KiwiKaye

Arrived the first time in July 1996, left in 2009, came back in 2012 and still here.  Loving it.

If you are coming over with children, it's unlikely you will be living in the CBD anyway, as the only housing is apartments, mostly inhabited by singles and students.  Where you should look will depend very much on where you will be working, and your budget for rent/buying.

Hi,

There aren't very many schools actually in Melbourne CBD.  If you check www.myschool.edu.au and enter the postcode 3000 into the search section on the right-hand side, it doesn't generate any public schools - only private, and not many of them.  There will be more choices in suburbs immediately surrounding the CBD.  If you can share more about where you are looking, and whether primary or secondary it will help.

Well, it doesn't sound like you are worried about schools, so that makes it a bit easier.  Williamstown is a lovely place to live,  but expensive to buy in.  Commute if you are working in Port Melbourne should be ok, but bear in mind that if you are driving the West Gate Bridge can be a nightmare in peak hours.  There is a train from Williamstown to the city and then a tram to port Melbourne, but depending on where you need to get to, that total trip could take up to an hour.

As for other things, once you get here you will need to organise Medicare, tax file no., and bank accounts.  The bank accounts you may be able to do from the uk, but the others I believe you actually need to be here for.  

Williamstown does have lovely Cafes near the waterfront, and some beautiful walks.  Are you looking to buy eventually or just rent? If looking to buy, your potential budget will dictate where you should look.  You will need probably at least $1 million in Williamstown, but some surrounding areas could be slightly lower price wise, eg. Newport, Altona, Yarraville.  I like the beaches on the other side of the bay, and it is where we live, but the commute to work would be much worse.

Hi,

Welcome.  We've been living in Melbourne for almost 6 years this time around.  Happy to help. Whereabouts in Melbourne are you heading to, and what visa? A bit more information will help people to help you. ?

Hi. We live in Frankston. Have been here for abut 18 months now, and lived in Mt Waverley before that. We really like Frankston, and there is heaps of stuff to do for kids, but you are right that it is better to steer clear of Frankston North. It is getting better, but not there yet.

Mt Waverley was brilliant, too, but the schools are more academically minded, and very results-focussed. The main reason we mioved was because of the house prices. TBH you will struggle now I think to find a rental for $400 a week, but I have let looked for a ile, so there my be some out there. 

Based on what you've written, I would look at the areas in the Dandenong's (NOT Dandenong the suburb), such as Tecoma, Belgrave, etc. We considered that area before settling on Frankston to buy in and a friend lived in the  area for a while and really loved it.

As kevsan said, it depends on your definition of good. We're a bit further down the road in Frankston, which I love. The one main thing I would watch out for in Carrum/Patterson Lakes is the smell of the sewerage works near the Eastlink freeway. It would pay to check the proximity of any property to this site, and perhaps visit a few times at different times of the day/week to check it out. Its not a problem all of the time by any means, but when it smells, it really smells. I drive to Carrum station every day to get the train to work, and some nights coming home I have to turn the air con off to avoid the smell coming into the car.

Otherwise there's an ok shopping centre on Thompsons Road, and many more shopping options in Frankston which is about 10-15 mins down the road. 

If you like the multi-cultural aspects, then Footscray would be fine. I would also look at Coburg which is an inner-north suburb of Melbourne - Sydney Road has a great range of food shops, restaurants, etc. from all parts of the world.

Much will depend on your budget, which you won't really know until you find work. The closer you are to the city in Melbourne the more expensive it is, especially if you want to buy. Check out www.realestate.com.au and www.domain.com.au for rental and sale prices. Most of the houses for sale in the inner areas go to Auction, so the guide price means very little. You can check out past sold prices on both these websites though.

Libby,

It does depend on your budget, but when we moved to Frankston in late 2015, we had the same issue. We ended up buying in Frankston Heights, which is still in zone, albeit a little further away from the school. It is still close enough that the kids can walk to/from school (about 30 mins), and the prices are still a bit lower than Frankston South.

I don't have any particular experience on either school, only anecdotal, but one of my daughters friends moved from EMC due to issues in the school. She's is now at Frankston and doing well. I have heard that both Mt Eliza and Mornington are ok.

Just come across this thread and am thrilled to know I'm not the only PomsInOzzer in Mounty! If anyone fancies meeting up sometime, we are in our 40s with 3 kids aged 6, 7 and 10. They attend MEPS and I'm often found in Ritchies at the samples counter ;-)

Hi. I would love to meet up some time. We are up the road in Frankston, with kids aged almost 9 and 13. We are at work during the week, but around most weekends. Hope you're enjoying the area.

Don't even bother catching trains to work. It's much better driving in. Several years ago I had to attend a course in Collins Street which is the centre of the city for a week, my wife said I was mad to drive in but it was so easy. I really enjoyed the daily drive in from Frankston which only took less than an hour. At least I wasn't standing, stuffed in a carriage with a couple of hundred strangers pushing against me. I could listen to 3AW talkback radio, have a coffee and a snack, a smoke and just relax. If you go by train you have to first drive to the nearest station and then try and find a car park. If you drive you just get in your car and go. There are regular breakdowns and accidents at railway crossing that means you will be unloaded off the train and then wait forever for a bus which will make you many hours late. I know there are occasional accidents on the road that can hold you up but I would put up with that any day rather than take a train.

The problem with driving in though is not the traffic. It is the cost of parking in Melbourne CBD. If you don't have parking provided (which is rare for office jobs), it costs anything from around $14-$30 (or more) for a days parking. This is more than the daily cost of a train ticket, and then you have to add the cost of petrol and other car-related costs on to that.

To the OP - we live in Frankston which is a suburb I would recommend. The transport links are good and, as others have said, the train is fine. I drive to Carrum station each day (as I can get parking there), and if I catch an express train it takes about 45 minutes to Richmond Station (about 50 mins to Flinders Street). Otherwise I can catch a loop train straight to Parliament station which takes around 50-55 minutes. I catch a train between 7.30-8 in the morning, to get to work easily by 9, and can always get a seat. I can usually get a seat coming home too, but I do usually leave the city after the main rush hour (about 6-6.30pm most days - if I leave at around 5 it is busier).

The Cranbourne/Packenham lines also come down this way but tend to be MUCH more crowded IME. I have in the past changed at Caulfield so I can get an express straight to the loop, but have had on occasion had to let 1 or 2 trains go first as you simply couldn't get on the train, much less get a seat.

If you wanted to look at Frankston you would be able to get a reasonable house for you budget down here - look particularly at Frankston South, and many of the houses have pools. We don't but it wasn't a priority for us. My daughter has started at Frankston High this year and so far we are very impressed. Most of the primary schools are also good. Beware though that to get into the high school you will need to rent/buy in the zone.