tasmas

Hi everyone!!
We're new to this forum and I wondered if anyone could give us any advice on Brisbane. After looking at numerous rental agents my head is about to explode with all the different areas available. Which suburbs are considered a decent area to live? And which ones are not so desirable? Is it better to rent a bit out of the city and commute or should we rent an apartment in the city and save on travelling? I will be studying Hairdressing in Brisbane when I get the cash together to pay for the deposit on the course, and sell the house (lots of people going through that on here!). Any advice gratefuly received. Thanks....
Tracy

Alana and Arrons mum

Hi!
We live in Redcliffe 25kms from the city and we love it.Lots of really lovely suburbs north side( and South side but I dont know much about them) but the closer to the city you are the more pricey it is.Really depends what you want!
Try realestate.com and ourbrisbane.com to give you an idea of prices. ourbrisbane.com gives out helpful info about suburbs and we used it to narrow down our search before arriving here.
Good luck
Andyxx

OzJo

We are in Sinnamon Park. Western suburbs about 15k`s from the CBD.
GOod here too!

Timber Floor Au

I think ppl, honestly truly believe that everyone in Brisbane works in the city.

Im not having a dig, but we see it on a daily basis, and it flaberghasts me, especially when they retort, Ive been watching the forum for months. etc etc etc

Brisbane is a HUGE HUGE metropolis, and the city ( CBD ) is actually quite small, and really reserved for shopping and the majors )

Every suburb, I would guess, has a hairdressing salon or 2. In fact, go MOBILE and coin it in... its a distinct service thats under exploited in Australia.

You could be minted.

Ste

gillysm

Suburbs that keep coming up as popular seem to be Cleveland (Bayside), Albany Creek/Bridgeman Downs, New Farm and North Lakes, all very different, have a look on www.ourbrisbane.com.au as OP suggested, also www.ozburbs.com (Timberfloor Au's website) and wiki

smudger_scfc

I live in North Lakes, it's a relatively new suburb and it is great. Read a few discouraging posts on here before i got here but haven't had any problems myself. Some lovely walks around the lakes with BBQ settings and shelters and a big westfield shoppng centre.

My only gripe would be the transport links to the city, haven't checked out the buses, but if you drive and have a car you'll be fine.

Lived in Bracken Ridge in 2001 and thought it again was a really nice place, also stayed in Petrie quite often and would recommend that also.

gillysm

I believe Tasmas will be training to be a hairdresser in Brissy Ste - chill petal

Timber Floor Au

OOoooohhh Yeahhhh lol

Well Spotted Hun !!

Aplogies , to OP, I was trying to offer Career Advice lol.

givemecoffee

We live in Ashgrove and love it! Great bus links to the city and only 20 minute drive to South Bank Parklands. You have best of both worlds - city but also only 20 minutes from Mount Nebo, Brisbane Forest Park etc. Also close to trendy suburbs such as Paddington, West End - great for Sunday brunches. Ashgrove itself nice with good schools, cafes etc. Easy to get on the Gympie Road to head up the Sunshine Coast too. Happy hunting!

brissyboyds

We're looking at Ashgrove(my rellies) or western suburbs(OH rellies)possibly middle park,seventeen mile rocks area.Stayed with rellies in West Ashgrove and really liked it,like you said easy to get around,but might be out of our price range now,are there any cheap areas nearby.Thanks Fred

DadAgain

Ashgrove is nice - but pricey. Its a bit of an 'exclusive' suburb so you pay dearly for it.

I live in the next suburb west "The Gap" which is considerably more affordable and only a few minutes longer on the bus.

The Gap has the advantage of not really being a place you drive through to get anywhere so the traffic isnt quite as bad (theres lots of cars - but you dont get so much freight traffic as on major trunk routes around the city).

I guess ultimately it depends exactly where you will be studying - you need to make sure that public transport links get you close to where you want to go. Dont be fooled by timetables that *seem* to link up for transfers between busses or busses&trains, the bus timetables are not nearly reliable enough for that!

Timber Floor Au

Ive always wondered what ppl find "trendy" about Paddington.

It reminds me of the streets of San Francisco, circa 1920

Ste

brissyboyds

Hello again,Dadagain,thanks for the advice on schools last time.My relatives live in West Ashgrove and I got the impression that the Gap was more pricey,but that was last year,have things changed or was I mistaken? Thanks Fred

Grayling

What's Red Hill like?

G

DadAgain

No you are definately mistaken there! Ashgrove is deemed incredibly desirable and being closer to the city and having more 'character homes' than The Gap you will pay extra to be there.

For a 3 bedroom house I'd expect Ashgrove to be at least $100k (and perhaps as much as $300k) more than The Gap for a similar quality house.

Red Hill has always seemed a bit hit and miss to me - it certainly has the advantage of being close to the city (15-25m stroll down through Roma St Parklands to get to CBD) and is served by lots of busses. It also is rather obviously on top fo a hill so theres a chance of decent views and the odd cooling summer breeze. The downside is that its very much on a main thoroughfare (with all the Ashgrove/The Gap traffic) so feels very busy. There is also a bit of a 'skanky' feel to bits of it with a few run down buildings like the old roller-rink which is now derelict and covered in grafiti. Red Hill does have one of Brisbanes more prominent gun shops though - so if you're thinking of going on a 'Columbine style' rampage that could be handy? I suspect Red Hill would be quite expensive given its proximity to the city - but due to its 'run down' feel might be cheaper than similarly distanced 'young trendy' areas (i.e. Paddington/NewFarm/South Brisbane/Auchenflower)