Best Places to live in Melbourne?

[Guest lyons]

Hi,

 

This is my furst time on this web site, please be patient with me.

 

Me and my husband have decided we would like to emigrate with our two young boys. His company is in Australia, so he could get a transfer out.

 

I have been looking through the internet at places to live in Melbourne .. however how do you know what is a good place to live in? obviously the schools are going to play a huge part in where we go. Is there anyone who can give me a few suggestions, or if there is anyone who has already emigrated and reading this I would love to hear from you.

 

Any help,advice would be fantastic.

 

Many thanks

 

Zoe

[Guest KP Nuts]

Hi Zoe, and to PIO, sorry can't help with the area, but i'm sure someone will be able to help you.

 

Good luck

 

KP Nuts

[Guest peppa]

Hi zoe and welcome

 

I have a really useful ebook on places to live in melbourne if you send me a PM with your email address Ill forward it toyou.

x

[Guest lee02gsp]

Hi Zoe,

 

My husband and I, plus our two small children hope to be in Melbourne later this year when our visa applications finally come through and we're wondering the same thing. We would love some info from anyone who can recommend the best place to live in and around melbourne for a young family of poms.

 

Rgds Leeann

[Guest T and family]

hi we are wmigrating in march we are going to the are 30 min from melbourne called point cook new build area very cheap money goes along was. commutable to city close to beach and lots of schools our kids are 5 and 8 and we have friends who are in the ivanhoe area both good areas child friendly neighbour hoods but ivanhoe expensive... google point cook melbourne brand new 4 bed houses around $350,000 $420,000

[Guest treesea]

My advice is to avoid Point Cook. There is a reason it is cheap. It is up wind from the Werribee Sewage treatment plant. If you search on this on the web, I think Melbourne Water has a map showing the size of the plant. Think hectares rather than acres. This really is massive, and in summer the smell around Point Cook can be a bit like Rotorua in NZ.

 

On this forum, perhaps check out the Victoria thread. There's various comments about Melbourne areas on there. Basically, the inner (within ten km of the city) eastern suburbs are quite wealthy and expensive. Balwyn has the best co-ed non selective state high school in Victoria. The western suburbs are cheap but then to be cramped with relatively poor quality housing (Footscray, Brooklyn, Laverton), bayside, but too close to the sewage treatment plant, (Pt Cook, parts of Altona), overpriced and not good value for money, (Yarraville and near environs), poor outer suburbs (Deer Park, St Albans). Williamstown is an exception. On the bay, but at the Yarra river end, close to the city and far enough away from the treatment plant. The western suburbs have all the checmical plants and oil refineries. A bit like Grangemouth near Edinburgh. Not the healthiest part of Melbourne to live.

 

To the North West, Moonee Ponds, Strathmore and Ascot vale are quite nice. Essendon is a bit too industrial for me (it's close to the airport. Avoid Broadmeadows (poor and quite ethnic. Asbestos roofs.) Anywhere north of that is too far away imho. Coburg, Thornbury, Preston, parts of Glen Roy are predominantly Middle Eastern. That's where a lot of the mosques are situated. The second language (all primary schools teach a second language) at North Brunswick primary school, just south of Coburg, in the Moreland area, has Arabic as it's second language.

 

Brunswick is nice but cramped. West Brunswick less cramped but you get the noise from the Tullamarine freeway.

 

Ivanhoe is lovely, just to the north east of the city, and I like Northcote, coming closer to the city, but not Thornbury (in between).

 

Closer to the city, North Carlton is a lovely place to live. Likewise North Fitzroy.

 

To the east, North Richmond is predominantly Vietnamese. There are four council high rises there.

Beyond North Richmond , directly East is Kew, then Balwyn. Anywhere south of these two, all the way to the sea, is a nice place to live. So Hawthorn, Elsternwick, St Kilda, Middle Park, Albert Park, Port Melbourne, Brighton, Toorak, Windsor, South Yarra, Prahran. All reasonably expensive, though there may be some bargains here and there.

 

Going out further, Camberwell and Canterbury are lovely. I wouldn't go beyond Ringwood though. Too expensive to get into the city, and too far away.

 

On the bayside, if you did want to live further, Frankston has very good train links. Avoid the outer eastern suburbs - Pakenham, Narre Warren, Cranbourne, Hallam and the like. These are commuter suburbs - they are miles away from the city - over 25 - and tend to empty during the day. Dull, boring places to live. Nothing but mile upon mile of houses.

 

If you know where your husband's work would be based, I could be a bit more specific.

Burwood, going south east, is nice. I don't mind places like Knox and Wantirna (not Bayswater though, or North Croydon and Croydon Hills (poor transport links, and Bayswater is too industrial). But, once you get to these sorts of areas, the state education on offer is relatively poor. I wouldn't , for instance, send my children to state schools in places like Box Hill (nice to live though ) or Maroondah's catchments.

 

Avoid Springvale (poor and predominantly south east Asian, and Dandenong, (poor and mainly Indian). I don't say this from a racial point of view, - more to give a sense of the predominant community in those areas. The area around the Glen shopping centre is nice, but just keep in mind, what you save on housing you spend on private school instead, if you want your children to have the equivalent in education to what they would get in a good state primary or high school here (starts at around $7000 per year in P1 up to around $15 - $20K in P12).

[Guest spottymercedes]

.

 

On the bayside, if you did want to live further, Frankston has very good train links. Avoid the outer eastern suburbs - Pakenham, Narre Warren, Cranbourne, Hallam and the like. These are commuter suburbs - they are miles away from the city - over 25 - and tend to empty during the day. Dull, boring places to live. Nothing but mile upon mile of houses.

 

).

 

I have to completely disagree with you on this one treesa.:frownxmas:

 

We moved to Pakenham, because it wasn't mile upon mile of houses. Its distance from the city would depend on exactly which part of the city you want to commute to and would you drive or take the train. Definitely not dull and boring unless you are a single person looking for nightclubs and pubs all week. Pakenham is good value for money and a really nice place to live, which is in my opinion, not too big yet and definitely not too small. We can see lovely green hills from our home and lots of trees and wildlife. 15 minutes down the road is Berwick which is a lovely place and a bit after that is Narre Warren with all it's shops. I was informed recently that Pakenham itself will eventually, (next 5 years), have its own big shopping mall built on the outskirts. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing as I love it exactly as it is, but lots of new shops would be good.

I think its best to take everyones opinions with a pinch of salt and make your own decision on arrival as each person to their own and all that.

[Guest donovan]

Hi,

 

This is my furst time on this web site, please be patient with me.

 

Me and my husband have decided we would like to emigrate with our two young boys. His company is in Australia, so he could get a transfer out.

 

I have been looking through the internet at places to live in Melbourne .. however how do you know what is a good place to live in? obviously the schools are going to play a huge part in where we go. Is there anyone who can give me a few suggestions, or if there is anyone who has already emigrated and reading this I would love to hear from you.

 

Any help,advice would be fantastic.

 

Many thanks

 

Zoe

 

 

Hiya Zoe

 

Have a word with Kate on here her user name is moving2melbourne she helps lots of families relocate to Melbourne

 

Sarah x

[Guest 8788jt]

Don't forget to look at the Mornington Peninsula in particular Mount Martha, Mount Eliza and Mornington. We have recently moved from Manchester with 2 girls and absolutely love it. It's a holiday spot for Melbournians (!?!) and we feel very privileged to be able to say we live here!!

 

It's a beautiful part of the world. A good hour outside of Melbourne but if you don't need to commute to the CBD it's great!!

 

Jo X

[Guest pontings gone!]

My advice is to avoid Point Cook. There is a reason it is cheap. It is up wind from the Werribee Sewage treatment plant. If you search on this on the web, I think Melbourne Water has a map showing the size of the plant. Think hectares rather than acres. This really is massive, and in summer the smell around Point Cook can be a bit like Rotorua in NZ.

 

On this forum, perhaps check out the Victoria thread. There's various comments about Melbourne areas on there. Basically, the inner (within ten km of the city) eastern suburbs are quite wealthy and expensive. Balwyn has the best co-ed non selective state high school in Victoria. The western suburbs are cheap but then to be cramped with relatively poor quality housing (Footscray, Brooklyn, Laverton), bayside, but too close to the sewage treatment plant, (Pt Cook, parts of Altona), overpriced and not good value for money, (Yarraville and near environs), poor outer suburbs (Deer Park, St Albans). Williamstown is an exception. On the bay, but at the Yarra river end, close to the city and far enough away from the treatment plant. The western suburbs have all the checmical plants and oil refineries. A bit like Grangemouth near Edinburgh. Not the healthiest part of Melbourne to live.

 

To the North West, Moonee Ponds, Strathmore and Ascot vale are quite nice. Essendon is a bit too industrial for me (it's close to the airport. Avoid Broadmeadows (poor and quite ethnic. Asbestos roofs.) Anywhere north of that is too far away imho. Coburg, Thornbury, Preston, parts of Glen Roy are predominantly Middle Eastern. That's where a lot of the mosques are situated. The second language (all primary schools teach a second language) at North Brunswick primary school, just south of Coburg, in the Moreland area, has Arabic as it's second language.

 

Brunswick is nice but cramped. West Brunswick less cramped but you get the noise from the Tullamarine freeway.

 

Ivanhoe is lovely, just to the north east of the city, and I like Northcote, coming closer to the city, but not Thornbury (in between).

 

Closer to the city, North Carlton is a lovely place to live. Likewise North Fitzroy.

 

To the east, North Richmond is predominantly Vietnamese. There are four council high rises there.

Beyond North Richmond , directly East is Kew, then Balwyn. Anywhere south of these two, all the way to the sea, is a nice place to live. So Hawthorn, Elsternwick, St Kilda, Middle Park, Albert Park, Port Melbourne, Brighton, Toorak, Windsor, South Yarra, Prahran. All reasonably expensive, though there may be some bargains here and there.

 

Going out further, Camberwell and Canterbury are lovely. I wouldn't go beyond Ringwood though. Too expensive to get into the city, and too far away.

 

On the bayside, if you did want to live further, Frankston has very good train links. Avoid the outer eastern suburbs - Pakenham, Narre Warren, Cranbourne, Hallam and the like. These are commuter suburbs - they are miles away from the city - over 25 - and tend to empty during the day. Dull, boring places to live. Nothing but mile upon mile of houses.

 

If you know where your husband's work would be based, I could be a bit more specific.

Burwood, going south east, is nice. I don't mind places like Knox and Wantirna (not Bayswater though, or North Croydon and Croydon Hills (poor transport links, and Bayswater is too industrial). But, once you get to these sorts of areas, the state education on offer is relatively poor. I wouldn't , for instance, send my children to state schools in places like Box Hill (nice to live though ) or Maroondah's catchments.

 

Avoid Springvale (poor and predominantly south east Asian, and Dandenong, (poor and mainly Indian). I don't say this from a racial point of view, - more to give a sense of the predominant community in those areas. The area around the Glen shopping centre is nice, but just keep in mind, what you save on housing you spend on private school instead, if you want your children to have the equivalent in education to what they would get in a good state primary or high school here (starts at around $7000 per year in P1 up to around $15 - $20K in P12).

 

Racist post or what? Australia is full of immigrants! They were initially all white and came from the UK pretty much exclusively. The only non ethnic areas are those inhabited excluslively by aboriginal australians!!!

Some worthwhile points here but so racist. A warning Australia is a very racist society much more than UK and this poster has clearly fitted well into that society.

 

For what it's worth I live in Mount Waverley (near the Glen). Full of people originally from Japan , Korea, China etc. 20k from cbd on east. Highly recommended.

 

The strength of Melbourne is its different racial backgrounds. Don't weaken that by submitting to the drival submitted from the previous poster. You should be ashamed of yourself.

[Guest DSL]

My advice is to avoid Point Cook. There is a reason it is cheap. It is up wind from the Werribee Sewage treatment plant. If you search on this on the web, I think Melbourne Water has a map showing the size of the plant. Think hectares rather than acres. This really is massive, and in summer the smell around Point Cook can be a bit like Rotorua in NZ.

 

On this forum, perhaps check out the Victoria thread. There's various comments about Melbourne areas on there. Basically, the inner (within ten km of the city) eastern suburbs are quite wealthy and expensive. Balwyn has the best co-ed non selective state high school in Victoria. The western suburbs are cheap but then to be cramped with relatively poor quality housing (Footscray, Brooklyn, Laverton), bayside, but too close to the sewage treatment plant, (Pt Cook, parts of Altona), overpriced and not good value for money, (Yarraville and near environs), poor outer suburbs (Deer Park, St Albans). Williamstown is an exception. On the bay, but at the Yarra river end, close to the city and far enough away from the treatment plant. The western suburbs have all the checmical plants and oil refineries. A bit like Grangemouth near Edinburgh. Not the healthiest part of Melbourne to live.

 

To the North West, Moonee Ponds, Strathmore and Ascot vale are quite nice. Essendon is a bit too industrial for me (it's close to the airport. Avoid Broadmeadows (poor and quite ethnic. Asbestos roofs.) Anywhere north of that is too far away imho. Coburg, Thornbury, Preston, parts of Glen Roy are predominantly Middle Eastern. That's where a lot of the mosques are situated. The second language (all primary schools teach a second language) at North Brunswick primary school, just south of Coburg, in the Moreland area, has Arabic as it's second language.

 

Brunswick is nice but cramped. West Brunswick less cramped but you get the noise from the Tullamarine freeway.

 

Ivanhoe is lovely, just to the north east of the city, and I like Northcote, coming closer to the city, but not Thornbury (in between).

 

Closer to the city, North Carlton is a lovely place to live. Likewise North Fitzroy.

 

To the east, North Richmond is predominantly Vietnamese. There are four council high rises there.

Beyond North Richmond , directly East is Kew, then Balwyn. Anywhere south of these two, all the way to the sea, is a nice place to live. So Hawthorn, Elsternwick, St Kilda, Middle Park, Albert Park, Port Melbourne, Brighton, Toorak, Windsor, South Yarra, Prahran. All reasonably expensive, though there may be some bargains here and there.

 

Going out further, Camberwell and Canterbury are lovely. I wouldn't go beyond Ringwood though. Too expensive to get into the city, and too far away.

 

On the bayside, if you did want to live further, Frankston has very good train links. Avoid the outer eastern suburbs - Pakenham, Narre Warren, Cranbourne, Hallam and the like. These are commuter suburbs - they are miles away from the city - over 25 - and tend to empty during the day. Dull, boring places to live. Nothing but mile upon mile of houses.

 

If you know where your husband's work would be based, I could be a bit more specific.

Burwood, going south east, is nice. I don't mind places like Knox and Wantirna (not Bayswater though, or North Croydon and Croydon Hills (poor transport links, and Bayswater is too industrial). But, once you get to these sorts of areas, the state education on offer is relatively poor. I wouldn't , for instance, send my children to state schools in places like Box Hill (nice to live though ) or Maroondah's catchments.

 

Avoid Springvale (poor and predominantly south east Asian, and Dandenong, (poor and mainly Indian). I don't say this from a racial point of view, - more to give a sense of the predominant community in those areas. The area around the Glen shopping centre is nice, but just keep in mind, what you save on housing you spend on private school instead, if you want your children to have the equivalent in education to what they would get in a good state primary or high school here (starts at around $7000 per year in P1 up to around $15 - $20K in P12).

 

If you are going to dismiss Point Cook on the basis of the Western Treatment Plant then you better forget the eastern suburbs also as Melbourne Water have treatment plant there also, there are also massive plans to the tune of about $5 billion for additional works to both plants. The Eastern Plant being the most developed particularly down towards Mornington Area where the untreated water will return to the ocean.

 

Think we should all just head to another state. Hope this smell isn't too bad, cause there are going to be a helluva lot of unhappy campers who have invested a great deal of money in Melbourne's fastest growing suburb over the last ten years.:err:

 

Fortunately I am only renting at the moment so if you right then I'll head up to Brisbane, although given that pretty much every state has plants like this due to the continued drought I better do my research on where to live.

 

DSL

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Hi All

Treesa, I agree with most of the comments you make especially about the West, however, like Spotty Mercedes I disagree with your comments about the Eastern suburbs especially Narre Warren, Pakenham, Cranbourne and Hallam these are all closer to the city than Frankston which in my opinion apart from certain parts of Frankston South the rest is a non desirable area. How on earth can you say Narre Warren is empty during the day, everyone flocks to Narre Warren for Fountain Gate Shopping Centre which is the 13th largest shopping centre in Australia.

Cranbourne and Narre Warren have so much going for them, Cranbourne is to be the home of the largest swimming complex in the Southern Hemisphere and is a $37million development Casey RACE Recreation & Aquatic CEntre | City of Casey - www.casey.vic.gov.au

As a relocation company we show our clients around lots of different suburbs both in the North, West and East as well as down on the peninsula and every single one of them have preferred and settled in the South East suburbs. A lot of these came out with the aim of settling in Point Cook but once they saw the place they hated it. We have looked at 5 million dollar properties in Toorak and South Yarra to $400k properties in the South East which have given our clients a larger home and a lot more for their money.

My personal favourite in Melbourne is Macedon and also the peninsula, Mount Eliza and Mount Martha being my favourite. Unfortunately because of the bottle neck at Frankston, (which will hopefully be sorted out now this bypass is getting the go ahead) and Frankston being the closest train station for the peninsula it can be a long commute if you have to work in the city. So most people head to the suburbs of Casey, have a look here for more information on Casey Moving to Melbourne: Casey Suburb Guide

A lot of expats fall in love with Berwick, which I must admit is another of my favourites because it is 5 minutes to Fountain Gate shopping centre, 30 minutes to the beach, 10 mins to the hills, it has some of the best schools in the area, has a train station and has a mixture of housing from older style to modern new builds to acreage million dollar properties. Berwick and Narre Warren are in the City of Casey which is Victorias most popular municipality.

In regards to Pakenham, it use to be said it was too far out but with the new bypass it is 10 minutes away. It is a lovely area, very open with some beautiful scenery, the houses are cheap and there are two excellent schools there.

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Just be careful with the commute over the Westgate if your living in the West , as mentioned before it is a complete bottleneck and has never been out of the papers. This was in the other day Emergency lanes to make way for more traffic on West Gate Bridge | Herald Sun I had to travel during rush hour on numerous occasions and it is a nightmare. The Monash down to the Eastern suburbs is the same at rush hour but there are many other options and ways in and out of the city to choose from, unlike traffic coming from the West.

I also want to say please, please don't take things personal if you have an idea of where you want to live go and see for yourself, don't go off what others think, it is your NEW LIFE in OZ not theirs. Out of all the clients that have come over and used our services not one family have chosen the suburb that they intended before arrival, get some ideas and go out there and explore. There are only 3 suburbs in Melbourne I wouldn't want to live but then if compared to most of the towns in England they are probably still 100% better than them

Good luck to everyone coming out, it's a big move and there are lots of superb suburbs to choose from and something out there that will suit everyone.:wubclub:

[Guest spottymercedes]

Some good advice there from Kate who does know what shes talking about.

[Guest treesea]

Hi All

Treesa, I agree with most of the comments you make especially about the West, however, like Spotty Mercedes I disagree with your comments about the Eastern suburbs especially Narre Warren, Pakenham, Cranbourne and Hallam these are all closer to the city than Frankston which in my opinion apart from certain parts of Frankston South the rest is a non desirable area. How on earth can you say Narre Warren is empty during the day, everyone flocks to Narre Warren for Fountain Gate Shopping Centre which is the 13th largest shopping centre in Australia.

Cranbourne and Narre Warren have so much going for them, Cranbourne is to be the home of the largest swimming complex in the Southern Hemisphere and is a $37million development Casey RACE Recreation & Aquatic CEntre | City of Casey - www.casey.vic.gov.au

 

As a relocation company we show our clients around lots of different suburbs both in the North, West and East as well as down on the peninsula and every single one of them have preferred and settled in the South East suburbs. A lot of these came out with the aim of settling in Point Cook but once they saw the place they hated it. We have looked at 5 million dollar properties in Toorak and South Yarra to $400k properties in the South East which have given our clients a larger home and a lot more for their money.

 

My personal favourite in Melbourne is Macedon and also the peninsula, Mount Eliza and Mount Martha being my favourite. Unfortunately because of the bottle neck at Frankston, (which will hopefully be sorted out now this bypass is getting the go ahead) and Frankston being the closest train station for the peninsula it can be a long commute if you have to work in the city. So most people head to the suburbs of Casey, have a look here for more information on Casey Moving to Melbourne: Casey Suburb Guide

 

A lot of expats fall in love with Berwick, which I must admit is another of my favourites because it is 5 minutes to Fountain Gate shopping centre, 30 minutes to the beach, 10 mins to the hills, it has some of the best schools in the area, has a train station and has a mixture of housing from older style to modern new builds to acreage million dollar properties. Berwick and Narre Warren are in the City of Casey which is Victorias most popular municipality.

 

In regards to Pakenham, it use to be said it was too far out but with the new bypass it is 10 minutes away. It is a lovely area, very open with some beautiful scenery, the houses are cheap and there are two excellent schools there.

 

Well, having lived both far and close to the city of Melbourne, I would take the character and community spirit of places like Ashwood, Burwood, Hawthorn, Canterbury, Balwyn, Kew, Camberwell, Elsternwick, East Bentleigh, Armadale, Malvern, any day over the relatively sterile, characterless outer eastern suburbs. The fact that you point to Narre Warren shopping centre as a focal point for the community says it all - that's not to my mind a strong community. These outskirts suburbs are by and large commuter suburbs. There's not a lot of employment out there, so travelling to work is essential. I would much rather have a ten to fifteen minute ride into the CBD on a tram than brave the rush hour commute from somewhere like Pakenham. And there's the cost. Travelwise, living in the back of beyond is an expensive proposition. You mention good schools. Compared to where? I would think, having experienced the quality of education over here in the recent years we have moved back to the UK compared to state education in Australia that most UK people's idea of "a good education" is the likes of Balwyn High and University High.

 

Frankston, at least, and the suburbs around it, have the saving grace of being right on the sea. So what if their shopping centre isn't as nice as Fountain Gate? At least you are not stuck in the back of beyond, in the middle of an endless suburbia sweltering in the summer.

 

As to Macedon, Mt Eliza and Mt Martha, most of the people moving to Australia have probably never even so much as seen a bush fire in the real, let alone lived through one. I wouldn't advise anyone moving to Melbourne - or Sydney for that matter- to live anywhere near the bush until you have lived there for a while, experienced one from quite a few miles away, then see how you feel about risking living among the trees. I have driven through the aftermath of a bush fire - the aftermath mind you, after the fire had swept through. Silent it definitely wasn't. Every now and again some smouldering mound or tree would explode.

 

But hey, each to their own. My advice would be not to buy in these outlying kinds of areas first off, but rather rent initially, try the commute, see for yourself if the place has your idea of a community, and then, if you find you don't like it, rather than give up on Oz and move home asap, try another area that might suit you better.

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Well, having lived both far and close to the city of Melbourne, I would take the character and community spirit of places like Ashwood, Burwood, Hawthorn, Canterbury, Balwyn, Kew, Camberwell, Elsternwick, East Bentleigh, Armadale, Malvern, any day over the relatively sterile, characterless outer eastern suburbs. The fact that you point to Narre Warren shopping centre as a focal point for the community says it all - that's not to my mind a strong community. These outskirts suburbs are by and large commuter suburbs. There's not a lot of employment out there, so travelling to work is essential. I would much rather have a ten to fifteen minute ride into the CBD on a tram than brave the rush hour commute from somewhere like Pakenham. And there's the cost. Travelwise, living in the back of beyond is an expensive proposition. You mention good schools. Compared to where? I would think, having experienced the quality of education over here in the recent years we have moved back to the UK compared to state education in Australia that most UK people's idea of "a good education" is the likes of Balwyn High and University High.

 

Frankston, at least, and the suburbs around it, have the saving grace of being right on the sea. So what if their shopping centre isn't as nice as Fountain Gate? At least you are not stuck in the back of beyond, in the middle of an endless suburbia sweltering in the summer.

 

As to Macedon, Mt Eliza and Mt Martha, most of the people moving to Australia have probably never even so much as seen a bush fire in the real, let alone lived through one. I wouldn't advise anyone moving to Melbourne - or Sydney for that matter- to live anywhere near the bush until you have lived there for a while, experienced one from quite a few miles away, then see how you feel about risking living among the trees. I have driven through the aftermath of a bush fire - the aftermath mind you, after the fire had swept through. Silent it definitely wasn't. Every now and again some smouldering mound or tree would explode.

 

But hey, each to their own. My advice would be not to buy in these outlying kinds of areas first off, but rather rent initially, try the commute, see for yourself if the place has your idea of a community, and then, if you find you don't like it, rather than give up on Oz and move home asap, try another area that might suit you better.

 

Treesa

I could argue with most of the comments that you make but then as you say it's each to it's own!! You have contradicted yourself in quite a few of your statments.

You recommend people moving to Frankston as it's closer to the city it is 54km away from the city and places like Narre Warren are 40km???

You say bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha, please tell me when you have seen a bush fire here? I am usually out on the fire front when bush fires do occur and although, yes there may be a risk in Macedon, I disagree to bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha and if you think this was the case why recommend Frankston to people when Mt Eliza is only 4km away. You also say that Fountain Gate Shopping Centre in Narre Warren is better than Frankston!!

I don't know when you moved back to the UK as that's where you say you are now and I don't know if you have ever lived in any of the suburbs you say you hate, but nevermind, I wish you well for the future.:emoticon-signxmas:

[Guest treesea]

Racist post or what? Australia is full of immigrants! They were initially all white and came from the UK pretty much exclusively. The only non ethnic areas are those inhabited excluslively by aboriginal australians!!!

Some worthwhile points here but so racist. A warning Australia is a very racist society much more than UK and this poster has clearly fitted well into that society.

 

For what it's worth I live in Mount Waverley (near the Glen). Full of people originally from Japan , Korea, China etc. 20k from cbd on east. Highly recommended.

 

The strength of Melbourne is its different racial backgrounds. Don't weaken that by submitting to the drival submitted from the previous poster. You should be ashamed of yourself.

 

How stereotypical, to be "pc" and focus on racism as soon as someone dares to describe areas according to the predominant group that lives there. My point was more to focus on the culture of the area, rather than race per se. Australia, imho, is fairly similar to what we see over here in the UK in so far as the various ethnic groups tend not to mix with each other as much as, say, in The States.

 

I agree, the area around the Glen is very nice to live and also close to good private schools.

 

But I wouldn't say Australia is more racist that the UK. Far from it. A case in point - a South African girl who happens to be white went for an interview over here at an agency and was subsequently accidentally copied in on an internal memo headed up "Strong South African accent. Do not send out to any interviews." An Arab friend of the family - young, well qualified with a masters degree, which is fairly standard in his line of work, sends out lots of job applications and doesn't even get as far as an agency interview. I was told when I first came back that it would be easier to get work if I used my maiden name rather than my married name, because of the ethnic connotations of the latter. By and large, I would say when it comes to work, Australia is far less racist on this score than the UK and much more of a meritocracy. I think when it comes to working in Australia, unlike over here in the UK, the employers by and large couldn't give a toss where you come from - they just want the best person for the job.

[Guest treesea]

Treesa

I could argue with most of the comments that you make but then as you say it's each to it's own!! You have contradicted yourself in quite a few of your statments.

You recommend people moving to Frankston as it's closer to the city it is 54km away from the city and places like Narre Warren are 40km???

You say bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha, please tell me when you have seen a bush fire here? I am usually out on the fire front when bush fires do occur and although, yes there may be a risk in Macedon, I disagree to bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha and if you think this was the case why recommend Frankston to people when Mt Eliza is only 4km away. You also say that Fountain Gate Shopping Centre in Narre Warren is better than Frankston!!

I don't know when you moved back to the UK as that's where you say you are now and I don't know if you have ever lived in any of the suburbs you say you hate, but nevermind, I wish you well for the future.:emoticon-signxmas:

 

There was a bush fire in Mt Martha as recently as January 2007. Fortunately it was contained to a park...this time. We were in Melbourne during the bad bush fires in 1997. In Mt Eliza homes were lost, likewise up in the Dandenongs. Evacuations occurred in Mt Martha. People died in that bush fire, at Ferny Creek. You disgrace their memory by suggesting there is no fire danger in these suburbs.

 

And Frankston and Narre Warren are both the same distance from Melbourne's CBD - 40km. I have a preference for Frankston because it is on the sea.

[Guest pontings gone!]

Racism wa sone of the first things I noticed when I first visited Australia on holiday back in 2000. Nothing has changed my mind. The UK is far from being a perfect society, very far! However my judgement having grown up there and lived here on and off since 2001 is that it is less racist overall. Yes there are a lot of racist people in UK and that is a great shame. The examples you quoted that have occurred in recently in UK are very disturbing.

 

Australia is a mixed country but non whites are hardly ever depicted or represented on television. The recent Obama victory has raised some discussion about the chances of the leader of Australia being non white. It is hard to imagine particularly when you consider how much the level of aboriginal representation there has been in Australian history. I may not have all the facts but it's been minimal .Australia had a 'white only' policy throughout large parts of the 20th century. The recent Kevin Rudd 'sorry' for the 'stolen generation' is a welcome move that John Howard refused to do.

 

I don't see anything wrong with political correctness and standing up to racism. Your article was full of references to different groups. What does 'very ethnic' infer? It sounds to me that is an indication of you are recommending someone should avoid that area because of that.

 

You may have already read through what you wrote, if you haven't then I'd encorage you to and consider how other people might interpret it.

[Guest pontings gone!]

grammar improvement

[Guest treesea]

I don't see anything wrong with political correctness and standing up to racism. Your article was full of references to different groups. What does 'very ethnic' infer? It sounds to me that is an indication of you are recommending someone should avoid that area because of that.

 

(Ponting's gone)

 

We lived in Coburg in Melbourne for a while, and one of our friends had a 6 year old at the local primary school, which had a large Middle Eastern population. He got told one day that he couldn't play with a group of his friends because he was white. I have read a similar thing on this forum happening to someone in Sydney. We felt fine in Coburg and part of that community. But my partner is from the Middle East. One of our friends, walking from the tram to our house, said she found it a bit scary because the people on the street looked through her, like she didn't exist.

 

I realise there are just as many areas in Britain where if you are white, you are in the minority and you could be discriminated against. Cheetham Hill in Manchester for instance, or some parts of Bradford, Birmingham and Slough. Whatever label you put on it - discrimination, prejudice, racism, - I think, just like here, there are areas in both Sydney and Melbourne where there is a significant anti white sentiment. If you wouldn't put up with it in your own country, why put up with it in someone else's?

 

Take Lakemba in Sydney, where I have spent a fair bit of time over the years. That is a community where uncovered women walking alone on the street are referred to as "meat" and subject to harassment. Any friends who came to visit, I always met them at the station, whatever the time of day. A friend who insisted on walking alone one day, to "try it" arrived in tears. Would I recommend Lakemba (or Broadmeadows in Melbourne) as a place to live for practising Muslims? Like a shot. To white Christians or Chinese people? No way on earth. That's not racism; it's common sense, and an acknowledgement of the dominant culture in that particular community.

[Guest The Pom Queen]

There was a bush fire in Mt Martha as recently as January 2007. Fortunately it was contained to a park...this time. We were in Melbourne during the bad bush fires in 1997. In Mt Eliza homes were lost, likewise up in the Dandenongs. Evacuations occurred in Mt Martha. People died in that bush fire, at Ferny Creek. You disgrace their memory by suggesting there is no fire danger in these suburbs.

 

And Frankston and Narre Warren are both the same distance from Melbourne's CBD - 40km. I have a preference for Frankston because it is on the sea.

 

Treesa

I presume you mean the one at Joseph Harris Scout Park in 2007, this was contained and was not classed as a major fire. The bushfires in 1997 the 3 people that died were in Ferny Creek (that's 1 hour away from Mt Eliza and nobody has disputed that)

 

In any suburb there can be a risk of fires that's why we spend half of the year doing backburns.

The Great Divide Fires of 06/07 were the ones which we were out fighting this was a bushfire that caused devastation and took 69 days to put out. 1,048,000 hectares of public and private land was burnt. Another fire we were out fighting was the Framlingham bushfire 2007

How on this earth can you say I disgrace their memory when I hadn't even discussed the 1997 fires in Ferny Creek or any other fire at that time. I may have only been out of the fire front with the DSE for 4 years but at least I am out there fighting to save homes and lives!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

For anyone who is interested in Bushfires, and I am sorry this post seems to have gone way off topic, you will find a list here of all the major fires in Victoria since Black Thursday in 1851 Major Fires - Country Fire Authority

 

Now I suggest we get back to the original posters question:cutexmas:

[SD_MOA]

Hello All,

If you don't HAVE to be in Melbourne I'd recommend Geelong. It's about an hour from Melbourne, much cheaper housing, only 20 minutes to the coast (Great Ocean Road), fantastic schools, great life style. We moved to Melbourne and never really settled - came to Geelong and love it!

 

Check out: Geelong Australia - Geelong Australia

 

Regards

Stephen Dickson

Director Migration Outcomes Australia

Registered Migration Agent Number 0640511

Member of Migration Institute of Australia 2602

www.migrateaus.com.au

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Hello All,

If you don't HAVE to be in Melbourne I'd recommend Geelong. It's about an hour from Melbourne, much cheaper housing, only 20 minutes to the coast (Great Ocean Road), fantastic schools, great life style.

 

I agree, Geelong is a great place to live especially if you don't have to work in the CBD. It is a very up and coming area and there are also some stunning suburbs on the outskirts of Geelong. :yesxmas:

[Guest treesea]

The bushfires in 1997 the 3 people that died were in Ferny Creek (that's 1 hour away from Mt Eliza and nobody has disputed that)

 

-moving2melbourne

 

Perhaps, moving 2melbourne, you should check your facts before slating other people. Two houses were lost in Mt Eliza in those '97 fires. Frankston is 40km from Melbourne, not 54km.

 

I was referring to your earlier post in which you said:

 

You recommend people moving to Frankston as it's closer to the city it is 54km away from the city and places like Narre Warren are 40km???

You say bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha, please tell me when you have seen a bush fire here? I am usually out on the fire front when bush fires do occur and although, yes there may be a risk in Macedon, I disagree to bush fires in Mt Eliza and Mt Martha...

 

Downplaying the dangers of bushfires in some of the outer suburbs to people who are probably not used to bush fires and certainly not on the scale they occur in Victoria, is, imho, irresponsible. And certainly pertinent to the topic about where to live in Melbourne.