Hi Mate,
I live at Bondi Beach, 2 mins away from the water and rent my own place for $460 per week, its pretty big too. I have sacrificed the extra money in my pocket for location - after all it's free to go to the beach, cheap to have a bbq etc. haha!
Bondi junction is 7minutes to the city, Martin Place/Town Hall so it's ideal to get into the city for work.
Best advice is pay around $450-500 in a good location where there's stuff to do that doesn't involve a lot of money, swimming, running, surfing etc, that way you have the best of both you know.