Rockingham but wont be finished til 2007 so if working in CBD you have to drive which takes about an hour (or you can drive to South St, Park and Ride and get the bus, slightly quicker but not much). Joondalup already has a train line and it takes about 25 mins to get to the CBD.

In terms of beaches and leisure facilities I would say they are about the same. Head south from Rockingham and there are some fabby beaches and Mandurah is also fairly close (just dont head north or you get the Kwinana industrial strip, waters fairly clean it just feels wrong cos of all the factories).
If you live in SH, PK etc you are no more than 5 mins from the beach, whereas in Joondalup you also have easy access to some great beaches, but they are prob about 15mins away as Joondalup is slightly more inland.

Both towns have good access to national parks, and there are some good small boutique wineries near both.

The best thing is to rent furnished accomodation for a few weeks when you get here and explore both to see what you personally feel about them.

Personally I wouldnt live in either Rockingham or Joondalup, much prefer the Hills area as it has more character and is much prettier than the costal plain. Plus the block sizes are bigger so you get more "bang for your buck" .

AndyD

Hi

We come from Bristol too (Yate, north of Bristol). We've been here for about 8 weeks. We looked up and down the coast from Quinns Rock (north) to Mandurah (south). Rockingham didn't feel right for us either for the same reasons as others have stated. We stayed in Hillary's for 3 weeks in a rental and fell in love with the area. We defininately like it better north. There seems to be more facilities closer by and lots of great beaches. Also Perth city is only about 20 minutes down the freeway. We have settled in Darch (about 3 suburbs inland from Hillary's, as we did find it a little too windy being directly on the coast). Here we are 10 minutes from joondalup, 10 minutes to Hillary's. There are lots of other nice suburbs too including: Carramar, Currumbine (these are all newish) which would probably be in the price range that you have mentioned. Obviously houses in coastal suburbs like Iluka, Hillary's etc will cost more and you won't get as nice a house for your money. If you go further north e.g. Butler, then I think houses there will be cheaper, but you are a long way up and I don't know what facilities are like up there and also if you have to travel to Perth for work it is probably a bit far.

Hope this helps
Kim & Andy

kimi

Hi

I would prefer to live in Joondalup more than Rockingham. Cannot explain why though.

Other areas you may consider - Butler, (not far from Joondalup) Mindarie, (thats where I live) Quinns - again all not far from Joondalup but really its a decision you will have to make.

When we arrived we rented for a year in Bullcreek (sor) to make certain of where we wanted to live, and ended up in Mindarie (nor)

HTH

Kim

Larissa

I would also consider the more established burbs closer to Perth, especially if you need to commute. I'd include Greenwood, Inaloo, Karrinyup - worth looking if you like more of a city feel but they are more expensive. Sometimes Joondalup can feel a bit too far out, but I guess it depends on what you want and can afford.