About Perth

[Sarie]

Hi guys!:wave:
I was just hoping for a little info.
My hubby came home last night and told me that there were a few job oportunities going for him in Perth at the moment. We are really stuck about what to do, but it seems like fate as we were only talking to some friends on Wednesday night about when we all transfer we'd like to try and go together and Perth was one of the destinations we picked.
I don't know that I'm ready to move, though the process could take awhile and it could be twelve months before we finally did move and I'm not ready to leave our friends yet.
But the money would be good and we wouldn't have to pay to move.
We decided not to talk about it for a few days and then se how we feel, but I want to do some research and see house prices, the kind of housing available etc.
My DH would be most likely working at the airport, so I was wondering if some of you might be able to tell me some suburbs around the airport up to about a half hour drive away?
Are there any major shopping centres near these suburbs?
Thanks for your help!
Sarie

[munchkin05]

we are renting in redcliffe which is not even 5 mins from the airport
you have belmont cloverdale ascot (cant remember anymore at the moment ) that are only 10mins from airport


there is belmont fourm and galleria (which is only 15mins away )

prices of houses vary depends if you are buying or renting

[Sarie]

Thanks Angela!
It gives me somewhere to start. We will be renting, though I'd love to be settled enough to buy a place.
I think our families would be pretty sad if we moved to the other side of the country, but for my hubby to get a promotion and help to get us out of the $$ troubles we've been having I really think he needs to apply.
Thanks again!
Sarie

[jasminesmum]

I'm sure Perth would be horrible, horrible horrible.:thumbsdown:

Dalby is soooo much nicer. You can't move. We will miss you too much.:crying:

[Sarie]

I know honey! We would miss you too:gloomy:
It's all talk at the moment, we haven't even really talked about it properly yet, don't worry too much, it took them 6 months for them to decide if we were to move here then another 4 months to move us!

[cjb/jbvd]

i grew up in perth.

housing is heaps cheaper than sydney, there is less traffic, and more parks.
less hours shopping, but more boutique shopping.
less race problems as well.
food is about the same, fruit sometimes gets expensive though.
fuel is cheaper.
the weather is heaps hotter and drier and there are water restrictions all year round.
i knew all my neighbours, and so did my friends in the three suburbs across from mine.
there is always work in perth, no matter what you do, but the wages aren't quite as high for the equivalent job in sydney.
and the beaches are really really good. very unspoilt, and mostly undeveloped compared to other states.

but perth is a world unto itself. you can walk around the entire cbd in a day. there is a walk path around the swan river, with a huge wide public frontage to picnic and play on. the zoo is one of the best in the country. public transport is a bit lacking. kings park is right in the middle, a huge national park with great play equipment, walk tracks and totally free. life is alot slower in perth than just about any other capital i've been to. the closest to perth i've found is brisbane. same kind of people, same kind of city, same kind of vibe, just brisbane is bigger.

alot of people move to perth after visiting just once.

in saying that, i would probably not choose to go back there. too small for me after growing up there.

[Niki]

for house u should check out these websites it has sales and rentals so u can have more of an idea of wat u can get for wat u wana spend!

www.reiwa.com.au
www.realestate.com.au
www.domain.com.au

sorry couldnt help more

[Sarie]

Thanks Niki that's a great help and thanks cjb/jbvd for your info!
I grew up north of Brisbane and we're currently in a small town west of Brisbane, so Perth would probably be a fair bit bigger than here!
Though I've never been to Sydney so I can't really compare the two, but at the moment we have to go where the $$ and promotions are, so we'll wait and see what happens!

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

We actually live south of Perth near Rockingham but only takes me 30 min-45 mins to get to the domestic airport depending on traffic...good roads there from us...there are tons of suburbs around the airport or with quick access to...anything along the roe highway/tonkin highway corridor or the hills. And you have lots of shopping too...Morley (Galleria), cannington (carousel) and yes Belmont Forum right on the doorstep of the airport...we couldnt afford to buy immediately around the airport ie Belmont/Ascot only cos it so close to the CBD too...we were renting there a two storey 3bed x2 townhouse in a lifestyle complex etc for 270 per week...I think that about the norm for good housing...houses were going on the complex for 330,000 plus some...and that was in Jan...I agree with what someone said about Brisbane...my 2nd fave city in AUstralia...they are similar except Brisbane bit faster and flasher...but same kinda lifestyle except we have the beaches right on our doorstep like Sydney. THere are so many lovely places in and around Perth and yeh still relatively unspoilt all the housing developers really encroaching upon the bush :( If you like being near to country, beaches and city i defintiely would come down towards Rockingham or Mandurah...you will have a train here soon...and the roads as I said to the malls and airport pretty good...and the beaches here are really unspoilt and you are minutes away from the country...alot of people like NOR too...

[JnA]

Which airport are you talking about?

domestic? international? although they are both fairly close to each other it would change your target areas slightly.


Perth public transport is gettong better. They are currently giving it a serious overhaul.
Housing to buy has just had a huge jump. Not sure about renting.

[Sarie]

Thanks Girls!
He'd be working at the international airport... duh didn't explain myself too well! He works for Quarantine.
NOR??

[JnA]

International airport opens up a whole load of other suburbs.

If no-one does it before me, I'll find you a map.

[Sarie]

Thanks Tash that would be great!

[Jackson84]

renting is a bit hard at the moment cause of the housing and tradie shortage. i am in inglewood paying $200 per week for a 2 bed house with yard. a bit small, but with only 1 bub we get away with it.

the transport system is actually one of the best in australia, because it is all operated by one umbrella company, that then subcontracts for buses and drivers. the difference is that because perth is small services dont operate as often or for as long as they would in somewhere like syd (ie last train from city leaves at midnight, as oppose to 4am).

i love perth. have been to a lot of other cities, and just cant imagine living anywhere else. it is a great city for kids IMO.

also, the rest of WA is GREAT! :D

[JnA]

Here is a fairly good one.

map of perth (http://www.dola.wa.gov.au/dvault.nsf/d5c882431fda015f4825683500286691/e54a32404e6e4e1e482569a500300272/$FILE/Perthsubs.pdf)

You can zoom in to look at the suburbs around the international Airport (on Horrie Millar Drive, just above Welshpool - which is just above the big lettered CANNINGTON)
Both sirports look kind of close (and they are) but to drive from one to the other you need to go down Tonkin Hwy. Probably about a five to ten minute drive.
The suburbs Forestfield, Welshpool, Cannington, Queenspark, Cloverdal, Belmont, Kenwick etc etc are all close to both airport and major shops. As well as the city.
I live in Huntingdale, which is a little further south (not shown on map) and it takes me about ten to fifteen mintues to get to the international airport.

Hope this helps.

[Sarie]

I guess we should have a fair bit of time to look for a place. I'd want at the very least a 3 bedroom house. We currently live in a 2 bedroom house with office for $250/week with two kids. But as we're TTC #3 and fingers crossed I will be preggie should we move, I will need more room.
It used to take DH an hour to get to work when we lived in Brisbane so travel isn't a big thing.

[Sarie]

That's fantastic thanks Tash!!!

[sarah81]

Hi,

I have been in Perth about 6 months and come from Adelaide which is slightly smaller than here. I wasn't ready to leave my friends either :gloomy: but you do make new ones!

Housing compared to Adelaide is expensive and not as attractive. But I am sure it is cheap compared to other capital cities ;) There is a lot of development here and blocks seem to be getting small with the house taking up most of the block. We live SOR in Bateman so 25-30mins from airport. DP's company pays $370pw for our house, it has 4 bed and 2 bath plus a study and toyroom. Plenty of room for 3 children:smiliedance: But if you go suburbs either side of us and over Leach Highway the housing is even more expensive! There are lots of nice areas to live though.

The beaches and river are beautiful and there is plenty of things to do. My only dislike is the shopping hours are quite limited, even compared to Adelaide! I have enjoyed it here but we will not be here forever, I do prefer Adelaide still.

Sarah

[Jackson84]

Hi,
There is a lot of development here and blocks seem to be getting small with the house taking up most of the block.

yeah, ive noticed that too. alot of people are buying old houses and then selling off the backyard as a "rear block". yuk. dunno about anybody else but i need space! LOL

in terms of buying, if you want something under $300k you gotta move out a little (north or east) or go small. there are some good deals in the eastern suburbs that are converting from industrial to residential.

[sarah81]

I totally agree with Jackson84, the rear house and no backyard is really offputting to me. We will never buy here, our house that we rent now is worth approx $500, 000 :eek: Not really an affordable house for our first home!

[Bron]

Perth is cool. I live here. Simple. :laughing:

Seriously though, the housing market is a nightmare at the moment - resources boom in WA means that things here are looking very good economically. This means that houses are increasingly expensive to buy, I'm not sure about renting.

Yes, we're a bit isolated, but with internet and telephones it doesn't feel that way.

If you want to live in the city with the best beaches in Australia, a wonderful lifestyle, amazing restaurants, funky bars, where the sun sets over the ocean and where summer is warm without being humid, Perth is the place.

I live in Vic Park - about 15 minutes from the airport, really close to town. Great pubs and restaurants, right on the river and across the bridge from town.

I love the hot glamour of Sydney and the cool elegance of Melbourne, the quaint charm of Hobart and even the interesting monuments in Canberra. But give me walks along Cottesloe beach at sunset, long sunday lunches in Fremantle on a sunny day, picnics in Kings Park and outdoor cinemas/concerts/plays all through summer and I'm a happy woman. :thumbsup:

[Sarie]

Thanks girls!
This has been a great help. DH jumped onto realestate.com tonight and found some reasonable houses at Armadale, does anyone know that area?
I think he has decided to apply for the positions. It doesn't hurt hey?
As for limited shoping I'm used to that, we're in a small town now, so compared to being in Brisbane the hours are a lot more limited.
We only have one car so knowing that public transport is good makes me happy too! Though I'm currently used to walking everywhere!

[JnA]

found some reasonable houses at Armadale, does anyone know that area?



Yes. It depends what part of Armadale, but there are some nice areas there. It has a train line too, and is currently being upgraded (or has been). It's about a 25 min drive from Armadale to the international Airport too.

[pegasus]

As Tash says - Armadale has some good areas, but also some areas you wouldn't want to move to. I grew up in Roleystone which is in the hills above Armadale, so spent a fair bit of time there as a youngster (mum and dad are still in Roleystone).

As for houses and their blocks - I agree with Bron - there is a huge boom in the market at the moment (Perth is the only city where housing is continuing to go up while the others are staying the same, or decreasing slightly). We bought in the hills/bush where we are on a half acre and love it. However, you can consider that we bought our house about 2 1/2years ago and it's gone up in value about 48% in that time:eek: . Somehow we knew the market was going up and bought at the right time (while we were still interstate). It's been good to allow us to extend our loan to put a pool in this year.

If you put some more specifics q's about Armadale then I'm sure I can answer some. (My sister lives in Bedfordale, which is the hills near Armadale, and owns 2 pharmacies in Kelmscott which is the suburb next to Armadale and I went to highschool in Kelmscott)

[BB'smum]

I live in Swan View which is only about 20 mins drive from the Airport and as hubby is contstantly working in Belmont it is great for him. There are really nice newer places here in Swan View but you can also get a lot of older places, like ours. But the properties usually have good sized blocks, ours is 938sqm.

[JnA]

Thought you might be interested in this article

Perth House Prices Skyrocket (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200605/s1647327.htm)

[Jackson84]

the housing prices will settle eventually. give it a few years.

renting can get quite expensive as there is a shortage and some people are desperate. my sister told me that her property manager gets calls from people looking at rentals, offering upwards of an extra $20 a week just so they can get the place. crazy!

[ozzysmum]

my DF and I and bub moved here and he works at the airport too - in catering at both int'l and domestic. we are renting in Carlisle (near Belmont as mentioned before) and as DF is shift worker it never takes longer than 15 mins for him to get to or from work. Perth is great - it was very hard leaving friends and family but everyone here is so nice we don't miss sydney a bit! We are looking to buy maybe early next year.
I highly recommend the move especially if it's going to leave you financially better off - we are still broke with me not working out of home but it's much much much easier than it was in Sydney

and NOR = north of river / SOR = south of river - seems all of perth is divided into these categories. the airport is SOR (i think) but easy enough to get to from either.

good luck! feel free to pm me if you want to chat about it at all :)

[Sarie]

Thanks guys for all your help!
Sorry I haven't been around for a few days, I was getting sicker rather than better, but DH has had the last two days off, so I've had a good chance to start feeling better again.
Well he has decided to put his application in, so I guess now it's a waiting game to see how we go. He also has to get aproval from his current boss to go, I will be rather annoyed if he says no as there is no room for promotion here.
At least if we do get the position we will be able to come over and have our rent paid till we can find an appropriate house. There seems to be a lot on realestate.com for fairly reasonable prices especially when you consider we are living in a small town 3 hours west of Brisbane and paying $250/week.
We probably won't even consider buying in the short term, we'd love to, but have a debt that wouldn't enable us to even be considered, I'm sure down the line we will look into it though.
I would love to keep in touch with you guys, it would be nice to have a few friends if we do come over in the near future!

[BeccaD]

Good luck with the application :)
You might like to have a look at rentals in Kenwick, Forrestfield & Queens Park, you should be able to get a 3x1 or a 4x2 for between $200-$250 per week
Wattle Grove is a relatively new estate with plenty of new houses for rent available.

Perth really is a beautiful place to live, and bring up kids :)
I wouldnt live anywhere else!

[Harlequin]

Im pretty sure Beckenham houses average at about $155 a week for rentals.

[AnnaT]

We live in Rivervale and pay $190 a week rent. We are right near the airport, freeway into city takes 5 min max, right near Belmont Forum which is a great shopping centre.
Its nice over here (I moved from Sydney so I can understand!)

[Sarie]

Wow, their great prices considereing what we're paying here in a little town!
DH is working on his application at the moment so :fingerscrossed: and the friends who we've talked about moving with have also been offered an interstate move in the near future. They've asked for Perth aswell so :fingerscrossed: we all end up over there!

[madwoman]

If you are looking for more info on Perth then have a look at www.movetoperth.com it is more aimed at international moves as opposed to interstate but has some helpful info on the area.

As for commute times to the airport, I'm guessing your husband will be working shifts, if so then he won't have to negotiate rush hour traffic so nowhere is really going to be too far. We live in the far northern suburbs and my next door neighbour works at the airport, it takes him around 50 mins but that isn't at peak time. At the other end of the spectrum there are loads of different suburbs within 10 mins of the airport, Forrestfield, Maide Vale and a few others that have already been mentioned. Just remember that the airport is inland and many people find it loads hotter inland and prefer to be by the ocean for the cooling breezes.

There are lots of great areas to live in Perth dpending on the life style you are after, if you prefer being close to the ocean, the hills or the city.

It's a lovely place to live and a fab place to raise kids, hey you'll even find the locals are quite friendly too:D


Lynn

[littlejo]

thanks for posting that MovetoPerth link, Lynn. Hubby and I are also considering moving to Perth from NZ (know how much you all love us Kiwis!! Haha). He's a tradesman, so sounds like there are plenty of opportunities for him, plus good wages for when we have a baby (currently TTC). We'd rent for a while, but all going well would sell up here, and buy there.

My main concern is that we will be leaving behind all the family support that we have here - especially when a bub comes along... Has anyone else gone through something similar?

Sorry for hijacking your thread, Sarie - good luck with the job application!!

[Sarie]

Thanks Lynn for all you're info, it's very helpful! We're now playing the waiting game, applications closed last week, but apparently the appointment is s'posed to start in August, so :fingerscrossed: it won't be too long before we know either way!
You're more than welcome to be here littlejo! The girls have given me some great info here!

[madwoman]

thanks for posting that MovetoPerth link, Lynn. Hubby and I are also considering moving to Perth from NZ (know how much you all love us Kiwis!! Haha). He's a tradesman, so sounds like there are plenty of opportunities for him, plus good wages for when we have a baby (currently TTC). We'd rent for a while, but all going well would sell up here, and buy there.

My main concern is that we will be leaving behind all the family support that we have here - especially when a bub comes along... Has anyone else gone through something similar?

Sorry for hijacking your thread, Sarie - good luck with the job application!!

We moved here when i was 6 months pregnant with my 3rd, I had some distant cousins here but really they are little more than strangers and much older too, handy to have here in an emergency though so we didn't feel totally isolated. We very quickly made loads of friends, you have to at first, make friends with everyone you meet then after a few months people start to fit into different categories, you know, the ones you see all the time and those you see a couple of times a year. I now have some very good frineds here who are my family. It's not that hard to do and forums like this and those aimed at people moving to the area are great for meeting people in the same boat, you will find that very quickly you are accepted into everyones social circles. Just treat it as an adventure and you will have a great time. Good luck weith it all:D

Lynn

[littlejo]

Thanks for that Lynn - very reassuring!!

We have a friend or two who moved over a few years ago, some family friends (my parents' age), and a few people we met while travelling in Europe, but that would be about it. I reckon we'd just have to try and find some groups to meet up with, and try to get friendly with new workmates etc. Scary, but exciting.

And as we would be renting rather than buying straight away, we wouldn't have all the house maintenance we do now...so more time to socialise!

[Shazbutt]

Sarah, i agree with Michelle. I'm sure Perth is a horrible place and you'll just hate it! :yes: Plus we will miss you too much if you go....:crying:

[Sarie]

I certainly wouldn't be the same without you guys there... especially now