AmandaJ

I will be moving to Melbourne in Jan 05 with my husband and family (2 girls aged 11 and 12 years).

My husband and I are travelling to Melbourne, arriving on 11 September to have a look at suitable areas to live. As my husband's job is home based we are flexible regarding location. We will be looking for a 4 bedroom property, with a garden, in a good area, with good schools.

Any suggestions regarding the best areas to be looking in would be gratefully received.

surreyfamily

Hello Amanda

My husband and I will hopefully be moving to Melbourne for the new year, so I would be very interested in your responses. Our children are not school age so we don't have to worry about that aspect. We are very sociable people so finding right area is very important to us to.

Regards Karen

HiddenPaw

hi
do you have any ideas on how much you want to spend on a house? e.g a 4 bed house in Brighton will cost you 3x as much as a 4 bed house in say, Coburg. Do you want to be by the Bay? in the hills? reasonably close to the city?

I dont have school-age children but the area I used to live in was near to Balwyn - Balwyn has very highly regarded high schools and homes within the catchment area are sought after. Balwyn is approx 12 kms east of cbd - and about 12km in from coast

good luck

Bordy

Berwick seems to be the in place with Ex Pats just now.
Very nice little suburb it is to, well not so little I guess, seems to get bigger everytime I see it but nice area.

DPD

Berwck is popular, but a little bit far from the city if you want to be near to it (and you have to be because the suburbs have bugger all). I'd recommend being in closer. Somewhere like Glen Waverley if you have the money, it's one of the nicer old suburbs. Caulfield, Murumbeena, Carnegie, Chadstone, areas in Clayton, are other suggestions (going down the list by most expensive to least).

HUP

We are just outside Berwick and it is a very beautiful area. There are jobs outside the city, it really depends on your professions. My journey to work ranges from 25 to 40 mins.

We are 25 mins from the beach, 25 mins from the Dandenongs, 1 hour from the city and 2 hours from the snow.

It all very much depends on your preferences. Other suburbs to look at are
Narre Warren, Lysterfield, Ferntree Gully.

Badge

We are in the hills overlooking the Berwick valley from the N. Moreorless. Not going to give it away otherwise every Pom might look here(!) Further away but worth it for the lifestyle we want. When I talk about my hour commute citysiders are amazed but I tell them 1 hr is normal in the UK - people from the shires beinging up kids in the country are doing 2+ in the UK. Whats the time from Cambridge these days?

I'm called the bush boy at work.

BM

joh117

We live on the mornington peninsula and if you are able to work from home would be ideal as to work in the city as my hubby does is a 1/12hr commute. It is a great place to bring up kids with plenty of countryside and winerys and how could you forget the great beaches on either side. There is a train from Frankston into the city takes 1 hour. To drive from our house in Somerville to the CBD is 1 hour. Prices are still cheaper down here than the city but obviously you pay for the sea view.

I don't have kids yet so not sure on the school front

Jo

Hels

Broadmeadows is nice....

Neil S

There's been a few threads in the past about Melb suburbs which might have some useful info for you. These are here:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/show...threadid=235231
http://britishexpats.com/forum/show...threadid=232806
http://britishexpats.com/forum/show...threadid=221024
http://britishexpats.com/forum/show...threadid=203482
http://britishexpats.com/forum/show...threadid=199799

Bordy

Get back in your box.

hevs

Depends what you want, its a big place!!
City, bay, mountains or beaches?
busy, quiet, burb, country, public transport.

The choices are endless, as are the burbs!! Also one persons "dream" is another persons nightmare. For example i wouldn't touch Glen Waverly with the proverbial pooey stick, but plenty of others like it so it can't be that bad

OzTennis

Here's some info which might be useful for people - latest median property prices by suburb of Melbourne and outlying areas. Prices are for the June 2004 quarter and are in $000's, suburbs marked with an * indicates the figure is based on fewer than 30 sales for the quarter. Suburbs A to C in first post:

Abbotsford* 407.5;Airport West* 335;Albert Park* 833.75;Alphington* 565;Altona Meadows* 255; Altona* 300; Ardeer* 206.5; Armadale* 837.5; Ascot Vale 436.25; Ashburton* 500; Aspendale* 353; Avondale Hts* 323.55; Bacchus Marsh* 187; Balwyn 679; Balwyn Nth 605; Bayswater* 263.5; Bayswater Nth*260.5; Beachonsfield* 352.5; Beaumaris* 560; Belgrave* 250; Bentleigh 445; Bentleigh East 397.5; Berwick 287.475; Black Rock* 750; Blackburn 418.5, Blackburn Nth* 351.5; Blackburn Sth* 383; Boronia 248.25; Box Hill* 472; Box Hill Sth * 377.5; Braybrook* 244; Brighton 970; Broadmeadows* 208 (very cheap ); Brunswick 403; Bulleen* 438; Bundoora 291.25; Burnside* 295.5; Burwood* 409; Burwood East * 348; Camberwell 665; Campbellfield* 256; Canterbury* 940; Carlton* 414; Carlton Nth* 657; Carnegie* 480; Caroline Springs* 250; Carrum Downs* 215.175; Caulfield* 715; Chadstone* 385; Chelsea Hts* 269; Cheltenham 372.5; Chrinside Park* 278.8; Clayton* 320; Clifton Hill* 575; Coburg 342; Collingwood* 420; Coolaroo* 193.25; Craigieburn* 224; Cranbourne* 200; Croydon 278; Croydon Hills* 323.65.

The Median for all suburbs was $357,876. You will find a correlation between prices in a suburb and proximity to the CBD, the sea, the hills, views, industry etc, etc.

OzTennis

OzTennis

D to L:

Dallas* 210; Dandenong* 215; Dandenong Nth 235.5; Deer Park* 210; Diamond Creek* 336; Dingley* 312.5; Doncaster 430.15; Donvale* 530; Eaglemont* $1.25 mill; East Melbourne* 900; Elsternwick* 455; Eltham 389; Elwood* 675.375; Endeavour Hills 237.75; Epping* 263; Essendon 484.5; Essendon Nth* 420; Fairfield* 497; Fawkner* 260; Ferntree Gully 259.875; Fitzroy* 597.125; Fitzroy Nth* 498; Flemington* 363.75; Footscray (carn the 'Dogs) 300; Footscray West* 307; Forest Hill* 368.5; Frankston 238; Frankston Sth* 347.5; Gisborne* 280; Gladstone Park* 255; Glenhuntly* 521; Glen Iris 635; Glen Waverley 393.5; Glenroy 277.5; Greensborough 320; Greenvale* 395; Hampton 672.5; Hawthorn 825; Hawthorn East* 748; Healesville* 217.5; Heathmont 293.75; Heidelberg* 396.5; Heidelberg Hts* 302.75; Highett* 384; Hillside* 260; Hoppers Crossing 215; Hughesdale* 402; Hurstbridge* 325; Ivanhoe* 500; Ivanhoe East* 685.75; Kealba* 225; Keilor Downs* 270; Keilor* 427.5; Kensington 380; Kew 699; Keysbroough 240; Kilsyth* 249.5; Kingsbury* 274.75; Kingsville* 361.25; Knoxfield* 255; Kooyong* $1.565 mill; Lalor* 240; Laverton* 197; Lilydale 271.75; Lower Plenty* 969.5

OzTennis

Hels

What??? What did I do??????