Brisbane Suburbs

[IslandStyle]

Hi, we're a family of 4 with 2 young children and considering moving interstate and are looking to settle North of Brisbane.  I would gladly appreciate any feedback on the pros/cons of any of the following suburbs: Everton Park, Everton Hills, Arana Hills, McDowall, Bridgeman Downs, Albany Creek, Bunya, Aspley.

 

I'm mostly interested in getting an idea of the character of each suburb, whether it has a community feeling to it, how busy or quiet it is, what travel times to and from the city typically look like and whether people living there are overall happy with the area.

 

Many thanks.

[Bonny]

Hi IslandStyle sorry you haven't received any replies yet. We live South of the city but recently did look at a few houses in Everton Hills and Arana Hills. They seemed reasonable value and you can get some good views. I would stay away from main roads. There is also Ferny Hills, which has a large train station, being the final North Western stop for the city trains. That should be very handy as it has a huge parking lot which fills up! Can't really comment much more, unless you want to move South As with most Aus cities you get lovely houses next to less lovely ones, it's a mixed bag!

Edited December 10, 2017 by Bonny

[JaxInBriz]

Can't comment on other suburbs but north lakes is on a golf estate with a huge SA contingent. Good schools, sports facilities, westfield shopping centre.  2 train stations 35 min to city. Lots of families with kids playing in the street. 

[SurferMan]

@IslandStyle

You are spoilt for choice in SEQ (South East Qld) I moved from Newport (on the canals) to a massive place up in North Lakes and it is pretty good. We are getting ready to buy, probably up in Caloundra, which is you work in the CBD will be a big commute. But in a nutshell there are oodles of nice places in SEQ! Welcome.

Edited January 6, 2018 by SurferMan

[ottg]

@IslandStyleA few very handy websites for suburb generification information (just type your suburb of interest in eg Everton Park):

https://www.microburbs.com.au/Qld/Brisbane/City-of-Brisbane/Everton-Park

Another handy tool is for looking at the cultural composition (or country of origin) for the area. Like always, stats can be misleading eg 2% of total population may be the largest portion but in effect its still small

https://a.tiles.mapbox.com/v4/sbsonline.ido691he.html?access_token=pk.eyJ1Ijoic2Jzb25saW5lIiwiYSI6IklRMkRCVVEifQ.ldQz-kg5lTylBG6J4HoXbg#13/-27.3952/152.9858

To get an overview of properties available on the market there are a few tools:

http://www.onthehouse.com.au/real_estate/qld/everton_park_4053

My favourite: https://www.suburbview.com/view/QLD/Everton-Park/4053

Here is a similar but old thread with more links

http://www.saaustralia.org/topic/46527-melbourne-suburb-and-rent/?do=findComment&comment=427803

 

 

[ChrisH]

On 1/6/2018 at 9:24 PM, SurferMan said:

I moved from Newport (on the canals) to a massive place up in North Lakes

 

We're almost neighbours it seems, we're in the newer part of Mango Hill.

[JoVincent]

On ‎8‎/‎01‎/‎2018 at 8:16 AM, ChrisH said:

 

We're almost neighbours it seems, we're in the newer part of Mango Hill.

 

Hello Chris my fellow August 2016 (ish?) visa lodger :)! We're coming to Brisbane next weekend for a long weekend and do a bit of a look see (potentially moving interstate to QLD this year from Sydney). Looking at northern suburbs (staying 1 night in Airbnb up north) and will look around North Lakes/Mango Hill suburbs. How is the commute from your area to the city? Compared to Sydney it's probably a breeze, but I wanted to get a first hand account from someone living in the area. How is public transport, is there a train line? And how are you finding the area in general? 

 

Then we spend the rest of the long weekend with my really good friend in Kenmore, so we will then look around western subs. Not sure if we should look at southern suburbs at all, don't know much about it. I hear there is a bit of North/South debate haha. But our time is fairly limited! 

 

Would appreciate any advice

[TamLovesRic]

Hey guys  - Hubby and I have a dream to have a plot...not too far from the beach (not more than an hour)...somewhere in Queensland- is this possible? What areas should we look at...any ideas?

[TamTam]

Given that Queensland is massive, I guess it's always a possibility to find something like that but what that means for your daily commute is a different story. I think it depends on the type of work you will be looking for.

 

It brings to mind for me a question - is it better to live where you work or live where you play. My personal opinion is that it's better to avoid a lengthy commute during the work week given that it's 5 days versus two. But this is just my preference. It also depends on whether you'll be driving or using public transport, whether you have kids or not. My experience - not having a car when you have small children is the absolute pits.

 

 

 

Edited March 2, 2018 by TamTam

[Mara]

Do you know what a plot will mean???? Snakes alive!!!!

[TamTam]

@Mara I like your post but really I just got cold shivers and went to hide in a corner! 

 

It brings to mind a funny story though that happened on our activation trip to Perth. Hubby and I went walking in a small nature reserve and I happened to see a very brightly coloured snake on the side of the path. I was cool, calm and collected and hurried hubby along (I am a bit braver than him when these things are concerned). But he got annoyed at my shoving and demanded to know what was wrong. So I calmly pointed at the snake to which he gave a small shriek and ran. Now I thought the snake was dead because normally they would move away when people approach. However the ensuing shriek caused it to move and no doubt we both ran away like a bunch of ninnies.

 

At the end of the walk there was a tourist store that had guides on local wildlife. It turns out the one we saw was highly venomous but to be fair I think most of the snakes in Oz are 

[ChrisH]

On 02/03/2018 at 10:04 PM, TamLovesRic said:

Hey guys  - Hubby and I have a dream to have a plot...not too far from the beach (not more than an hour)...somewhere in Queensland- is this possible? What areas should we look at...any ideas?

Have a look at burpengary, huge properties and still close enough to work in Brisbane. 

[ChrisH]

On 02/03/2018 at 1:20 PM, JoVincent said:

 

Hello Chris my fellow August 2016 (ish?) visa lodger :)! We're coming to Brisbane next weekend for a long weekend and do a bit of a look see (potentially moving interstate to QLD this year from Sydney). Looking at northern suburbs (staying 1 night in Airbnb up north) and will look around North Lakes/Mango Hill suburbs. How is the commute from your area to the city? Compared to Sydney it's probably a breeze, but I wanted to get a first hand account from someone living in the area. How is public transport, is there a train line? And how are you finding the area in general? 

 

Then we spend the rest of the long weekend with my really good friend in Kenmore, so we will then look around western subs. Not sure if we should look at southern suburbs at all, don't know much about it. I hear there is a bit of North/South debate haha. But our time is fairly limited! 

 

Would appreciate any advice

 

Well put it like this, we're not extending our lease. It is an awesome area if you don't have to drive to the CBD every day. There is a train line but it will still take 51 minutes by train. This past week I spent 2 - 3 hours a day in traffic. I don't use use public transport because I have to catch a bus after getting to the CBD which can add anything from 15 to 30 minutes to an already long commute. Door to door you'll be looking at up to 90 minutes using public transport. 

 

At the moment we're looking at Lutwyche or Kedron which are both much closer to the CBD. 

 

 

[TamTam]

On ‎3‎/‎3‎/‎2018 at 11:50 PM, ChrisH said:

At the moment we're looking at Lutwyche or Kedron which are both much closer to the CBD. 

I think we are going to be looking in the same areas, also Grange.

[ChrisH]

8 hours ago, TamTam said:

I think we are going to be looking in the same areas, also Grange.

 

Yeah anything south of Rode Rd should be ok.  

[SurferMan]

I currently stay in North Lakes but am going to move to Noosa because I am moving from a day job role to mostly remote consulting. 

[ChrisH]

Nice, that is an awesome area!

[Atjan]

We are also looking at moving interstate from Sydney to Briz some time this year. The aim is to buy a house before we move so we can finally settle into our own place. 

 

The idea is to find the best possible public schools and then a house we can actually afford in catchment. 

We've narrowed it down to Albany Creek and The Gap, purely based on the bettereducation website's ratings. We should be able to buy in Albany Creek.

 

Any feedback on those schools and areas would be much appreciated!

[ChrisH]

On 5/27/2018 at 10:55 PM, Atjan said:

The aim is to buy a house before we move so we can finally settle into our own place.

 

You should maybe consider renting for a short period in the area.  I get that there is pressure to get a foot in the market but you might absolutely hate living in those areas. 

 

You can't judge an area based on others experiences as they don't have the same commute and needs as you.  We loved North Lakes when we moved in a year ago (still love the area), but have since realised that the commute is soul destroying.

[IslandStyle]

On 5/27/2018 at 10:55 PM, Atjan said:

We've narrowed it down to Albany Creek and The Gap, purely based on the bettereducation website's ratings. We should be able to buy in Albany Creek.

 

Any feedback on those schools and areas would be much appreciated!

 

Albany Creek is a lovely area but I wouldn't necessarily decide on an area purely based on bettereducation's ratings.  Most public schools are great and while academic ratings are important, a school that performs well might not be the best fit.  Are you looking for a primary or secondary public school?

[IslandStyle]

On 12/5/2017 at 12:04 PM, IslandStyle said:

Hi, we're a family of 4 with 2 young children and considering moving interstate and are looking to settle North of Brisbane.

 

We made use of an opportunity and ended up moving to Brisbane at the start of April - so far, so good.

 

Currently renting in Arana Hills but hoping to buy soon.  Can't really complain about the commute: 6 minute drive to the station and 23 minutes on the train.

 

Loving the mild winter compared to the 6 winter seasons we endured in Melbourne.

Edited May 30, 2018 by IslandStyle

[Jobizzle]

I've heard that the schools in The Gap are great, a lot of people want to buy there because of that, which makes it quite expensive. I would say Albany creek is not quite as sought after, but still has great schools, it would be slightly further from the city and transport, but is nice and quiet as a result. I also think Albany creek actually just falls in the Moreton bay council, and not Brisbane city council. Thats not a big thing by any means though. If you can afford it, the Gap is probably better, but I can't afford either of those areas and would be buying much further north, so my opinion is not necessarily the best!

[Atjan]

Thanks for all the input so far.

 

We have kids in both primary and secondary school and for the next few years we will have 3 in school at any one time. For this reason I want to steer away from private schools. I think that, in our case, the money is better spent on making sure we are self-sufficient at retirement rather than private tuition. This makes being in catchment for good public schools a must.

 

I will need to get to the airport very often and would prefer keeping that commute relatively short.

My wife are likely to have to get to place all over the city, so a more central location would be good.

 

Based on this, people I know in Brisbane told me The Gap can be a pain to get out of and back into. Not sure if anyone has personal experience? Its a bit pricey for us at this point as well.

 

At the moment we're also looking at Kenmore/Chapel Hill and south of the river at Jindalee. Those areas seem to tick a good few of the boxes as well. Again, they do do seem more expensive than Albany Creek and I saw big parts there sees flooding from time to time as well?

Any comments on those or similar areas would be appreciated as well.

[ChrisH]

16 hours ago, Atjan said:

The Gap

 

Something that "the locals" have told me about The Gap is that because of its geography it gets some of the worst storms in Brisbane.  It is also not ideal at all if you want to travel to the airport.

 

I have to swallow my own words regarding North Lakes and do a 180, my wife and I have actively been looking for a place closer to the city and we just couldn't find anything.  You either have to compromise on space, quality, hygiene (yes some places are that bad), safety or make peace with the longer commute (North lakes is 28km from the CBD).  We love North Lakes, if you are from Johannesburg you'll feel right at home there!

[Jobizzle]

Hey Chris, I totally get what you're saying, I think the suburbs and types of houses closer to the city would take some getting used too for new immigrants to Australia. The Queenslander style houses and 'high-set' style houses were a strange concept to me when I first arrived, they're not bad, but just don't appeal to the eye when you're used to the kinds of houses we see in SA. And because of the older style architecture of them, sometimes they also don't have the comforts we'd be used to, like 2 bathrooms, double garages and large kitchens, yet their pricing is really high by virtue of their proximity to the city and good schools etc. I guess its also a product of the high cost of labour to build/renovate that the style of houses appear older than what we see in SA. We live up north and have been looking for a new rental and will likely be settling in North lakes/Mango hill/Murrumba downs because of the better value for money and style of house. However my opinions might be skewed because A) I work in that area and B)The kinds of houses I could afford closer to the city make it less feasible as an option anyway (similar to your point on sacrificing space/quality)