Where should we live in Melbourne??

Ok, so we moved to Australia last year. We live in the inner north of Melbourne. Its not where we want to stay. Its not very pretty and too pricey for what you get.
We hope to buy a house in a year or 2 but are not sure of what area to go to. We will start looking around some areas on weekends to get a feel for the different places we could live, but Melbourne is such a big place.


I like being close to the city but with a young family and on one income, I think we would be better off out a bit further, but DH still needs to be able to train into city for work.
I`d like to have nice places to walk the pram and we are a bit alternative, so somewhere with creative sorts would be good too...?

What are the different areas like? Tell me about your area or another that you like and why.

I'd say the Eastern Suburbs but then I'm biased cos I'm an Eastern girl. :p How far out you live will just depend on your budget I guess!

:yeahthat: We are 4 minutes walk from a station that is a 25 minute trip to town. as nelle says, what you have to spend will be a big factor. We bought here because we are close to public transport but it is still leafy and green. Lots of walks and bike rides through creeklands nearby. a big mix of types of people and definitely some creative types around. we are on the lilydale/belgrave line and there are lots of nice suburbs all the way out to the end of the line and in to town.

Is there any chance you think that we could live near a the beach if we move out that way?
Hmmm, hard when you want it all...:rolleyes:

Anney, are you east too? What are the areas like out there? We drove to Frankston one day but didnt stay long. I think that would be the furtherest out that way we`d want to go. Thats over an hr on the train to city.

Hard to know how much we will have to spend at this stage... just trying to get an idea of whats actually out there - we know very little so far.

Yep, I'm in the eastern 'burbs and love it :). It's lovely and leafy and there is heaps of public transport available.

Cheaper with beach and public transport - look Altona area

We are sort of South Eastern...

Near to Chadstone, but bot too close that its expensive. 15 min drive.
Similar to the beach on a good run, great doggy (if you have one) beach that is open all year round in Brighton that is also not to far away, about another 5mins
Loads and loads and loads of parks in our area.
We have one at our back fence which is soon to be wetlands, another one 5 minutes away (walking) and another 3 large park/grasslands within walking distance (15-20 mins)

Depends how much you want to spend. Average house price is 350-400K now.
Hasnt aways had the best name our suburb, but i have never had an issue and i think that the same with many suburbs, there can be trouble, most of it has gone now with the increasing house prices (was 230K 7 years ago). Public transport (bus) walking distance less than 5 mins in 2 directions and train station 20 min walk (probably less than that) or a 5 min drive (at 5.30am the heater doesnt even start to pump hot air!!!) Cranbourne/Pakenham/Dandenong lines run through our station so trains run frequently. takes 35 mins to the city stopping all stations

Same as other people, i am biased as to where to live cos i love where we are.

Yes, we are directly east. The lilydale / belgrave line basically runs directly east from the city. We are nowhere near the beach but now with the Eastlink ie. the road that goes from Nunawading to Frankston, we can get to the beach in 35 minutes so it is fine for a day out but not if you want to walk on the beach every day :)
Nai may be on to something with the beach and Altona.
Friends of mine wanted to live near the beach and moved to Mornington, which is just past Frankston, and loved the lifestyle but it was a 1 hour and 20 minute commute each way at least for her DH so they moved back to melbourne as he was getting so tired.

Western suburbs!!!

Near beach is:

williamstown (nice but expy)
newport
Altona
Werribee
Point cook

Hampton, Cheltenham, Mentone, Parkdale, Highett :)

If you want beach you could also look at south-east suburbs towards Frankston: Mentone, Parkdale, Mordialloc, Aspendale, Edithvale, Chelsea :)

eta, good public transport here too

oh and chelsea is about 45min train ride to city. that's the furthest out of the list.

:

---

I'd say the Eastern Suburbs but then I'm biased cos I'm an Eastern girl. :p How far out you live will just depend on your budget I guess!

---

I love where we are in Knox - heaps of nice places to walk, about 45-50 mins into the city on the train
Warburton isn't too far away which is where a lot of creative / alternative people tend to congregagte - it's brilliant out here!!

I've heard Altona is a great place to buy atm.

I live in the eastern suburbs now but am originlly from the Western Suburbs. I much prefer Eastern even though it takes longer to get the city by train.

:

---

Warburton isn't too far away which is where a lot of creative / alternative people tend to congregagte - it's brilliant out here!!

---

That's where I live and LOVE IT! I could never imagine going back to the Western Suburbs. It's a bit of a hike to the city from here though but very alternative. If you're after alternative have a look around Belgrve, Upwey, Ferntree Gully and Tecoma also.

:

---

That's where I live and LOVE IT! I could never imagine going back to the Western Suburbs. It's a bit of a hike to the city from here though but very alternative. If you're after alternative have a look around Belgrve, Upwey, Ferntree Gully and Tecoma also.

---

Upwey and Belgrave have some grouse shops!!!

Caroline Springs/ Burnside are nice walking areas!

Warburton has a great little cafe called the GOOD FOOD ROOM

I've lived in:

Collingwood
Fitzroy
Elwood
Carnegie
Hughesdale
Caulfield
Brighton East
and near Ivanhoe

so you can ask me about any of those places :)

What is the farthest you want to live from the CBD?

You can live closer to the CBD for less on the N and N/W of the city.

We live on a huge block of land (nearly 1/4 acre) leafy tree lined streets...1 block away from train station... been here 6 years... it's the nicest area to raise a family on my list of placed lived. Very good private and primary level public schools.

thanks, I have been looking these places up on google maps :D

I think where ever we go I want it to be the sort of place that has a good strong community. Somewhere we can get involved with community events and people know each other.

My Evelyn, Montrose, are gorgeous! They are in the outer eastern subs of melbourne and take about 1 hr on the train from Lilydale. Good thing about that is -It's the first stop on the line so you will get a seat, and on the way home there isnt HEAPS of people getting off. It is beautifully treey and there are some great walks. They are pretty community minded, have a choice of great schools and have awesome parks and a nice lake to walk around. I wouldnt live anywhere else!

western suburbs r relatively cheaper than the east I say. I used to have bad impression abt the west as I grew up in the east but its pretty good once u know ur way round! Not too fond of south-east ie springvale area as its pretty dangerous (lived there too). There's beaches here too as mentioned n transport can b relatively convenient. Don't forget to check which zone the house belongs to also as ticket prices might b exxy if u goin into ct! Happy house hunting!

if you go North into v-line area, along the seymour line there are some nice places and anywhere south of Kilmore is less than hour on the train to melbourne and cost of zone 1+2 ticket.

I used to work in CBD so when i was looking for places to live, i got out the Met and V-line train diagrams and looked for towns/suburbs close to the train line.

if you're a little bit alternative and wanna embrace your inner hippy you can't go past the Dandenong Ranges.
take a day trip up to Olinda and Sassafras and you'll never want to go home.

Come for a drive up in the Hills!

Upwey, Tecoma and Belgrave have a train line for your commute to the city, green environment, alternative vibe and a nice sense of community.

Heaps of parks and bub friendly cafes too!

I used to live in Mitcham which had a lot of character and convenience (20 min drive to Brunswick St :D:D) and I've always loved the look of Lilydale...and it only gets better when you drive to Healsville and Warburton. Such a beautiful part of Victoria!!

Agreed! Olinda and Sassafras are to die for!!!!!

I'd love to eventually live in Mt. Dandenong or Kallista.....

Western Suburbs love,
we are looking to move and i grew up western
Kensington is cheap and gorg houses, shops and parks
everyone thinks kensington is dodgy but its actually so nice
i also recomend Kelior and Ascot Vale
same as kensington really
i live in watsonia
and aching to move back to my western roots

Bath, I'm like you, I've lived in all areas; Preston, Greensborough, Eltham, Ivanhoe, Heidelberg, Thomastown, Footscray, now Sunbury and I love it!

Sunbury house prices are still good, fantastic community vibe (I can't walk through the shops without seeing someone I know), and the train takes 40minutes to the city. I've done both the daily commute by train and also by car, and its not bad. Its a vline service, but still a metro ticket (zone 1 and 2 ticket) so its not terribly packed like what you see on tv. There's lots to do, and everyone is friendly. What else, good schools and facilities, easy access to pretty much anywhere. I could not move back to Melbourne! Come and live out here with me!!!!

:

---

if you're a little bit alternative and wanna embrace your inner hippy you can't go past the Dandenong Ranges.
take a day trip up to Olinda and Sassafras and you'll never want to go home.

---

:

---

Come for a drive up in the Hills!

Upwey, Tecoma and Belgrave have a train line for your commute to the city, green environment, alternative vibe and a nice sense of community.

Heaps of parks and bub friendly cafes too!

I used to live in Mitcham which had a lot of character and convenience (20 min drive to Brunswick St :D:D) and I've always loved the look of Lilydale...and it only gets better when you drive to Healsville and Warburton. Such a beautiful part of Victoria!!

---

Yep, another Eastern Suburbs girly here - I've just got back from the Lantern Walk in Belgrave, so cooool!

Yep it's time for a drive - hop on Eastlink, off at Boronia road, and up the hills. This way you will get a good feel of the areas w are on about. You know ya gotta FEEL it!

xoxoxo

My sister in law lives in Warrandyte and it is just gorgeous there!

We can see the mountains and its all greenery there but apparently its not too far from the city either.

Not sure where the nearest train station is though.

Eastern Suburbs - anywhere off Whitehorse Road/Maroondah Hwy is really lovely. Gorgeous actually.

If money was no object - Camberwell, Surrey Hills, Mont Albert, Box Hill South.

I also love Warrandyte and Eltham - quite bushy. If money is an object Ringwood, Croydon are affordable.

Jump on googlemap - it's brilliant for having a nose!