lcgeordie

Hi,

Can anyone give me any advice on what Victoria is like and nice places to live in Victoria? Does it have many parks, restaurants etc?

Any info will be much appreciated!!

Thanks
Lynsey

lonndongeek

The size of England is approximately 130,000 km2. The size of Victoria is approximately 237,000 km2 - You may want to be a bit more specific.

Saying that though, I'm sure that you can find a park and a restaurant in Victoria somewhere. A nice place to live may be stretching things a bit.

Cheers

LG

lcgeordie

Hi,
thanks for that!!

What do you mean when you say finding a nice place to live may be stretching things? Does that mean victoria is not a very nice place?

What about Eltham in victoria?

Thanks
Lynsey

jothefw

Lynsey - welcome!

Top tip for the delightful BE forum, take everything with a pinch of salt! There are some excellent pieces of advice on here, however you have to sort through some unhelpful advice to find it!

There is, too, a little inter-state competition, it's a little like Lancashire being against Yorkshire etc!

However one point that was valid, Victoria is large. Eltham can be more specific but perhaps if you wanted to explain where you are planning to work, what you enjoy doing in your spare time etc there will be lots of helpful advice.

The search facility in each forum area is also very good, defo worth a try!

Now to Victoria from someone that lives on it's border (SA side) it's lovely, nice areas to ski in, Melbourne is awesome and the coast line is stunning. I am certain you'll find something that suits if Victoria is your aim!

bcworld

Eltham is very nice.

It's an outer northern suburb of Melbourne, very green & leafy. Housing costs are reasonable (in Melbourne terms) and there is a busy town centre with shops, restaurants etc.

Train is about 45 mins into the city. Outside of peak hours we can drive it in less than 25 mins (OH's parents live there).

monkeyalan

Eltham has some great roads for doing burnouts in your Commodore/Falcon judging by the amount of black lines all over the back roads.

The (normal) traffic is pretty heavy during peak times by all accounts too.

we're looking at moving to Doncaster , Donvale , Templestowe , Bulleen which are slighlty south of Eltham and have better reviews/scores on Real Estate and feel a lot less claustrophobic than Eltham.

lcgeordie

Hi jothefw,

How long have you lived in Melbourne? Me and OH are just in the process of starting to think about a move to OZ. We have 2 children aged 6 and 3. My Partner is a bricklayer & I work pt for NHS24 as a Call Handler!! We have family over in Eltham, Victoria although I have not met any of the family!! Im going to make a few phone calls this wk to them to get some advice. My partner is going to attend an emigrating roadshow this wk in Glasgow. He is planning on going over for a holiday for a few mths & staying with my great uncle to suss the areas out, schools etc then hopefully we will start the ball rolling for emigrating. Ive never been before so havent got a clue what its like, only what I see when I watch wanted down under lol.

Any advice will be much appreciated!!

Thanks
Lynsey

elice_in_oz

I certainly wouldn't call Eltham claustrophobic! You must be confusing it with Greensborough, although even some parts of Greensborough are quite nice.

Eltham is quite hilly, loads of huge tall gum trees, very close to the Yarra Valley (wine region with temperate rainforests nearby) and on a major train line (unlike Templestowe, Bulleen, Doncaster or Donvale - these to me are the epitome of suburbia gone a bit over the top with sprawling residential areas with no facilities nearby. Each to their own I guess ) so very accessible to and from the city.

As bcworld said, housing costs are reasonable (by Melbourne standards ) although anything within walking distance of the town centre or the station is going to be more expensive. Eltham has a mix of large acreage, large blocks with single large houses, smaller blocks with normal sized houses and subdivided blocks with units and small townhouses. Most state schools are OK, some better than others and there are some private schools not too far as well. IMHO, Eltham (and surrounds where we live ) is quite lovely although my little neighbouring suburb has more of a community feel and a great village atmosphere where you get to know people quickly.

Both my OH and I work in the city, and the commute is usually OK, about 45 mins on the express trains. The drive is shorter but only outside rush hour.

Hope that helps!

bcworld

Me either...I found that comment bizarre!

elice_in_oz

Linsey, Jo lives near the border between Victoria and South Australia, on the South Australia side, so nowhere near Melbourne really

Before you even think of where to live, make sure you qualify for a visa by checking the immigration website. The visa process can be quite long and drawn out with many hurdles so it would be better to focus on that rather than on places to live at the moment. Eltham is not going anywhere fast

elice_in_oz

It is certainly less claustrophobic than Shoppingtown! Personally, I can't see the attraction of Doncaster and the likes as the PT is shite and all the houses look the same. But hey, horses for course and all that

lcgeordie

Thanks elice, my partner has applied for a visa and been accepted!! Are you originally from the uk? Do you live near eltham then?

Im just looking to find out about areas which are good for kids growing up and near local amenities etc.

Thanks

stuartsummers1980

The realestate.com suburb scores are a waste of time, pay no attention. So subjective that they don't tell you anything tangible.

Dorothy

What visa has he (you both) been granted? Where you live and work will depend on the conditions on his visa.

lcgeordie

Hi Dorothy,

Ill find out when he gets home from work and let you know. Where do you live? Can you offer any advice on emigrating?

Thanks
Lynsey