Jackie77

Hi BE Members,

Finally I am moving to Perth with family (1 Kid aged 11) in September , I will be glad if some one can advice me

Best neighborhoods to rent , My priority is to have good schools & Safe, We have been looking at the Scarborough area but as we have left it quite late cant seem to find anywhere even just for a short time.

Any advice would be great

HelenTD

Hi Jackie, apart from Scarborough, also look at Karrinyup, Doubleview and Wembley Downs. The primary schools for these suburbs are:

Scarborough
Newborough
Deanmore
Karrinyup
Doubleview
Wembley Downs

Scarborough's NAPLAN results are pretty bad, but I have 2 friends with children at the school and they are happy there. Wembley Downs, Doubleview and Karrinyup have tight boundaries - don't assume that you are in the catchment for Doubleview PS if you rent in Doubleview, same goes for Wembley Downs and Karrinyup. You should be able to get catchment maps for each school from their websites, or by emailing the school, and have these handy when looking at rentals.

The other schools have all taken from within and outside the local areas in previous years, but that can change if their enrolment numbers increase. Deanmore is now a brand new school, after years of campaigning by the P&C to get the mouldy old building replaced.

I spotted some rentals available for September, but you really need to be here to go to the viewings. Spring starts in September, and thoughts start turning to being near the beach for summer - real estate agents mention that in their ads. Scarborough has lots of short-stay options, plus look on www.stayz.com.au. Let me know if you need more info, as I know these areas well.

Jackie77

Thank you for the reply Helen, Myself and OH have been trying to find short term rental with much difficulty (2 mths at the most) and have found 1 in Yokine can you give any advice on the area.

HelenTD

Yokine's not a bad area, it's not that far from the city, has a large park, large public swimming pool/gym centre, has a mix of housing. Don't know anything about the primary schools in that area, though. The main issue would be some very busy roads and traffic noise, eg Flinders Street and Alexander Drive.

What sort of place are you looking for in a rental (number of bedrooms, weekly rent, any other requirements)? Do you actually need a short-term rental for 2 months, as you might find a longer-term rental quicker than that?

Jackie77

We are just looking for a short term furnished as a starting place, and once we are there we can start looking at renting unfurnished long term, We are looking for a 3 bed house, weekly £600 possibly with a swimming pool,

HelenTD

Hi Jackie, just wanted to clarify, you have up to about $950 per week for a rental? Is there any particular reason that you were looking at Scarborough or can you go a couple of suburbs north or south?

In terms of a 2 month furnished rental, it might make you think that you have a lot of time to find an unfurnished rental - but you really want to get yourselves settled well before the calendar ticks over into December, which induces a sort of full-moon "we must get a rental before Christmas because we are having everyone over for Christmas lunch" frenzy.

Weebie

with that kind of money at your disposal stay in the western suburbs...don't go south or north.

All those primary schools are very good. most of those kids in that area will go onto high profile courses at uni (probably UWA)

Jackie77

Helen it will be $600 a week, I have no idea why my OH has decided on Scarborough, (I think a few of his work colleagues have told him to look in that area) he was the one that was supposed to be looking for somewhere but he tells me there is plenty time, (I think not just under 5 week's now) also he works offshore so his time on the net is limited.

lynx1979

Good luck with the move you will love it here in perth !

Jackie77

Thanx, Just starting to get really nervous and stressed out about the move as i seem to be doing everything on my own, ie selling our house, packing, and trying to find somewhere to live, also OH has just told me he will only be with us for 1 week when we come over as he has to go back to work for 4 week's, I would not normally mind but it's not as if we are just moving house, were moving half way across the world, My OH know's a few people but myself and daughter know no one and have never been to Perth before, Im sure im just worrying about nothing and it will all sort itself out

Prudi

This may be an obvious thing to say, but I would stay away from the front at Scarborough if you have a kid. Fine to visit, but lots of drunks on the street in the evenings. I used to live in Wembley Downs and, as Helen says, it's nice around there and Doubleview and the inland bits of Scarborough (although people south of Scarborough Beach Road tended to look down on people on the northside for some reason) and there's the shops at Innaloo for just about everything. We could hear the sea at night which I loved - very relaxing. The only downsides of that area is that it's not on the trainline, and very windy. Hope all goes well with the move! Worrying about it is normal, but you sound like you have everything under control. You'll have so much to explore that you hopefully won't even miss the OH. I liked being in the house on my own when I first moved (OH was working and I was looking for a job) as I got to arrange the house and have everything as I wanted it, and go for walks to the beach and make cakes.

Jackie77

Thanks Prudi, As i'm the one now looking into accommodation, which areas should i look at, near good school, shop's, public transport and friendly, I do like being at home on my own but coming to OZ not knowing anyone is a little daunting for both myself and daughter,

HelenTD

There are places available in the suburbs previously mentioned - plus add Woodlands to the list - and even a couple available now, at a reasonable price, with a pool. The houses might not be that flash, though, and one of them is only available for a 6 month lease. Look on www.realestate.com.au as well as www.reiwa.com.au. The first website allows you to look for properties with a pool - if you switch that off and then on, you will see that there are many more properties without a pool. There are lots of housing options in Scarborough, but houses with a pool are not common, mostly because historically the local attitude was that there was no need for a pool when you live close to the beach. Now, it's mainly due to the fact that there has been a lot in in-fill development in Scarborough and the other suburbs listed, so that where there used to be a large garden, possibly with a pool, there is now an extra house or two, so pools are in short supply in these areas. Having a pool does help you to survive in summer, but if you can't find a house with one, there is a great public pool on The Boulevard at City Beach, the next suburb south of Scarborough http://www.cambridge.wa.gov.au/Leisu...Aquatic_Centre.

You could look at renting somewhere for your 1st 6 months that is a bit more expensive, to get a pool, and to give yourself a few more choices from the website searches, then you could get to know an area to choose for your next lease. An example is this house in Woodlands, available mid-Sept, doesn't state length of lease, 4x2, pool, $700 pw http://www.realestate.com.au/propert...ands-405405071.

You need to keep an eye on school catchments, though, or just enrol your child in a school like Deanmore - if it still has open boundaries, then you don't have to worry about keeping within a catchment when renting. Woodlands has a primary school and may also allow enrolments from outside the boundary, so if you moved you'd still be OK. Innaloo is another suburb you could add in, but pools in that area would be hard to find.

HelenTD

Streets in Scarborough I would avoid living on:
West Coast Highway
Scarborough Beach Road
Hastings Street
Stanley Street
Sackville Terrace
Duke Street

Innaloo:
Huntriss Street
Barnes Road

Woodlands/Doubleview:
Ewen Street can get a bit busy
Sackville Terrace

Wembley Downs:
Weaponess Road
Hale Road

Karrinyup:
Karrinyup Road
Burroughs Road, Francis Avenue, Davenport Street (major shopping centre)

Jackie77

Thank you for all the Info it's been a great help