Lynnie Posted April 28, 2019 Share Posted April 28, 2019 Hi everyone, my name is Lynn. We currently live inPerth but our 2 boys who moved from Perth are renting in surrey hills and my 3rd son is moving there also in about 2 months. We want to be near them but can’t afford Sydney prices so we have been looking at the Central Coast. As we no nothing about any of the suburbs was wondering if anyone can help. Like where’s nice n where to avoid if any. Would like to be near amenities, within driving distance to train line. What’s the overall consensus on life in the central coast. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicky87 Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Hi Lynn I can't offer much advice as I've never been to the Central Coast but it is also on my radar as an option if Perth doesn't work out.. When I was researching Avoca beach came up as a nice place.. And Gosford not so nice - hopefully people who have been there can offer more places Can you do a trip over and have a drive around first to see where you like? Would you go as far up as Newcastle which also looks very nice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) Are you still working or are you retired? If you're still working, the Central Coast would be problematic because there's not much work around, and anything within reasonable commute of Sydney will be expensive. If you're older, then things like being close to shops, hospitals, health care and good public transport become important and the Central Coast isn't ideal for that either. Vicky's suggestion of Newcastle is a good one. It's a couple of hours' drive from Sydney (or about the same on the train), so it's not affected by Sydney commuter prices. It's the major centre for the region so it has all the amenities you could wish for, plus lovely beaches. You might also consider heading out to Port Stephens, which is outside Newcastle to the north. That may seem far away, but the attraction is that you'd be living on a gorgeous bay with gorgeous beaches,and you could afford something a bit bigger. It would be the sort of place that your children would be keen to visit for weekends as it's a beach resort. Edited May 13, 2019 by Marisawright 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicky87 Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Do you know whether they're still looking at the high speed rail? I read somewhere it could half the travel time between Sydney and Newcastle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 Hi Vicky yeah I’ve got some suburbs that’s been recommended it’s just weather the place is really quiet as I struggle with Perth trying to find new places n things to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 Hi marisawright, yeah I’m still working I’m 53 n Hubbie is 57 I currently work in the hospital as a wardclerk n Hubbie is a painter, I commute an hr a day so traveling is not a problem for me. My 2 boys live in the city n they want to move cronolla but to pricy for us so that’s why we thought if central coast more value for money. We did go to have a look at Newcastle and it was lovely but just too far away from my boys. We also looked at Wollongong n was advised that there’s too much drugs etc we Have booked flights for July to have a look but just wanted some views from anyone that lived there. We are very out doors type of people so nice walks, somewhere nice to run etc and explore is what we r looking for plus somewhere where we feel safe . Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 4 hours ago, Lynnie said: Hi Vicky yeah I’ve got some suburbs that’s been recommended it’s just weather the place is really quiet as I struggle with Perth trying to find new places n things to do. If the boys are going to Cronulla then going north isn't a good idea. You'll have to battle through the whole of Sydney every time you want to visit them. The trip from Cronulla (the northern tip of Sydney) to Hornsby takes an hour even in light traffic. On an average Saturday afternoon, it will take you two hours. Let's not even think about doing it in peak hour! Wollongong has a big unemployment problem so I'm not surprised to hear drugs are an issue - however I'm sure it's like most cities, there are good suburbs and bad suburbs. What's your budget for a home, if you don't mind me asking? And are you looking for a house or an apartment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted May 14, 2019 Author Share Posted May 14, 2019 5 hours ago, Marisawright said: If the boys are going to Cronulla then going north isn't a good idea. You'll have to battle through the whole of Sydney every time you want to visit them. The trip from Cronulla (the northern tip of Sydney) to Hornsby takes an hour even in light traffic. On an average Saturday afternoon, it will take you two hours. Let's not even think about doing it in peak hour! Wollongong has a big unemployment problem so I'm not surprised to hear drugs are an issue - however I'm sure it's like most cities, there are good suburbs and bad suburbs. What's your budget for a home, if you don't mind me asking? And are you looking for a house or an apartment? Hi, we do love Cronulla but just to pricy. I didn’t realise it would take that long to drive our price range is about 550-600 we have looked at appartments but some of the builds are really ugly lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 28 minutes ago, Lynnie said: Hi, we do love Cronulla but just to pricy. I didn’t realise it would take that long to drive our price range is about 550-600 we have looked at appartments but some of the builds are really ugly lol Yes, Cronulla is pricey. As a rule, anywhere near the beach is going to be expensive - even if it's an hour's commute from the city centre, like Cronulla. The St George area is slightly inland from Cronulla and therefore a bit cheaper. Look at the stops along the Illawarra line from Cronulla. Places get cheaper as you go along that line, until you start getting close to the city centre. Oatley is a cute suburb, with a village feel. You would only get an apartment for that price in Oatley, but if you search for Oatley on realestate.com.au and tick "surrounding suburbs", it will bring up other areas that are close by. Let's look at driving time. If you go Central Coast, it would be at least two hours drive to get to Cronulla. So if you drive between one and two hours to the south, where does it get you? If you go inland, it gets you to the Southern Highlands. Several nice villages (Bowral is the main town), green hills and scones with cream, Bundanoon Highland Games, very popular with retirees, and it has a train line. Worth a look. Or it gets you to Kiama, a lovely seaside town. It has a train line too. Or Shellharbour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted May 14, 2019 Author Share Posted May 14, 2019 Thanks so much think we will look south then .. is sutherland area ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 14, 2019 Share Posted May 14, 2019 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Lynnie said: Thanks so much think we will look south then .. is sutherland area ok? People talk about "the Sutherland shire", which covers a big area south of the Georges River. Overall it's regarded as a nice area to live in. There's also a suburb called Sutherland. If you mean the suburb, I find the shopping centre a bit faceless but it's a convenient place to live, and it's good for commuting because even the "limited stops" trains stop there. The best place to check out suburbs is Homely.com.au. Here's a bit about the Southern Highlands to tempt you: https://concreteplayground.com/sydney/travel-leisure/travel/a-weekenders-guide-to-bowral Any other questions, ask away. I lived in Sydney for over 30 years but I've had to move away in retirement. Loving life in Melbourne though. Edited May 14, 2019 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted May 15, 2019 Author Share Posted May 15, 2019 Hiya, Bowral sounds beautiful, can I ask where I lived in Sydney? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 15, 2019 Share Posted May 15, 2019 1 hour ago, Lynnie said: Hiya, Bowral sounds beautiful, can I ask where lived in Sydney? I started out in the Eastern suburbs (Paddington, Double Bay) then my marriage broke up and it's been all downhill since then! Only joking really - Paddington and Double Bay are very upmarket, but I've been lucky to live in nice suburbs throughout my time in Sydney. In fact that's the reason I'm now in Melbourne - when we moved back from overseas, we couldn't afford to buy or rent in an acceptable area. Large parts of Western and South-Western Sydney are awful, faceless, dormitory suburbs and there was no way I would live in them. As we have no family left in Sydney, there was no reason for us to compromise, so we came to Melbourne instead. Places I've lived in: after my divorce, I lived in Randwick and Alexandria, then when I remarried I lived in Five Dock and Ashbury (both west of Sydney and as far West as I'd ever consider living). Then we moved down to Oatley to be near my mother-in-law. My mother-in-law lived in Gymea, another nice suburb with good coffee shops, and my husband's niece lived in Kirrawee. I used to go to Wollongong, Newcastle and Parramatta frequently for work. I used to go sailing at Jervis Bay on the weekend, so I often stopped off at Kiama on the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFrench Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 Hi I live on the Central Coast with my husband and 3 kids. Very good place to raise kids. Best suburbs: Terrigal, Erina, Avoca Beach, Wamberal I heard more negative things about The Entrance, Springfield, Woywoy. Hope it’s helpful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 2 hours ago, TheFrench said: I live on the Central Coast with my husband and 3 kids. Very good place to raise kids. Best suburbs: Terrigal, Erina, Avoca Beach, Wamberal I heard more negative things about The Entrance, Springfield, Woywoy. The OP was looking at moving to the Central Coast to be near her boys who live in Cronulla. I've explained that it's on the wrong side of Sydney. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted June 10, 2019 Author Share Posted June 10, 2019 Hi, thank you we are still considering the central coast as I can’t seem to find somewhere reasonably price south of the river. Can I ask what suburb you live in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 50 minutes ago, Lynnie said: Hi, thank you we are still considering the central coast as I can’t seem to find somewhere reasonably price south of the river. Can I ask what suburb you live in? I think you will regret it. As i said, the Central Coast is about 2 hours drive from Cronulla, and worse at busy times. If you look 2 hours away from Cronulla in any other direction, you will easily find homes the same price as the Central Coast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anolo Lohgun Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 On 10/06/2019 at 17:30, Lynnie said: Hi, thank you we are still considering the central coast as I can’t seem to find somewhere reasonably price south of the river. Can I ask what suburb you live in? CC resident here, it depends a lot on your budget and your requirement. If you equate the "best" with expensive then it will be Avoca, Terrigal, Wamberal for the beach/coastal lifestyle. Holgate, Matcham for the acreages. Around Brisbane Waters for the waterfront living. You said you found Perth quiet ... you do realise that Central Coast is a large region with just over 330k residents. Perth is a capital city with over 2m residents. If living somewhere in NSW is your top priority and you can compromise on "busyness" of the area then maybe CC is an option. Anyway, if you let us know your budget then maybe people can recommend suburbs, north or south of Sydney. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted June 19, 2019 Author Share Posted June 19, 2019 Hi our budget is about $550,000 we like the beach coastal living as we are near the coast atm. Also riverside living would be nice too. Perth is quiet but more so as there is not much to see and do and having lived here for 8 years we have done it all more than once. Looking forward to exploring new areas. It’s good to have a base and no that you can go elsewhere along the east coast. Hubbie is a painter and decorator and would like to work around the cc area n not commute into Sydney. Any feedback would be appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausvisitor Posted June 20, 2019 Share Posted June 20, 2019 No disrespect to CC (it's a fantastic place) but if you think Perth is quiet you've seen nothing yet. Have you thought that if all you want to be able to do is see a few more things every so often, that you could afford a lot of long weekends away (maybe to Sydney, Melbourne etc.) from Perth just on the money you would save by not paying to sell the existing house and stamp duty on the next. I doubt you'll find CC anymore interesting than Perth, it'd be different if you were saying you were moving to Perth or Brisbane or Melbourne but you are trading a big city for a large town Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted June 20, 2019 Author Share Posted June 20, 2019 4 hours ago, Ausvisitor said: No disrespect to CC (it's a fantastic place) but if you think Perth is quiet you've seen nothing yet. Have you thought that if all you want to be able to do is see a few more things every so often, that you could afford a lot of long weekends away (maybe to Sydney, Melbourne etc.) from Perth just on the money you would save by not paying to sell the existing house and stamp duty on the next. I doubt you'll find CC anymore interesting than Perth, it'd be different if you were saying you were moving to Perth or Brisbane or Melbourne but you are trading a big city for a large town Hiya we live in burbs 45 mins from city. We really struggle to find something to do every weekend not just every now and then you don’t really see anyone walking around as you have to drive everywhere here. By living in CC or around that area we are more able to go into Sydney, Newcastle etc an even Melbourne as flights are much much cheaper than flying from Perth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted June 20, 2019 Share Posted June 20, 2019 7 hours ago, Lynnie said: Hiya we live in burbs 45 mins from city. We really struggle to find something to do every weekend not just every now and then you don’t really see anyone walking around as you have to drive everywhere here. By living in CC or around that area we are more able to go into Sydney, Newcastle etc an even Melbourne as flights are much much cheaper than flying from Perth. You might struggle to sell your house in Perth. My sister has had hers on the market for a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted June 21, 2019 Author Share Posted June 21, 2019 6 hours ago, newjez said: You might struggle to sell your house in Perth. My sister has had hers on the market for a year. Yeah it’s very slow here. We would rent out and rent in CC until it picks up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anolo Lohgun Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 2 On 19/06/2019 at 22:29, Lynnie said: Hi our budget is about $550,000 we like the beach coastal living as we are near the coast atm. Also riverside living would be nice too. Perth is quiet but more so as there is not much to see and do and having lived here for 8 years we have done it all more than once. Looking forward to exploring new areas. It’s good to have a base and no that you can go elsewhere along the east coast. Hubbie is a painter and decorator and would like to work around the cc area n not commute into Sydney. Any feedback would be appreciated There's no beach in CC that fits your budget, unfortunately. For 550k the "best suburbs" would be Berkeley Vale, Killarney Vale, Tumbi Umbi and perhaps if you are lucky Glenning Valley. You can buy houses for that price in Long Jetty and The Entrance. However, The Entrance is not the nicest part of CC and it's terribly busy during the holiday period. Long Jetty is becoming trendy so it may be an option. I wouldn't mind the Vales, Tumbi Umbi, Glenning Valley to live myself. Not Long Jetty & The Entrance. It's not beachfront living, more lakeside living, but beach access is still easy and not far at all. Many restaurants and cafe dot around the lake. Not far to the east, there are Shelly Beach & Toowon Bay. You can't afford anything there, but lots of nice places to visit. If access to Sydney is a high priority, then maybe Wyoming or Narara due to its close proximity to Gosford. If access to Sydney is the top priority, Kariong is within your budget, it's next to the M1 but it's almost like its own little world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynnie Posted July 29, 2019 Author Share Posted July 29, 2019 Thank you so much we are here now so will check out the suburbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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