Sydney
 

Hi,

I'm new to the forum. My family and I are discussing a move to Auz (I was born there way back when my parents emigrated in the early 70's, so have an Auz Passport, which makes things handy !)

I work in Investment Banking, so I'm looking to find something in Sydney, what I need to know is does anyone have any idea of the decent areas around Sydney to live in ? I don't mind commuting (1hr or so, train or car)....We'd prefer to live somewhere outside of the city.....Any thoughts ?

Cheers

Bill

Re: Sydney
 

places to live in Sydney????? loads. do a search on the question u asked. see what has come up before.
like this link
http://britishexpats.com/forum/searc...searchid=91865
good luck
soapy

Re: Sydney
 

You should be OK if able tocommute an hour in and out, but closer in the cost of housing is very high. Overblown, in fact! I get the distinct feel that, with interest rates set to rise rather than fall, there is going to be a large number of "investors" leaving the housing market over the next year with a further softening of the prices.

Re: Sydney
 

Remember the Investment banking scene in Sydney is very small compared to London and there are loads of people going for the few good jobs. Salaries are also considerably lower - this is why there are so many Aussie investment bankers in London !

Of course if your UK firm had a Sydney office and you can get a transfer then so much the better.

I only know about southern Sydney with regards to where to live - check out
http://www.cityrail.nsw.gov.au/netwo.../selection.jsp
for commute times - it is possible to live 25km form the centre and still get a fast train (30mins) into town.

Rgds Jim

Re: Sydney
 

Quiet a co-incedence, i've got an Investment property that i'm looking at selling down there :D Only an hour on the train from Sydney CBD too :)

Re: Sydney
 

What is your housing budget? Have a look at www.realestate.com.au

Have a look at www.whereis.com.au and www.131500.com.au for transport info. Whereis travel times do not reflect the reality of rush hour.

Re: Sydney
 

Bill
everyone loves the north shore but it is expensive, try the inner north shore the Hills District in the country 40 mins from CBD what could be better.

Gary and Terri

Re: Sydney
 

If you've got children they should be registered as Australian citizens by descent, which should leave only your spouse needing a visa. Spouse visas are processed fairly quickly at the AHC London, by all accounts.


As someone else has posted the Hills District is well worth a look as long as you don't mind the commute (plus a toll on the M2 Motorway). As are suburbs a little less far out in the same direction (Epping, Carlingford)

If looking toward southern Sydney, one option is the Sutherland Shire (southern side of the Georges River).

Jeremy

Re: Sydney
 

Put it on the market now then!

Re: Sydney
 

All,

Thanks for your replies, certainly gives us places to start looking at.

JAJ, Any idea how do I go about registering my kids as Australian Citizens by descent ?

Cheers

Bill

Re: Sydney
 

JAJ,

No worries about the descent application....I have got the forms from the website.

Thanks for letting me know about this though, I wasn't aware I could do this.

Cheers

Re: Sydney
 

It's very difficult to decide about where to live, especially in a city with as many diverse neighbourhoods (as the American would say) as Sydney, if you haven't been there to explore yourself. Therefore, ultimately, I expect that you are going to have to resign yourself either to making a preliminary trip to explore Sydney or else to renting for a few months while you find your feet.

It also depends on what you mean by 'somewhere outside the city'. By the city, do you mean the central part (i.e. not the suburbs) or do you mean outside the Sydney metropolitan area (i.e. 'in the country'). If the latter, it is going to be difficult to find anywhere much within a 1-hour commute, since Sydney covers a vast area. As someone has said, the Hills district can be pleasant, although not terribly convenient to the central business district, which is where jobs in investment banking etc are likely to be found. The Upper North Shore Line area (say from Roseville up to Wahroongah) is very leafy indeed, though certainly not rural. The far south of the metropolitan area, along the George's River, is also leafy and rather pleasant.

It is worth being easy distance of a railway line, in my view - it is good to have the option of going to work by train, even if you normally drive.

A lot depends too on how much you are able to spend on housing, especially if you want to buy. Sydney is not a cheap city in terms of property, and of course the more sought-after areas are consequently the most expensive.

Re: Sydney
 

Thanks CPW,

I guess I am going to have to resign myself to coming over for a few weeks to look at locations etc....can't see it being a huge burden for me though :)

As for budget, I suppose after selling our house here etc, We would be looking at around 500-600k Aus$, after looking on the web, I think we could get a nice 4 bed place for that couldn't we ?

Cheers

Re: Sydney
 

I fear you could be in for a shock here: yes, you CAN get a house for that but it won't be with any garden or in the sort of area that you are talking about.

Nice apartments are going here in Manly for the $1.5 - $2.5m bracket although there are many in the sub -$1m range.

Sydney greater is one of the largest metropolitan areas on the planet - 1600 sq km is quoted - and as a result you have to go quite a way to get away from the premium-rated property. Having said that, the market is overblown now and I think unlikely to remain at these levels.

Re: Sydney
 

I hadn't looked at Manly......and at those prices I guess I won't be doing so either !!

I don't really want to have to get a mortgage if / when I move, so I guess I'll have to look at further afield......What's Gosford like ? too far away....?

Re: Sydney
 

Have you got any ideas on suburbs that you may be interested in yet ?

As others have said, it would be worth trying to be near a Railway station, as that is the fastest, and easiest, way into work.

I used to live in the Erskine Park/St Clair area, and the train into the city took one hour. Going by car however, was more like two hours !!
And $500k in that area would get something reasonable
Real Estate in St Clair/Erskine Park

I just checked on what's available in the area, and I may take Rog Williams advice and put mine on the market, there is hardly anything for sale in the area. www.realestate.com.au show only 5 houses in the area on 700+sq metres of land and more than 3 bedrooms.

Re: Sydney
 

To be honest, still gathering info on which sort of suburbs etc we'd like to live in, trying to get ideas on somewhere nice for the kids to grow up really. Thanks for the link to Erskine / St Clair, the houses there look very nice, what's the area like though ? Good schools ?

Cheers

Re: Sydney
 

It's not classed as the greatest of area's, but then the prices also reflect that.

It's "OK' for those limited on budget to the property in the price ranges for the area.
It is home to many commuters into the CBD. Shopping is good, close to both Penrith and Parramatta, but with its own pretty good local shops in the area.

Schools vary as with all areas. We used a local Christian private school at a cost of $2,000 per year. But a close by area is also famous for the Plumpton High School, with it's special facilities for the many pregnant students. !!

I do a better job of selling the area I now live in :D

Re: Sydney
 

Gosford is commutable into the central business district by train (very much so) but by car would be pretty awful - good motorway/freeway connections to the northern Sydney outskirts but then a 15-mile crawl down the Pacific Highway and over the Harbour Bridge, not to mention the return crawl in the evening. So if you're happy with a train commute, then the central cost/Gosford area is worth looking at.

Re: Sydney
 

Thanks CPW, I've been commuting for an hour or so into London for the last 12 yrs, so sure I could manage to do the same again.....

Re: Sydney
 

I suppose another possibility if you really want to be out of the urban areas might be the Picton-Bowral area, to the south-west of Sydney. Good road connections (as far as Sydney and good roads can ever be mentioned in the one sentence...) and probably reasonable train connections as well. Bowral would be more expensive than some of the places closer in to Sydney, like Picton. Anyway, these areas are definitely rural, with country towns, rather than being, in effect, suburbia like the Central Coast, which might make them more appealing.

There's also the Blue Mountains, but to be seriously considered for commuting it would probably have to be the lower Blue Mountains (e.g. up to Springwood), which doesn't have quite the appeal of the higher areas.

I'll keep thinking of things, no doubt.

Christopher

Re: Sydney
 

Thanks CPW, I really appreciate you taking the time to give me some ideas.

Now all I have to do is find a job.....easier said than done though !