northerner

Might have been asked before but we're trying to get a feel for where we might concentrate our efforts in terms of finding somewhere to rent when we land down under.

We're thinking Balmain, certainly initially anyway, but are tempted to move a little further out to Sutherland/Como/Gymea as we could get something a little bigger...

Any help/advice/experience much appreciated...

Graham

Friwis

Hi Graham - we live in Kirrawee, next suburb up from Gymea. Sutherland Shire is a nice area to live in, very family orientated. You're close to some beautiful beaches, both surf and sheltered "family" type beaches, and to the Royal National Park. There is a MASSIVE Westfield shopping mall as well - everything you could need there. There is a good train service into the CBD - it's exactly 40mn from front door to desk for me. You certainly get a lot more for your money house-wise further out from the city centre, and also a little bit further up from the beaches as well. If you want any more specific info about anything - let me know !

Anne

chels

Do you get much plane noise where you are?

Friwis

Very rarely - the odd time in the evening you might hear a plane going over, but really nothing to speak of at all. We used to be in West London where we were literally under the Heathrow flight path, so we kind of got immune to it, but there's no comparison here !

northerner

Hi Friwis,

We've not got any kids but I think it's just the fact that you can get a little more for your money that way, rather than being somewhere like Balmain/Rozelle, which attracts us. A little more space for entertaining/chilling out etc...

Is there bars/cafes/restaurants in the area?? Obviously it's not going to be Balmain but I can't really see us 'popping' in to Sydney CBD for a couple of beers mid week if you see what I mean.

Thanks for your help!

Graham

Miona

If you don't have children then I would definately head for Rozelle/Balmain instead of Gymea. Why? Because the Balmain area has a lot more going on in terms of cafes, restaurants and proximity to the city. Also because it is on a penninsula it is relatively quiet as you don't get "through traffic". Also housing in this area tends to have a lot more character with some lovely old terraces (done up of course!). It is true you get a lot more for your buck in Gymea and most places in the St George region and Sutherland shire but it is suburbia and probably more suited to when you have kids. Balmain housing is more costly than the sutherland shire so if you can afford to buy in there now when the market is down a bit you could sell up when the kiddies come along, move to Gymea and make a bit of money. Don't get me wrong Gymea is lovely but Balmain area is a lot more cosmopolitan with a lot more to do in the way of entertainment if you are young.

chels

We currently rent in Rozelle, and are looking to buy - but unfortunately not in Rozelle / Balmain. I really love it round here, but what you get for your money is not great. It's lovely having a wealth of pubs, cafes, restaurants etc to choose from but in reality we don't eat out / go for drinks THAT much! The houses are quaint (we live in an 1880 terrace which is very cute) but also really small, and the housing stock is packed in, so not only can we hear our neighbours - we can hear the neighbours in the next street, and those 10 doors along!

What is great is the ease in getting into the CBD, being surrounded by water and the sense of community round here. It's very European! If we could afford a $1m+ home with the space that would give us, we'd stay. But as my other half said to someone earlier, the prices round here are comparable to parts of the eastern suburbs but with one big difference - there's no beach at the end of the road.

Thanks Friwis for the information about plane noise. We're going to have a drive down to the shire on Sunday and look around (unless we find the house of our dreams and in our price range on Saturday in the eastern suburbs )

northerner

Sounds good Chels,

What do you feel the market's like at the moment??? We're planning on sticking our capital in a high interest savings account and renting for at least a year, whether that be Balmain or the shire, as I get the impression prices are very unstable/overpriced etc....

Maybe someone 'on the ground' has a much better idea of what it's actually like

Still torn between centralish/cafes/bars etc and further out with more space...

Graham

Pommie Granite

How do race riots be a part of this family environment?

Oh no...the can of worms has been opened.

NickyC

I'd echo what Miona said. If you have no kids and can afford it, stick to somewhere more central and desirable. You might be a bit squashed for space initially but give it a few years and you'll have an investment you'll be more than happy with and you can then move on, if necessary. I'd trade a couple of bedrooms for a bit of character, any day.

We bought a tiny semi in Bronte, years ago (before kids). For the same price we could have had a much bigger house out in the suburbs - although we were never really tempted. After a few years, Bronte prices went sky-high, we sold and we now have a decent-sized place in Coogee. It's worth much more than that equivalent house would now be worth out in the sticks AND we've had all those years near the coast.

The Balmain peninsular and the East will always be a better long-term investment than anywhere 30k away from the city.

northerner

Drunken youths in the sun looking for a fight. For a couple of days. Hardly something that even registers on the radar to be honest.

Graham

chels

nickyc is right about the value of inner city property compared to the suburbs - prices in Balmain and Rozelle will no doubt continue to rise. The area is now established as a desirable area where people want to live, and it is close to the CBD with good infrastructure (even just having one main road in and out of the penisula isn't too much of a bother). It's funny to think that only 20 yrs or so ago, it was still a working class area catering for local dock workers.

In our case, we've rented for two years now over here and our choice is between a two bedroom house with a small backyard and close proximity to neighbours, but with cafes, bars, shops etc on our doorstep, or a bigger house, with more outdoor space and more space between neighbours, but not with a cafe culture / bars on our doorstep.

But after a day at work we don't do much in the evening apart from a trip to the gym (if we're being good) or watching TV / studying / reading / housework yawn yawn yawn. At the weekends, we're usually visiting friends or at the beach so we don't use the things on our doorstep as much as we should really.

If you're renting, definately try Balmain / Rozelle etc. Rentals are hard to come by at the moment, though Balmain Shores always has things for rent. And you get a pool and gym etc!

Prices aren't going to go down in this area - you may have some luck with Lilyfield (the next suburb) but I don't think much of Lilyfield! If I remember right, prices have been steady or slightly increasing for houses (there's not much unit stock). You could pick up a tiny two bedder like our rental for $550 - $600k but you'd go mental in it long-term. Decent two bedders with a bit more space are from about $750k.

There's not many unrenovated properties about as everyone thinks they can make a quick buck by slapping on some paint and putting a new carpet in (and they're right, enough people are foolish enough to pay over the odds just because it looks like a Freedom showroom).

Since we began looking about 6 weeks ago (already I'm BORED with it all!) we've increase our budget by $150k and now I'm thinking we should go another $50k. Not ideal as we had hoped eventually to go down to one salary for a while and inflict a baby chels on to the world. A rethink on that one is taking place...

Miona

It might be worth your while to also check out the train situation from the south. I have a friend who lives in Gymea Bay. She is always having trouble with the trains into the city and at least 2 days per week is late for work due to cancelled services etc. She also tells me the rolling stock on the southern services is very poor and at peak hours the trains are packed and often not air conditioned. As I said I have not had personal experience of this but she has lived in the Sutherland shire for 30 years. I did live in Kogarah for 10 years and whilst trains to the city were fairly speedy and plentiful, I had to catch a bus to the station and then the train making almost an hour journey door to door. Of course driving to the city is out of the question unless your company gives you parking and even then you'd go balmy just getting there in the traffic on the Grand Parade or the Princes Highway. Transport (or lack of it) is a big issue here in Sydney and just because is XXkm from the CBD doesn't always equal a quick trip.

Pommie Granite

It might well have registered on your radar if you were a non white family on a day trip to the beach on that day.

...drunken youths looking for fights don't usually make headline news across the world.

head....buried...sand.

Geordie George

From my point of view (as someone who lives in Glebe), I think it's all about what you're looking for in an area. What does a place need to have to be important to you?

In our case, being close to a beach meant sweet FA - I work, so too does Mr GG. We can only head to the beach at weekends, so why be near it all week? However, I always need to eat. So being close to good cafes/restaurants etc is important.

For me, the inner west has a much more chilled feel than the coast does. But horses for courses. We picked where we are by sticking a pin in a map. And, truth be told, most migrants don't tend to move from the suburb that they originally land in - security in familiarity an' all that.

For us, space don't matter. You don't move to t'other side o'planet to be caught up with such material considerations. Work out what you need, the rest will fall into place.

Happy house hunting.