cat48

Hi
OH might have a job offer in Perth CBD just north of river.
Have been reading and reading here and other forums about the different places and suburbs but I am a little lost!
Don't want a mega commute as we want family life!! But I know its a juggle with prices of houses - prob up to 650k to spend. As its so hot defo want a pool :-)
Not that fussed on a drive to the beach but places to walk dogs would be great.
We have two small children 3,5 and 2,5.
I have also read posts about snakes and havent been able to sleep with reading snakes killing dogs and being brought into houses by cats and biting little boys at the beach! eeekkk.....
So if you could put my mind at rest that would be great but have told OH that if we go he could get his dream of a small garden and concrete if there are snakes as I love gardening but wont be doing any if I could end up saying hello to snakes!!
Any pointers on places to start looking would be fab as I having been going round and round in circles
cheers

h2oskineil

Have you been to Perth?

You'll need to come an look for yourself and see where you want to live.
Look at a map and www.realestate.com.au and see what you can get for $650k. Thats a good budget to have, so you should get something nice.

Dont be fooled by the heat... the winter is bloody cold!

cat48

Yep been looking on there and realestateview :-)
have read on other threads that you 800k to get a decent house in decent area thats why i was a bit concerned.

nope never been to perth - but hey we emmigrated to auckland from uk 6 years ago and i had never even been on a 'big' plane

NZ has been brilliant but OH wants bigger projects with work and we want a new adventure - lifes too short. Not worried about never having visited - have adapted a lot to nz and hey it wont be too far different as i will recognise lots of things like kmart, bunnings etc :-)

just abit lost where to look.

how about if we could start a list of where NOT to go

cat48

ok been doing sums and of course you guys have stamp duty on houses! forgot about that one!

and i want retrain so lets make life easier financially and say more like 550k.

bitzenpces

Looking at a few properties in your price range, the market looks pretty lively, with quite a few properties having the "under offer" tag on them. If you use www.realestate.com.au, there is the option to search for properties with a pool. Otherwise, buy near a public swimming pool, but there is nothing like slipping into your own pool to cool off on a hot summer night, unless of course you're jumping in.

Perhaps look at suburbs not too far north and not too expensive, such as Duncraig, Padbury, Greenwood, Kingsley, Dianella and similar - these areas are more likely to have gardens big enough for a pool. Mind you, you do see pools squeezed in all sorts of areas, such as in the front garden, or down the side of the house - these tend to be very modern and new properties, though.

If you can compromise on the pool, then a few other suburbs might have places in your price range, such as Innaloo, Doubleview, Scarborough, Karrinyup, Yokine. Perth has a lot of green space, so plenty of parks for walks with your dogs (and plastic bags) and playgrounds for the kids.

The further out you go, especially the further from the beach, the cheaper it becomes, in general. Don't worry about snakes in the garden - this is much more likely if you live in the hills or near wetlands or bush. We've never had a snake in the garden, but other people on here have - can't remember if it was Jackie (sorry, useless at names) who lost one of her dogs recently in Mandurah. But, and a big but, Mandurah is a major waterway and has lots of bush. You might see a snake if you're walking around a park, but they can be noisy places full of squeals and snakes tend to keep well out of the way.

cat48

ah thank you
i had seen that Padbury and surrounding is more in our price ranges.
Is this area ok?

I must admit I am such a water baby and can spend hours in the bath so I have said to OH I cannot compromise on a pool if we move to Perth

Hoe long is the commute from Padbury into CBD please? My car/train?
I have looked online but it never tells the full picture.

Great to know there are plenty open spaces but after reading about snakes I said I dont want to live anywhere green space!! eek

I know I will chill out eventually about snakes but at the mo they scare the hell out of me !!

oh and just out of interest are you allowed to keep bunnies? I bought a few for my kids (well really you know they were for me) to cuddle but I think they are are banned in some states in OZ? OH would be happy one less pet to have

Will look at the other areas you said.

Are there any that we should definitely avoid please?

renth

Padbury is near the freeway/Whitfords train station. Train is about 15 mins to CBD and car anything from about 20 mins to maybe 45 depending on time of day. It's fairly close to nice beaches, a big shopping centre and Craigie leisure centre.

It's also in the catchment for 2 high schools Duncraig SHS and Belridge SHS. Duncraig has a much better reputation but I heard Belridge has got loads better in the last few years. So if you have kids work out which high school you will be in the catchment for.

dave99

After 6+ years in australia I havent seen any snakes, not one!. So let that put your mind at ease a bit.
The furthest out I lived once was an hour (by train) north of the city, so I was fairly far out but not as far out as some people go. I did see quite a lot of spiders, nothing harmful other than a couple of small redbacks in the garden once. But if you leave them alone they leave you alone.

Cockroahes were the worst, obviously they are not dangerous but they just creep me out. The last apartment in perth I was in had a cockroach problem, they just kept coming in every couple of days and I was having to pick dead ones up in the morning or might see them run around the floor at night. If I had a dog or cat they might have chased the little buggers down

cat48

ah tthats good about the snakes! and i have freaked out with our own red back here in NZ - but hey they say your red back has populated around my part of nz so i just ran screaming but next time was a bit better when i saw them! well i hope they were the nz ones nad not the oz ones!!!

and yes the lovely cockroaches were a baptism of fire when we got here! having never had the pleasure of meeting one before in my life one crawled over my face at night the first week we were here! ooo that rental was horrible! and no dogs or cats make no difference!! but amazing how used you get to things - now i just squish them and its no big deal! well they arent that big- i think i would run a mile if they were the big ones!!

so padbury is an ok area ? and easy commute? OH has a commute at th emo and we want more family time so that needs to change when we move

kids are really little so not too bothered on high schools yet- maybe primary catholic primary schools but i have looked online and they all seem good ??

bitzenpces

Yes, you can keep rabbits. I have seen snakes a few times in Perth as we live near bush. Perth's coastline has dunes between the car park/path and the beach, and these are good places to encounter dugites, one of the 2 types of venomous snakes commonly found in Perth. The other is the tiger snake, but these tend to hang out near water. Spring and summer are the most likely times to come across snakes, but I've heard that tiger snakes can be active at other times of year. After the World Trade Center attacks, there was a public safety campaign here, which was telling us to "Be Alert, Not Alarmed", which I think you could apply to snakes.

Generally, I don't think about snakes. Spiders are another story, though. I don't go along with dave99's approach of if you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone. I say KILL THEM. Apart from redback, there's now a white tip spider variety or two and you're much more likely to come across a spider than a snake.

As renth said, check out the catchment areas for high schools, but these boundaries have been known to change, or else the WA Government will decide to knock down a high school and divert kids somewhere else, as they have done with Padbury and others. There's always private schools, fees ranging from reasonable to outrageous, but can be difficult to get places.

Duncraig is very much a family area, think it has 3 primary schools and the high school. You can look up schools on the MySchool website http://www.myschool.edu.au/.

A big problem with commuting is the lack of car parking spaces at train stations, and some of the feeder bus services are not so good. Better to avoid cost of a 2nd car, if you can.

Let us know if you've got any more questions.

renth

It's OK'ish. A lot will depend on who your neighbours are and whether there are idiots living near by. Padbury is probably a "middle" suburb, not upmarket but doesn't have a reputation for being dodgy either.

jackieh23

Like just about all the suburbs OP mentioned.

Dropping your budget to $550K does bring what you can buy in certain areas down a level or two. You are in the most popular bracket $ wise and houses at that price don't hang around for long.

There are two issues with commuting via trains, either north or south. One is as mentioned, lack of parking at the train stations but that can be overcome by catching a bus, which is what I do. The other relates to overcrowding and physically being unable to get on to a train. The population in Perth grew so quickly that by the time the train lines were finished (both Mandurah & Joondalup) the number of people wishing to use them had already surpassed the projected 10 year hence target. I have had to wait for 3 trains some times before I can actually get on...peak times that is a wait of around 20 minutes, not huge but still frustrating and needs to be factored in to arrival at work time.

Is your OH a cyclist? I have a friend in Woodvale (northern line, nearish Padury) and her hubbie cycles in to the CBD (and back) every day as there is a great network of cycleways. Of course, his office building does have showers

As to a pool, IME not as many Aussies these days have pools, unlike when I was a kid and every second garden had a pool - normally above ground back then. What with water restrictions and costs; power costs (a pool pump can make your electricity bill look truly terrifying); chemical or salt costs, fencing restrictions and adhering to licencing requirements and then of course there is skin cancer... You pay handsomely for being able to jump in for a dip when you feel like it...

Oh and you do know about our flies don't you?

bitzenpces

Yes, there was a large increase in population in a relatively short period, but that could have been predicted. The main problem is that those in positions of power (1) do not use public transport because they get a car as part of their salary package, including public servants and politicians, and (2) they are the worst planners and demographers in the world.

or you can pay handsomely for using air conditioning to stop your brain frying and to get some sleep.[/QUOTE]

brits1

I would not want to spend $650 on Padbury no offence meant I just found it to hit and miss and I know while $650 was a good amount 3+years ago it might not be the same in today's market. Not sure on the prices now but Duncraig, Carine, North Perth,Floreat, Woodlands and Mt.Lawley,Leederville Churchlands were all good areas with character ie pavements either side of the road, Deli's, Cafe's and near to shops as well as Shopping Centres and also near to the City. You don't really have to worry about snakes in Suburbia its too built up and snakes dont like noise, we bought our pet (a dog) in Aus and never had a problem just vaccinations and heartworm tablets. Good luck

jackieh23

OP suggested they would be dropping their available funds to $550K. Be it $650K or $550K, they would get very little for their money these days in your suggested areas.

[/QUOTE=bitzenpces;10993681]or you can pay handsomely for using air conditioning to stop your brain frying and to get some sleep[/QUOTE]

Even with a pool, air conditioning is mandatory IMO. You can't sleep in the pool... Evaporative air con is nothing like the cost to run a reverse cycle unit and whilst some will argue it just adds to the humidity, as a long time "swampy" user, I would rather have evap than nothing.

A perfect summer home set up in Perth would be a pool, evap, reverse cycle and the income to pay the electricity bills generated!