Moving from Adelaide to Sydney, Please Recommend a Suburb to Live in

Yet another "moving to Sydney" thread. We're a family of three in our late 30s with a 4yo child, relocating from Adelaide because wife's just got a very prospective job offer in Sydney. It's a hard decision to make and proceed with downgrading our life standards, but there's nearly zero career (and the pay) growth opportunities for both of us here in Adelaide. FWIW, wife is a Law associate, I'm a senior software engineer.

Interested in opinions on choosing a safe Sydney suburb to live in, with a good public primary school, less than 1hr train commute time to work (offices near Martin Place) and where we could rent something decent for no more than $900 p.w.

North or South? What are your opinions on North Ryde, Lane Cove, Killara, Kogarah? Another criteria is, in a distant future, we'd like to be able to buy a house not too far from where we'll be renting for now. It's unlikely that we'd be approved for anything more than $1.5M.

Thanks a lot!

Comments

  • +13

    You can't go wrong with Northern Suburb. It ticks everything that you seek.

    North Ryde, Ryde, Marsfield are great suburbs. Once you try living there, you don't want to move out.

    Lane Cove is an amazing suburb too, full of cafes and local experiences & events.

    Anyway, IMO, north>south…if you have the $$

    • Thanks mate, missed Marsfield in my research, will check it out.
      Not sure about the $$ but it's going to be a competitive pay given Sydney market rates for her role. As to myself, it's been a while since I've changed jobs, but I should be able to find something at least equal to what I have now.

      • +3

        Of course there are other suburbs too in north such as: eastwoods, epping, beercroft, meadowbank, denistone…you might want to check those out too.

        Good luck!

        • Thank you! Will look at those, too.

        • +1

          beercroft

          I'd move to Beercroft, just so I could say "that's where I ale from".

      • +4

        I'm a senior software engineer

        Lots of development jobs in Sydney (CBD, North Sydney, Surry Hills and other high tech hubs), and if you are well experienced, there shouldn't be any issue finding well paid role.

        • That's good to know. I feel a bit rusty as lately I've been living mostly in Microsoft LOB dev ecosystem with a job which is more like a maintenance of an existing large scale application than developing anything new. I'm gonna invest some time in personal development when I'm between jobs.

          • @uk3000: maybe ask Scotty for a job :)

            • @distemper: Maybe I will :) I was under (subjective!) impression OZB uses a Node.js-based stack rather than ASP.NET, based on a quick look I once took with F12.

              • +2
                • +1

                  @molypot: Not a good fit then :) But I really like the design and how unobtrusive, lightweight and usable the site is, the markdown support etc. I wonder why they don't expand into the U.S. IMO, none of the similar US sites (slickdeals etc) comes close in terms of usability.

                  • @uk3000: That's because usability takes a back seat to content.

                    • +1

                      @nomoneynoproblems:

                      That's because usability takes a back seat to content.

                      I'm not a marketing specialist but I like the idea of paying for a quality content with no deprived usability and not littered with obtrusive ads. E.g, happily paying for a Medium.com membership. Perhaps, @Scotty's April Fool's Day announcement might go beyond being just a joke.

              • +2

                @uk3000: There's a pretty good move back from Node to aspnetcore since it beats the pants off Node in terms of performance and security. Also enterprise org's don't really want to invest in hobbyist tech :P

                If you PM me I can send you details of roles my organisation is recruiting for at the moment (Microsoft Consultancy). BI, CRM, Custom Dev (SQL, dotnetcore, Azure etc), O365 and SharePoint.

                • @Abaddon: Thank you, bookmarked! Still working my current job and have certain commitments there, it'll probably go to Sydney with me for a while, but I'll be sure to reach out when I'm ready!

                  There's a pretty good move back from Node to aspnetcore since it beats the pants off Node in terms of performance and security. Also enterprise org's don't really want to invest in hobbyist tech :P

                  Bring that up to the startup people and it's a holy war :) Each project has its specific needs I guess, but yeah it's hard to beat a truly multi-threaded framework backed by a language like C#.

                  • +1

                    @uk3000: Very much true. And once Blazor goes ready for production Node loses it's biggest drawcard (being the best option for same code frontend web and server). Exciting times.

                    • @Abaddon: Or even use Blazor + Electron for cross-platform desktop apps, how cool is that. Some consider this combo a WPF/WinForms killer.

          • +5

            @uk3000: I'm a senior dev at atlassian. We're always looking for more developers.

            Let me know if you have any questions.

            We use mostly Java/kotlin and aws infrastructure.

            • @flametornado: Thanks mate, bookmarked!

            • @flametornado: I'd like to be able to get in touch with you after this thread's gone inactive, but it doesn't look like your OZB account is enabled for private messages. Could you consider enabling it? Ta!

            • @flametornado: I suggest you hire a UI guy. Ur software is really atrocious.

      • -4

        Plenty of Chinese and Indian UNI Software graduates here in Sydney, willing to work for Pennies till they get citizenship. Good Luck, you might be heading back to Adelaide sooner than expected.

    • +10

      Anyway, IMO, north>southโ€ฆif you have the $$

      Broad generalisation. I'd definitely prefer to live in the inner west or east (both south of the harbour) than Ryde or Eastwood, especially if you need to commute across the bridge every day. You'll also find the home prices reflect this.

      • +3

        that's why I put 'IMO'…its: In My Opinion if you don't get it lol

        • +5

          I know. Providing a second opinion for the OP. Most of the north shore isn't Mosman.

    • +3

      North side is also best for your next IT job, more likely in North Sydney, North Ryde / Macquarie Park, Lane Cove West, Belrose or Frenchs Forest if not the city. Also Hills District - West Pennant Hills and Castle Hill / Bella Vista.

      I'd forget Killara (or further north) if your max will be $1.5M in the future though…

    • I don't mean to be rude, but for $900 why on Earth would you live in the north west when you could rent a renovated 2 bedroom terrace in Woollahra or a brand new apartment in Glebe with water views?

    • +1

      Depends what you want. I've lived in various parts of Sydney. North is more sterile and lacks "soul" in my view. Also a bit on the snobby side so it depends whether you fit in with that or not. You also get more for you money in the south where $1.5 mill will buy something very decent.

      Lugarno is a good area in the south. For $1.5 mill there you can get a very nice house, with water views and a pool. Quiet area not dissimilar to some northern suburbs in some respects but close to much busier shopping hubs, decent transport links etc.

  • +4

    As ever, it depends on what you're looking for. There's plenty of decent places to rent in any number of areas for $900/week with similar properties (maybe with a bit of upside) for sale at $1.5m … but, if you're talking about a "house" (i.e. freestanding, etc.) you basically won't get that in Killara and probably not Lane Cove. I couldn't speak to North Ryde and Kogarah, but these are certainly cheaper suburbs than Killara and Lane Cove.

    • I should have said "home" not "house", but for that money, we'd hope for at least a unit with a tiny backyard.

      Talking about a freestanding house though, how much far away for those suburbs could a reasonably nice $1.5m home be? We currently live in an new 4 bedroom 2 storey freestanding house, and having to leave it behind feels like the hardest part. But we're well aware we can't have it all.

      • +9

        Fair enough.

        If you're talking about a "nice" (not you-beaut, but not needing massive and immediate renovation/knock down) 4 bedroom freestander in Killara, you won't see much stock under $2.5m from my observations. Lane Cove, probably starting more around the $2m mark for an equivalent property.

        In the Killara region generally, for $1.5m you'd probably need to be looking more in the Pymble, St. Ives, Turramurra, Wahroonga areas, at least of the areas I know. You could consider places like Forestville, Frenchs Forest, Belrose, but these don't have the train line you mentioned.

        Lane Cove is a slightly odd suburb from a price perspective. It is effectively surround on three sides by more expensive suburbs. To the west will be a bit cheaper in the various Ryde suburbs and adjacencies.

        I would imagine suburbs such as North Ryde, Marsfield, Epping, Eastwood, etc. would fit the bill price-wise and have the train line access.

        • +1

          Greatly appreciated these thoughts, thanks.

          • +1

            @uk3000: No trouble. Best of luck with your search.

        • +1

          …and have the train line access

          lol. The man has access to $1.5 million, finds out he can't afford a livable house, now looking at units and still has to hump the train. Welcome to Sydney. :D

        • Lindfield, for some reasons ( maybe not as popular with Asian as Killara ) seems a bit chraper ( range of 1.8M )

    • +1

      Not Killara, no. Not Anymore. Maybe in 2012.

  • +19

    Inner west for a young family. North shore is boring as shit

    • In my "late 30s" I don't feel that young :) but thanks for another point of view!

      • +18

        The term young family usually refers to the age of the children, not the parents :)

        Another vote for the inner west. Stay near the train/tram lines for ease of travel.

        You don't really say much about what you like doing, and what you do and don't like in a suburb. That should have a big impact on where to live.

        • I feel like what we liked doing before we became parents is now largely irrelevant and will stay like this for a while or even longer, if we dare for another one :)

          We still like eating out and going to a beach on weekends, as long as the kid is not having another round of "childcare" flu. Having a green park with playgrounds nearby and a mall like Westfield not far away would be a big plus.

          • +22

            @uk3000: Upper North Shore: super leafy, big houses, longer train commute to the city

            Lower North Shore: expensive, smaller houses, not as leafy, trendy

            North West: can be expensive, quite leafy in some areas, currently building Metro line to the city

            Inner West: hip, trendy, young family, can be expensive, smaller houses, close to the city

            Eastern Suburb: close to the beach & city, expensive, light rail is being built to replace buses.

            • @kolorijo: A great summary, thanks.

              • +1

                @uk3000: You're welcome. Good luck with your home hunting. Have a look around areas before making your decision in buying the house. No rush with the house price is currently heading downward. Do not limit yourself to the area where you will be renting. You will have a better picture once you start living here.

            • +24

              @kolorijo:

              Upper North Shore: … long commute …
              Lower North Shore: … expensive …
              North West: … expensive …
              Inner West: … expensive …
              Eastern Suburb: … expensive …

              Unfortunate facts about Sydney :(

          • +5

            @uk3000: Please consider Kensington or Randwick.
            You should get something in your budget to rent.
            Moved from Epping, and realised what I was missing! Kids are both in Sydney Boys High, and they either catch the bus or stroll over.
            If they have to travel, excellent bus connectivity to City or Central. (15 min max from the bus stops).

            Close to the city, beaches, mall.
            I walk to Bondi, Coogee and to work near museum. (Disclaimer: I walk a lot)

          • +1

            @uk3000: It all comes down to how much space you need and how much you hate commuting - because $900/week is a really nice 2 bedroom place.

            However for beach + greenery + Westfield (+ fair commute time) I would say your options are fairly limited: Bronte, Clovelly, Double Bay. All have their own beaches and good parks and are within 10 mins drive of Westfield Bondi.

            If Westfield is less important, you could also look at Mosman which has more greenery to compensate + you could commute by ferry.

            If you want to look elsewhere you'll have to compromise on either beach or greenery (there are beaches without much eg Bondi/Coogee).

            • +1

              @chillin222: There is a Westfield and 3 other shopping centres in Chatswood.

            • @chillin222: Very helpful, thanks! It looks like we have to compromise and give up beaches, perhaps.

    • +2

      I so agree. Kogarah or surrounds is pretty good - excellent access to a lot of beaches. North Shore is the same I guess but it's pretty boring. Nice if you want ultra safe suburbia but there's not a lot going on. Canada Bay/Concord.Five Dock area all really lovely too - Five Dock has a great Italian festival and a couple of fantastic Italian cake shops. North Ryde is good too but a bit distant.

    • +5

      Lived in the inner west for ten years before moving to North shore. North shore is a lot better for a young family. The inner west had it's culture gutted by hipsters and property developers and will only get more congested.

      • +4

        Yeah I don't understand all the votes for the inner west for young families. There are plenty of other places that are excellent for young families. To me, family connections, green space, a good school and a connected community make a place great for young kids.

  • +4

    OP mentions commuting by train, but don't forget the city also has a light-rail service running Central to Dulwich Hill, through the inner-western suburbs.
    And, not sure what others think, but the bus service in Sydney is much better than in Melbourne.
    Just options so that OP doesn't focus on rail transport only.

    • +1

      The light rail is so slow! I live in the inner west and enjoy it, but I get the ferry to work eveyday. However we are looking to buy in the Ryde area as I want I decent back yard for the kids and the dog.

      You should be able to get a 3 bed place for less than $800 per week (in the current environment) either apart or free standing house). Make sure you save the rest for investment opportunities/ savings.

  • +1

    Lane Cove has no train station, so you will either walk, bus, ride to the next suburb to take the train. Not a bad suburb, but you may want to take that into consideration.

    Killara is a nice leafy north shore suburb, but not all the train stop there.

    Like previously mentioned, you can't really go wrong with picking north (shore) area.

    I used to live in Chatswood and I love it. Now I am living in the upper north shore area.

    • +2

      Lane Cove has non-stop direct buses to Wynyard though (Takes <15 mins), so underrated.

      • That's a big plus indeed!

    • +1

      Someone is from Killara here with a son playing in Lindfield Football Club ? The A's ?
      While there are works going on, on the MacQuarie route, there are 2 trains to Killara every 15 minutes.

  • +4

    Keating said if your not living in Sydney your camping. I'd say if your not living near the water your slumming. Driving through the suburbs of Sydney one might ask the question why? Make no mistake, getting around Sydney, especially by car is a joke.

    • +5

      Especially on the weekends, comparable with peak hour weekdays for the whole day.

      • +1

        Thought so. And I imagine, if you manage to get to the beach by car, you won't be able to park anyway, will you? I'm gonna miss that part of living in Adelaide, too.

        • +4

          Either you can't or you'll have to pay exorbitant parking fee (example $11/hour at Balmoral Beach)

          Although, there are options of less popular beaches with less of the parking problems, so don't let that deter you.

          I also use Waze app whenever I am driving so I am more informed of the traffic situation ahead of me.

          • +3

            @kolorijo: However if you live in Northern Beaches Council area (eg Frenchs Forest/Belrose, as previously mentioned, or the beach suburbs), you are given "free parking" stickers for 2 cars which can be used at any of the beaches in the local government area.

          • @kolorijo: Freshwater … bit of a drive, but with the lazy Ozies, you find plenty of parking after 100m from the beach.

            • +1

              @cameldownunder: Thank you for the recommendation. I don't mind to drive. Went all the way to Austinmer beach once :)

        • +2

          Usually the bigger beaches like curl curl have parking. But yeah you want a northern beaches sticker so it's free.

        • +1

          Cronulla has plenty of parking most of the time. I love it there but itโ€™s obviously not north.

  • +8

    i currently live in Wollstonecraft, Lower North Shore. have quite a large 2 bed 2 bath apartment for 630 a week. been having a look at apartments nearby and same size if not bigger really nice ones are selling for around 1.1-1.2 mil.

    has a train line and very close to the city.

    also plenty of nearby shops and restaurants in crows nest. nearest westfield is either chatswood or pitt st in the cbd, both about a 10 min train trip away.

    nice parks around and also the water is close with spectacular views.

    i grew up around the eastwood/north ryde area and now living here i can't imagine going back. it also helps that most of my friends and work are nearby.

    • +1

      2nd this.

      • +1

        If OP is ok with an apartment - much better choice would be Neutral Bay or Cremorne or Cammeray. One or 2 sets of lights to city in 15mins. Superb bus frequency and lot of food options.
        Wollstonecraft is way too dark and dead in the evening.

        • +1

          Did live in Cremone, on busy morning, bus would not stop because already full. Traffic on miliraty is absolute nightmare. for me it's a No-No and a Never again.

  • +2

    Cross reference these suggestions against good primary schools and bob's your uncle!

    • On it!

      • +1

        Killara has excellent Primary ( with "only 75% Asian ) and very good Public High School.
        And easy access to expensive but good private schools later on.
        If you are looking for a good pre-school, go for KU.

  • +4

    I grew up in Adelaide and regularly go back and I have lived in Sydney for decades. If you can give me an idea of the type of suburb you like in Adelaide I could try and give a Sydney equivalent.

    • Cheers mate. Currently living in West Lakes, 3 mins of walk to the lake itself and 5 mins of driving to Westfield. Love the area.

      • +4

        The areas suggested would suit you well, Lane Cove would be perfect but the purchase price would most likely exceed $1.5mil. southern suburbs of Sydney may suit you also, Sylvania, Taren Point, Miranda, Jannali, Kirrawee, I lived there many years ago so I have no idea of the rent or purchase price but worth a look and closer to beaches than northern/north west. Upper north shore would be great too to rent especially, but purchasing at your price point could be challenging.

        • Thank you. Overall, do you miss Adelaide much?

          • +1

            @uk3000: Yes, I spent my formative years there so it will always be home to me. Now my kids are all adults I seem to miss it more and would love to move back but my husband says no, I would spend all my time telling him I miss the kids - he is dead right. Just gotta win lotto and be able to afford to live in both places:)

  • +5

    The Upper North Shore is defined as Roseville and suburbs above to Hornsby.

    Your rental / purchase budget might constrain you from obtaining a house, but if you can stretch your rental budget then you'll find that it's worth it.

    I live in the lower Upper North Shore. It's 10 minutes to walk to the station and the train takes 30 minutes to Wynyard (trackwork weekends the bus to Chatswood and then direct to Wynyard takes just as long). The fastest cab from Wynyard in the evening to home was 12 minutes.

    Con:

    • Very expensive. The expense arises from the large blocks the houses sit on - typically 800+m2; there are still many houses with pool and tennis court. Also many houses have conservation orders, which make them very expensive to renovate and extend. Also lower density compared to other suburbs.

    Pros:

    • Close to the city
    • Lots of space and greenery from the big blocks, Ku-ring-gai local environmental plan, and national parks.
    • Very good schools.
    • Close to Chatswood shopping with lovely local village shops and some supermarkets.
    • Close to Northern beaches where you can park virtually on the beach. Close to Middle Harbour.
    • Homeowners are typically executives and professionals so you'd blend right in.
    • +1

      Very useful, thank you. We might be able to stretch the budget, subject to my future job, but it's too early too tell.

    • Close to McQuarie with car too. Less stress than going into Chatsfoo.

  • +2

    For $900pw you can rent 2 bedrooms apartment right in the city ๐Ÿ˜Š

    • +1

      Maybe but I don't think the city is a good place to live with a young child. We're looking for something more like a unit with a little backyard for that money.

  • +4

    Why not look at suburbs along the Illawarra train line on which Kogarah is located. This line stops at Martin Place. IMO opinion look at suburbs like Oatley (30 minute commute) and then suburbs across south of the Georges River eg Gymea (40 minute commute.

  • +4

    Just over 1 hour on train try Lower Blue Mountains
    Glenbrook is great leafy, civilised, relaxed and yet easy commute to city or western Suburbs

    • +1

      I live in Blaxland at the border of Glenbrook and second this. Easily get a 3 bedroom place for about $650 per week and great choices of schools. Our mortgage is affordable too.

      • +1

        I was going to suggest this too. Lower Blue Mountains (including Emu Plains etc) puts you less than an hour to Central by train, and your 900pw can go to a mortgage on a house with a yard instead of rent.

      • Is there any good schools with before and after-school care? It's my understanding that to be able to make it to the office by 9am, I'd have to drop my kid off to school by 7.30am.

    • Blue Mountains

      Always wondered, are there many ozbargain type opportunities around there? I realise many are online.

    • +5

      This still happens in the North Shore in many places, but I understand what you mean. It also extends all the way up to Palm Beach.

      • +2

        Grew up on the northern beaches, one of the local dads still dresses up as Santa each year and all the kids come out and see Santa on Christmas Day, its great community atmosphere!

    • +1

      Wow, just wow!

    • +9

      Are you for real? So basically you trying to say in nice way whites only area. No wonder people on the northern beaches are such stuck up aholes.

      • +3

        Nice attempt at a strawman. Did I say "whites only"? No, I didn't. I said "culturally incompatible" peoples.

      • +4

        Cultural incompatible immigration doesn't mean whites only. Massive percentage of immigrants on the north side that have assimilated very well.

        • +1

          Massive amount of people in the north shore that can't speak proper English. But they are bilingual.

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