betsyboob

Hi all, will finally be arriving in a couple of months after a few fallen house sales etc.....
ANYWAY. we have been looking at the sunshine coast - Noosa, Caloundra, Buderim and now, after reading a post the other day the gold coast too.

However. i have now found Byron bay south of GC into the nsw boarder.

Have done a search and can't find anything. I really like the sound of Byron as coming from Brighton way in the UK am a bit of a hippy. Just wondering why property is so cheap in the surrounding suburbs ie. Tweed, lismore, Mullumbimby etc.

Basically, is it worth a look?
We have never been to Oz before, are a family of four, 2 kids 1 & 4. Looking for somewhere family friendly and relatively easy to get to work OH is plumber.

GillyG

I've been there twice, once in August and once in December...during winter it was quite sleepy but during summer pretty busy (just like Brighton really). IMO it is lovely! very hippified (if that's a word?!). I'd suggest going and having a look but I'd live there given the chance!

northerner

It's a very very nice part of the coast - jobs may be the biggest issue for you as most of the work there will be small scale companies or tourism related. My cousin lives up in Lismore - small town but nice. 30 mins from coast.

One MASSIVE bonus is that you're not in Queensland

Graham

littlemiss

My family live in Murwillumbah, very VERY small town about 40 mins north of Byron, there are a few nice beautiful places to live around there, most of them quiet, but not far from the GC. You should do a reccie there!! Byron is great, very busy in the summer seasons, not sure about winter though!! x

spartacus

Byron Bay is great, had a holiday in ther surrounds summer just gone, and if you're a bit of a hippy you'll fit in just fine. Its pretty much become the alternative therapy centre of Oz. Lots of backpackers in the summer. With it being a resort town, not sure how you'd come on for work though.

melbournegirl

Byron Bay is a mixture of hippies, backpackers and upmarket holiday makers and the locals of course. It has an alternative type atmosphere and great beaches and a laid back feel. It can get very busy in high season though. I don't live there but have been on a holiday. My Aunt lives in Ballina which is about 20 minutes south of Byron and cheaper but quieter too. I don't think Lismore is that desirable from what I have heard. Property in Byron Bay is expensive but if you go out of Byron to say somewhere like Ballina it is cheaper. I am not sure of the employment opportunities. If you want to lead an alternative type lifestyle than it would be would be the perfect location whether it be in Byron or in one of the nearby towns.

Here is a website with some info on the area and some very interesting video's to watch about the area. Check out the video section on Byron lifestyle. The video's should give you a good idea about what Byron Bay is about.

http://www.virtualbyron.com/video.php

http://www.virtualbyron.com/

Brisbane bound

We lived in Brighton/Hove before we came out here nearly 3 years ago and although we live in Brisbane, we go to Byron Bay at every opportunity. We love it there. Work doesn't allow us to move away from Brisbane, otherwise we would be living down there. A lovely place.
I know nothing about the schools etc.
You could probably go on line and have a look at the local paper to get a small feel of the place.
We recently went to the Eumondi market up at the Sunshine Coast. Noosa (where we stayed) is not our cup of tea. Lovely walks etc but we found the people very pretentious. Not like Byron Bay at all. However the Eumondi market and the town itself had a lovely feel about it. Not unlike the feel of Byron Bay and plenty of hippies had crawled out from somewhere.
Was it hard for you to sell your property in Brighton? We had a few sales fall through but it eventually got sold in Jan, just as the conversion rate went to the dogs!!
Good luck with it all.

rabsody

Agree with what everyone else says. Love Byron though it has definitely got a lot more touristy/gentrified past few years. It's the weekend bolt hole for a lot of cashed up Sydneysiders, as well as the hippies and backpackers, so there's something for everyone. Scenery is amazing.

Nice restaurants, coffee shops and bars too Wattego Beach and the lighthouse are something else.

betsyboob

We live in Worthing but love to have Brighton at our fingertips.
Yes, we have had 3 house sales fallen through since Nov:curse: but we are 3weeks into a sale now so fingers crossed Have lost over 20k since Nov, did you lose anything or did you manage to escape the downfall?