Sydney Commuter Towns - 4 bed home for around $600k?

[CrozierFamily]

Hello

 

My wife and I look like we will be heading to Australia in the next few months, as I have managed to secure myself a role with CommBank in Sydney. I will be working in the CBD and my wife will be living at home with our two young daughters (both under 2yrs), and I am hoping I might be able to get some advice on places to look to buy a home.

 

My budget is going to be in the region of $550-650k, and ideally I would like to find a 4 bedroom detached home with a bit of a garden for our two dogs and a pool.

 

I know I have no chance of find anything in inner Sydney on this budget, but I have looked at places like Campbelltown and it seems to be quite reasonable, and the comments on the internet seem to suggest it is quite a nice place. I live in a small town at the moment, so I would like to find something similar that is reasonably close to the train lines.

 

At the moment we are at the start of the journey, so any help is appreciated. Ideally I dont want to have to commute for much more than an hour each way, and I am not overly fussy about living near the beach. I just want to find a nice solid area, that is not too snobby and that will have good schools for the girls in a few years and a nice community so my wife can make some new friends.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions are welcome.

 

Thanks,

 

Andrew

[North to South]

Hi,

 

Have you taken a look at Local Voices. I know it's not the same as PIO but I find it quite helpful.

 

http://www.streetadvisor.com.au/campbelltown-campbelltown-sydney-greater-new-south-wales

 

Rich

[ren ren]

Have you thought about the Sutherland shire or Engadine, Heathcote, or down towards Wollongong ( there are direct trains into CBD although don't know timings, just know a lot of people did it) well done on the job, good to know you can get jobs with the banks before going over, that's what I am trying to do as well

[CrozierFamily]

Thanks for your response Rich. I will check out this site later on this evening.

 

Cheers,

 

Andrew

[CrozierFamily]

Have you thought about the Sutherland shire or Engadine, Heathcote, or down towards Wollongong ( there are direct trains into CBD although don't know timings, just know a lot of people did it) well done on the job, good to know you can get jobs with the banks before going over, that's what I am trying to do as well

 

Hi Ren - I guess I should try and give you my advice on finding a job in banking then, seeing as you have been so helpful! I think a lot of it comes down to finding the right agency to help you. I have registered with a number of recruitment companies, some are better than others. What area of banking do you work in? It really helps to have a specialism. The agencies I would recommend are Bluefin, Ampersand, SHL and Carmichael Fisher. Each of these agencies specialise to some degree in Banking and are more likely to find you a role that will consider sponsorship than the generic agencies. Things appear to be warming up on the roles available front now, so hopefully you will find something soon!

 

Thanks again,

 

Andrew

[MARYROSE02]

$600,000? Well, you could look around Penrith area which is 55 kilometres from the CBD but you can be at Central in 50 minutes on the Blue Mts Inter City train - still have to go a couple of stops on another train at Central - Town Hall, Wynyard, Circular Quay, depending on where your offices are. Come to think of it, Comm Bank has its corporate HQ near Darling Harbour doesn't it?? One of those futuristic buildings?? Probably closest to Town Hall station, although you might be elsewhere in the CBD. The 'ordinary' suburban train from Penrith takes 70 minutes to/from Central but you stay on for a couple more stops to the CBD. I know this as I worked at Penrith for the ATO last year. The Blue Mts train is 'quality' but the suburban trains can be rather tiresome. There is nothing wrong with Penrith either, as it has plenty of shops/restaurants/cinema.

 

Alternatively, look at the 'Shire' which I think someone else has recommended, or perhaps Panania/Revesby/Padstow, an area I am familiar with as my brother lives in Picnic Point, where the homes are probably a bit more than $600K.

 

Get yourself a map of Sydney and start logging suburb names into www.domain.com.au (part of the Sydney Morning Herald/The Age (Melbourne))

 

Personally, I hate commuting and if I have to do it, I would rather get the train, than bus or drive so I I recommend picking somewhere close to a station (but not TOO close, otherwise your street will resemble a parking lot Monday to Friday!)

[CrozierFamily]

$600,000? Well, you could look around Penrith area which is 55 kilometres from the CBD but you can be at Central in 50 minutes on the Blue Mts Inter City train - still have to go a couple of stops on another train at Central - Town Hall, Wynyard, Circular Quay, depending on where your offices are. Come to think of it, Comm Bank has its corporate HQ near Darling Harbour doesn't it?? One of those futuristic buildings?? Probably closest to Town Hall station, although you might be elsewhere in the CBD. The 'ordinary' suburban train from Penrith takes 70 minutes to/from Central but you stay on for a couple more stops to the CBD. I know this as I worked at Penrith for the ATO last year. The Blue Mts train is 'quality' but the suburban trains can be rather tiresome. There is nothing wrong with Penrith either, as it has plenty of shops/restaurants/cinema.

 

Alternatively, look at the 'Shire' which I think someone else has recommended, or perhaps Panania/Revesby/Padstow, an area I am familiar with as my brother lives in Picnic Point, where the homes are probably a bit more than $600K.

 

Get yourself a map of Sydney and start logging suburb names into www.domain.com.au (part of the Sydney Morning Herald/The Age (Melbourne))

 

Personally, I hate commuting and if I have to do it, I would rather get the train, than bus or drive so I I recommend picking somewhere close to a station (but not TOO close, otherwise your street will resemble a parking lot Monday to Friday!)

 

Thank you Mary, that is really helpful.

 

Andrew

[LKC]

Another vote for Engadine from me. Lovely area, easy train to the cbd, good schools, friendly people, real community. One of the safest suburbs in Sydney, and house prices not too bad.

[CrozierFamily]

Another vote for Engadine from me. Lovely area, easy train to the cbd, good schools, friendly people, real community. One of the safest suburbs in Sydney, and house prices not too bad.

 

Thanks for your recommendation.

[MARYROSE02]

What do I think about Engadine, not ever having lived there? It's got a station. It is handy for bushwalks in the Royal National Park (and probably Heathcote NP too?) It's got most of the facilities you need (I think?) Has got doctors, dentist, etc or do you have to go somewhere like Sutherland? Homes are probably reasonably priced. It's on the Princes Highway and probably commutable to Wollongong? It's the sort of place that I would probably live if I met someone who lived there or, in my younger days, if I got a job down there. How long does the train take to Sydney? 45 minutes? Hypocrite that I am I could probably Google this!

 

So, I did do it. Googled City Rail first then went to website which took me about a minute. I see I was three minutes out in my guesstimate of the travelling time.

From:

 

Central Station, Sydney

To:

 

 

Engadine Station

 

When:

 

 

Sunday, 27 January 2013

 

Leave after:

 

 

12:25pm

 

Mode:

 

 

Regular Buses, Trains, Ferries, STA School Bus

 

Accessibility:

 

 

All Services

What is easy access / wheelchair accessible?

Change to show:

 

[TABLE=class: dataTbl botmgn_10]

[TR]

[TH]Option

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[TH]Depart

[/TH]

[TH]Arrive

[/TH]

[TH]Travel time

[/TH]

[TH]Transport

[/TH]

[TH][/TH]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD] 1

[/TD]

[TD] 12:42pm

[/TD]

[TD] 1:30pm

[/TD]

[TD] 48mins

[/TD]

[TD]

[/TD]

[TD]

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD] 2

[/TD]

[TD] 1:12pm

[/TD]

[TD] 2:00pm

[/TD]

[TD] 48mins

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[TD]

[/TD]

[TD]

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD] 3

[/TD]

[TD] 1:42pm

[/TD]

[TD] 2:30pm

[/TD]

[TD] 48mins

[/TD]

[TD]

[/TD]

[TD]

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD] 4

[/TD]

[TD] 2:12pm

[/TD]

[TD] 3:00pm

[/TD]

[TD] 48mins

[/TD]

[TD]

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[TD]

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[/TR]

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[TD] 5

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[TD] 2:42pm

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[TD] 3:30pm

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[TD] 48mins

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All times are approximate

 

Add on ten minutes to walk from my place to Central and the journey is about an hour, plus the time from Engadine station to wherever I want to go.

Edited January 27, 2013 by MARYROSE02

[LKC]

What do I think about Engadine, not ever having lived there? It's got a station. It is handy for bushwalks in the Royal National Park (and probably Heathcote NP too?) It's got most of the facilities you need (I think?) Has got doctors, dentist, etc or do you have to go somewhere like Sutherland? Homes are probably reasonably priced. It's on the Princes Highway and probably commutable to Wollongong? It's the sort of place that I would probably live if I met someone who lived there or, in my younger days, if I got a job down there. How long does the train take to Sydney? 45 minutes? Hypocrite that I am I could probably Google this!

 

 

It has lots of facilities. There are four primary schools (I think), two high schools, doctors, dentists, post shop, Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, they are just building a Super IGA I think, there are lots of little shops, butchers, greengrocers, coffee shops, lots of lovely parks and playgrounds and a community centre and library. It is easily commutable to Wollongong and Sydney, my OH works in Hurstville which takes him about 30-35 minutes to drive (although we are in the next suburb over so slightly further away road-wise). All of my friends live in Engadine and we would have been happy to buy a house there, with Woronora Heights it was just a case of the right house at the right time for the right price, had one come up in Engadine we would have moved there instead. What struck me about Engadine is that people don't seem to move away. A number of my daughters school friends have parents who attended the same school as children. It is also very community-minded. It might not be as 'cool' as the Eastern Suburbs or Northern Beaches etc, but I reckon that Sutherland Shire is a lovely place to raise a family, particularly this end of Sutherland Shire.

[MARYROSE02]

I have no 'axe to grind' about any suburb in Sydney. I only came to Surry Hills because I hated commuting (from Narrabeen.) I am used to it now and would live nowhere else but a few years ago, I did not mind where I lived - Lower North Shore, Northern Beaches, Inner West, South West. Last year, I had a job in Penrith for five months, an area I previous dismissed as 'Westies', but had I been younger and been offered a permanent job, I'd have seriously considered moving out there.

[CrozierFamily]

Having done some more research based on your comments I think places like Campbelltown, Glen Alpine, Engadine and Penrith look reasonably decent places to live all round. And to be honest the train fairs seem to be very reasonable and the commute does not feel too far for me. I can find myself stuck in traffic and end up taking an hour to work anyway, so to get our family the best house to live in I think living a little bit out in a place like Glen Alpine is the best route to go.

 

If anyone has any other ideas of places to check out please feel free to let me know! I still have a long way to go with this search.

 

Really appreciate all of your comments so far. Thank you.

[CrozierFamily]

So I told a family friend who lives in Sydney that I was thinking of moving to Campbelltown or Penrith and they reacted with what I can only describe as abject horror. According to them all they hear about these areas is stories of gangs and shootings.

 

I am guessing they are being massively over dramatic, as I am sure every area has its good and bad parts. They are also quite rich, so I guess they can be a bit more picky than me.

 

I think our budget can now stretch closer to the $750k mark after I found out some more information on how salary multiples work in Australia, so we may be able to cast our net a little wider.

 

From what I can see working in the CBD but living in the likes of Campbelltown is a bit like working in London and living in Reading or something like that, with Sutherlandshire being a bit more like living in Slough (from a proximity perspective). Either way both options are doable.

 

When we get across we will just have to decide whether I want to commute longer to have a bigger house, or live closer in to the city and have access to more 'stuff'.

 

I appreciate all the comments. We are probably going to try and find someplace to rent to start with in the Shire. It appears we can get some nice places for around $600pw, which is what I roughly want to spend on rent (no point wasting money paying someone elses mortgage).

 

Thanks,

 

Andrew

[NickyNook]

Well, some people do tend to lump all the Western Suburbs together. It's true there are some suburbs that are well known as being the haunt of gang members (who tend to shoot each other - they don't go round picking off random strangers) or consist of ethnic ghettos but not all of them are like that.

 

Some two million people live in the Western suburbs and most would be hard-working, normal families living in perfectly nice, respectable streets. Some Campbelltown suburbs, for example, are really nice with reasonably-priced new housing. I don't know Penrith so well.

 

Having said that, the downside to Western Sydney is that it's hot (can be very hot) in the summer and can be very cold in the winter. It gets the worst of the weather, year-round. It's miles to the coast for the beaches, in fact I think that Wollongong beaches are closer to Campbelltown than Sydney beaches.

 

The Sutherland area would probably be a better pick for you coming direct from the UK.

[CrozierFamily]

Well, some people do tend to lump all the Western Suburbs together. It's true there are some suburbs that are well known as being the haunt of gang members (who tend to shoot each other - they don't go round picking off random strangers) or consist of ethnic ghettos but not all of them are like that.

 

Some two million people live in the Western suburbs and most would be hard-working, normal families living in perfectly nice, respectable streets. Some Campbelltown suburbs, for example, are really nice with reasonably-priced new housing. I don't know Penrith so well.

 

Having said that, the downside to Western Sydney is that it's hot (can be very hot) in the summer and can be very cold in the winter. It gets the worst of the weather, year-round. It's miles to the coast for the beaches, in fact I think that Wollongong beaches are closer to Campbelltown than Sydney beaches.

 

The Sutherland area would probably be a better pick for you coming direct from the UK.

 

Thanks for your thoughts. I recognise that the Shire is a good place to start, and an ideal place to live if I can manage it. But equally if we end up in Campbelltown we will make sure we have good air con and maybe a pool to cool down in! I was reasonably sure my contact was talking tripe. Places like Glen Alpine and Mount Annan look lovely. I love a game of golf for example, so if I can get a house on a course, that would be cool too!

[MARYROSE02]

Thanks for your thoughts. I recognise that the Shire is a good place to start, and an ideal place to live if I can manage it. But equally if we end up in Campbelltown we will make sure we have good air con and maybe a pool to cool down in! I was reasonably sure my contact was talking tripe. Places like Glen Alpine and Mount Annan look lovely. I love a game of golf for example, so if I can get a house on a course, that would be cool too!

 

There have been plenty of shootings in mostly western and south western Sydney, but I can't remember many of them occuring specifically in Campbelltown or Penrith. If you take a look at the map on this website, you'll see that there's been one shooting in Penrith and one in Campbelltown, with the bulk of them much closer to the city. We had a question about the suburbs with the most shootings in one of the quiz nights! Even at the suburbs which do have a bad reputation around Penrith there is only one shooting too.

 

Campbelltown and Penrith are both regional 'capitals' within the greater Sydney area - transport hubs, Council offices, shopping centres. I worked at Penrith for five months last year and would have no problem living there. It is practically in The Blue Mountains, as my friend Kurt said the other day. Campbelltown has a surprising number of old, heritage buildings too. There's a sandstone terrace at one end of the main street and a large colonial 'mansion' just off that same street.

 

You may well be a long way from the beach and city but there are compensations - being closer to getting out into the country for one. Blue Mountains in the case of Penrith and Southern Highlands in the case of Campbelltown.

 

There is a very good Westfield at Penrith as well as a 'high street' that reminds me of England. Same in Campbelltown with the shopping centre at Macarthur and the main street in Campbelltown.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/sydney-shootings

[MARYROSE02]

Come to think of it, The Blue Mountains and Southern Highlands might be feasible places to live, depending on where you are working. The Blue Mts train service is a pretty good one, although I only got it to and from Penrith - 50 mins to Central but it is limited stop to the city - Blacktown, Westmead, Parramatta, Granville, Strathfield. It slows down once it is in the Blue Mts, stopping at every station???

[CrozierFamily]

Come to think of it, The Blue Mountains and Southern Highlands might be feasible places to live, depending on where you are working. The Blue Mts train service is a pretty good one, although I only got it to and from Penrith - 50 mins to Central but it is limited stop to the city - Blacktown, Westmead, Parramatta, Granville, Strathfield. It slows down once it is in the Blue Mts, stopping at every station???

 

 

Hi

 

You are really very helpful! When I get to Sydney I am going to have to buy you a beer or something.

 

Really appreciate your thoughts.

 

Andrew

[northshorepom]

I agree with NickyNook although I don't know Penrith or Campbelltown hugely well, they're not like the South Bronx or anything. Sydney can be quite snobbish and lots of people will deride "the west" as if it's all one horrible ghetto, which is silly. Once you're that far out you're almost talking country towns really. I'm going to Campbelltown tomorrow to see a client as it happens. Hey, they even have a NRL team there (Wests Tigers) so there must be some civilisation!

:wink:

 

I also agree with NN that I still think the Shire is a better bet - but I wouldn't discount the other places. It's worth pointing out that the train service from Campbelltown will shortly be improving (it's not bad now) with the quad of the East Hills line almost finished (this will increase capacity, so more faster trains) and the South West rail link from Leppington coming on stream in about 18 months I think. Also the Southern Freight Line in this area has just been commissioned, again this has taken pressure off the main line so passenger services should get more reliable. I'm not a trainspotter BTW, I just know this stuff through work

 

Not sure I'd go with living in the Blue Mountains or Southern Highlands and commuting daily though. People do it (same as they commute from the Central Coast) but I think that would get old pretty quickly. I've done 90 mins e/w commutes in my time and I don't wish to return to it, ever.

 

I'm not sure Campbelltown being closer to 'gong beaches is a bad thing - quite the reverse. Beaches down there are fab (better IMO than many city beaches), google directions says it's 35 minutes to Austinmer/Thirroul, I can assure you that a LOT of people who live in Sydney live further than that from a beach, time-wise

 

See? Not too shabby......

 

[jackson4]

I'm not sure I would take my under 2's to Campbelltown and I'm not posh! We went out there a couple of weeks ago to look at a car we found at a dealer out there. We went to McDonald's with the kids to discuss the purchase and they were given balloons. It was a hot day and as we were sat outside by the play area, the balloon popped and the people at the tables around us panicked and jumped up because they thought it was a gun shot (no, not exaggerating). I apologised profusely for scaring everyone with a popping balloon. But, that was a natural reaction from people in Campbelltown...!

[CrozierFamily]

I agree with NickyNook although I don't know Penrith or Campbelltown hugely well, they're not like the South Bronx or anything. Sydney can be quite snobbish and lots of people will deride "the west" as if it's all one horrible ghetto, which is silly. Once you're that far out you're almost talking country towns really. I'm going to Campbelltown tomorrow to see a client as it happens. Hey, they even have a NRL team there (Wests Tigers) so there must be some civilisation!

:wink:

 

I also agree with NN that I still think the Shire is a better bet - but I wouldn't discount the other places. It's worth pointing out that the train service from Campbelltown will shortly be improving (it's not bad now) with the quad of the East Hills line almost finished (this will increase capacity, so more faster trains) and the South West rail link from Leppington coming on stream in about 18 months I think. Also the Southern Freight Line in this area has just been commissioned, again this has taken pressure off the main line so passenger services should get more reliable. I'm not a trainspotter BTW, I just know this stuff through work

 

Not sure I'd go with living in the Blue Mountains or Southern Highlands and commuting daily though. People do it (same as they commute from the Central Coast) but I think that would get old pretty quickly. I've done 90 mins e/w commutes in my time and I don't wish to return to it, ever.

 

I'm not sure Campbelltown being closer to 'gong beaches is a bad thing - quite the reverse. Beaches down there are fab (better IMO than many city beaches), google directions says it's 35 minutes to Austinmer/Thirroul, I can assure you that a LOT of people who live in Sydney live further than that from a beach, time-wise

 

See? Not too shabby......

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]18426[/ATTACH]

 

Really helpful post! Thank you so much.

[CrozierFamily]

I'm not sure I would take my under 2's to Campbelltown and I'm not posh! We went out there a couple of weeks ago to look at a car we found at a dealer out there. We went to McDonald's with the kids to discuss the purchase and they were given balloons. It was a hot day and as we were sat outside by the play area, the balloon popped and the people at the tables around us panicked and jumped up because they thought it was a gun shot (no, not exaggerating). I apologised profusely for scaring everyone with a popping balloon. But, that was a natural reaction from people in Campbelltown...!

 

 

To be fair if people are jumping at popping balloons in Campbelltown, maybe I need to be more worried about being surrounding by numpties than worrying about crime.

[CrozierFamily]

Okay, so while I am here I have another question.

 

I have noticed in a few other threads people intimating that a property price correction is due in Australia. I was wondering if anyone here thinks this is actually likely to happen?

 

I can see the level of affordability in places like Sydney is getting high, but at the same time it is Sydney, so like London I am inclinded to believe it will be protected from any kind of correction?

 

Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

[MARYROSE02]

Hi

 

You are really very helpful! When I get to Sydney I am going to have to buy you a beer or something.

 

Really appreciate your thoughts.

 

Andrew

 

Only one!? Actually I 'only' had two tonight, one in the 3 Wise Monkeys on George & Liverpool Sts, and one right next door in the Spanish club because I heard flamenco guitar. I went to see 'Argo' earlier - ****ing brilliant movie! I did have a glass of red wine once I got home - walking all the way from George and Liverpool Sts.