# Adelaide Suburbs - Doing research and need a little bit of advice



## surhythms (Apr 8, 2008)

Hi Guys 

I have been doing a bit of research around suburbs in Adelaide. After thinking long and hard we decided that we would like to live beside the sea. I picked out a number of suburbs and was just looking for an honest opinion in relation:

1. Good Secondary/High Schools in the area - my daughter is interested in Photography, Swimming, Music, Art & Marine Studies - so if there are schools in the area strong in these subjects she would like to go to these.

2.Nice Beach - can you swim in the sea???  


3. Good facilities or youth clubs for young teenagers (she will be about 12/13 when we move)

4. Nice parks - (for running and walking), restaurants, pubs (1 decent one will do  )

5. Shopping Centre - a fairly large on will do!! :haha 

6. Transport (bus tram train) in and out of the city centre - we dont want to be travelling more than 45 mins on public transport.

7. Is there public transport from suburbs to schools or do the kids walk.

8. Resonably priced houses - we are not looking to live in an extremely wealthy area - we dont want to stick out like a sore thumb :lol: - somewhere nice and middle of the road with families that have kids and teenagers around so it is easy enough to make friends for my daughter.

The areas we have been looking at are:


Henley Beach
Glenelg - I know I know its pricey there so might be a wish more so than anything else
Brighton
Seacliff
Hallett Cove


Are there any other areas near the sea that are ok?

Thanks for your help

Suzanne


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## _Chris_ (Sep 11, 2009)

surhythms said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> I have been doing a bit of research around suburbs in Adelaide. After thinking long and hard we decided that we would like to live beside the sea. I picked out a number of suburbs and was just looking for an honest opinion in relation:
> 
> ...


Hi Suzanne,

I'm also interested in Adelaide and would have similar questions as you, so I will keep looking into here, to see any answers you get, but if you get any answers to these questions from somewhere else, could you let me know please ?

All the best.

Chris.


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## surhythms (Apr 8, 2008)

Hi Chris 

Checkout [Removed by moderator - please do not post links to other expat forums] - I got a few answer there.

Suzanne


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## _Chris_ (Sep 11, 2009)

Many thanks Suzanne - will check that as well.


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## CeJay (Mar 18, 2009)

*Just back from Adelaide*



surhythms said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> I have been doing a bit of research around suburbs in Adelaide. After thinking long and hard we decided that we would like to live beside the sea. I picked out a number of suburbs and was just looking for an honest opinion in relation:
> 
> ...


Hi

Just returned from a trip to check out Perth, South West coast and Adelaide trying to decide where to settle next year (PR visa obtained earlier this year) so have some thoughts on Adelaide.

On arriving in Adelaide we had a long discussion with the girl from the hire car office who proceeded to call in her boss and the mechanic to also give their views when I asked about "good" suburbs to live! 

Coastal wise they said anywhere from Semaphore down to Brighton was OK. We particulary looked at Henley because she said the high school was good (she had friends who had been there). Henley seems up and coming, lots of building work going on but also lots of 'tired' looking houses that could do with some work. The beach was good (properties on the Esplanade have fantastic uninterrupted views and so close to the sea) but usually over 1million AUS. But lots of residential streets within walking distance of the beach. 20 mins to the centre of Adelaide by car I think.

West Lakes looked nice, (fantastic Italian pizza/deli), but didn't look around too much. 

Glenelg was also good but quite touristy, but again lots of residential areas close to beach. Lots of restaurants etc. a nice shopping street to keep young teenagers happy but not enough shops for my older teenage girls who would need to shop in the city!! Also 20 mins drive to city centre.

I suppose you can swim in the sea (it was too cold to try) but when we were there the water looked very murky and there was loads of seaweed on the beach (except Henley funnily enough). 

The city centre is very very easy to get around on foot and car. We didn't use public transport so can't comment there. Shopping was good, although girls did prefer Perth. Large Botanical Park in the centre is lovely, spent a good few hours walking around there. Lots of older buildings which was refreshing for Australia. Also city centre is full of lots and lots of uni students.

Hope that helps.

Cejay


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## northern mover (May 30, 2008)

Hi Suzanne,
well, i am actually in Adelaide, so maybe i can help..................

All areas have some "tired" looking houses, dont let it put you off!! 

Henley beach is a lovely area, super beach and a busy little social side. Good schools, public and private.
Glenelg really is the "touristy" area, and accordingly expensive, imo. However, it is a thriving suburb with lots to do and great transport links to the city!

Hallet Cove, again is nice...................but much further south than the others you mentioned. Likewise Seacliffe.
Not fully certain of the schools down there, but a very large migrant population, so i can ask around for you!
You can get more bang for your buck on housing in the south; however, if you are working in the city, it can take up to an hour each way from Morphette vale, which is a killer, to the CBD!
You can get to the beach in about 40 mins from the far eastern suburbs, on a busy day, so you can make a judgement from that....................

Have you looked at the DECS website about schools, its pretty useful............

good luck
Jane


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## alexacrylics (Jan 1, 2010)

Well I've lived in Adelaide for all my life, and have gotten to know the place pretty well. So I'll give you as much info as I can. 

So the areas you are looking at; Henley Beach, Glenelg, Brighton, Seacliff and Hallett Cove are all pretty nice areas.

I have lived my whole life in the Western Suburbs area, within 8-10 minutes of Henley Beach. Personally, out of the pick, I think Henley is one of the nicest, and easiest to get to the city from. Henley is known for being a good place to raise a family, and there are a variety of High Schools nearby. It also has very good public transport.

Glenelg is like the upmarket beach area of Adelaide, it has very good shopping, namely Jetty Road, but personally, I find the actual beach disappointing. Nevertheless, it has very good public transport, but there aren't too many close High Schools.

Brighton and Seacliff could pretty much be combined being right next to each other. Brighton is the more upmarket part, being closer to Glenelg, and has a very good beach. Seacliff, a bit further up the hill, also has a very nice swimmable beach, and both have good transportation with the train running down the middle of them and numerous bus routes. There are numerous high schools around the area, and both, along with Glenelg are close too Marion Shopping Centre, one of Adelaide's largest malls.

Hallett Cove is quite far from the city, and wouldn't be a good place to live if you were to be working anywhere within the vicinity of the city centre. I know a few people that live in this area, and most are happy, but none are working in the city. Hallett Cove is mostly a good area but there are a few rough patches nearby, with the Port Stanvac Oil Refinery, now abandoned, nearby. It has good transportation, with the train running down the middle, and a couple of bus routes, but I wouldn't recommend living here, as the schooling in this area is of lower standards, and most of the beaches nearby are rocky, and not desirable for swimming.

All the suburbs I've discussed above will have plentiful amounts of parks, all have pubs nearby, and youth clubs will be scattered throughout the areas.

I would recommend you look at other coastal suburbs as well, such as Grange (Immediately north and connecting with Henley), West Lakes, and Tennyson. You could also look further north to Largs Bay, Taperoo, and Osborne, but there are a few rough patches in these areas, and there are homeless shelters meaning larger populations of homeless, and beggers.

Basically, for a comfortable and safe place to live on the cost in Adelaide, look South of Tennyson, and north of Kingston Park/Seacliff (Check out Google Maps)

Then you should be fine.

Hope this helps


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## claireanddaz (Dec 10, 2009)

alexacrylics said:


> Well I've lived in Adelaide for all my life, and have gotten to know the place pretty well. So I'll give you as much info as I can.
> 
> So the areas you are looking at; Henley Beach, Glenelg, Brighton, Seacliff and Hallett Cove are all pretty nice areas.
> 
> ...


Great info people and exactly what we are looking for, keep it coming!!!! 
am i right in thinking that adelaide subs area good place for property and to get started on the property ladder? , we will be looking for somewhere to buy a home we dont mind hard work and renovating the property but price is the key for us as we are buying an ex council home at present and will have a little to invest when we sell this here in the uk, but the price has to be good:juggle: ( i dont want to say cheap!) but ...yea...

any property price in fo would be great, or is there anywhere else property wise thats a good start? no def destination in mind yet, just going on what we have heard. there dousnt seem to be much on property websites and its all a bit confusig never having been to aus.

regards claire


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## Steve of Adelaide (Dec 13, 2009)

I too have spent most of my life in Adelaide and agree with much of what Alexacrylics has to say.

As far as schools go, Brighton High would be the best school as it has a highly regarded Music Education program. 

Most beaches from Semaphore through to Seacliff are all nice and safe swimming beaches. If you want a house with Seaviews be prepared to pay a premium. Having said that, however, Adelaide is the cheapest mainland capital city to buy a house, by a fair margin, with the median house price being $355,000 (compared to Perth's $460,000). Hope this helps.


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## claireanddaz (Dec 10, 2009)

Steve of Adelaide said:


> I too have spent most of my life in Adelaide and agree with much of what Alexacrylics has to say.
> 
> As far as schools go, Brighton High would be the best school as it has a highly regarded Music Education program.
> 
> Most beaches from Semaphore through to Seacliff are all nice and safe swimming beaches. If you want a house with Seaviews be prepared to pay a premium. Having said that, however, Adelaide is the cheapest mainland capital city to buy a house, by a fair margin, with the median house price being $355,000 (compared to Perth's $460,000). Hope this helps.


Hi yes it does thanks,
whats the weather in adelaide like in the winter? summer temps would be great too if you dont mind, its looking like adelaide for us, tho it wont be for a while yet but im researching like mad, doing all the home work and things first, we should have around $90,000 to bring with us if all goes good, so im hoping that will help secure a mortgage.

thanks for your time


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

For a deposit if you are buying a house expect to pay around 20% of the purchase price unless you have very good jobs. Your credit history will not be coming with you unless you bank with someone like HSBC (where some of the credit history may come with you). So for $355,000 property expect a deposit of about $71,000 so $90,000 won't go very far. 

Unless you are sure of an area you may be better off renting for a while to make sure that you are buying in the right location. The property links in the 'PLEASE READ....' post sometimes have videos for certain areas so you can see what they are like. 

Regards,
Karen


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## claireanddaz (Dec 10, 2009)

Thanks
the $90,000 will be profit from the house sale, so that would go straight in to another property hopefully (my o h is very determined not to whittle it away and wants that amount to be invested some way, other wise all the hard work were doing on THIS house at the moment would feel for nothing... 
and we are hoping to have some savings by then, enough to support us while we get turned around, we would prob take a trip out there to have a look around but its so costly!
fingers crossed our property market picks up in the next yr or so..!

regards


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## Steve of Adelaide (Dec 13, 2009)

claireanddaz said:


> Hi yes it does thanks,
> whats the weather in adelaide like in the winter? summer temps would be great too if you dont mind, its looking like adelaide for us, tho it wont be for a while yet but im researching like mad, doing all the home work and things first, we should have around $90,000 to bring with us if all goes good, so im hoping that will help secure a mortgage.
> 
> thanks for your time


Hi again. Sorry for the delayed reply - I just got back from holidays. Adelaide's winter is fairly mild. Last year was reasonably wet (for Adelaide), but most days seem either sunny or overcast without rain. Snow is a freak occurrence, and then only in the Mt Lofty Ranges (I have only seen it once in my lifetime - on the news). Typically temperatures in winter average in the low teens. I would consider 8 degrees to be a very cold day in Adelaide. It often gets up around 18-20 degrees as well, quite pleasant. Having said that, I have a Canadian friend who says that our winters feel cold because our houses aren't designed for the cold (double glazed windows, efficient heating etc...).

We're in summer right now and today was 43 degrees! Don't worry though because this doesn't happen all the time. Tomorrow is only 26 degrees. Summer temperatures generally hover around the high 20's to low 30's with low humidity. We do, however, seem to get 1 heatwave per month in the summer. During heatwaves the temperatures soar to the 38-45 degree range and can last for over a week, seriously. But, trust me, you do get used to it, in fact I love it! I tend to stay indoors as much as I can during the heat of the day and take the family to the beach after 5pm. The sun sets at about 8:45 so there's plenty of time to cool down in the sea, and to relax and have fun as a family - it's fantastic, you'll love it! Adelaide's beaches are great for families, nice, calm and safe.

Wow, typing this as I'm preparing to move next month to Cyprus makes me realise what I'm going to miss about Adelaide. 

Good luck with your move. I hope it goes well for you and your family and that you really enjoy Radelaide!


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## claireanddaz (Dec 10, 2009)

Steve of Adelaide said:


> Hi again. Sorry for the delayed reply - I just got back from holidays. Adelaide's winter is fairly mild. Last year was reasonably wet (for Adelaide), but most days seem either sunny or overcast without rain. Snow is a freak occurrence, and then only in the Mt Lofty Ranges (I have only seen it once in my lifetime - on the news). Typically temperatures in winter average in the low teens. I would consider 8 degrees to be a very cold day in Adelaide. It often gets up around 18-20 degrees as well, quite pleasant. Having said that, I have a Canadian friend who says that our winters feel cold because our houses aren't designed for the cold (double glazed windows, efficient heating etc...).
> 
> We're in summer right now and today was 43 degrees! Don't worry though because this doesn't happen all the time. Tomorrow is only 26 degrees. Summer temperatures generally hover around the high 20's to low 30's with low humidity. We do, however, seem to get 1 heatwave per month in the summer. During heatwaves the temperatures soar to the 38-45 degree range and can last for over a week, seriously. But, trust me, you do get used to it, in fact I love it! I tend to stay indoors as much as I can during the heat of the day and take the family to the beach after 5pm. The sun sets at about 8:45 so there's plenty of time to cool down in the sea, and to relax and have fun as a family - it's fantastic, you'll love it! Adelaide's beaches are great for families, nice, calm and safe.
> 
> ...


Thanks steve,thats great news,gives us a good idea of the climate
i hope your move goes well too
take care


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## Tony and Danni (Jan 8, 2010)

thought i'd have a read as all good info to know as we are so unsure onto where to head off to. we originally thoughts of brisbane then are swaying maybe for NSW?, but Adelaide has always been in mind too. But as many finding it hard to know what would suit us as a family being we have never been to Australia either. And even though we have a beautiful [email protected] victorian house here in Essex Uk which we love and made our own, can we get what we (I)am expecting that we could get not knowing the areas. 
We have about £300.000 - £330.000 to take with us once sold all up hopefully, but dont want to put all down on a property outright as you never know on working situations being in a trade and having no contacts or a dam clue of any finding for a while.
Is the trade easy to pick up out in oz as the CSL is not stating hardly any trade names at the mo. ?????
If you are to get sponsored by a state does this mean the state will help you find employment or that you just have to stay a resident in that area for two years to put your money back into that state ????.
so much to learn, Any help is apreicated !!!!!!!
have a good day/evening where ever you are


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