Kane and Cara Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 1 hour ago, Beffers said: Depends on your budget and lifestyle too. I was recommended Bayside as the must have area, and we hated it! We now live in the Dandenong Ranges, have been here for 18 months and have just bought a house. People say its too from CBD, one hour Belgrave line, but we don't work in the City. There are always massive assumptions that you need to be within reach of the CBD, but I go into the city once every couple months and that's all. We've just bought a big 3 bed with a self contained studio below on 3000 square metres for 550K. Our rental was a 2/3 bed cottage on 2000 squ metres for $350/week. I know we couldn't have done either closer to the CBD and the quality of life up here is far greater than anything down in the suburbs! My advice: think about your lifestyle and your budget. And start from there, if you don't mind a half hour drive from beach, then why pay a premium to live there? If you want green parks and open spaces then not all suburbs will offer this. Do you prefer modern housing areas, then this will give you options from Altona / Werribbee etc in the west or Officer etc in the East. Do you want a large garden for your kids to play? Lots of plots are small in the suburbs, so be mindful of it. And lastly, budget and proximity to schools - budget will dictate a lot and schools are generally zoned and will need research depending on how old your kids are. Its a bit of a minefield! Also check out Facebook page UK Mums in Melbourne - lots of advice on there once you're further along in your research and/or once you've had your visa granted. Good luck! Thank you so much for your message. It isn’t very hard when you haven’t been someone to know where to even begin looking. We actually already have visas. We lived in Brisbane for 7 months and although we know we want to come back to OZ, we are not sure about returning there, which is why we are researching Melbourne. There is plenty of work, and it all looks lovely. It just seems the weather is a bit more varied that Brisbane where it is mainly hot and humid all the time. Thanks again 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 8 hours ago, Kane and Cara said: Thank you so much for your message. It isn’t very hard when you haven’t been someone to know where to even begin looking. We actually already have visas. We lived in Brisbane for 7 months and although we know we want to come back to OZ, we are not sure about returning there, which is why we are researching Melbourne. There is plenty of work, and it all looks lovely. It just seems the weather is a bit more varied that Brisbane where it is mainly hot and humid all the time. I do think the suggestion of Geelong is a good one. Unlike some office workers, your oh has a good chance of finding work in Geelong itself, and in the Western suburbs of Melbourne, because of the amount of construction work going on, so he won't be facing a horrible commute. If you're thinking of a beach lifestyle then that's another vote for Geelong, because Melbourne doesn't do beaches like the rest of Australia does! I like the cooler weather in Melbourne but people who visit are often disappointed - it's not beach weather a lot of the time. If you're not committed to Melbourne, you could look at Newcastle, which has a more typical Australian vibe but isn't as hot and sticky as Brisbane. The key to living on the East Coast is to make sure you can afford to live near the coast, to get the sea breezes. As soon as you go inland it's suffocating, unless you can find some mountains! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Maybe have a look at the Expats in Geelong FB group? Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ballaratburd Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 Ballarat is much colder in the winterthan Melbourne or Geelong though. By about 3/4 degrees maybe [emoji23] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABG Posted February 4, 2019 Share Posted February 4, 2019 We're in the SE suburbs (Mentone) and we like it, but I housing is expensive. We drove out to the Dandenong Ranges last weekend and it was beautiful. It might be a bit too far out for me, but when you get about 40km out from the CBD you suddenly start running into open spaces and the types of houses that I imagined before moving here (larger plots). We're renting right now, but as I work from home, we will be looking at moving further out when we buy to get a bigger property that either comes with a pool or has the room to put one in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Look at the Eastern suburbs- good schools, leafy environment and good transport, too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bayside Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 (edited) Brisbane and Melbourne are very different cities. Melbourne has plenty more to offer being a bigger city and generally the people seem to be nicer too. The city also has a high proportion of the overseas population in Australia and is particularly popular with Uk-born migrants. The climate and weather is far more approachable and manageable coming from the UK too. Nevertheless the summer months in Melbourne are divine making the coastal regions of Victoria very popular. A fantastic alternative to Geelong is the beautiful Mornington Peninsula. The Mornington Peninsula is also the most popular place for UK born migrants in all of Melbourne. This is compared to the North of Geelong being popular with Croatians and the west being popular with Indians. Generally, Brits, Irish and Scottish migrants tend to live near the coastal suburbs where there is a higher proportion of Australians. The south-east and east of Melbourne tend to be consistently good options. Edited February 5, 2019 by bayside Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bayside Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 On 04/02/2019 at 16:54, ABG said: We're in the SE suburbs (Mentone) and we like it, but I housing is expensive. We drove out to the Dandenong Ranges last weekend and it was beautiful. It might be a bit too far out for me, but when you get about 40km out from the CBD you suddenly start running into open spaces and the types of houses that I imagined before moving here (larger plots). We're renting right now, but as I work from home, we will be looking at moving further out when we buy to get a bigger property that either comes with a pool or has the room to put one in. The Mornington Peninsula is ideal for providing a SE bayside lifestyle at a more affordable price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starlight7 Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Yes the Mornington Peninsula is lovely. Does require a bit of travelling but better than being cooped up near the city I think. Agree the people are very nice and easy to chat to but then I am biased because I have lived here most of my life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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