Secret Harbour

[OzinEire]

Hiya, 

Just wondering if anyone has moved to or around Secret Harbour recently? Looking for a more chilled out way of life with 3 small kids. Is it a good place for young families?

Have read mixed reviews on what the area is like but a lot of them are a good few years old so looking for more recent info. 

Are there many job prospects for IT and Finance in Rockingham or Mandurah or would we likely have to travel to the city?

 TIA! 

[Marisawright]

Are you in Australia already?

[Vicky87]

Hi, I haven't been to Secret Harbour but a colleague lives there and said its a nice area and I've seen others comment it's good for families.. Apparently Baldivis is also good for families and similar location, but there are also some not so nice areas very close by

I don't think there would be many IT jobs locally, you would probably have to commute to the CBD. Unless there is something in Kwinana or Henderson as they have engineering companies that might need IT specialists

We are in Aubin Grove, arrived about 8 weeks ago and love it so far. Have a 2 year old and joined some playgroups. Everyone seems really friendly. 

If you'd like anymore info, send me a Pm and I'll help however I can  

Edited August 19, 2019 by Vicky87

[OzinEire]

7 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Are you in Australia already?

Not yet. We should be in Perth this time next year. There seems to be a lot of recommendations for suburbs NOR. 

6 hours ago, Vicky87 said:

Hi, I haven't been to Secret Harbour but a colleague lives there and said its a nice area and I've seen others comment it's good for families.. Apparently Baldivis is also good for families and similar location, but there are also some not so nice areas very close by

I don't think there would be many IT jobs locally, you would probably have to commute to the CBD. Unless there is something in Kwinana or Henderson as they have engineering companies that might need IT specialists

We are in Aubin Grove, arrived about 8 weeks ago and love it so far. Have a 2 year old and joined some playgroups. Everyone seems really friendly. 

If you'd like anymore info, send me a Pm and I'll help however I can  

Thanks a mill! We've a nearly 4yr old, 2yr old and due number 3 in January so hoping to move over and not be under too much financial pressure but it all depends on being able to get a job I guess! 

 

I think we'll need to take a month or two to look around at areas when we first get there. So hard to know what's right

[Vicky87]

NOR is definitely more popular and comes with a larger price tag.. My colleague is actually moving from secret harbour to go NOR, not because he prefers it but he finds there's more going on and ends up travelling that way in weekends anyway. I haven't found that (not yet anyway!) 

It depends on what you want I guess.. Suburbs further inland are better value but not sure if you wanted to be on the coast..

Maybe start looking at seek.com.au at jobs you might be able to do and where they're located which could help narrow it down? 

Good luck, it's a big decision so definitely worth taking a drive around

[Paul1Perth]

Secret Harbour is a nice spot. Bit cut off but if everything you need and want is there it's great.

The beach there is brilliant and decent surf. Have to be careful with smaller kids. The surf club is one of the best on the coast and had loads spent on it.

If you like golf there's a good golf course on the doorstep.

You can get a good house for a reasonable price.

Jobs in IT might be difficult to come by but there is a lot of investment happening in Henderson so probably defence work coming up.

I live NOR and love it but when we've gone to Secret Harbour for surf club comps always enjoyed it. My sister went to look there when they were trying to emigrate and was amazed at the houses you could get for the price.

[VERYSTORMY]

It was our first choice before we arrived in WA. It was our last after visiting. 

[OzinEire]

53 minutes ago, VERYSTORMY said:

It was our first choice before we arrived in WA. It was our last after visiting. 

Just because it didn't suit you or because you thought it was a bit rubbish? 

 

10 hours ago, Vicky87 said:

NOR is definitely more popular and comes with a larger price tag.. My colleague is actually moving from secret harbour to go NOR, not because he prefers it but he finds there's more going on and ends up travelling that way in weekends anyway. I haven't found that (not yet anyway!) 

It depends on what you want I guess.. Suburbs further inland are better value but not sure if you wanted to be on the coast..

Maybe start looking at seek.com.au at jobs you might be able to do and where they're located which could help narrow it down? 

Good luck, it's a big decision so definitely worth taking a drive around

Thanks! Jobs are definitely the deciding factor. 

 

10 hours ago, Paul1Perth said:

Secret Harbour is a nice spot. Bit cut off but if everything you need and want is there it's great.

The beach there is brilliant and decent surf. Have to be careful with smaller kids. The surf club is one of the best on the coast and had loads spent on it.

If you like golf there's a good golf course on the doorstep.

You can get a good house for a reasonable price.

Jobs in IT might be difficult to come by but there is a lot of investment happening in Henderson so probably defence work coming up.

I live NOR and love it but when we've gone to Secret Harbour for surf club comps always enjoyed it. My sister went to look there when they were trying to emigrate and was amazed at the houses you could get for the price.

Thanks, I'll see if I can find anything about work in Henderson. Cheers! 

[VERYSTORMY]

What I would say is, wait until you arrive, then go and see different places and keep an open mind until then. We thought we were pretty clear and had nailed it to three areas (1 NOR and 2 SOR). All three turned out to be the places we really disliked. Where we ended up, we loved and was somewhere we hadn't heard of. 

[newjez]

On 18/08/2019 at 19:18, OzinEire said:

Hiya, 

Just wondering if anyone has moved to or around Secret Harbour recently? Looking for a more chilled out way of life with 3 small kids. Is it a good place for young families?

Have read mixed reviews on what the area is like but a lot of them are a good few years old so looking for more recent info. 

Are there many job prospects for IT and Finance in Rockingham or Mandurah or would we likely have to travel to the city?

 TIA! 

As a rule of thumb, property in Perth tends to get cheaper as you move away from the city and the swan River. As you move out to ellenbrook, up to wanaroo, or down to secret harbour, there will be a fairly predictable drop in house prices.

They put the trouble in the cheaper areas.

That doesn't mean there will always be trouble in the cheaper areas. But it will be there, so you need to avoid it if you can. 

One rule of thumb is to avoid streets with tire marks on the road.

Also, you should be wary of streets with single garages and carports.

There are lots of nice bits in the cheaper areas. But you really want to avoid the unsociable bits if you can.

But, obviously younger families will also be in these areas. So by all means look there, but look carefully.

Most IT jobs will be in the city, but there will be some in Rockingham. Probably more likely to be there than nor. I would see where you get work, and then pick where you want to live, rather than vice versa. It will make life much easier.

Edited August 20, 2019 by newjez

[Marisawright]

27 minutes ago, newjez said:

Most IT jobs will be in the city, but there will be some in Rockingham. Probably more likely to be there than nor. I would see where you get work, and then pick where you want to live, rather than vice versa. It will make life much easier.

This is good advice.  You'll need to rent an AirBnB or holiday let for your first four weeks anyway, while you find a long-term rental.  If you haven't got a job lined up by then, you can look at a six-month rental somewhere fairly central so you've got a good base to look around. 

[OzinEire]

Thanks for your help everybody! Will definitely be looking around before we decide on somewhere to rent and hopefully eventually buy. Cheers! 

[s713]

Get a holiday rental for as long as possible, make it your business to drive around suburbs as much as you can. Guaranteed you'll end up choosing somewhere different than your original plan.

No IT work SOR, only the CBD. Not that much IT work in Perth full stop.

We lived NOR but found ourselves heading SOR a lot of the time, more to do down there, NOR doesn't have much. Also, SOR is a better platform for travelling to the SW of WA if that's something you're interested in.

[Sandgroper]

On 19/08/2019 at 02:18, OzinEire said:

Hiya, 

Just wondering if anyone has moved to or around Secret Harbour recently? Looking for a more chilled out way of life with 3 small kids. Is it a good place for young families?

Have read mixed reviews on what the area is like but a lot of them are a good few years old so looking for more recent info. 

Are there many job prospects for IT and Finance in Rockingham or Mandurah or would we likely have to travel to the city?

 TIA! 

Secret Harbour is a decent family orientated suburb and would be a nice place to bring up kids, just a little to far out for your type of work, although plenty do live there and commute to the CBD. 

I think SOR is nicer but that is just my opinion, I know people who have settled NOR initially the moved SOR and vice versa. SOR has the nicer safe beaches for sure.

Get a holiday rental somewhere fairly central initially and just drive around looking at places.

[OzinEire]

Thanks for replies so far everyone. Would it be more beneficial for us to get Airbnbs or the like for 2 weeks NOR and 2 weeks SOR or would driving around be sufficient to get a feel for the areas do you think? 

[Sandgroper]

22 hours ago, OzinEire said:

Thanks for replies so far everyone. Would it be more beneficial for us to get Airbnbs or the like for 2 weeks NOR and 2 weeks SOR or would driving around be sufficient to get a feel for the areas do you think? 

No just get one place, Perth is small and easy too get around outside of the rush hour somewhere just North or South of the river would be a good base.

[s713]

On 28/08/2019 at 10:49, OzinEire said:

Thanks for replies so far everyone. Would it be more beneficial for us to get Airbnbs or the like for 2 weeks NOR and 2 weeks SOR or would driving around be sufficient to get a feel for the areas do you think? 

That's a start. It's a tough one, holiday rentals cost a lot but nowhere near as much as buying a house in the wrong location and then having to move. We waited over 18 months before buying in Australia and I would suggest that's probably the best approach. We sold our house this year and the agent fees were upwards of $17k. So, make sure you get it right through research.

[benj1980]

Secret Harbour is generally a nice area. It has a bit of a reputation for hoons/youths and the high school isn't top notch. That said it has some beautiful beaches and relaxed feel. I like it there but live a bit further south. I have friends who live there and are very happy. There's lots of poms there.

When you start getting into a SOR/NOR of the river debate you end up with just that, a debate! Most IT jobs you'd expect to be in the City. No one has asked you what type of IT job of course!