Ryem78

Hi all,

We met a lovely Aussie woman today who suggested we might be happier in Wollongong or Newcastle rather than Sydney (Hornsby). As we haven't considered either, I'd love to get some thought on both areas?!

A bit about us:
- We're in our early 30's
- OH is an accountant, I'm in Marketing
- We'd like to start a family once we're settled, so we're not looking for anything too "hectic"
- OH loves surfing so we'd need to be a reasonable commute (30 mins?) from the beach
- We NEED space! Living in a 1 bed flat in central London does that to you
- Rental budget would be $350 - 450 for a min 2 bed, but when we get round to buying (in about 1 - 2 years time hopefully) we'd be looking for a min 3 bed house with a large garden/plot for $500 - 700k

We'd love any advise on
- Wollongong and Newcastle generally
- Nice suburbs/areas worth considering in/around either city
- Any info/thoughts regarding jobs/industries in either area
- Anything else worth sharing!

Thanks in advance!

Hutch

Don't know much about Newcastle, but Wollongong's just up the road from here. It was built on heavy industry and there's still some left in the form of the BlueScope steel plant which dominates the waterfront near the harbour. Lots of European labour was brought over to work in the steel factories after the war and their influence is still visible in the town with lots of Greek, Italian and Eastern European clubs, restaurants etc.

As with anywhere else, there are grotty bits of 'the gong' and some lovely villagey bits. It's certainly a good place to job hunt for you both - very busy city. Living wise I'd look outside Wollongong though - you have gorgeous places like Kiama (right on the coast and with a world class surf break called The Farm) and Jamberoo (10km inland - lovely semi-rural town) within a short commute.

ponyrama

And north of the gong you've got lovely beachside villages like Thirroul, Stanwell Park, Scarborough, Coldedale etc. All on the train line from Sydney Central (1 hour ish) to Wollongong (15 minutes). Can be pricey but you'd get a nice 3 bed for your budget if you bided your time.

Good live music on every week in the "locals", good schools, hardly any crime etc etc. I love it. Oh and the surf is awesome and if you are only 30 minutes from the Farm if we get a south swell in a noreaster.

Postcode is 2515 - get checking out the realestate for rentals and sales - try realestate.com.au or domain.com.au - that will give you an idea.

Good Luck whatever you choose to do.

esperanza

Kids, surfing and space? unless you're made of money you don't want to be in sydney! wollongong and newcastle both lovely places, i'm in newcastle but have mates down south and from the shire south is just beautiful coast.
Can access sydney from both areas for the occasional commute or weekend, personally i wouldn't do it on a daily basis but some people do.

Newcastle for sure will offer you heaps more for your money in terms of rent, and also buying. Less issues with traffic, generally a more relaxed pace compared to sydney. Gorgeous beaches, great for surfing, and economically on the up & moving away from industrial past.

Ryem78

Thanks esperanza, ponyrama and hutch!

We considered areas like Stanwell Park to Woonona quite some time ago, but realised the commuting distance into Sydney would be too great. We hadn't considered commuting from there to Wollongong though - guess we just wrote it off cos we thought we'd be more likely to find jobs in Sydney than Wollongong??!! We have friends and family in Wollongong & Woonona so my OH would be keen to head that way if we could find jobs. Any thoughts on employment opportunities in Wollongong? I know it's a silly question tho - prob best to keep an eye on job sites to get an idea.

The thing that appealed about Newcastle (other than the beaches), was the affordability and availability of acreage nearby. One day (in our dreams!) we'd like a really big plot of land. Is that possible in the Wollongong area? From what I can tell (and may be completely wrong!!) there are towns all up the coast, and then nothing inland?

Thanks again!

ponyrama

Ah theres plenty of places around the south coast you could get land. You just have to go the otherside of the escarpment but you'd still be only half an hour from the beach. Places like Appin, Picton, Tahmoor, Jamberoo, Robertson, even west of Albion Park and Shellharbour - all have rural property and lifestyle blocks.

simmoman

I moved to Newcastle in 2005 having considered both the Gong and Newy I have been to Stanwell and everywere else down to the Gong. There are some nice places but they are pretty expensive. When I got to Oz I got to spend some time in the Gong working at Port Kemba Steelworks (not a nice place really). The Gong is very different to Newcastle and personally I think Newcastle is a nicer place but I am biased because I lived there for 3 years.

Newcastle is growing at a massive rate and has shrugged off its industrial past. The steel works are long gone and the beaches are stunning and not busy. Housing within 30 mins drive of the CBD is reasonably priced and abundant. Wages are not far off Sydney levels. People in Newcastle are generally more laid back than Sydney and there are loads of things to do and see without having to battle through the suburbs. My house is 30 mins from the CBD (and its beaches) 30 mins from the Hunter Valley Vineyards and 40 mins from Port Stephens (Blue Water paradise) and 5 mins from the end of the freeway to Sydney...I chose Newcastle without even having been there and it exceeded my expectations...look it up

Hutch

Funnily enough they were talking about this exact subject on ABC radio the other day. Because Newcastle and Wollongong are so similar having once had massive heavy industry which is now either gone or going. They said pretty much the opposite of what you've said - that Wollongong was doing a far superior job at reinventing itself, was considerably more bouyant and showed far greater growth potential having attracted lots of 'new' industries like solar power.

And not wanting to turn this into a pissing contest ( ) but south of Wollongong you've got Kiama, Seven Mile Beach, Jervis Bay (!), Berry and Kangeroo Valley (not to mention Mollymook and Batemans Bay further south again) and inland you've got the Southern Highlands. Four of the best surf beaches on the whole NSW coast are in the catchment area (Surf Beach, The Farm, Mystics and Mollymook).

Prices between Wollongong and Sydney seem very similar to central coast prices, but if you work in the gong and live south of there, you're spoilt for choice and value.

ponyrama

Go the Gong! Yay!

stevenglish

The Gong is a great place and I love living there, I've been pretty much spending all my time working in Newcastle for the last 6 months. I have to say the gong CBD stands up very well indeed against Newie, which in parts looks derelict, almost has the feel of a dying town . The foreshore and beaches are stunning as you'd expect, but I'm not a massive fan of the place, although the Hunter Valley is bloody fantastic in places. Give me Wollongong any day, we recently moved from Fairy Meadow to Figtree and are happy as pigs in shite.

Also, I used to commute from Wollongong to Chatswood, 80 minutes each way if you time it to miss the worst of the traffic, tough decision you got to make but job prospects has got to be the driver

Good luck

simmoman

I dont really want to play out the Gong or Newy...'which is best' argument as we all choose different places to live for very different reasons. When i was trying to choose somewhere to move too I looked for a number of things, climate, affordable housing, less than 30 mins commute from a rural lifestyle to work in the CBD, plenty of beautiful beaches and an easy commute to Sydney. Both the Gong and Newy have these. What made the decision for me was the fact the Newcastle housing was still very affordable and there was plenty of very well paid work in my profession as a Civil Engineer due to the expansion of the Hunter Coalfields.

Since then a number of things have convinced me I made the right decision. GPT which is one of Australia's largest property development companies has committed 100's of millions of dollars to the complete redevelopment of Newcastle's run down Hunter Street Mall. This will transform Newcastle City Centre. Another significant reason for choosing Newy was the expansion of the Airport which has grown significantly over the years and now offers not only domestic flights but international also and this will grow again as demand increases. The recently announced $1.5 billion extension of the F3 to Branxton which I understand is the biggest infrastructure investment in NSW also signal the growth potential of the region which is also reflected by the fact that Maitland (just outside Newy) is the biggest growing government area in NSW.

Because of all of this Newy appealled to me. I wanted to be somewhere that I would get a good return on my property as it grew, had plenty of work opportunities and somewhere that was on the up rather than at the top of its growth. This combined with easy access to Port Stephens, Lake Macquarie and the Hunter Vineyards did it for me....Good look with your search and I hope we have all given you something to think about.

iamthecreaturefromuranus

Can't speak for Newcastle, but I live South of the Gong and the big problem you would find, compared to Sydney, is finding jobs in your lines of work. Unemployment is high in the Illawarra and there are plenty of people commuting from the Gong into Sydney for work.... and its not a quick trip.

Hectic is not the way to describe the Gong and that in itself is something to keep in mind. You may be looking for a quieter lifestyle... but parts of Oz can be deathly quiet when compared to central London. Be careful what you wish for !

Other than that, as others have said, the areas around the Gong have everything you seem to want. If you can find work locally then you could probably be pretty happy in and around the Gong.

dunolly street

Hello All, trying to locate my relatives, In Wollongong, the dillons,James&Katie. They moved there from Gasgow in the 50 s, any help would be much appreciated, Thank-You.

Hutch

Whitepages search only turned up 14 Dillons (and three J Dillons) in Wollongong - I suspect that if give 'em all a ring, you'll get on the trail of your relatives.

dunolly street

Cheers Hutch, will try.