We are possibly moving back to Australia next year, after being back in the UK for the last 4 years. My husband is an Aussie and we have two kids, 5 and 3. We lived in Sydney before, but know that we can't afford to buy a house there. I'm lucky enough to work from home, but would need to be in Sydney once every two weeks or so - my husband is a chef so can work in lots of places. We are thinking of the Central Coast, but aren't too sure of the areas. We'd rent to start, but ideally would then want to buy in the same area so our 5 year old didn't have to move schools again. We don't really need hustle and bustle, but parks, beaches, a cafe etc would be great. My husband is a Aussie with regards to the water, so wouldn't want to be far from the beach. We had a quick look at Bateau Bay the last time we were over which seemed nice, but always hard to tell from one visit. We'd probably have around $400K for a house when we got round to buying. Any advice much appreciated.

Hi, we live in Wamberal not far from Bateau bay & love it here, we've heard some parts of Bateau Bay can be rough but don't know which parts, depends what you're used to I suppose, fantastic beaches & good parks/playgrounds/skate parks round here.
We got a 4 bed 2 bath double garage, pool & spa for $420k almost 2 years ago & they might have dropped in price by next year, lots of 3 bed homes in your price range, just looked in express advocate & only kitchen hand & barista wanted this week but I have seen plenty of chef vacancies before.
My sister in law commutes to Sydney cbd 3 times a week from Gosford train station & loves the child free time, they live in Wyoming which is considered rough but their street is nice, I think you'll have to do lots of research on neighbourhoods before deciding, I can only tell you what I've been told about certain areas & somebody else might say completely different.
Best of luck
Sim

East Bateau Bay is supposed to be the nicer part but the prices tend to be higher. We were told by real estate agent that any street in Bateau Bay which is named after a woman is best avoided!

The Hunter Valley would be good for chef work.

Cheap houses in Cesspit (sorry - I mean Cessnock) and only a five minute drive to The Hunter.

And only around 40 mins from Central Coast and beaches.

Otherwise, try some where near The Forest of Tranquility (i.e.) Ourimbah on the Central Coast.

I've heard that Newcastle is good, also Coffs Harbour but perhaps that's too far north.

Simnax Wamberal sounds great and possibly cheaper than where we are now. How long is the commute into Sydney please?

Well I drive a truck & usually have to be on site by 7am so I'm on the road by 5am & get to cbd within 90 mins.
We're 20 mins from Gosford train station but don't know how long it takes because some trains stop at more stations than others.

Thanks everyone - all comments are appreciated. We'll have a better look when we get there, but as I will be expected to start work pretty soon after arriving, a heads-up is always handy. Thanks again.