Hiya all,

We are going out to Oz in October and are staying with a friend in Melbourne (Thornbury) for a while while we work out which area we want to live.

Just wondered where everyone else was going and if there are any recommendations/places to avoid.

Also, if there are any websites with suburb guides - they seem to be very few and far between or maybe I'm not looking properly!

Cheers

Em.

We are also heading to Melbourne in Sept and are looking at the East and Bayside suburbs which are supposed to be the nicest. Although only having been to Melbourne for 1 day I really am in the same boat as you but people do say that the Western Suburbs aren't so great.
If you find a decent Website on Melb let me know.
Cheers
S.

Moving back to Melbourne after 10 years of living in UK. Probably will rent a place near the bottom of the Dandenongs i.e. Mooroolbark, Kilsyth, Ringwood area.

Here's a couple of sites that I found (probably more for the tourist though)

http://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/suburbs.php

http://www.ripefruit.com/melbourne/suburbs.asp

http://www.melbourne.com.au/

http://www.katandragardens.com.au/yparks.html

Hi Em,

I am origianlly from Melbourne but have been living in the Uk for the past 4 years. I am from the western suburbs of Melbourne, and I have to say that some of you are rather hasty in putting that side of town down. There are areas that are bad I do admit to that, but the thing I like most about it, is that it is very close to the centre of Melbourne (well Altona where I am from is) and there are beautiful houses along the beachfront. Also there are nice provate beaches where I used to walk my dogs where there was often hardly a soul around. Maybe not what you're looking for, but I think that there is value for money in certain areas of the western suburbs. But then again I suppose I am biased in a big way, so check out the websites for more information. We have found a good one http://www.aussiemove.com/ but at the moment it doesn't have Melbourne suburbs on it, but might be useful for people thinking of moving to other states.

All the best with your plans.

Hi Emma

You could try http://www.domain.com.au/UserService...px?mode=subbuy

If you want to be within say 15k's of the CBD it will depend on what your budget is. The most expensive areas are Brighton (on coast and Toorak. It also depends whether you want to be near or on the beach. Mentone is a good value for money suburb on the beach but may be too far for you.

It also depend on schools and loads of other factors.

Other good suburbs are Doncaster East, Balwyn North, Kew Camberwell in the east and if you want to be slightly further out you can look at Park Orchards, Donvale and certain parts of Templestowe.

Places to avoid are the western suburbs.

If you want somewhere young and trendy you could try St Kilda but its becoming a bit rough.

Just north of the CBD are Carlton and Fitzroy ....the list goes on.

BUT at the end of the day you need to make that decision yourself. Most people like myself seem to be renting for the first 6 months and having a damn good look at suburbs whilst we are there.

Good luck with your choice

Hi Emma and all!

Its difficult to say what are good and bad suburbs, as where you decide to live is so personal to you. Your criteria for a good area, may seem bad to someone else! its all down to what you want from life, your age group, whether you have kids, what you like to do in your spare time etc.

Terry mentions a few suburbs, and i'd largely agree with him, but within so called 'nice' areas there are some horrible bits and some really nice parts to areas concidered not so good.

It all comes down to your personal needs and seeing the areas yourself.

Although Terry recommends renting for 6 months, in reality, 6 mth rentals are hard to find, as most property owners rent out 'investment propertys, and dont want the expense of paying management agents huge fees for finding new tennents every six months. Also you will possibley have the upheaval and cost of another furniture removal at the end of the lease. bear in mind too that your furniture probably wont have even been there for the first 4-6 weeks.

In any case you will still need to do a lot of research, before taking on a rental property as even 6 mths in an 'unsuitable area, can be a nightmare, and spoil your settlement in Australia.


Hope this helps! good luck!
As daunting as it all seems, you'll have a great life once youre here im sure!!!
cheers

Bad parts of Melbourne have you seen the light , well I never reading your last posts I thought it was heaven?

A MAN has been stabbed during a brawl in a gaming room at Melbourne's Crown Casino.

The man, in his 20s, was said to be in a stable condition in the Alfred Hospital today.

Police said he suffered stab wounds to his back and abdomen and cuts to his face in the fight, which broke out about 2am (AEST).

Gosh! Nothing like that ever happens here. Hmmm........ maybe I should reconsider.....

I know what you mean, just when you're looking forward to your new life, PB throws a spanner in the works and tells us we're not escaping crime on arriving in Oz. Darn it....

But then, in the UK, you don't have to go to a casino to get stabbed - just go to school.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/3013805.stm

Where to now then....?

I was using sarcasm!

Likewise !