Three Legs

Really like the look of this place as a potential *Home*.

Anyone living in Brissie or been have any thoughts on the neighbourhood good and bad !!!

We've a little boy (17 months) and another kid on the way so I'm hoping it's got a lot going on there...nice schools, parks, close to the beach etc etc.

More importantly can we afford the property there. We'll be taking approximately £150K Sterling to spend on a house. Will I get a nice 3/4 bed with pool or am I gonna have to add another £50 -100K ???

Please assist folks.

Cheers

Three Legs

MrsDagboy

Its close to the water, but not on it, has mainly *new* homes (brick & tile built in the last 10-15 years & less) & is generally pretty nice. There are 2 primary schools in the area (Manly West & Wondall Rd). 1 small shopping centre with a bakery, off licence, hairdresser etc but a larger mall with Coles & Woolworths on the edge of the next suburb. Theres no train line through the suburb, you have to drive to either Manly or Lota for the train, but there is a fairly good BCC bus service which should get you into town reliably.

But you might have to add some money to your budget, especially working on the exchange rate. $450K should buy you a 4 bed with a pool without too much trouble. Cookies have just bought a house there, so it cant be all bad .

MrsDagboy

Oh & I forgot theres another new shopping mall going in supposed to be finished by the middle of this year which will have a Big W, Woolworths & 20 specialty shops. Also in Manly West are Moreton Bay College & Moreton Bay Boys College, very well respected private schools.

Three Legs

Thanks Mrs Dagboy,

That's exactly the kind of reply I was looking for...sounds quite a nice spot.

That would cover us if we wanted to live nearer the sea but what about a suburb further West and inland. Preferably within an hours drive from the CBD but close to the river.

You know the sketch...nice schools, shopping, transport links and affordable housing £150 - £175k (Sterling).

Your advice is really appreciated.

Cheers

Three Legs

cookies

Hi Three Legs

We are moving to Manly West in a couple of weeks - £150K will buy you a very nice property indeed! I am paying a little bit more and getting a 5 bedroom house with a pool.

Manly West is a few minutes drive from the train station, which is about 40 minutes train journey to the CBD. Driving in will take less time, depending of course on the time of day you travel. I tend not to drive though, as parking is a little more difficult and expensive, as you would expect in a city.

Why do you want to be near the river?

Steve

MrsDagboy

Three Legs, plenty of places along the river (& by close to the river I presume you mean a suburb on the river) meet your requirements ie nice schools, shopping, transport etc, but the problem is your budget! :scared: . Assuming about 2.4 to the pound (fairly good, it could be worse) your budget is only around $360-$420K. It really depends on what you expect for your money, there would be houses in your budget, but its doubtful if you would get your 4 bed 2 bathroom with a pool for that money. Is there a specific reason for living close to the river? Unfortunately suburbs on the river are almost as expensive as living by the beach.

Anyway, here are a few places that might suit, and some examples of what you will get for your money in each one.

Bulimba, Balmoral, Hawthorne - Old suburbs, very close to the city, excellent transport with bus services & citycat & ferries across the river to the CBD. Bulimba has one of the nicest *village green* areas in Brisbane, lovely high street, cafes, older style cinema etc.

Bulimba, Balmoral, Hawthorne

Sherwood - lovely old suburb about 8kms out of the city with lots of character, nice villagy feel, high street etc. Excellent state school, rail & bus into the city - about 15 mins on the train. (This would be my pick if I didnt live where I do, but then Im biased, I grew up there ).

Corinda - next to Sherwood on the trainline out of the city. Similar, but more units & more newer homes.

Graceville - very villagey, quite upmarket & trendy now, lots of cafes etc. One stop closer to the city.

These suburbs have mainly older post war & Qlder style homes, in your price range I would say mostly unrenovated.

Sherwood, Graceville, Corinda

Jindalee, Mount Ommaney, Middle Park, Westlake, Riverhills, Jamboree Heights - much more likely to get something in your price range in this area. Developed in the 1960s & 70s & up to present day, the houses are almost all brick & tile & many have been renovated to make them more modern. Good shopping, but modern, not high street style, theres a pretty decent mall at Mt Ommaney that has pretty much everything you would want on a day to day basis. Main problem is the fact that there is no train line close, although there are BCC bus services, & there is quite often some traffic problems coming over the Centenary Bridge to the city.


Centenary Suburbs

Kenmore, Figtree Pocket, Chapel Hill - all nice suburbs, similar to Centenary in age, but city side of the river. About 30 mins from the city, no train, but bus services.

Kenmore area

Soooooo many suburbs, I wouldnt want to go much further out though or you end up in somewhere like Ipswich :scared: or without the things that you want ie shops, transport etc.

There are probably plenty of other suburbs as well, but that should give you something to go on or maybe someone else might have some suggestions .

MrsDagboy

This is what you will get in Manly West for $360-420K. (Not really that much, a few OK ones in there, I would think for a little bit more you would get alot better ie $450k)

Manly West

Three Legs

Massive thanks to Mrs Dagboy & Cookies for these summaries...

Posts like these are absolutely invaluable for families like us trying to find that *perfect home*.

I've printed the thread so I can take it with us when we eventually validate. We'll certainly check them all out.

Once again, a million thanks...



Kind regards

Three Legs (Getting to Oz, ever so slowly)