Worst Areas/Suburbs to Live in Australia

[Riekie]

Many people ask where NOT to live in Australia. Although it is hard to find an area in Australia you should absolutely NOT live, there are certain suburbs which are the worst of the worst in the major cities of Australia, mainly due to Crime, Violence, Drugs, Unemployment & Assault. That said, most of these crimes are performed to and by people known to each other and is seldom just "random". Obvioulsy where you have large unemployed communities, there's the crime and social behaviour that goes with it. Many people who live there would not live anywhere else and is determined not to let their suburbs go down the drain. Also, keep in mind, that in Australia, being "robbed" by someone with a tennis racket is considered a violent assault and makes headline news. Just keeping things in perspective...

Ok, so here goes:

Sydney:

Mt Druitt

Blacktown (The highest incidents of Property Damage, Domestic Violence, Murder and other crimes in all of Australia, most of which is drug related/induced).

St Marys (Large groups of out of control teenagers and drugs - and the crimes which goes with it, like car theft and setting cars on fire for the sake of setting cars on fire).

Melbourne:

Frankston (Or as locals refer to it: Frankhanistan, the most dangerous suburb in Melbourne)

Broadmeadows

QLD:

Logan (and nearby Eagleby)

Coolangata (Or Coolanghetto as it is locally called - the most robberies and murders in QLD)

Caboolture Area

Perth:

Balga

Armadale

Adelaide:

Davoren Park

[Moo]

I went to collect my new kitten from Davoren Park in Adelaide (being a clueless newcomer) and I was SCARED! This teenage boy walked right next to my parked car before I was about to pull off and just glared at me to intimidate me!! My colleagues at work joked that I should take a gun and asked if my kitten had yellow eyes from doing too much acid?

[monsta]

You forgot kings cross in Sydney. It has quite a party scene that can get a bit too wild.

And Moo... just stand up to those kids... kids generally aren't going to risk getting in trouble lightly. Most of the violence in Australia is between people who know each other.

Edited August 15, 2012 by monsta

[Donovan83]

Blacktown

I can just imagine Julius going on about how this name is racist!

[HansaPlease]

Melbourne:

The entire West*

Dandenong

Moe (a few hours from Melbourne but should still be avoided)

Adelaide:

Elizabeth

Anything with Para or Downs in the name

This will be an interesting thread to watch though because one persons experience of a suburb can vary greatly from another. I find that you can get great streets and bad streets in the same suburb.

*ok, this is not true, I'm just flaming the East vs West argument that's become a running joke on the forums

[MarcK]

I made friends with an Ozzie couple who, according to them, lived in the Wild West of Melbourne! Thought they were just joking. Note to self....make new friends!

[Bronwyn&Co]

Elizabeth and Salisbury in Adelaide

Darra in Brisbane

Oh, and a 17 year old's friend of a friend's son got hit in the face with a golf club recently in Surfer's Paradise. He was sitting on a pavement talking to his girlfriend and now has 30 stitches in his face. He does not know the people and didn't even speak to them. It's apparently a sport to bash or 'King hit' people outside clubs for no reason in Brisbane.

[GideonVD]

My wife and I are looking at some new developments in the Western part of Melbourne... reading this makes me a little apprehensive...

Edited August 15, 2012 by VeryDesperate

[Eto]

Elizabeth and Salisbury in Adelaide

Darra in Brisbane

Oh, and a 17 year old's friend of a friend's son got hit in the face with a golf club recently in Surfer's Paradise. He was sitting on a pavement talking to his girlfriend and now has 30 stitches in his face. He does not know the people and didn't even speak to them. It's apparently a sport to bash or 'King hit' people outside clubs for no reason in Brisbane.

"King Hit" and "Glassing" is something that happens quite often in Perth as well.

Eto

[HansaPlease]

Look, a lot of the Western suburbs have a bad reputation from days gone by, many of them unfairly so. There has and continues to be a lot of development, and there are plenty of good ones, like Point Cook. There are also ones to watch out for, like any city. Footscray, Sunshine, Deer Park, not so good.

[Sibella]

The Aussies I've spoken to so far all say that the West of Melbourne isn't good - but most of them have never been there!

It's just a perception and there are many beautiful suburbs in the West (Sanctuary Lake, Point Cook), as well as some not so nice ones.

I just prefer the East or even the Outer East where we live because the West seems quite cutoff from the East of Melbourne, you have to drive right through the city to get this side and it takes ages as the traffice seems really bad. But again that's just my perception.

[Fish]

...

QLD:

Logan (and nearby Eagleby)

Coolangata (Or Coolanghetto as it is locally called - the most robberies and murders in QLD)

Caboolture Area

...

In case you didn't know Logan is a large city council area in the far outer south of Brisbane rather than one suburb. Despite having some of Brisbane's worst suburbs much of it is ok and some really good.

Edited August 15, 2012 by Fish

[Sa2Nz2Oz]

Woodridge - Logan Area South Brisbane, did some design work at the State school there - not a good area.

Ashmore - Gold Coast (the joke - Trashmore) - not that bad

Southport - Gold Coast (the joke - SouthPit) - Its really come up lately but in 80's early 90's was a bit dodgy

Main Beach - Gold Coast - Vain Beach - very affluent area.

[Mara]

I have lived on the West for the past 10 years, and find nothing wrong with it. You just have to make your choices as to where on the west you live, much the same as the east, which also has bad areas.

We live in the North West of Melbourne, a village called Sunbury, and believe me, the South African population is growing, month by month. No stress, no parking meters, train to Melbourne takes around 45mins, affordable housing, both to buy and rent. Some goods schools, plenty of known shops, Target, Big W, Harris Scarfe, Woolworths, Coles, McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, many pizza places, KFC, Red Rooster and plenty of other greater places to eat, golf course, and the list goes on.

I get tired of people that lambast the west, and have probably never set foot there.

[rozellem]

You forgot Kings Cross in Sydney. It has quite a party scene that can get a bit too wild.

People should view most of these lists in perspective. You would probably not go and settle in Kings Cross if you had a family. But, if you are a single person or a couple, you would have the time of your life. It is very inner city with loads of clubs, bars and great restaurants. Very quiet in the day, but pumping at night. We flat sat for a friend there when we first arrived in a stunning, modern building, with a pool, gym, supermarket, porter, parking garages, etc. overlooking the harbour bridge. I would be so lucky as to live there.

[AllisonW]

This kind of post is very subjective and i have to agree with Rozelle. When you look for an area you need to reflect on your life stage and what you are looking for? Are you young and want to party? Do you have kids and want schools, safe streets and suburbia? Are you retiring? Then do you want to live close to the beach? the bush? the CBD? Do you like to shop at malls? Small village shops? Then narrow it down.

i am always wary of these posts as invariably someone lives in one of the areas listed as dodge and gets offended!

[rozellem]

This kind of post is very subjective and i have to agree with Rozelle. When you look for an area you need to reflect on your life stage and what you are looking for? Are you young and want to party? Do you have kids and want schools, safe streets and suburbia? Are you retiring? Then do you want to live close to the beach? the bush? the CBD? Do you like to shop at malls? Small village shops? Then narrow it down.

i am always wary of these posts as invariably someone lives in one of the areas listed as dodge and gets offended!

Have to agree (with you agreeing with me) We stayed with friends in Point Cook on our LSD and said to my husband, if we end up living in a place like this, I might harm myself! I could not get out of there fast enough but, it seems many on here love the place.

[Mara]

AllisonW, I am not sure if you thought I was offended, but to be honest, that is not the case. I have lived in Melbourne for 15 years, and ever since we arrived here, we have had to hear how bad the west is. Time changes things, this is a huge city, a lot of the people that live on the east never venture anywhere near the west, except on the motorway to go on the great ocean road!

I had my sister visit from Jhb whilst I was recovering, and she had to see one of her clients, who is ex SA and lives in Brighton. As I was prohibited from driving and she was wary to venture through Melbourne, her clients had to come to her. We still had a chuckle and said that it is going to be an eye opener for them, coming across the tracks to the wrong side! We have been to their home, wow, is not an adequate description.

To be honest, the laugh was on us, they both absolutely loved the atmosphere, the quietness, no traffic noise and she commented on how great it was to hear the birds singing! Both said from what they had heard of the west, they thought it was a really rough area. Surprise, surprise!

So it goes to show, until you have checked it out for yourself, whatever the area, and whatever is right for you at that time of your life, you may throw out an area that may have been ideal for you!

[Emille]

i love kings cross

and armadale is not that bad

it all relatively speaking - and a bad suburb in aus is nowhere near a bad area in many other areas of the world

[ShazPas]

Any bad suburbs in Canberra?

[Gizmo]

Agreed, different things appeal to us depending on the stage you are at in your life which makes suburb decisions very subjective, however, no matter what stage you are at in your life, the one universal negative factor re suburbs is crime.

Here is the recent crime listings per suburb, Perth.

http://m.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/we-reveal-perths-safest-areas/story-e6frg143-1226367679291

[AllisonW]

Hi Mara,

Was really talking in a general sense and did not think of you specifically. Actually i was thinking more of Frankston then the West. We stayed there when we first arrived and it was fine. Would i want to settle there? Probably not.... but not necessarily because it was dodge more because it was too far from the city. But i don know that other forumites live in frankston and may not like some of the comments.

[21yearsoutofrsa]

Any bad suburbs in Canberra?

Any bad suburbs in Canberra?

Canberra is full of Public Servants, politicians and politician hanger on's, it's all bad!

[MarcK]

Canberra is full of Public Servants, politicians and politician hanger on's, it's all bad!

:lol: :lol:

You are stirring....

Edited August 20, 2012 by MarcK

[Mara]

No problem Allison, I agree with you about Frankston.