Megalou

Hi all, New to site and first thread, hopefully people can help.
i am bringing my wife, 2yr old and 3month old to Sydney early next year. My Job will be based out of Smeaton grange but we have never actually visited NSW so a bit of a leap of faith.

Firstly and i think most importantly with a young family is deciding on where to look at rental property and who to use? Cambeltown, Camden , South Camden? i assume some areas are more sort after than others but do not have a clue where to start?

i have planned on $400 a week for rental for a 3 bed with sizable safe garden, Is this possible?

i am tempted to invest in a quick visit to help this decision as with no local knowledge i am concerned we will end up tainting this exciting chapter.

Grateful for any advice?

many thanks

D.

NickyC

Any of the Narellan suburbs should suit you fine. It's an area full of new houses complete with masses of young families. Camden itself is a much older area - it's one of the original towns in NSW and was settled very early.

You should be able to find what you want very close to Smeaton Grange - no need to go any further afield to Campbelltown really. Why commute further than you have to? Harrington Park is probably the most upmarket suburb around there. Very nicely landscaped with its own lake and bike paths plus a small shopping centre.

Edited to add that $400 a week is a bit on the low side. If you up the budget to $450 you'd get a much better choice.

Megalou

Thanks Nicky C,

Looking for some reassurance really as stated we do not have a knowledge of this area or Sydney apart from what i have read - Very expensive, good beaches etc.
We have visited the Sunshine Coast on several occasions to see family and friends and ideally would of liked to make Brisbane our place of residence but that may come next i guess.

Interested in Pros and cons for the area but your comments suggest we might be pleasantly suprised as long as we can afford the rent!

Damo

NickyC

The Narellan/Camden area is new-build central. 20 years ago it was rural farmland - now it's multiple new housing estates.

It's not expensive around there. Contrary to what you read here - not every Sydney-sider earns a fortune. The average wage in Sydney is around $70k which means an awful lot of people earn less than that. Plenty of young families don't earn a fortune, they do need housing and Narellan/Camden is the sort of area where they buy.

It's not a classy area, it's a long way to the CBD and even further to the beach (it's closer to Wollongong beaches than Sydney's). It will be hot in the summer. Having said that, it's actually quite nice. Brand new houses, schools, heaps of facilities for the kids - sporting opportunities, swimming pools, etc., all the shops you could need locally.

Depends what you're looking for really. For the price, the area's pretty good. You could live somewhere classier - but you'd be paying a lot more (and commuting further).

bournemouthglen

Hi there, did u ever make the big move over here? If so I live in mount annan which is opposite smeatin grange and can highly recommend the area. If u r already here please let me know and I'll buy u a beer!

Thanks glen

Megalou

Hi Glen,
Cheers for the mail.
The big move is planned for this January. Good to hear positive feedback as we have been looking at Mount annan along with Harrington park and Nerellan via real estate - We are a little apprehensive but i am sure it will make sense once we can get a feel of the local amenities.
Thank you for the offer which i am sure i will take you up on when i arrive. How long have you lived in area?
Is there much to do for a worn out dad when he gets a day or night off?

Kind regards,

Damian

bournemouthglen

Hi Damien

We've lived over here for just over a year now so we are only just finding our feet too. This area is a great place to bring up the kids as it's a new area with lots of green parts and reserves. The only down side is that if your into the pub life like myself then its not so good as there isn't many around here. We also have two kids and when we arrived my partner found some parent toddler groups and has made some good friends through them, i on the otherhand have struggled a bit as the local pub isn't that easy to get talking to people in, in saying that its only an hours train ride into the city where it can be alot easier to socialise. All in all i couldn't imagine being back in the uk anymore and we are very happy that we made the big move over. If theres anything i can help with from this end then please let me know.

Cheers Glen