Moving to Melbourne - help and advice needed!

[woodvale]

Apologies in advance, this is a bit rambling!
My husband has been offered a job in Melbourne, starting at the beginning of January. We (me and two boys aged 7 and 6) will be joining him, probably at the end of February to give him time to settle in and scope things out.
I have never been to Australia, never mind Melbourne so I literally don't know where to start!
His work are paying for a one-bed appartment for him for 8 weeks somewhere near the office (St Kilda Road, near Albert Reserve) so we don't have to worry about that, but our main concern is finding a good school for the boys and a nice area to live in from March onwards.
I have done a bit of research and am hearing good things about the Bayside area in general (Hampton, Brighton, Sandringham etc) and looking on google maps, it looks like that would make a decent commute for DH, so I guess this is my starting point.
I would really appreciate any advice you can offer on schools/neighbourhoods which may work for us please?

We live in London in a really nice area with lots of parks, bars, reasturants, family-friendly pubs and where you can't move for organic butchers, lovely deli's and free range this that and the other! Sorry if that sounds a bit wanky but hopefully you het the drift! This area is full of young families and so we are ideally looking for a similar type area. We eat out a lot and are keen to find an area with good cafe society etc.
I will be a SAHM at least for a year while we get sorted which is a departure for me as I have a job I love in PR, so I will definitely be looking for a neighbourhood where I can find some like-minded friends (sounds desperate I know but clearly don't know a soul in Melbourne!)

Am not too bothered by living too close to the beach if that means that prices will be sky high - we have a big mortgage in London and I don't want to have the same stresses there as we do here. We will be renting in Melbourne and renting out our house here. Ideally would like 3-4 bedroom house with a garden.

My boys are currently at a lovely primary school (Year 3 and Year 1) so I am really anxious about finding the right place for them. Looking at some websites it seems that all primaries are pretty huge compared to here. Can anyone advise which year they would go into in Australia as i know it's all completely different? Any advice on schools at all would be amazing please.

Basically any steer in a good direction that anyone can throw at me will be received with thanks!

[TerrorAustralis]

I've just moved from Melbourne, but spent most of the last 9 years there. Personally I much prefer the inner-north area to Bayside, but I've never lived down there. I know a lot of people love it, but lots of those people are like Shane Warne (he lives in Brighton).

My favourite areas are Carlton North and Fitzroy North. But the houses are generally smaller (not many 4-bedders) and yards are small. Brunswick East and Northcote are a good compromise of not too far from the city and (sometimes) bigger houses and yards.

There are lots of cafes, restaurants, farmers' markets and organic food shops in the inner suburbs. Melbourne has the most developed cafe culture in Australia, and many of its best restaurants. Eating out is fabulous.

Renting is very expensive, but coming from London hopefully it won't be a huge shock. It can also be a competitive market, so it can take time to find somewhere. Have a look on domain.com.au for rentals in the areas you're considering. If you have worked out how much you're willing to pay on rent it also might help you to narrow down an area.

It's a good thing you're not interested in the beach. Melbourne beaches are awful by Australian standards.

I can't help much with schools, except that if you're in a nice area, it usually follows that the local school will be nice. A lot of the areas I mentioned have smallish primary schools (several schools in one suburb). Newer areas tend to have fewer but bigger schools.

One thing about Melbourne is that a lot of people who live there aren't from there originally, so they are often more open to making friends to people who have lived in the same place their whole lives.

[woodvale]

Thanks Terror, very interesting. One thing though - not sure what people like Shane Warne means? I know he's a cricketer and looks ridiculous following his makeover by Elizabeth Hurley, but i don't know anything about him. Can you explain?

I am looking for family friendly, lots of cafes and restaurants, good schools, good facilities like swimming pools, gym, yoga studios: basically i want to walk out of my house on a Saturday, find a nice deli, somewhere to have brunch, do some exercise, take my boys swimming, have a glass of wine, watch the world go by.... where might this be??!!

[TerrorAustralis]

It's probably not possible to say this without sounding like a terrible snob... Shane Warne is considered a massive bogan (a bogan is the Australian equivalent of a chav). He's also what's known as a cashed-up bogan (CUB), meaning all money no taste. Brighton mums are often of the bleached, spray-tanned, jewel-encrusted variety.

The kind of area you're looking for describes most of the suburbs within about a 7-10 kilometre radius of the CBD (with the exception of some Western suburbs). Some areas directly bordering the city are less kid-friendly, but have all the other things you're after.

The inner north areas I mentioned meet your criteria. If you go south or east of the city you'll also find the things you're after. But you need to have a look for yourself because the different areas can have quite a different vibe. You need to see what appeals to you.

Also, areas like South Yarra tend to attract a lot of tourists and people coming in from the outer suburbs to go shopping on weekends, so on Saturdays Chapel St (the main strip) turns into a zoo. St Kilda has a distinctly unsavoury element in parts (a friend lived there for years and used to have men in cars slow down and ask her how much).

To the east Malvern, Armadale and Kew are lovely areas, with the kinds of things you're looking for. But they can be expensive, so it will depend on your budget. Closer to your DH's work Albert Park and Port Melbourne would also fit the bill, but again I'm not sure about your budget.

My advice would be to look at property online in some of the areas I've mentioned to try to narrow it down. Then come out and spend a couple of hours wandering around and visiting cafes each area you're interested in to see what appeals.

[foxbasealpha]

I will second the inner north. To give some context, I'm Australian, have 3 young DCs and have just returned to Melbourne after 7+ years in London (relocated for OH's work) where we lived central/inner north (2 different areas). I'm undoubtedly biased but I do think the inner north would tick all your boxes.

If you're looking for a 3/4 bed with garden, then you should be looking around Northcote, Thornbury, Fairfield and maybe (East) Brunswick. They all have great cafes (sign up to www.broadsheet.com.au/ for some insight), fantastic schools, organic food stores, gyms/pools/yoga studios etc. There are loads of families with young kids, so very family friendly.

A note on schools - remember we start the school year end of January - so if it's possible, might be good for your boys to be able to start at the same time as everyone else? I know you want to scope out areas etc but check if your DH's company would fly you out earlier for this (not unheard of in my acquaintance).

Any more questions, please ask!

[foxbasealpha]

Sorry - meant to say we also live in the inner north (though you might have guessed that!)

[echt]

I live in Bayside and it's fine. All the things you want you can find there. It is expensive.

If you live in London I can see no point leaving there to NOT live close to the sea. Or that's the way we looked at it: why leave a world-class city to, er... live inland

Take no notice of the comment about the beaches; they are fine,but in a bay so you don't get surf, you travel down the peninsula for that, to the back beaches. The beaches are ideal for those with small children; generally shallow, but with good snorkelling off some Bayside.

You'd be hard put to find a rubbish primary school in the area, though the ones that mix year groups in wall-less classroom should be given a wide berth if you value you child's literacy and numeracy skills.

I can't comment on the areas already described (for living in, that is - they're lovely to visit) I just wanted to offer another view.

[woodvale]

Amazingly useful thank you all so much!
Totally get the Shane Warne thing now Terror thanks for the explanantion. Exactly the sort of insider info I just wouldn't get!
Fox I would love some more info on schools if there's anything you can offer. I know what you mean about starting the boys at the beginning of term but the problem is that DH won't be going out until first week of January so all of the schools will be closed and he won't be able to start viewing any of them until term starts. It's really important for us to be able to get a feel for the school and meet the Head etc, so we are just going to have to start them a bit later - not ideal but I can't see another way around it. Can you tell me what years they will be in please? DS1 was born March 06 and DS2 Sept 07. Really don't like the idea of schools with mixed year groups - sounds like bedlam.
echt thanks for your perspective. Really great to get a rounded view. I do get your point about the beach which is why we were thinking Bayside from the start.
Clearly once DS gets out there he is going to have to do some legwork!!
One more question if anyone can help please - here in London I do British Military Fitness which is like an army bootcamp thing in the park. I have done it religiously for nearly 3 years and I am fairly evangelical about it... is there anything similar going on in Melbourne that I could check out?
Thanks for all the help

[woodvale]

I mean DH needs to do some legwork, not DS!

[saffronwblue]

Another inner north (west) person here. In your shoes I would have a good look at Albert Park/South Melbourne - near the water, great parks and good community. You do get the Grand Prix driving past once a year though! Brighton is lovely, but a bit monocultural for me. I wouldn't live in St Kilda with kids. My DC went to a state primary with mixed classes and I found the mix of levels surprisingly OK.
Have a look on domain.com.au to get an idea of rentals and prices.

[echt]

Melbourne is full of fitness clubs, etc. I drive down Beach Road twice every work day, and on the basis of just individuals, it's full of cyclists, walkers, joggers, runners. Also seen what looks like clubs/groups working out on the reserves next to to the bay.

I've just goggled "bootcamp in Bayside" and lots of stuff comes up. I'm not into groups myself but can vouch for how easy it is to go running/jogging: no shit, no phwoarr. Although I'm in my late 50s, so possibly invisible in that respect, no younger woman of my acquaintance has had trouble.

[TerrorAustralis]

Bootcamp fitness groups are very popular in Melbourne. You shouldn't have trouble finding one.

[saffronwblue]

Here's a nice house, OP. www.domain.com.au/Property/For-Rent/House/VIC/Albert-Park/?adid=8523321

and here is the local primary. www.albertparkps.vic.edu.au/

[foxbasealpha]

Check here for schools by area - www.goodschools.com.au/ - though unfortunately doesn't seem to have much info on primary schools. Usually in Aus, kids will be 5 when they start or will turn 5 by (end of?) April. It's getting more common to hold kids back though - so some kids might be nearly 6 when they start. So that's Prep - kids are 5, turning 6 during that year. In grade 1, kids are 6, turning 7. And so on.

Agree you will find boot camps pretty much anywhere so don't worry about that.

That house in Albert Park looks pretty good and is surprisingly reasonably priced (surprising for the area). Although I'm inner north all the way, I do love Albert Park. Fab aquatic center and it's a great run around the lake (just over 5k iirc).

On the timing - is it possible for your DH's company to fly you out this year for a week or so to do some reconnaissance? (That's what I meant in my first post - though prob wasn't clear). This shouldn't be unreasonable when you're moving to the other side of the world with kids (we had this when we moved to the UK). Then you could maybe agree an area, see some schools etc? Then hit the ground running when you arrive in Jan?

One thing to note about renting in Melbourne too - it's HIGHLY competitive. Much more so than in London (in our experience). In fact, not unusual here to offer above the asking price on rental properties to secure it. Will your DH's company offer a relocation agent/consultant or similar to assist you? Will definitely help if you have someone local who can negotiate and liaise with agents on your behalf. (These consultants often can help find suitable schools too).

[foxbasealpha]

Sorry, another thing on schools. Composite grades (more than 1 grade level in the class) are becoming very common, so don't be surprised by this. (Number of students is as per a normal class, just a mix of grade levels.)

[saffronwblue]

One more to look at in Carlton. www.domain.com.au/Property/For-Rent/House/VIC/Carlton/?adid=8577089
Inner city, near the University of Melbourne, lots of great cafes, parks, bookshops, the museum, etc all close by. Very different from beach culture suburbs.

[echt]

No matter how common the composite classes are: avoid, avoid, avoid.

I would go private to avoid this shit. I'm a teacher and loathe the private sector, but also detest this latest ill thought-out wank.

[angeltulips]

I agree w the poster up thread who suggested bayside - I wouldn't leave London to live in northcote, it is pretty samey compared to the beach. Personally I'd go for Elwood or Albert/middle park. (I grew up in south yarra/toorak and it was great, but if I moved back to melbourne id definitely go bayside).

[angeltulips]

Ps I was in composite classes in the early 80s and it was awesome - I don't know why everyone is so down on them, they're neither new nor badly-thought out imo

[woodvale]

Thank you so much for all of your replies - this is all so helpful. I love the look of the Albert Park House and think the area would be ideal but I see that the school has quite a small boundary so that sounds like it could be a headache, but i will contact them on Monday anyway.
Please could someone give me an idea of commuting times if we lived in the inner north - as I mentioned, the DH's office is on the St Kilda Rd near the Albert Reserve. Have no idea of traffic in Melbourne, whether the DH will drive (assume he will) but the last thing i want is for the poor guy to end up with a bad commute as he had nearly nine years here doing a really awful journey so the poor guy needs a break!
I agree with echt, really not fancying a composite class, I really don't get it. My two are only 18 months apart in age but DS1 is streets ahead of DS2 in terms of his education and his maturity. Can't imagine them both in the same class. Sounds mental.
Unfortunately won't be able to come out this year - I don't finish work until Christmas so don't have any time, but I am going to try to speak to a few schools this week to see how they feel about it.
Very daunting.......

[PeppaPigsMum]

We lived in Middle Park (next to Albert Park) for 6 months when we moved to Melbourne and really enjoyed our time there. Easy tram access to the city, South Melbourne market down the road, Albert Park at the top of the road with the aquatic centre, lots of nice little shops and cafes. And there is the bonus of the beach a couple of minutes walk away. This was 8 years ago, but I can't imagine it has changed much. We only moved because dh's got another job up in Sydney.

Afraid I can't help with schools though, as mine were too young while we were there (I heard good things about St Kilda West (?) from others, but no idea really). Interestingly, our school here in Sydney has just got rid of composite classes, but no idea if this is likely to become a trend everywhere.

As someone mentioned above, it does get noisy when the Grand Prix is on, and it is an expensive part of the city. Your dh could walk to work easily though, which is a big plus. When we lived in London my dh commuted 1h30 round the M25 to work and then back again. He now works a 10 minute cycle ride away, and the difference to his work/life balance is huge. Good luck with the research!

[saffronwblue]

OP Melbourne traffic is quite congested so your DH might do better than to work in St Kilda Rd and live in inner north.

[CrackersandCheese]

Just to add that we moved here in February to Hampton. It is lovely. The beach is 10 min stroll down the road. The high street full of nice shops, deli's etc.
To commute from here to St Kilda you're talking around 20 min down beach rd. Lovely drive to work.
I did the same as you before we arrived but my best advice would be to just drive around when you get here. You need to see it for yourself.

[womma]

I have nothing helpful to contribute to this, apart from wishing you all the best of luck. I've heard lots of wonderful things about Melbourne, I hope you'll be happy there.

[saffronwblue]

How is it all going OP?