[4boys2girls]

We are considering relocating to Melbourne, we would probably look at renting out our house in Perth for 12 months while we rent in Victoria to get a feel for if it really is the right move for us.

We are a family of four, which includes two boys one almost five and one almost 2. We can afford to spend around $800K on a house and would prefer to be within 40km of the CBD. We don't mind whether its public or private school (at the moment our son attends an excellent public school).

what area would you recommend and why????

[*mylittleprince*]

I've never lived in Melbourne but have family friends that we've visited there. I love the areas of Mentone/Mordiallac/Aspendale. I think they are called the bay side suburbs and are withing 30km of the city. For $800k you would get a big modern house.

[SoxyMama]

You'd get a decent size house for that! If you want a very family suburb, Blackburn and surrounds are well in your price range for a nice house. If you go out to where I live (the Dandenongs) you'd get a decent size mansion for that ;-P

[SoxyMama]

Just had a look at prices in Blackburn. Man I WISH we had kept our house there... it would be worth a fortune by now - in a prominent street, smaller house but nice size block. He bought it like 20 years ago for $140,000 (or less??) and pretty much owned it outright but we sold it to move to the hills, made some bad mistakes and now own nothing :-/ But by geez I wish we'd kept it!

[au*lit]

It depends on what you are looking for in a suburb. What has attracted you to Melbourne and what kind of area do you want to live in? More info needed, as your budget will allow a broad range of options.

[4boys2girls]

Well we went over for a holiday last year and just loved the whole atmosphere, the going out for dinner, the shopping but to be honest the biggest draw for us is the footy!!! Maybe not a good enough reason to relocate but if we don't do it now we never will.

I would like a newer style suburb, probably not too far from the beach but within easy reach of the city (so we can go to the football). A fairly modern house, my husband has no DIY skills so would prefer something that didn't need doing up. More of a family orientated area than a professionals and somewhere that has a good primary school and high school close by.

And close to a train line so hubby can catch the train to the city for work

This post has been edited by 4boys2girls: 13/04/2012, 06:21 PM

[Meatspin]

you want to live on the Hurstbridge train line if it's the footy you're after

Check out suburbs like Watsonia, Greensborough, Rosanna and Eltham

[au*lit]

Did you go to the beach while you were in Melbourne? The beaches on Port Phillip Bay are a bit rubbish compared to Perth beaches, so you might not care about being that close to the beach!

But if you do, I'd recommend looking at the south eastern suburbs along the Sandringham and Frankston train lines. If not, I second the PP's recommendation of Eltham and surrounding suburbs - it's nice around there, family oriented and very leafy. Also relatively close to the city.

Other than that, I'm not much help as I'm more familiar with the inner suburbs.

[4boys2girls]

No we didn't look at any beaches. So thanks for the tips!

Been looking on Real Estate.com and have to say I'm loving the look of Eltham.

au*lit i don't think we could afford inner suburbs, looked at Essendon and Carlton but not getting a lot for your money from what i could see.

At the moment we have a 5 x 2 so wouldn't want to go less than 4 bedrooms, but from what i can see 3 bedrooms seems to be the majority - would that be right???

this is why i think renting would be the way to go first!

[Stinkermouse]

We've just moved down from the Central Coast in NSW to Melbourne and I love it!

Chosing a suburb depends on what your lifestyle is like, so if you like beach side towns then I look at the Bayside area. I have a friends who lives in Aspendale Gardens which I think is a newish suburb.

Or if you like character homes, leafy streets with parks then the Eastern Northern suburbs are a good choice.

I settled on Surrey Hills which is 12km from the CBD (25min drive). The suburb has great public, catholic and private schools. Shopping is also great locally in Camberwell and I'm only 6km from Chadstone.

I have found the whole area to be very family friendly, I have also heard the same of Bayside.

This post has been edited by Stinkermouse: 13/04/2012, 07:08 PM