Stu Ward

Paddy

You seem to be in the exact same position as me. My office should i take the job will be in Padstow, and i have a wife and 4 year old son.

We are flying over on the 25th of this month for a look around, and the company have put us up in a hotel in Bankstown (not the preferred location) but with it being the Australia Day weekend hotels are all pretty much booked up.

So i'll be able to let you know what my thoughts are on Bankstown.

We have used the real estate websites and like the look of Prestons and Hoxton Park to the West. They might be worth a look if they are not too far from the CBD for your commute


I'll let you know how we get on

Stu

BadgeIsBack

The reality is that the Eastern beaches and Northern shore are the picks.

Bankstown and the West is a craphole. Apart from the Shire which is all new housing for families.

If you can't rent or afford N/E (or inner) move elsewhere.

joho

What area of IT are you in.

Sometimes its a lot quicker to commute by train than car. For instance my hubby commutes to North Ryde from Umina each day and it takes him about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 and colleagues of his who live reasonbly close take 45 mins so the difference is not a lot. He works in North Ryde which has no direct train.
Forgot to say his commute is out of the rush hour range, but then so is his colleagues.

Jo

paddyo

Thanks Stu, certainly appreciate any feedback from the troops on the ground so to speak!! I could get a stunning place in Prestons/Hoxton Park/Casula but they are just too far. Want to be able to finish work and get home and spend some time with my boy before we stick him under the stairs for the night!!
I am not too worried about rough areas, I grew up in a mining village council estate in Kent (ok no burnt out cars and knifings but the apple orchards were rough!!) and can read the society pretty well but, as we all like to do, I just want something better for my family to reflect what I have achieved.
At the moment all is negative for the south west and if I was to use a UK geographical analogy then Panania etc is to Northern Shores what Birmingham is to Surrey!!! But, as my earlier caveat states, my own suppositions are based purely on ignorance!!

Helen-17

Hello there. I just wanted to say hello. Sounds like we are in a similar boat - my husband is going on a work transfer on the 457 visa, north of the city. So for, we have liked the look of St Ives, Chatswood and Pymble, but we will make the decision when we get there. Good luck to us all!!

paddyo

They are all nice areas along the rail line is the general opinion. I just don't want to go too far away from the centre, as I said I reckon 20 mins commute is about right. Also, closer to the city the further away from nature and its nasties!! Fully signed up snakeaphobe here!!

Wigan Warrior

I'm a Teradata DBA/Developer. I'm hoping to be a one car family when I get out there and using the train into work.

WW

Biddle

We too are arriving in April with 4 children , can I ask which serviced apartments you have booked as we are currently looking!

paddyo

Dunno, my company is sorting all that out, I just get off the plane with the tribe and a fellow colleague is going to meet us and take us there. Sounds like a plan to me!

MartinH

Those are very nice suburbs - we looked at them in October and decided on Pymble. 30 minutes commute (driving) from the CBD if you are preared to leave early enough (before 7:00 am) and travel home late enough (after 7:00 pm)

Rosscarbery

Personally, if I only had one child (rather than my good Irish brood of 3 ) I would make very different housing choices to the "leafy suburb, family area, blah blah" that I have to with kids ranging from 4-14. Sydney is an absolutely beautiful city, with lots going on, and with one young child you can enjoy the more urban stuff, cafe culture, free concerts in parks etc. much easier if you live in say Glebe or Balmain, rather than further out on the North Shore. I was reading in the paper recently about the fact that many couples with young children who would usually have moved further out once they started a family are choosing to stay in the city as they don't want to give up the lifestyle on their doorstep. There are lots of lovely (very Sydney) terraces with plenty of space for a family of three, and you don't have to drive for 15 minutes to get to a pub! Drummoyne might also be worth checking out - my sister lived there with two young kids and loved it.

hubbard

One thing to consider when looking inner West (Drummoyne, Strathfield etc) is the plane noise. The inner west suburbs tend to be smack in the Sydney flight path. I went to a friend's house in Drummoyne the other Saturday and couldn't believe the plane noise. We rented in the Eastern suburbs (Paddington) for 2 yeras and loved it but when we came to buy we just couldn't afford the Eastern suburbs some inner west too (Glebe) (terrace houses 2/3 beds priced upwards of $1million). We ended up in St Ives with a 3 bed place for $890K but like another poster we miss the vibrancy of the inner suburbs.

paddyo

The city hobo website mentioned that about the planes, its amazing how close they come.

Jacque

If you can afford it and still want that city buzz with all the cafes etc look around the Crows Nest (Lower North Shore) area. Also consider Lane Cove- has both pubs and family homes as well.

paddyo

Thats exactly where we were looking tonight. We are pretty much happy with the prob areas now and just need to do the physical recce when we get there.