Hey Millie,
Sadly, the sad truth is that if your oh is a carpenter, there is a lot of work but there will be travel so that is inevitable.
So my thoughts would be to think about the family side of it, as with my family, the kids generally take precedence.
We used to live in the North-West but found that it was too much hassle at the weekend getting into the city so we moved. We now live in the North Shore, Lane Cove to be exact. We rent, and it is expensive compared to out west, but we like it as it is a very family friendly area. No clubs (discos) but there are a couple of pubs. We are, in the morning, 30 mins on the express bus to the CBD and the Northern Beaches are a 30 mins drive from here on the weekend.
If you're Catholic, there is a very good school here too...there is also public one too.
Look, that's my two-cents worth, if you want any more info about this area, let me know......
Try to get info from people actually living in the areas that you are thinking about,
Ta,
Harry