FlOSSANDJO

Hi,

The wife and I can't agree on where we'd like to settle in Brisbane. She likes the sound of the Bayside area and could work at the Redland Hospital, I like the sound of Karalee/Karana downs and she could work at Ipswich. Either way i'd be in Brisbane.

From our research, Bayside seems nice enough, near to the coast, but property seems more expensive in comparision. I read on a previous thread that there are a lot of Brits here which put me right off. If I wanted to surround myself with fellow Brits i'd stay put in the UK.

Karalee/karana downs look great, nice big homes near to the wildlife and reasonable prices.

When my wife first started looking into this, she asked a friend already in Brisbane about Ipswich and she said 'Don't do it', since then i dont think she's given that area fair consideration.

Sure Ipswich seems to have an image problem, which is a bit of a problem, but i dont think it would be a bad place to work, shop in etc.

If anyone can add anything that could help us settle this, it would be appreciated.

Cheers

smoggieswilltravel

Hi

I can only speak for the Bayside area, which is where we plan to move to. Brother and sister inlaws live there (Redland Bay) and we visited last year. I can't say that we bumped into many Brits while there, none actually. I think you can get a distorted view of just how many Brits are there off the BE site. Sure they are there but I'm sure you can avoid them if that's what you really want to do. Having already lived abroad I can safley say that although it nice to expereince other cultures and meet other people. There is a certain sense of humour and understanding that comes from having been brought up in a county (culture) that links you to your own. country and the people. It was very strange but I loved meeting up with British people and the humour and understanding of certain things was great.

But anyway, the Bay area is lovley, near to the sea but I wish there were more sand and beaches, but its hard to have it all. Not far into Brisbane CBD for work or pleasure. Feels kind of rural in some areas and more busy in others like Cleveland.

Good luck in your search for the perfect place.

Centurion

[QUOTE=FlOSSANDJO;4723106I read on a previous thread that there are a lot of Brits here which put me right off. If I wanted to surround myself with fellow Brits i'd stay put in the UK.
[/QUOTE]

Its not. BE myth number 23.

The Redlands is a popular area full stop and hence thats why it attracts many people from this site moving to the Brisbane area, which are a very small minority indeed of the local population.

JaneandJim

It's not just an image problem, Ipswich city centre is horrible. Its not a nice place to shop, but it doesn't seem to be such a bad place to work as at least you can get out of it at the end of the day. It does get seriously hot in summer, though.

You need to have a good look round both areas when you come out. That was our intention when we came out here (we're not quite as far as Karana Downs) but we never made it to Bayside as Jim liked this area so much. Now that I've seen most of the Bayside suburbs (finally got to Wellington Point this weekend) I know we made the right choice for us. Only you can decide what's best for you, but don't write anywhere off until you've seen it for yourself. Karana Downs had massive increases in real estate prices last year, so it's an up and coming suburb. Beautiful countryside (if you like trees and hills ).

Good Luck,
Jane