Ahames

5 hours ago, Ronsaik said:

Not a Pom here, just thought I’d pitch in nervetheless. The wife and I moved up from Sydney to Bateau Bay earlier this year. We both work in the Sydney CBD and knew what’s we were getting into. It’s up at 5 am and leave by 5:40 for a 20 minute drive to Gosford station. Park the car and take the 6:24 to reach Wynyard at 7:44. In the evening, we both take the 5:35 back from Wynyard. I get work done on the commute but I have a desk job. It helps that the company allows me to work from home one day in the week.

For a trades job, commuting to Sydney from the CC wouldn’t be a realistic option.

Hey, thanks for your in put, always good to hear.

i can see desk jobs being easier on the commute for sure.

we are heading over in 4wks to scope it out!!

1 hour ago, Quoll said:

A January birthday child would generally have started kindergarten as they turn 5 so she would have started K in 2013 which means that she would indeed start year 6 in  2019.  Theoretically they could have waited but with a middle of the year (as per cut off) birthday parents tend not to hold kids back an extra year.

Thank you  

Just now, Ahames said:

Awesome, that sounds great. Thank you  

20 hours ago, Serendipity said:

I registered my two into school and they went for the last 3 weeks of term. There are so many people on the Central Coast from the UK that you will be welcomed with open arms, trust me. People went out of their way to make us feel welcome when we first arrived!

Awesome, that sounds great. Thank you  

actually can you help with school years.

maisie was born 29/1/08....she’ll start year 6 in January, is that correct?

36 minutes ago, Serendipity said:

Hi

We live in Avoca Beach, it's wonderful! We came out exactly 2 years ago from the UK, we have 2 kids aged 8 and 10 now so schools are on my radar. Avoca and Terrigal can be expensive, but we rent a 3 bedroom house with study, living area/ kitchen, one bathroom, huge garden (relative to what gardens people seem to have over here) and are 5 mins walk to Avoca Beach! We pay £550 per week. Our last rental was a 5 bed house, 2 bathroom and on the lake, so stunning views, but we paid over £900 a week. If you can glimpse the water from where you are, they add  $$$$ to the rental cost!

When we looked at Sydney rentals when we first arrived, I couldn't stand how much they were asking, we visited the central coast and  agreed to move to the CC and my husband bite the bullet with his commute. My husband works in Sydney, Macquarie Park, and it has been gruelling for him. Macquarie park is an arse of a place to get to, he mixes driving with the train from Woy Woy. He has done it for 2 years. I don't know about Alexandria...

We did look at Berowra when we first arrived, and it may be worthwhile looking there. You know, some people do it for many years - if he gets the train it will be an early start but people sleep on the train, and it's a beautiful journey on a nice day.....and on a Friday he's heading to the central coast every weekend! Awesome!!

If you want to pm me I am happy to give you more info on the area. I am community Occupational Therapist on the central coast so I visit most places. There are areas to avoid for sure, but many stunning places.

Good luck

Becky

Becky - you sound like my guardian angel

House sounds perfect that’s what we’d be after!

we plan a holiday rental, then we can distribute ourselves out to different areas and see what’s on offer. 

How do you find schools so far?

someone gave me a link, it was 2015, but lots of red spots - I assumed this wasn’t great?!

thank you for helping thou.

David is willing to commute to come home to cc, so I can see the definite draws. 

im getting very excited  

2 hours ago, Marisawright said:

That's what I was thinking.   

The median house price on that realestate.com.au website is a good way to get a rough idea of whether you can afford a suburb.

The median house price for Hornsby is $1.2 million.  That's more expensive than any of the suburbs to the South, which you were saying you couldn't afford.    What it tells you is that anything cheap in Hornsby is going to be in an area you wouldn't want to live in! 

1.2 M bargain!!

thanks for pointing out, because we’ll be renting first off, rent is do-able, so it seems we can afford to live there.

also holiday let’s / hotels are affordable too...

ill look more into it but think we like Berowra. 

2 hours ago, Anolo Lohgun said:

Schools: https://www.myschool.edu.au/

Hornsby is nice but no longer 'cheap', hasn't been for a very long time. There are some rough areas of Hornsby that I would avoid, but it's all priced in.

NSW Crime Mapping tool is useful to scout an area: http://crimetool.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/bocsar/

Change to "malicious property damage" -> change type to "Hot Spot" and there you go. Sydney is generally safe area but there are hot spots to avoid.

Another good tool is the Social Atlas (based on the census): https://atlas.id.com.au/central-coast-nsw (go to the root to get another local authority)

Are you familiar with the index of multiple deprivation in the UK? There's something similar, you can map this using the social atlas, look for SEIFA index of disadvantage. It's not exactly the same thing, but enough to get the same feeling of an area.

Here it is for Hornsby LA: https://atlas.id.com.au/hornsby

 

Brilliant, thank you very much

ill look through the links

5 hours ago, Quoll said:

Don't bother. Find the house you want to live in and then enrol them in school - you're going to need a permanent address before you can enrol them anyway. Don't worry about making friends to pay with over the holidays, there'll be kids in the neighbourhood, a few holiday programs most likely and you'll be in settling in mode having adventures so they won't be fed up. But, finding a house you want to live in 24/7 in a suburb that offers you all that you want, had housing in your price range and has vacancies that you are prepared to take, it's going to be your priority. Once you've done that (and I hesitate to say but you're not going at the best time of year to do it) then the school will fall into place. General rule of thumb is that if you wouldn't want to live in a suburb, you sure as hell don't want to send your kids to school in that suburb. Nobody gives a toss if kids are out of school for a few months while you get settled.

Why not a suburb?

why not a school in that suburb?

dont you have to be within postcode area for school..so I won’t have a choice?

3 hours ago, The Pom Queen said:

We have done this both ways. When we first moved from the UK we took the kids off school for 3 month, it was a long holiday for them, we went to Qld and did a road trip and used the time to find a Suburb and area we were really happy with.

When we moved to Cairns from Melbourne there were 3 weeks left of the school term and we were going to wait until the new year until the principal commented that he found children settled more if they start straight away. In this instance I have to agree my eldest said it was a better process for him as he now knew what his new school was like, had made friends and didn’t need to stress about it over the summer holidays.

Personally I don’t think either way is wrong they both have there plus and negatives.

To be honest, it’s a very good point. I didn’t think of them setting in first. 

Youve had had an amazing Aussie journey! Very jealous!

4 hours ago, AJ said:

I totally disagree with this.  Get kids into school as soon as you can.  It gives them a chance to make a couple of friends that they can hang out with during the holidays.  7 weeks is a long time for kids not having mates to do things with

7 weeks! Wow!

i just want to get them registered before the break, happy to send them in for few last days of term if it’s allowed / we arrive in time 

1 hour ago, Marisawright said:

When are you arriving?  I know some people don't put their children into school immediately.  I'm not sure what the regulations are in NSW about how long you can delay enrolment. 

Have you tried this calculator on realestate.com.au. You plug in whether you want to rent or buy, how much you can afford and which state, and it will show you which suburbs and towns you can afford.

Annoyingly, you'll get results for the whole of NSW so you'll then have to do a Google search to find out which are close to Sydney, but it's a starting point:

https://www.realestate.com.au/neighbourhoods?cid=cid:buy:left:homepg:neighbourhoods

Notice there's also a search bar.  Type a suburb in there and you'll get a profile which will give you the median price of a house in that area.

Also look at homely.com.au to get reviews of suburbs.

Great, I’ll look at those links. Thanks 

we hope to arrive late nov 

2 hours ago, CaptainR said:

Perhaps consider a temporary rental for 2-3 months in an apartment near to your husbands work and then from there scout out your chosen list of suburbs. A lot of people commute 1hr+ into Sydney every day from the outskirts whether thats Wollongong, Central Coast or the Outer West/Lower Blue Mountains. I know a lot of people even commute from Newcastle where we are now... Ouch... But everyone makes a choice which suits them. 
 I work in Newcastle and chose to live in Lake Macquarie and commit myself to a 30 minute drive each way. I always said I'd live right next to the office, but when you have a family you have to make choices that suit them. That said, when we live in the Lower Blue Mountains I knew so many people leaving home at 5am and then not getting back until 7 or 8pm and the same people told me how awful it was that I worked away for 6+ months of the year yet I reckon I still got a lot more time with my kids with the 5-6 months off I had. 

Thank you. I have considered this but it’ll mean moving the kids from schoo again and not sure that’s a good thing?!

i understand that most people commute, due to the vast area. I think he’ll still see kids a lot as they are older and they’ll go to be 8+, we’ll have weekends together, where we don’t have much of that here.

2 hours ago, Tootsie said:

 

????

It is certainly NOT....... "pretty much in the middle of nowhere"

And it is a lot closer to the work location than the Central Coast - where the OP was thinking about anyway

And nor is it a fair trek to the city or beach.

How you actually been there? Or did you just look at a map?

It is 40 minutes on the train from Berowra station, to the Sydney city central business district.

And 40 minutes by car to the Central Coast Beaches, unless you want to hire a boat and visit one of the secluded beaches along the Berowra Creek. Or you can swim at the nearby  Marramarra Creek or Fishponds

And there is some excellent schools just 15 minutes away in the Hornsby area.

Loads of things to do and see in the area (swimming, boating, bushwalking, fishing, trail bike circuit, wildlife), and an extremely safe place to raise children.

Totally disagree with your comments.

 

 

My husband said about Hornsby, so we are looking around that area.

do you know wheee we can look into schools? Are there websites that we can use?

thanks 

3 hours ago, Anolo Lohgun said:

 

Orange/red spots are not necessarily bad. Just wanted to stress what I've already mentioned before that NAPLAN result is not the be all and end all measure, far from it instead. But it is useful to show the 'nice' part of Sydney at a macro level.

@Ahames, where are you currently based in the UK?  Moving to Sydney is similar to moving to London.

Ask yourself, can you afford to live in Kensington or Chelsea? If you can then you will be able to afford the poshest parts of Sydney.

Some parts of SW London is the equivalent of Lower North Shore, Northern Beaches (the more expensive part) and most of SW London is the equivalent of NW Sydney. It's generally middle-class affluent neighbourhoods. 

We live in CC because our jobs allow us to do so, I would have dreamt of moving up here if we're tied down to Sydney for jobs. Others can do it, but I won't be able to, it's just not worth the epic commute (to me personally). 

In different job circumstances, we will most likely live somewhere around Hornsby/Westleigh/Thornleigh. The Hills (NW) is a nice and leafy area, but I prefer the Hornsby area.

 

At your budget (550/week) you can get a decent house in Kellyville and surround. My brother-in-law lives around that area for school reasons. It is very far from the beach, but then you'd be living like most of the Sydney-siders do

 

 

 

We are in Hertfordshire here, about 30min train from kings cross. 

We’d never think of living in Posh parts of London - so I see your point. But we’d not want to live that near to Sydney anyways. City life isn’t for us. 

But I’ll check out those areas. Realistically we need to arrive to see if we can find anywhere or hubby can handle the commute!

thank you 

3 hours ago, Marisawright said:

 

BUT did you see my other post.   

If you move to NSW and then your husband can't find work, you can apply to be released from NSW.     They are lenient - if you move to Port or Newcastle, and genuinely can't find work, you'd get your release and be off to Queensland in only a few months.  Absolutely NO risk of having your visa cancelled and NO risk to your citizenship, because it's all official and above board. 

It's true he's already got a job, but you've now discovered you can't afford to move to Sydney. That's fine, Immigration will understand that.  You'll just explain that you had to go to a regional area which you can afford and try to find something.

It's a win-win - either he finds a job and you stay for two years in a nice. affordable town, OR you stay there for three months or so, apply for a release and head for Brisbane.

Whereas your current idea of going to Sydney means you'll be struggling to survive on the breadline for two years. It doesn't work for me.

We’ve heard NSW don’t offer release. A friend looked into it as she wanted Perth and can’t see his job paying enough in NSW. 

Itll all work out - still happy to be heading over!

20 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

NSW is not expensive.  Sydney is expensive, and Sydney is only one city.  All the towns up and down the coast will be half the price of Sydney and give you a lifestyle close to the beach.

Here's an idea.   Be brave and go without a job.   Go to Newcastle or Port Macquarie.   

Give it three or four months.  If your oh finds a job within that time, you can settle - both are lovely beachside places to live. 

If he doesn't, write to Immigration with proof that he's knocked himself out looking for work in the area, and request a release from your obligation, on the grounds that he can't afford to be out of work with a young family.  It's highy likely they will grant it, and you'll be able to move to Brisbane immediately.

Port Mac and Newcastle were our original areas to live.

once our house is empty - it’s time to sit and have a re-think I think!

thank you for your advice 

14 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Ah, but the migration agents have been posting here recently to say they're starting to cancel 190 visas if they catch people doing that.

However, they are still very generous with releases, so that's the way to approach it now.  You have to at least try to get settled for a few months, then if you can't find work, you can make an application to be released from the obligation.  Once they approve the release, you can go anywhere you like.

Yep - it’s all over. I can’t risk loosing out on citizenship or having my visa cancelled. 

Just now, aconcannon said:

 

I wish I could be more positive & tell you a suburb where you’d get a 3 bed house for that price but sadly, there’s a reason why Sydney is rated one of the most expensive suburbs in the world to live in. We moved from the uk to Sydney with no jobs & then from Sydney to the Gold Coast with no jobs & we were both working within a month. Work isn’t hard to come by. I’d honestly be considering living elsewhere - heading north of Newcastle. Can definitely reccommend the Gold Coast for affordability, more of an ‘Aussie dream’ & year round better weather! Hope you get everything sorted. I know how daunting it is moving over it’ll all work out in the end!

 

We are restricted to nsw. Otherwise we’d be in Brisbane

need to stay for 2yr so we’ll stick it out, it’s what you make of it!

glad you guys are happy thou 

5 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

An awful lot of people are finding that they can't.  Even people born in Sydney are moving elsewhere because they can't afford it.  Look at @aconcannon - their experience is exactly why most of us tend to tell potential migrants to go elsewhere.

I think I read something similar about Cambridge in the UK (or was it Oxford?).  It's so expensive, it's got to the point where no ordinary person can afford to live there, so they can't get nurses or tradies any more because no matter how far out they go, they can't afford a place to live. That's where Sydney is now.

Did you know that the average Sydney resident lives at least an hour from the beach?  You're trying to move to Sydney and live on millionaire's row from day 1, and that's not realistic. Most Australians do not have the beach lifestyle depicted in Home and Away (which is filmed in a part of Sydney where even modest houses cost millions).  Most of Sydney's population lives out around Parramatta.  They live there because they can't afford to live by the coast.  

There are plenty of respectable suburbs out west.  The problem with the Western suburbs is that they all tend to be faceless places, just row after row of houses.  They don't have pubs, and some don't even have a supermarket.  They might have a Chinese or Lebanese takeaway, a convenience store and a launderette, and that's your lot.  Everyone drives to the big Westfield malls for their shopping now.  Then there's the heat.  Summer is stinking hot, humid and airless and temperatures are 2 or 3 degrees higher than the coast.  It's manageable because you'll have air conditioning and the shopping malls are cool too, but it means you don't get the outdoor lifestyle you're probably hoping for. 

Honestly, in your shoes I would be sacrificing the job and starting out in Newcastle instead. Yes, it's scary to go without a job lined up, but that's what most people do.  Ask yourself what's going to cost you more in the end - a few months without a salary at the start, or paying twice as much rent/mortgage for the rest of your life?

 

Thanks for the honest reply. Sitting here with my house in boxes as it’s being shipped tomorrow - now wanting to cry !

this was why we wouldn’t of picked nsw originally , knew it’d be expensive!

back to the search

thanks again 

1 minute ago, aconcannon said:

 

Honestly, I think you’d even struggle to get a 2 bed house really far inland for that price. The cost of living in & around Sydney is crazy! That’s why we left. You might get something out West but I doubt it. Is the central coast coming up in your budget? We used to pay $720 in Sydney for a small & fairly outdated 2 bed flat with no facilities. We live in the GC now & are paying $650 for a huge 4 bed home with pool & large garden.

 

Yep cc can offer it that’s why we are looking there. Can’t see us affording much else without being a flat which is pointless.

just a shame the job is there! But we have said it’s a starting point - he’s not tied to it. 

thanks  for your views, it has helped 

25 minutes ago, aconcannon said:

 

Everybody says to avoid the west but it’s really not that bad. Yes some suburbs are worse than others, but when you compare them to your average UK council estate they really aren’t rough at all. You’ll be a fair trek to th beach again though if you’re out west! If you don’t mind me asking what’s your budget & what you looking for? I could probably help you a bit better then.

 

Budget wise we are guessing around $550 per week. 3 bed house. Rather not be inland but get we won’t be buy the sea on our budget.

hubby commuting to Alexandria and decent schools

Just now, aconcannon said:

 

West of Sydney - Blacktown, Stanhope gardens sort of area perhaps? Or further south into Woolongong

 

I was told to avoid west?! Haven’t even looked there.

The Gong looks nice thou 

1 minute ago, aconcannon said:

 

It’s nice there but it’s very quiet, pretty much in the middle of nowhere by Sydney standards & a fair trek to the city or nearest beach etc

 

How far would a decent beach be? 

Here we are hours and the beach is rubbish in uk...I appreciate we won’t be there every day but like to visit semi often 

7 hours ago, Anolo Lohgun said:

OP, the commute from CC to Alexandria will be epic. I know people who do it and for them, it's working. But YMMV. 1.5 hr travel time from CC to Alexandria is optimistic and it depends where you are in CC. Parking near the major train stations is very competitive and Gosford is full by 7 AM. So you need to take all of this into considerations.

CC is a beautiful place to live but the nicest parts of CC (that you've discovered like Terrigal and Avoca) are not cheap and they can be more expensive than many areas of Sydney. Avoca is further out so that will add a few more minutes in the total journey time. There are some parts of Green Point that you'd want to avoid. There are many nice places in CC beyond Avoca & Terrigal that will give you much better value for money. In general, the most expensive housing in CCs are the coastal areas (from Copacabana to Bateau Bay and beyond), the areas surrounding Brisbane Waters and semi-rural areas, i.e. Matcham, Holgate.

The peninsula (Woy Woy, Ettalong Beach, Umina) is popular with commuters due to location and cost, but even there housing is not "cheap", just cheaper. There's a reason why it's cheaper though so you need to be careful which part of the peninsula to live.

School-wise it's different here than U.K. If you live in the school catchment they have to take you. The problem with the peninsula is the high schools are not that great.

Check this website: http://www.heatmaps.com.au/ change the layer to "schools" and it maps most schools based on their NAPLAN result. Please note that NAPLAN result is not the only measure how "good" a school is, far from it in fact. However, you can see the that taken from a macro level it very quickly shows the socio-economic demographics of the area.

HTH

Massive thanks for your reply. That link is very good...seems like lots of orange/red spots

im struggling here! Where can we live that’s affordable but far enough from city?!

On 13/10/2018 at 06:49, Tootsie said:

Or rather than the CC, you could try Berowra. You can rent a really nice family house, with a garden and pool there, fairly cheaply (well cheap for Sydney anyway) and it is a nice safe place - very popular for young families. And it is about 30 - 45 mins less time on the train than the CC. Good schools in area too.

Thank you. I’ve hsd a quick look, it looks very nice. Schools seem good too.