Anything bad about Melbourne?

[gail.crease]

First I'd just like to say thank you to the person who set up this website and to everyone's contributions. It's been more informative than any other website we've found. It has helped us to decide on Melbourne to settle in.

We have our health checks booked for tomorrow and my case officer said if everything is ok our visa will be approved early in the New Year. :D We plan on doing a rekkie to Melbourne at Easter time and move later in the year.

I've researched everything I can on Melbourne and I've not come across anything negative about it. I'm sure there must be. Can anyone who lives there tell me if there are any bad points. It would be really helpful to know before we arrive so won't be disappointed with anything.

One of our reasons for moving to Oz (amongst lots of others) is so my husband doesn't have to commute. We have a 3 year old and a new baby that he doesn't get to see much. He spends 4 hours a day commuting to London so a 20 minute journey to work in the sunshine would be heaven for him :D . We also want to live near water so we've decided on the Bayside area. I know it's really expensive but we plan to keep our house in the UK and rent over there. It's more important to us to live in the best place we can to live our Oz dream than be in a place we don't like to afford a house. Based on what I've read on the housing market and high stamp duty in Melbourne we think we're better off keeping our house here for the short term. Anyone know of any negative points on Bayside (apart from the high cost of houses)? Are there any other good suburbs with either beaches or lakes that are easy to commute to the CBD?

Last question....how do the locals like the Brits? I've read negative things about other areas but not much about Melbourne. Are we accepted? Is it easy to make aussie friends? The reason I ask is we've lived abroad before (Bermuda and Switzerland) and we've found in each case that in general the local people, although pleasant, prefer to keep to themselves and not mix with foreigners socially. This time we want to feel like we belong and not just a visitor.

Has anyone used a relocation company? Would appreciate a recommendation for one.

[mikeandjayne]

Hi there

I've attached a link to a post I made about a month ago, since then...it's just getting better! Hope this helps

Good luck

Mike & Jayne

http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2443

[The Terry Family]

Hi, We have just joined the site tonight and wondered if there is any chance you could email us the pdf on 'where to live in melbourne'. We have enrolled in college course to start july 08 and have just started to look into places to live and schools etc. Any advice you have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
ps how do we go about exchanging email addresses?

[kevin/jayne]

If you click on our name I think it should tell you what to do to send us a private message.

[Lardyarse]

Wherebouts have your enrolled in college for July 2008? Then you can search local Aussies websites for other info. Let me know. I think I can send a private message also... hang on, I'll try

[Les & Woz]

Originally Posted by gail.crease

First I'd just like to say thank you to the person who set up this website and to everyone's contributions. It's been more informative than any other website we've found. It has helped us to decide on Melbourne to settle in.

We have our health checks booked for tomorrow and my case officer said if everything is ok our visa will be approved early in the New Year. :D We plan on doing a rekkie to Melbourne at Easter time and move later in the year.

I've researched everything I can on Melbourne and I've not come across anything negative about it. I'm sure there must be. Can anyone who lives there tell me if there are any bad points. It would be really helpful to know before we arrive so won't be disappointed with anything.

One of our reasons for moving to Oz (amongst lots of others) is so my husband doesn't have to commute. We have a 3 year old and a new baby that he doesn't get to see much. He spends 4 hours a day commuting to London so a 20 minute journey to work in the sunshine would be heaven for him :D . We also want to live near water so we've decided on the Bayside area. I know it's really expensive but we plan to keep our house in the UK and rent over there. It's more important to us to live in the best place we can to live our Oz dream than be in a place we don't like to afford a house. Based on what I've read on the housing market and high stamp duty in Melbourne we think we're better off keeping our house here for the short term. Anyone know of any negative points on Bayside (apart from the high cost of houses)? Are there any other good suburbs with either beaches or lakes that are easy to commute to the CBD?

Last question....how do the locals like the Brits? I've read negative things about other areas but not much about Melbourne. Are we accepted? Is it easy to make aussie friends? The reason I ask is we've lived abroad before (Bermuda and Switzerland) and we've found in each case that in general the local people, although pleasant, prefer to keep to themselves and not mix with foreigners socially. This time we want to feel like we belong and not just a visitor.

Has anyone used a relocation company? Would appreciate a recommendation for one.

Hi
Good luck on your move, we are also going to Melbourne.
Have you looked at Geelong and the areas along the coast that way. About 1 hour to the city from there and all looks great. We are going to stay with relatives when we go so will have a base from which to search around til we find what we like. Please come back on here and let us all know how you get on?

Warren & Lesley

[Pinhead]

I lived in the Melbourne CBD for 6 months in 2004.

Negatives
Begging around the main shopping areas (I was approached on average once a week, 'got any spare change')
Grafitti around the railway lines

Positives
Everything else, Melbourne rocks!

Don't be put off by the area around the airport or the trip in. North Melbourne is a lot less nicer than the southern suburbs (Carlton area excepted).

Despite what you hear from the locals Melbourne has an excellent transport system (especially compare to the UK). Commuting from anywhere near a train station or tram stop is easy in Melbourne to the CPD.

Australians are very opening an welcoming, even to the point of being overly direct compare to the brits. To get along with aussies make the effort and don't turn down invitations to bbq, trips to the pub etc. You may not get a second invitation.

Regarding house prices.
The UK is inline for a serious downturn over the next few years (20-40%) where as Oz is getting near the end of a property boom but probably has a couple of years yet to go.
Although I never suggest you sell up and move all your assets to oz without at least 6 months of living there I would seriously consider selling up & leaving the cash in a UK bank.
Trying to sell your UK property from overseas will be a lot harder and you'll have the flexibility to get the best of the exchange rate.

[derekcrowley@hotmail.co.u]

Melbourne, the aussies you will find very direct in there approach to you, what you see is what you get, very friendly and open about life, i lived in melbourne for 20 years, made lots of genuine aussie friends, don't compare uk with oz, just try to adapt to the aussie way of life, and i am sure you will enjoy it immensely. Regards Derek.