Re: Moving out soon!!!!
 

My wife doesn't work at the moment as we have a 3 year old daughter. Suppose thats a job in itself!!!!

I am a civil engineer and I intend to secure work in or around the Perth area if possible. I don't mind commuting as long as its less than an hour. Spare time wise we're looking for a family friendly location with plenty of parks/ leisure facilities. Reputable kindergarten/ primary schools would also be a bonus so we don't need to move in the near future. The beach isn't a big thing to us although we the odd day out without a long trek wouldn't be a bad thing!! Hope this helps and thanks for the help.

Re: Moving out soon!!!!
 

It certainly is! As she is so close to starting kindy, it would be a good idea to plan for an area near good schools, although it is quite hard to know which is a good school or not. Insider information is great, and you have some time to ask questions of anyone on here and people you meet at playgroup or pre-kindy sessions. It's always harder with a first child, but there are lots of people around with older kids to help you out.

There are lots of suburbs in Perth with large and small parks. I think that being fairly close to a swimming pool is a good thing, for keeping cool on hot days, exercise for you both, and swimming lessons for your daughter. A lot of pools also have gyms, creche, vacation care, etc. Kids love playing at swimming pool centres. For some people a pool is an essential when renting or buying a house. If you have a child, then a garden is important, rather than just a courtyard.

As a civil engineer, I would think you would have no problem finding work in Perth, and on a decent wage. There's no need to spend a long time commuting if you don't need to, especially when the infrastructure gets thinner as you move away from the centre. Why spend an hour commuting, when you can spend 20 minutes? There is easy access to the beach from many Perth suburbs.

Look at www.reiwa.com.au for properties to rent, and try looking under the sub-regions Stirling or Joondalup. Joondalup suburbs are further north, Stirling suburbs are closer to the CBD. In general, the closer to the coast you are (near West Coast Highway), the more desirable and expensive it is, it's cheaper between West Coast Highway and the Mitchell Freeway, cheaper again between the Mitchell Freeway and Wanneroo Road, and generally cheaper the further east you go. Saving money on rent, though, might well put you in a dodgy suburb = dodgy neighbours = dodgy parents at the local school. This is not to say that there are not lots of great people in those suburbs, but the lower rents and property prices increase the risks. You can end up paying more rent in one of the newer houses further north than you would in an older home closer in. Some inner suburbs have small high street shops, cafes and pubs, newer suburbs tend to have large shopping centres but little character once they're closed at 5.30 pm. Have a look at Yokine, Karrinyup, Carine, Duncraig, to give you a general idea. Also look at the properties to buy, to give you an idea if you could afford to buy there eventually.