NSW Central Coast communities
If you want space, you'll need to go out to Somersby/Peats Ridge or somewhere like that. Would be easy to be out there for your commute to Sydney, right off the F3, but a good 30 minutes plus from beaches. Having never lived there I couldn't tell you how good or bad it is but it's got plenty of space. You might get some acreage in Picketts Valley (near Avoca) or Matcham/Holgate but it depends on your budget. Neither of the last 2 are what I would call "like a small town community", more just like an expensive place to buy a big property in the middle of the ever-increasing suburbia. Most of the coastline is built up so to be near waves and have a big property, you'll need big $.
Thanks for the tips Brendo, we’re not necessarily looking for acreage. We’re mostly just looking for somewhere pretty laid back and casual. We’ll only be down there for 2 or 3 years and will get a rental for that time then move back up here. We got out of the Gold Coast mad house a few years ago and definitely don’t want to move into another place like that again….
I’ve spent a bit of time on the south side of Sydney, but never spent any time in the Central Coast area so any help is really appreciated.
Don’t worry mate up here is getting over run by development too, we where very lucky to buy our little piece of paradise here before it got over run (edit: over priced and over run). I can tell you it’s going to be hard to move away from our rainforest and waterfalls that are only 15mins drive from one of the sunny coast best beach breaks.
Thanks again for the advice.
laid back and casual is pretty much the norm up/down here :)
The most laid back casual community on the C.coast would be Macmasters Beach.One small shop,friendly community, national parks and great beaches.I can intro. you to locals who have lived there for years.
Thanks Mictre, sounds like just the sort of place we're looking for.
Heading down next week for a drive around and have a look at a few places, will check it out. Cheers...
Hi Pete_79,
I'll throw my two cents in and suggest The Entrance, its a central location with plenty of surf stops close by in all conditions, is kinda still small but get busy in summer, it close to major shops schools and transport. Also if you working in Sydney(like myself) its close to the F3 and Tuggrah station.
it's pretty hard to go wrong on the coast!!Good luck
Thanks Kizzor, this spot was on our list to check out. I've heard it was good up that way, just hoping the commute is not too bad from there... Thanks again.
G'day Pete,
I bought a place on the CC about 12 months ago. Plan to move there permanently in a few years. Wasn't all that familiar with things up there (currently in Sydney) until I started looking. Had some input from my daughter's partner who was born and raised in the general area we bought, but I found looking at the Real Estate section of eBay useful. Check the buy or rent sections and tick the surrounding suburbs options. You should be able to get a decent home in one of the better suburbs, reasonably close to the beach for anything from $400k to $600k upwards. That's the range I looked at, but houses a few doors away from mine are well over $1million (beach frontage). You get what you pay for. Don't forget, Sydney prices are the nation's highest, and the CC is only an hour or two away from the Sydney CBD. Simliar houses in Sydney would be double at least.
eEbay should give you a good indication. Also, contact one of the agents listed in eBay and tell them what you're after. That's how I eventually got my place. The agent called me to say something had just come up, and we acted. They want you to buy as much as you want to.
Obviously the closer to the beaches, the more expensive. Some areas were advised to me as "no go zones" (ie not all that nice an area), but I have been pleasntly surprised with the quality and quantity of good surf spots and beaches that abound on the CC.
Hope this is of some use to you. Looking forward to making my own sea change soon too.
Thanks for the tips Rushy,
Your place up there sounds alright.. good area, close to the beach... Your not looking for some new tennants are you? ;)
You don't have to answer that Rushy, I was only joking.... Sort of....
Pete,
Fortunate to have good tenants at the moment, but if the situation ever changes I'll let you know.
Great area to raise the kids aswell mate, im 21 and have grown up here (lived in same house all my life within 10 mins drive of mictre) and consider myself very privileged to be have granted this.
however you say you will be commuting to the big smoke and i no from experience, it seems like a small commute but it all adds up, my old man has done it all my life and has definately taking its toll on him, some saturdays he is just too buggered to come surfing with me.
So my tips are just bee careful on location.
Good point, andy-b. Couple of my firie mates commute down to Sydney, and it does get tedious. They're waiting to get transferred up to the CC, and so are prepared to do the commute for as long as it takes.
When I move up I'll be going from a 2 minute home-to-work drive, to a 3-4 hour round trip. But on the days off, I'll be a 2 minute walk to the surf - nice!
Pete, if you're only doing this for a few years, my tip would be put up with the commute (depending where you move to, probably only an hour to Parramatta), and get somewhere close to the beach. On the down side, that will be more expensive. Anywhere on the CC is within half an hour away from some water anyway. You could also train it, and read/relax all the way.
Anything on eBay yet?
Thanks for the feedback Andy B & Rushy,
I've been weighing up which is better; commute to work or commute to surf, haven't really made a decission yet. I'm thinking along the same lines as you mentioned Rushy, an hour or so from the office and 20-30 minutes from the beach. Heading down tomorrow for a look around to help make up my mind which areas are better for me and the family.
I had a look at Ebay mate, it is just a realestate.com page on the Ebay site. I've set up some email allerts on realestate.com and have seen some interesting places, but I really need to have a good look around before I start applying for places.
Thanks again for all the tips guys.
Pete,
Did you see the rental at Blue Bay? Nice view of the beach. Not that I'm going to tell anyone about any secret surf spots, but that's one sweet break (but don't tell anyone...)
Everyone knows anyway rushy... Spent 8 years in Blue bay, had to move to the entrance and wasn't happy bout it either!! ahah. I commute to the Airport but am on shift so my weekends are 3 to 4 days long... i mix it up by getting the train and driving down there.
Hi there Guys & Girls, I’m looking for some friendly advice on good communities in the Central Coast and was hoping some of you could help me out.
I’ve just got the call from the boss and I’m getting transferred from QLD to our NSW office (near Parramatta) in December / January. So I’ve got a couple of months to find a place to move to and was looking for some help on good spots around the Central Coast. I’m not asking for any specific surf spots or secrete breaks; I’d prefer to go and find the good waves for myself, that’s half the fun. :)
We’re a young family with 2 toddlers and we’re passed the party stage of our lives. Now it’s just surfing and sitting on our 3 acres watching the wildlife that gives us pleasure. We love our little community up here, so I was just hoping for some advice on nice communities down there; places that still have that “country / small town feel†where you can talk to your neighbours and feel safe. Of course having some good waves nearby would be good too….
Any advice you could give us to start our search for our new home would be greatly appreciated.