I’ve just spent 2 years living on the central coast. I have children and grandchildren living on the central coast. I’m only here for a few years and then will move back to Sydney.I haven’t really been many places since I came up here to live temporarily.
I know Terrigal primary and infants school is pretty good. And that Terrigal high school (public) looks quite nice from the street, and I’ve not heard anything negative about it. Also there is the private school - Central coast Grammar - good reputation. I also know of Henry Kendal high school (Gosford area) but a few years ago I was told it was seriously underfunded: I’m not sure if that’s true or not to tell the truth:. Terrigal high and Central coast Grammar schools are close to suburb of Erina. Which is where the Erina shopping mall is (a very unglamorous shopping centre imo but it has a Kmart, H&M, Uniqlo, Cole’s, Woolworths hairdressers, myers, cinemas etc.) and it is where one of my teenage granddaughters meets up with her friends to see a movie, have coffee etc.. (her parents have to drive her to and from), although in summer her life centres more around the beach (easy for her to get to)
I don’t live in the suburb of Terrigal but if I had the choice that is where I’d live. A beautiful beach side suburb - but with shops, cafes and a decent pub, medical centre, a very pretty beach and lots of greenery. Parking (close to the beach) is a bugger in summer though - as it is with many beach side suburbs. There’s a bit of ‘life’ happening there. (I’ve lived most of my life in Sydney’s eastern suburbs so busy beachside suburbs do appeal to me. Terrigal is a personal preference for me and one of my friends who lives in Avoca Beach said she wouldn’t like to live near Terrigal beach at all - Avoca is lovely but I prefer things busier).
Currently I live in a lovely area on the peninsula surrounded by older homes and gum trees and wildlife, with a big yard and a national park very close by. I’m close to beaches too. Both the ocean beaches and the Brisbane Waters beaches of Ettalong and Umina aren’t far It’s vety beautiful quiet living; - but getting around without a car is difficult/almost impossible if you rely on buses in my part of the peninsula. Might be different around Ettalong and Umina - I don’t know. Although there are the school buses each week day of course. I suggest you look at online bus timetables to get an idea of where,and how often, the public buses run - if that is a ‘need’ for you.
My daughter and her family live on the edge of the suburb of Terrigal and they pay about $800 dollars a week for 4 bedroom house. I haven’t really been many places since I came up here to live. Her house is in good condition. Nice house and nice outlook. Any houses closer to the beach are going to cost more, but the beach is only a 5 min drive away anyway. Public transport is really bad imo. So if you have teenagers and don’t want to spend half your life in a car driving them places I imagine you’ll want to be fairly central to a school and the mall and beaches - if it is affordable for you of course. Finding a place to rent is as hard here as it is everywhere.
(Oh, my daughter has told me there has been a bit of a crime wave up here recently. House robberies and such. Which sounds a bit scarey. Although no one I know has had a problem as yet.)
How about you ask me about suburbs you are interested in and I’ll tell you what I know? But be warned I really only know a small amount, and only about the beach side suburbs. Anything further away from the beach (inland) is a mystery to me. Also, north of Terrigal is unknown to me. Going north along the coast you have Tuggerah and The Entrance etc., I’ve not been there for decades. The central coast covers such a huge area.
Here’s a link to central coast news:https://coastcommunitynews.com.au/Central Coast News
I find the local papers are a good way to find out more about an area.
Also Copacabana local newsletter: https://www.copanews.com.au/gallery (Copacabana is a good beach side suburb but it’s a bit out of the way for me)
Penninsula News:
https://peninsula.news/2024/0916/read.aspx?item=ReidForum%5E
This month’s Avoca Beach News
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65ee43a85af20674905a82f8/t/6675133a42f87b6fad3ea34d/1718948680286/Avoca+Beach+NewsJune+2024.pdf. (Avoca is a very pretty suburb with great beach)
Terrigal Newletter
https://www.nationaltribune.com.au/topics/terrigal/
You might like to look at a map of the central coast so you can pinpoint where your husband’s work will be and where the schools are - that sort of thing and I’ll tell you what I know1 which really isn’t that much.
Please excuse spelling mistakes etc - my eyesight is not great so I tend to make a lot of typos.
Oh my one experience of Gosford hospital is very good. And I noticed that my doctors surgery is taking new patients. It was hard to find a doctor when I moved up here but not impossible.
Even the smaller suburban public libraries are good. If they haven’t got a book on stock you want to read they’ll get them sent from other libraries DLL over the central coast.
Online Supermarketing and deliveries works as well here as it does in Sydney.
one thing I’ve really missed living in the central coast is good delicatessens and takeaway food. It is improving though