Newcastle

Loopy · 03-04-2008, 05:21 AM

Hi, first post :)

I'm living in NZ and hoping to move to Newcastle end of this year or early next year. Unfortunately we have a house just built in the middle of nowhere to sell and NZ isn't exactly a sellers market atm!

We've chosen Newcastle because we have family there but since visiting last year have decided it's awesome. We've traveled up the East coast years ago and holidayed in WA.

Hoping to do teacher training at Uni of Newcastle, husband is a nurse, so hopefully won't struggle to find work.

Loopy.

sandramcd · 04-06-2008, 01:00 PM

Hi there, I'm intrigued by your post and how you think Newcastle is awesome. My husband is there at the moment for an interview at the uni, and hates it! I've done lots of research and thought it looked lovely, please can you tell me as many good things/areas/places as possible so I can encourage him to be more positive?! We have 5 kids and I had pinned my hopes on a bigger house, more space, better weather etc. Anything you've got to offer would be great! Thanks.

yvonne-d · 08-06-2008, 01:32 AM

Hi Sandramcd
We have just arrived in Newcastle but have got rented house about 25 mins inland, although Newcastle itself not to my taste its still quite nice, where we are in Maitland it is very pretty and very freindly. There are some lovely parks and lots of nature reserves around, and we are only 20 mins away from the cleanest most beautiful beaches we have ever seen.
Trouble is Newcastle is a city and there is a lot of industrial work around there, like all the coal trains so is not very pretty.
Hope that helps
Yvonne.

sandramcd · 09-06-2008, 09:42 PM

Hi Yvonne-d,

Thanks for your reply, funnily enough he came back feeling slightly more positive and mentioned areas out towards you. He was offered the job but still can't quite decide if it's the right move for us. What can you tell me about schools? Yours are older than mine (5 between 10 weeks and 10 years) but you might have a good insight, being there already. He has about 48 hrs to decide...!

Sandra

yvonne-d · 25-06-2008, 10:52 PM

Sorry i did not get back to you sooner but we have been away, what did you decide are you comming over? schools look very good, the school my 10 year old is going to could not have been more helpful, it is two years old and very small so very small classes and very pretty.
hope your still comming over, if you are and we can help at all let us know..
Yvonne.

sandramcd · 27-06-2008, 08:49 PM

Hi Yvonne,
yes we will be heading your way in the New Year! Husband took the job at the Uni and was recommended to look at areas like Maryland and Fletcher out to the west of Newcastle, Kotara, Lambton and Rankin Park in the middle and Warners Bay to the south by the Lake. All look lovely to me on google earth! I think schools are my main priority, although there look like lots of fab new builds out at Maryland which are very tempting! My head is still spinning and I'm not sure where to start!
Sandra

yvonne-d · 28-06-2008, 05:20 AM

Congrats on job, if you need any help at all let me know have lots of bits might tide you over if in unfurnished rented till your bits arrive, our container arrives monday so we are all excited.
Funny how you can get excited over furniture you have had for years..lol
We looked at kotara ect but found moving a bit further out gave us more for our money.
hope all goes well on visa ect,
Yvonne.

Matt & Sarah · 30-06-2008, 12:19 PM

We're moving to Oz in just 7 weeks and are coming to Newcastle as I've got a job at the JHH. We won't need to find somewhere for a while as we'll be in Tamworth up until the 2nd November. We've been researching various subburbs for where would be best for us. We'd like to stay fairly central and have been reccommended Charlestown by a local, but one of the nurses I work with here has just spent some time over there and said that it was a bit run-down and much preferred Merewether. Do you have any thoughts on that, Yvonne?

sandramcd · 30-06-2008, 02:00 PM

My husband said exactly the same about Charlestown which surprised me. All the houses I'd looked at on line seemed great but I guess there's more to it. I've spent hours going between google earth and one of the websites that gives details about the different suburbs - can't think what it's called now! - to try and get an idea of schools, shopping centres and so on. Our main problem is that we'll have to enrol the kids in schools we've never seen, so it's quite scary! Merewether looks like a great area with loads going on.
Good luck with your search!
Sandra

yvonne-d · 30-06-2008, 11:30 PM

Hi all,
We did look at Charlestown but we found it was very hard to get rented and the rented you could get was not so good. We are about 25 mins from newcastle hubby says easy journey, locals think its a bad journey but more than 10 cars on road they think is busy... We came a little further out and we have rented a 2 year old house with 4 beds formal lounge diner, family room(kitchen, lounge, diner) utility downstairs full bath, rumpus room upstairs, and two baths upstairs.
We are close to main highway and two towns, we also have a big shopping center 2 mins away.
I like it here as i dont find it as built up here as it can be when you get closer to Newcastle.
Yvonne.