Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Hi there,

Myself, wife and our 4 1/2 year old daughter just moved to Brisbane last week. We're currently living in Newstead and our daughter is going to a kindy in Fortitude Valley.

We've notice where we are staying in Newstead, there are mostly appartment blocks, and common shared pools etc. Lots of retired folk.

Its an amazing area and nearby Ascot is great.

But are there good areas where its not apparent blocks and good family areas and houses?
Where are some of the best areas for families and schools in the Brisbane subs?

We've had a shock with the distances between suburbs as well, when we visited milton, paddington and clayfield. There not walks away! Its very car life here.


Alistair.

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Ascot and Hamilton and surrounds are pretty good.

The western suburbs such as Taringa, Toowong, Ashgrove,Indooroopilly, Bardon etc. are all nice places.

Depends how far out of the city you want to be.

You will probably have already noticed the Traffic congestion in the city so you need to decide how far you really want to commute.

G

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Try the other side of the river from Newstead.........Bulimba, Balmoral, Hawthorne (these 3 are pricey) and Morningside.

Get the cross river ferry over the river from Teneriffe to Bulimba and take a look around....the ferry drops you at the end of Oxford Street, Bulimba....all the local restaurants, shops etc are about 5 minutes walk up the street....very nice area and well located for transport to the city (bus, ferry or train), access to the motorway etc.

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Hi,

Well I guess we've got use to Newstead already which is nice and close to the CBD where I work so wouldn't want to be too far out.


Also same problem as UK, nice wages in the CBD, but to live Gold coast is 1hr away as we've tried it going to Surfers paradice yesterday

and Sunshine coast an hour and a half away.

So would either be very close to the CBD or a beach on the Sunshine coast, but then you've got the daily grind.

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

The Sunshine coast would not be a nice trip to do every day.....especially not during peak hour traffic:ohmy:

Most of the suburbs close to the city (such as those myself and bcworld mentioned) are expensive......but then all inner suburbs are.

If I worked in the city then Paddington or Red Hill would be a good choice.

G

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Enogerra is nice. My parents are there and I really like the area although would not live there myself - too close to the parents and all that...

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Hi
What about the people migrating on their own? The thirty something young professional...too old to go clubbing but would like to be in an environment to meet other young (ish) people?

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Hi Alistair,

Welcome to Brisbane. Paddington and Milton are only 10 minutes walk from the city so if you are shocked by them you are going to be totally blown away by the distance to the outer suburbs :)

I second Paddington, Red Hill, Bardon, Ashgrove, Auchenflower, Kelvin Grove, Herston, Wilston, Toowong, Indooroopilly, Taringa as good inner surburb options. For a very nice family suburb my pick of these would probably be Bardon even though all of them have great pockets.

Schools depends on whether you want govt or private. All the above suburbs would have some good schools. For govt you could look at Milton State School in Paddington, Ithaca Creek State School in Red Hill, Kelvin Grove College in Kelvin grove - for example.

You're right.....it can be a very car orientated life. If you don't want that sort of life you're best to stick to the inner suburbs and near a train or a good bus route. Some inner city bus routes can still take ages as they wind through the streets so check them out first at the translink website: http://jp.transinfo.qld.gov.au/

Another thing to note is that Brisbane middle and outer suburbs can seem very deserted to someone from Britain as most people drive everywhere. If you want that walk to local shops, lots of people around on the streets feeling you should stick to the inner suburbs. This can be affordable if renting, but very expensive if buying.

If expense is an issue we could probably all recommend further out suburbs that still are not too bad to commute from.

Remember the beach at South Bank next to the CBD, and also a lot of people in the suburbs have pools and entertain in their backyards rather than going to the beach every weekend.

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Probably depends on two things: how you would like to meet them if you're not going clubbing - do you still do pubs or cafe's or ??? And secondly, what sort of people you would prefer to meet in your suburb, yuppie, hippie, etc

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

When I say no clubbing, I still like bars/cafes/restaurants!
Over here now the trendy bars tend to open beyond 11pm, don't know what the situ is there or how best to meet people- apart from joining clubs and through work etc. Any ideas?

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Sorry, didn't answer the second question... just ordinary young professionals/not even professionals, just people of a similar age that like going out socialising etc. Am I being too vague?

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

If you are after a real inner city, urban life then Fortitude Valley and surrounds - New Farm, Teneriffe are the go. Fortitude Valley (or The Valley as it's known) is an entertainment hub next to the CBD.

If you want inner city life set in a less gritty looking, more suburban environment you could check out Paddington, Red Hill and Bulimba.

Another choice is West End which is more of an alternative lifestyle suburb. A lot of people who live there love the community feel and seem to all know each other. They have a fantastic markets every Saturday morning - great place to get the fruit and veg and people watch over a coffee in the park. You get all types living here though so you have to be willing to accept that.

Some pubs will open to 5 in the morning so that should keep you busy :)

Most inner city suburbs have their own community newspapers with events like saving the local creek, helping the homeless or whatever. Maybe something like this would be good as you get the satisfaction of helping your new community but also would meet people without it being forced.

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

If you want a family suburb you cant far wrong with The Gap:


Best public schools in Brisbane...
One of the lowest crime rates in Brisbane
No more building going on (protected Brisbane Forest Park to the west, and hills to the south and north mean The Gap wont grow any more.)
Half decent bus service to CBD (depending on how far you live form the Bus Stop

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

The Bayside in Brisbane is a lovely area for families. Close to the water, good schools, trainline into the city and lots of activities. It depends what you are looking for really. Thornlands, Cleveland, Redland Bay, Victoria Point, Ormiston - they are all lovely.

Good luck

Rudi

Re: Good suburbs for families in Brisbane
 

Hi, we arrived here on Saturday with our 4 1/2 year old daughter and 8 month old son. We are staying in Kenmore for 6 weeks and think it's a great suburb, although a little way out. We like the areas around here - The Gap, Kenmore, Toowong (expensive), Ashgrove etc....

Now we just need husband to find a job!