CharlesH Posted January 26, 2017 Report Share Posted January 26, 2017 Hi All, I just want to get an idea of affordable suburbs in Sydney that are within commuting distance of the CBD, have good primary and high schools nearby and are generally suitable for families with dogs. My aim is to get an idea of what we would be paying in initially for a rental and later buying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted January 26, 2017 Report Share Posted January 26, 2017 (edited) Hi @CharlesH, A couple questions. 1. What is affordable? 2. What is an acceptable commute? 3. What do good schools look like? 4. What do suitable family suburbs look like? If after answering all of these you come to a conclusion based on your current experience of South Africa then I am afraid you'll be left wanting... Sydney has climbed to being the #2 most expensive city RE housing affordability, behind Hong Hong, where the median price within 5kms of the CBD has risen to over $1million. Off plan 2-bedroom apartments within the same distance are themselves close on $1million or more, a 2-3 bedroom Terrace in Paddington is over $2million and a home in Vaucluse can be upward of $10million. Average median rent at the moment has grown to over $1,000 a week for a 2-3 bedroom home. Sydney has over 600 suburbs, so you can travel more than an hour North or West of the CBD and be in Sydney. The City of Sydney metropole itself comprises of 14+ of those Suburbs. Green Square is a percent of 4 of those suburbs that by 2020 will be the most densely populated area of Sydney. It's largely high rise apartments, but very family friendly with parks, activities, proximity to public pools and even a bus ride to three major beach spots and multiple modes of transport into the city. But it looks NOTHING like what a family suburb might look like in Cape Town or say Sandton. If you want to experience anything like that you'll need to move South as far as Cronulla, I even know folks who commute from the Central Coast with 3-hours of commute time again, because space is important to them, gardens, green suburbs etc. Cheers Matt Edited January 27, 2017 by AFreshStart 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riekie Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 AFreshStart bascially summed it up. To give you an idea of rent: In the suburbs (40 minutes by car outside peak hour - up to 90 minutes in peak hour, and the same by public transport to the city) you can rent a 3-4 bedroom home with lounge, rumpus (family room), study, 2+bathrooms for $750 - $1000 per week. The same amount will get you a 2 bedroom apartment (no study, no rumpus and mostly a very small combined lounge/dining room) in the city but you'll have a 15-20 minute commute to most places in the city. The outer suburbs have more/larger parks and even national parks/nature reserves right in the middle of it. That said, the city has plenty of parks, playgrounds, cycle paths, sportsgrounds and other public recreational areas and you also have the beach on your doorstep. Many people own pets - in the suburbs and in the city. Of course in a city apartment, the pets will be indoors 90% of the time and you have to make an effort to walk them (for which there are many on-leash and off-leash parks). The problem is usually finding a rental where pets are allowed. As far as family friendly and quality of schools go, you'll be good either in the outer suburbs or in the city. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
planningahead Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 Hi all, Thanks for the insight. My partner and I will be heading of soon. I will work in the CBD and my partner will continue his studies at Macquarie University. Based on this we were looking at Hornsby. It looks like it is a 45 minute train ride into the city and a 20 minute train ride to Macquarie Uni. It seems to be one of the more afordable suburbs which have good access to a train station. We also like the fact that it is right next to 2 national parks. We are not fussy and are OK with lovin in an older apartment if it means we can save more money (especially since L will still be studying and only be able to do a student job for the first year or two). Does anyone have any insight into Hornsby? Is it a nice/ok area to live in? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharlesH Posted February 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 (edited) Thanks for the replies. I currently have a 45 commute by car to work and that is off-peak as I work flexible hours. During peak that is about 90 minutes. We live about 30 km from my place of work. My potential work place (I work for an international co) is in North Sydney CBD. My other option is Melbourne (we also have a branch there) but if I can only get a 190 visa then it will only be NSW. My profession is only in NSW for a 190 visa. As to houses, we'd be happy with an older place with a small garden - we currently live in the far west of JHB - not as fancy as Sandton . Budget would probably be in the region of $700-$800 a week. Schools - our kids are in public schools. Edited February 1, 2017 by CharlesH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermoose Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 3 hours ago, CharlesH said: My other option is Melbourne (we also have a branch there) but if I can only get a 190 visa then it will only be NSW. My profession is only in NSW for a 190 visa. Remember that if it comes down to it, you can choose to live and work anywhere in Aus with a 190 visa. You are a Permanent Resident, with the legal right to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CazK Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 (edited) @mistermoose @CharlesH Umm, the 190 visa is a state sponsored / nominated visa often with stipulations attached. For example, we are obliged to stay in Victoria for 2 years after landing before we can move to another state (not that we are planning on moving elsewhere). You need to keep the state up-to-date with addresses and contact details for those two years. Edited February 1, 2017 by CazK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermoose Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 (edited) 22 minutes ago, CazK said: @mistermoose @CharlesH Umm, the 190 visa is a state sponsored / nominated visa often with stipulations attached. For example, we are obliged to stay in Victoria for 2 years after landing before we can move to another state (not that we are planning on moving elsewhere). You need to keep the state up-to-date with addresses and contact details for those two years. I assure you I know what a 190 visa is. I have been in this process for a good few years now, and if you read the hundreds of posts on this forum, pomsinoz.com and blog posts about '190 moral obligation', you'll see that my summary above is 100% accurate and legally within accepted practice in Australia. Both the 189 and 190 visas result in the holder being a Permanent Resident, with NIL conditions, which ultimately means you can live and work anywhere in Australia. The 'stipulations' you refer to are moral obligations, not legal requirements. If you can't make it to your sponsoring state, it's a good idea to let them know of your intentions out of courtesy and as a token of gratitude and decency. But rather than restate the whole story again here, I'd suggest you go and search the forum for the scores of conversations about this topic. Because I am a 190 holder, and because I've had not only conjecture from others but also written legal advice on this issue, my response to this thread was intended to allow others to bypass the long journey of enlightenment I've been on - but if you'd prefer to trust your own search for the truth, the forum/s and Google are your oyster. Good luck with the journey! Edited February 1, 2017 by mistermoose 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPanda Posted February 6, 2017 Report Share Posted February 6, 2017 I just read the thread title again and thought to myself ...and other mythical things. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riekie Posted February 6, 2017 Report Share Posted February 6, 2017 On 01/02/2017 at 9:15 PM, planningahead said: Does anyone have any insight into Hornsby? Is it a nice/ok area to live in? Check out these links: https://www.realestate.com.au/neighbourhoods/hornsby-2077-nsw http://profile.id.com.au/hornsby http://www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/ Hornsby is a family friendly area with good schools, shopping centres, parks etc. Also consider the hills district, not much of a difference in travel times at the moment. Very popular with South Africans and lots of excellent schools (some of them are top in the state) shopping centres, parks - everything you need for family living. The norwest rail link will open soon with trains every 4 minutes, cutting travel times considerably. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
planningahead Posted February 6, 2017 Report Share Posted February 6, 2017 @Riekie, thank you for the feedback. I will have a look at the other suburbs as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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