You are right, it is tricky. Probably things will change when she is old enough for secondary, so it's probably something you can't plan right now. Other families are probably doing both those things. I work within the Glen Waverley SC area and families will do a lot to "get in" the house prices are ridiculous for what they are - and really it's still just a school. If you bring your child up with the values you have, it probably doesn't matter if you get don't go to the 'so called' best schools... Cause... How do you define 'best'? Depends on what your values are ... Some of the schools we are discussing here have pretty crappy welfare structures, and don't deal with special needs well... Which annoys me, cause even if my child is doing well... I want to know that there is that support there if I need it.
Yes we are not really bothered about 'best' - but it is most difficult to find out much about schools unless you have some area to focus on apart from the schools rankings - and if you google for opinions you always get the same few schools. I suppose all I would really be concerned about is moving to an area where all the high schools don't have good reputations, as I don't really believe in private school, and I also don't want children to have a big commute time.

I don't think I actually know anyone in Melbourne with their children at high school, so is difficult to find out much and living where we live most people seem quite dismissive of public high schools (e.g. there must be parents of all the children who go to Camberwell High somewhere round here though). Most of my friends put a much higher value on the rankings of the school - so we are not really in the same sphere when talking with them (either they will live in area for one of schools mentioned above or will go private) - one is a teacher so should be a good source of info, but she is very dismissive of anything that isn't ranked in top 10 public.

Although it is true further in towards the city isn't going to be significantly cheaper - but it does seem to depend - if you compare the median house price in Camberwell with lots of further in suburbs they are cheaper because the 'median' house in Camberwell for example is significantly bigger than other suburbs which historically were less affluent. Richmond for example has far more small three bedroom properties - but there seems to only be two state schools in Richmond (Melbourne Girls College - not much good for DS and I strongly favor co-ed anyway & a community college which is extremely small and seems to cater for students who have had problems in mainstream schools). Northcote area also seems to have more of the right size housing.

I hadn't realized that about Box Hill having a selective entry stream, or really realized the effect that can have on rankings.

The lack of the train at the moment to Doncaster puts me off there, but who knows maybe they will get something soon:-)

At the moment unless I have to drive to work (e.g. at moment am in Truganina for a couple of months) we can go weeks without having to use the car at all - I really would love to maintain that, and people I know who live further out east even if near a train line do seem to be more car dependent than that.

Before I started this thread and started doing more research I think I thought I was missing something - some vital website or piece of info that could help - now I know better :-)