kirst

Moving in the next few weeks and wondered if anyone in the Mandurah area could recommend some nice suburbs and good Primary Schools. Thanks

kevinl

Can't recommend any yet but we are going to drive around Mandurah today, buy a car, a house that sort of thing.

Would be interested if anyone knows anything about Greenfield's, Dudley, Halls Head.

Kevin

kirst

Hi Kevin
Well how did you get on in Mandurah? Where did you like what were Halls Head, Greenfields, Dudley, Meadow Springs like. Where are you from and have you a family?

julesandco

Have you not heard the news? There was a shooting this week in Greenfields and apparantly it's not that hot an area! A man went loopy, shopt his wife and teenage daughter and his eight year old daughter fled the house just in time!

We're in Secret Harbour (about 20 mins to the north of Mandurah). We only arrived in November, our kids are yet to start the local primary school, but it's got a good reputation.

Halls Head seems nice (the part that I've driven through). Port Bouvard is VERY nice if you like man made canals - as are the Mandurah canal developments.

Good luck with everything!

Jules

kevinl

Hi Kirst,
Mandurah harbour side is all new and bustling, very nice and holiday like.
We are going down there on Australia day as there are lots of thing going on, fireworks etc.
Halls Head nice older more established housing, Greenfields: wrong side of the tracks, Dudley didn't get to that or Meadow Springs.

The prices for something decent, I don't mean great big 4x2, I mean even a 3x1 on a decent block, in a decent street have gone through the roof.
When we started the visa process 2 years ago we could have bought quite easily, now I will have to wait and see how work pans out.
Everyone says dive in now as it will only go up but we can't do much until work is sorted out, its quite frustrating.
There is so much building going on, housing estates everywhere, you do wonder where all the people are coming from to fill them, can't all be poms.

We are going down to Bunbury next week to have a look.

We are from SE London and we have 2 daughters 5 and 8 years.
Kevin

youcanlaugh

Hi Kirst,

I'm in Secret Harbour (around a 15 minute drive North of Mandurah). You should definately take a look here. There is currently 1 primary school and one high school, but that will change to 2 primaries and 1 high school in 2007.

The beach is fantastic here (although the waves can be quite large which makes for great surfing) and there is a top class golf course built through the estate. I think there is a website online somewhere. There will also be a small shopping mall built here next year which will be handy.

We had a short term rental in Halls head and didn't think too much of it, but obviously it's a case of each to their own.

Mandurah itself is very nice, but the prices are shooting up around the Marina areas, although you will probably avoid those areas anyway if you have primary aged kids.

markaren

Hi lived in Mandurah now for 7 years so have seen quite a few changes, I would be very careful about buying in Greenfield's, Dudley park, halls head is nice, you might look at meadow springs or silver sands which is the ocean side of the road, but house prices have exploded over the last few years.

Madhouse!

Hi Kirst,
We have been in Mandurah 10 months now and love it, were living in Hallshead. Are you looking at buying or renting? Were just renting at the moment $250pw for 4 x 2 with views of Indian Ocean and Estuary...trouble is we feel abit spoilt now staying here and would never be able to buy property like it so may carry on here for aslong as we can and buy an investment property in a cheaper area.
We have worked around most of the suburbs around here and quite like Meadow Springs and Dudley Park.
My son goe's to Halls Head primary and is coming along in heaps and bounds in just 10 months i can already see a big change in him and his work!
Our daughter is just about to start at Mandurah senior college in february.
We were lucky that we had friends already here or we may never of discovered Mandurah, Were mad boating people so ofcourse the estuary was the biggest bonus point!!
Like other's have said Secret Harbour is a lovely area too along with Port Kennedy but again the estuary won it in Mandurah for us!
Good luck with your move over here and i hope you will be as happy here as we are

Claire

geordie downunder

Are you aware that it is a fair hike to Perth,work could be limited to the 2 aluminium refineries and Kwinana,or the shipbuilding /steel fabrication places in Henderson.The freeway goes nearly all the way from Perth to Mandurah and the new train should be up and running in a year or 3.I looked at land in that area early 80,s,could buy anything then for $10,000 ( big mistake not buying,working in the area then too).Good Luck.

julesandco

Hi Claire,

Can you help us with our boat? Only had the bloody thing a week and we can't use it as we're waiting for the arial to be repaired after we wrenched it off the first time we launched it last week!!

It was so embarrassing - took three boat-loads of lovely by-standers to get us into the water and possibly more to get us back onto the trailer! Thank goodness people here are so friendly. We're trying to get on a boat smart course, but no-one calls us back.

The kids got biscuits for Xmas and I'm poohing myself about taking them out on them! Mind you, it was lovely last week - the first time we took the boat into the estuary and we ran into ten dolphins - magical!

Oh well - everyone's got to be a novice sometime!

Jules

Madhouse!

Hi Jules your right everyone has to start somewhere!! altho you commentry about your 1st launch did make me chuckle
Dont worry a few more times at it and your be pro's and this time of year there are always other's at the slip way who will help you!
It's easy for me to say as ive been boating since i was knee high to a grashopper so its all 2nd nature to me.
Boat smart wont help you with the launching but is must to take as its becoming law that you have atleast that certificate! plus will tell you all the do's and dont's and rights and wrongs... makes me laugh tho 1 day doing boat smart is suppose to make you expert boater's!
My advice for you would be take your boat down on a non busy day and time and just practice launching and recovery.
If you would like hubby and i to give you any help or advice at any time let me know and ill pm you our phone number.
BTW how old are your kids? if i was you i would only use the biscuits on a flat calm day as it beats the hell out of the kids in rough water.
Happy Boating
Claire

julesandco

Sorry for hi-jacking the thread!

Claire,

There is NO possible way we could ever take the boat out on a non-busy day - we'd never cope! It's bad enough when we got the boat off the trailer that we couldn't find our way out of the marina and pootled about for ten minutes waiting for someone to follow (hubby is a SUCKER for following arrows in a supermarket carpark - how do you think he copes with NO arrows??? A: not well at all!!)

I know we will get the hang of it, but with three kids as well, you need eyes in your proverbial!

With regards to the last point about beating the hell out of the kids (yes please - ours have been off school since mid November AAARRRGGGHHH). We've got a gobby 8 year old boy, a 4 year old girl and a midget of fast-approaching 2. (As an aside, when we picked the boat up from the dealer and Paul reversed the car back to hitch up to the boat for the first time, the 8 year old said in a VERY loud voice "I don't think this will work our at all well, you know. Dad can't even get my baby brother in his car seat without Mum's help!"

Kids - don't you just love 'em!

Thanks for the advice. If ever you're passing mandurah and there's a stressed family circling in a boat - that will be us - please wave and smile and perhaps offer a food parcel if we're still there after dark

Jules

soonbethere

Hi Markaren, I have pm 'd you....

kevinl

I had a 24ft Sports cruiser for a while in the UK.
Very high sided, huge single prop, when I first got it, it gave me migraines just getting it on and off the marina berth.
We only had one daughter then, who was 3, and her favourite game was to try and pull the kill cord out, great fun in the middle of a busy marina.
It was too big to trailer, which was probably lucky for me.

I did a 2 day boat handling course before I got mine and a year night school learning navigation, I was still hopeless for ages.
One time I got it stuck in the lock at Yardley with a bridge full of people looking and laughing.
By the time I got it out and back to the Marina I was so stressed I stopped on the easiest berth and then towed it into my berth from the pontoons.

You do get there in the end but you have to find a nice quite area and practice your throttle control and learn how your boat handles the tides, wind, prop walk etc.
We have only been here a week and the wind has been blowing like mad, that will be the big challenge I would think.
Almost sounds like I know what I'm talking about doesn't it
What boat have you got?

Kevin

julesandco

Hi Kevin,

We've got a Bayliner 205 - probably a comparitive baby!! I know what you mean about the migraine! I turned to Paul after our first trip out and said, "I thought this was supposed to be relaxing - I've never been so tense!!"

It is just a case of practise. Just picking our moment - maybe when the kids are at school

Thanks for the words of encouragement.

Jules