lissysarah

am hoping to visit Melbourne later this year. We would like to live reasonably close to the sea and within half hour commute, train or drive, of central Melbourne. Judging by the real estate websites, south east seems to be more expensive than south west suburbs.
Does anyone have any opinions/experience of living or visiting the South West.

Also, there seemed to be some very nice houses in a place called Sanctuary Lakes but I couldn't make out if this is a resort or a suburb. They seem to have communal golf courses etc. Does anyone know how this set up works?

Thanks all

CasG

Hi there and welcome to the site

We (hubby and I) live in Williamstown in the SW, 15 mins drive from CBD -it is really nice - has beach, a wildlife reserve, Marina, lots of cafes, resturants and really decent shops - nothing big, but everything you need. Williamstown is a bit more expensive than other areas in the SW, but still within a lot of peoples range - we live in a 2 bedroom weatherboard bungalow which costs $235 per week to rent.
Have a look at my photopost for pictures of my house and the Marina which is Hobsons Bay - a short walk from the house - the beach is 2 mins drive.
Sanctuary Lakes is a new development area in Point Cook, where plots of land are bought and you can then have a house built - I believe some houses have already been built and up for sale - it is meant to be really nice. Not by the sea though.
There are some really lovely areas in the SW, and you are not that far to the Great Ocean Road and Geelong - 1 hour to CBD. Maybe too far from CBD for you to live, but well worth visits.
Some areas - ie Altona and Laverton have some industry, but also have their nice parts.

I vote for Williamstown, (or maybe Yarraville - looks a bit inland on map, but is close really.)

For where areas are - look at www.melway.com.au

Cas

lissysarah

many thanks for your answer - very helpful. I saw some houses (on a website) for sale in Williamstown and thought they looked very nice. As you say - more expensive but they seemed to have more character than some of the other areas.
Maybe you, or anyone else could help me with the following;
Are the local shops in a 'high street' or covered precinct area?
Are there parks for dog walking ie you can lead?
Are there pubs or cafes within a reasonable distance?
Thanks again for your help - glad you are enjoying it there

fireeater

Hi, good luck with your move wherever you end up A point that has come up on other threads is that it might be a good idea to rent for a period, say 6 months, to check areas out. At least then you are not tied to a mortgage somewhere, when you've seen a place you might prefer.

As for Williamstown, it sprawls and there is a lot of space for the amount of people here. I can't speak for the Altona end of Williamstown but the main shops on Ferguson are a high street. They have coverings so there is shelter if it rains but it is not a mall. This tends to be the case for Melbourne generally from what I've seen.

There are plenty of green spaces for walking dogs, as there are throughout Melbourne. Having lived in Coventry, I have been very impressed by the amount of greenery here...Also Williamstown has beaches and bayside areas, and I've seen dogs off the lead on Williamstown beach.

Nelson Place has loads of cafes and restaurants although there are plenty of others scattered around. Cafes have a non-smoking policy, but most offer outside seating where smoking is permitted. There are a few "pubs" although they tend to be called hotels. A lot of the cafes are licensed and some of the restaurants have a "bring your own" drink notice. Between Nelson Place and Ferguson, you can get Indian, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, and Thai food, as well as the more typical steakhouses and bakeries. There is a patisserie in Nelson Place which is very good, in fact, the only place better I have been to is Tomasselli's in Salzburg! And there are 3 ice cream parlours there, I think...

good luck with your plans

Carl

Shellfish

Sanctuary lakes is a housing/golfing estate located to the west of the city. The estate itself is very picturesque and family orientated. It has a gym, restaurant etc located within the estate as well as shops very nearby. The houses are lovely and I love the idea of building my own place.
My husband and I went to look there a few times and as we have friends who live there, were quite keen but in the end decided against it. Our main reasons for not choosing Sanctuary lakes were:
There is only a single lane road which takes you from the estate to the freeway. I believe, although I haven’t ever used it during peak times, that it gets extremely congested. There has been talk of improvements to the road but who knows. There are additional estates being built nearby which means even more traffic in the future.
There is no train station within walking distance so it’s a matter of driving to the station, which I have to say isn’t the most pleasant and my friend who lives there now drives to work. I have also heard that there are a limited no. of Government schools in the area and so a lot of people end up with little option other than to send their kids to private school.
Anyway, these are my findings but there are people on the site who do live in Sanctuary lakes so could give you a more balanced view.

lissysarah

thanks all - very useful - I'm looking forward to visiting Melbourne, Dec 2005,