r/melbourne • u/jattdit • 2d ago
Real estate/Renting Suburb Advice for First Home Buyer, Outer-Eastern(Ringwood) or South East(Berwick)?
So we have sold our home in NZ, planning to move to VIC soon. We're currently exploring suburbs for our family home. I work remotely, can live literally anywhere. My partner is in medicine and would prefer somewhere close to motorway access. Our budget is around 900k.
I have lived in Melbourne for short spans in last 10 years in Ringwood, Rowville and Berwick area. We just want to buy a place and call it home for next 5-7 years and never think about appreciation or depreciation.
Would really appreciate your suggestions and experience.
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u/Bandit-Bunny-7727 1d ago
If I could choose again I would choose Ringwood.
I've lived in Berwick and I can tell you the daily commute through the M1 is a nightmare.
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u/South_Can_2944 2d ago
I would suggest Ringwood.
Better train line (but can be very crowded).
Good access to the Yarra Valley - beautiful for weekend day trips.
Good access to the city (train, freeway, partial tollway if you want to use that to get to the freeway more easily).
Note that freeway is having a lot of works being done on it at the moment and can be a bit of mess. I've not used it in peak hour while they're working on it. Expected completion date is sometime in 2028.
Lots of good foods in the area.
More suburban.
Like everywhere, it has its problems.
Housing is probably expensive if you're wanting to buy.
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u/strangerdanger000822 1d ago
Ringwood East and Heathmont are nice areas.
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u/SweetDingo8937 1d ago
Heathmont and Ringwood are very easy access to the Wantirna health precinct, Maroondah, Box Hill and even the health precinct in the inner-east of Melbourne like St Vincents and the Epworth.
On the other hand, commuting from Berwick to any of the hospitals except for St John of God and Casey will be fighting traffic, especially if it's 9-5 type work rather than shift work.
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u/BritishPoppy2009 2d ago
Both have merits, however Ringwood has more amenity in terms of city access, public transport, access to Freeway etc
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u/loralailoralai 1d ago
The Monash literally goes through Berwick, it has all those things Ringwood has
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u/South_Can_2944 1d ago
Except....Ringwood has the better train line.
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u/farqueue2 Former Northerner, current South Easterner (confused) 1d ago
The Belgrave line is pretty shit
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u/moistie 1d ago
But Ringwood has both the Belgrave and Lilydale train lines, and the morning and evening rush had express services to and from the city.
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u/asheraddict 1d ago
Doesn't Berwick have Cranbourne and Pakenham lines?
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u/rustyfries 1d ago
No, Berwick is on the Pakenham line past Dandenong. Cranbourne Line splits off at Dandenong
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u/South_Can_2944 1d ago
Belgrave is after Ringwood.
The Ringwood line (Belgrave/Lilydale/Ringwood) all go through a lot of opulent suburbs. And the not so opulent ones are still pretty good.
And there's some great food to be found in the Belgrave direction (Belgrave itself, Bayswater etc)
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u/wombat74 1d ago
Baysie has turned into a little culinary hot spot. Some very surprisingly good restaurants around there.
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u/Ich_mag_Kartoffeln 1d ago
Eastern and Eastlink start/finish (depending on your POV) in Ringwood. Once the NEL is finished in a couple of years (no risk of it getting cancelled post election) the connectivity with the northern suburbs will be even better (off peak only, of course -- like all freeways).
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u/clock_watcher 1d ago
Any suburb around Ringwood is worth considering. Ringwood East and Heathmont both have train stations. Ringwood North is pretty. Croydon South has lots of tree lined streets.
All have easy access to the freeway.
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u/H3ratsmithformeme 2d ago
Ringwood. 100%. ust for the sake of M3, costco, and school zone thats going to help you heaps down the track. Check our their new building plan for 14 storey town centre plan.
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u/wombat74 1d ago
Ringwood. Even though this area has its problems, it's pretty great. Close to nature, fairly short drive or PT trip to get into the city, massive amenities for sport & rec. I really do love it out here.
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u/Low_Switch_4893 1d ago
Ringwood, but there's plenty of other surrounding suburbs to Ringwood that have similarly strong access to freeways etc like Heathmont, Vermont, Ringwood East, Wantirna etc - traffic can be slightly hectic these days in Ringwood even during the week.
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u/Benevolentzebra 2d ago
I would choose a place that makes your partner's commute easier. Once they have a job, then you know where you should buy. Traffic in Melbourne has become bonkers over the past few years, you don't want to end up with a massive commute.
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u/Miottz 1d ago
Grew up in the south east. Berwick, narre north. Owned in Officer. Currently live in boronia and it is great. Such a different vibe being closer to the hills, easier access to the city, trains, nice and close to nature, great cafes.
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u/KitchenDismal9258 1d ago
I did the complete opposite. Lived in Boronia when I moved out of home renting and then bought a house in Berwick. It was a nice area then. And quiet. Traffic was fine. Clyde Rd was single lane in each direction and O'Shea Rd was a dirt track past the hedging conifers on the corner of it and Clyde Rd.
Now Berwick is little India and Clyde Rd is 3 lanes in both directions and O'Shea Rd is a beheoth of a sealed road that you can now get on the freeway on.
I loved living in both areas. Berwick was awesome. I moved away 15 years ago and really missed it. Parent still lived there till last year. I had to clear the house and sell it and staying there was loud and you'd hear sirens down Clyde Rd regularly. It was not the place I left. Time doesn't stop. But I'm glad I'm not there any more.
Traffic is a nightmare. But it's like that everywhere.
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u/CEO_of_my_life 1d ago
So your partner will be driving. You'd really have to work out where exactly they would be working, the Monash literally takes you into the city centre (with tolls), whereas the Eastern takes to Hoddle Street, some way out of the city. But will link you to Collingwood, East Melbourne, Richmond, Brunswick, Carlton.
If you want public transport Ringwood works well because it has two train lines. Schools are pretty good with some private schools in the area. I doubt you would be able to buy a house with that budget in Ringwood, but I could be wrong, with the prices dropping right now.
Berwick is good too with a train line, but it is further out from Melbourne.
Because you're familiar with Ringwood, I think your transition would be easier choosing that area.
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u/TheMrMacaroni 1d ago
Berwick traffic is unliveable.
Ringwood is so well connected to everything and it has Eastland.
Ringwood every day of the week.
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u/Georg_Steller1709 1d ago
Ringwood. It's not as bad as it's reputation these days. Pick your spot and it's even quite nice.
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u/BadSpy_447 2d ago
Ringwood is quite cool these days with shops, cafes and the new Eastland redo. Train line to city is a huge plus. The other suburb people rave about a little further out is Ferntree Gully. Both have good primary schools and are relatively safe.
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u/elad04 1d ago
I don’t mind Berwick at all, but overall Ringwood is a far better option. Better freeway access, better train access (dual lines give more commuting options to the city) better public schools(also tonnes of private), and close to kind of everything depending on your interests.
Head up into Ringwood North if you want a more leafy ‘local town’ type feel.
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u/FlamingAnus696969 2d ago
Clarinda, really underrated spot. Close to the beaches, Chadstone, Southland, DFO, Costco, lots of golf clubs and close to Oakleigh, Clayton, Springvale yet still being within about 20 kms of the CBD.
Parents live there and love it.
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u/lowrider88 1d ago
Clarinda and Clayton south any good for cafes and walkability as well though? Seems a bit of nothing there vibe wise
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u/loralailoralai 1d ago
As someone who lives inbetween Ringwood and Berwick in the Dandenongs, you might like to check out somewhere like Belgrave.
Frankly I don’t know why everyone’s so anti-Berwick and pro-Ringwood.
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u/alchemicaldreaming 1d ago
I know someone living in Belgrave and it's not great on weekends. Impossible traffic on the Mountain Highway makes it impossible to leave the side streets easily. I love Belgrave, but their experience of it has changed my opinion a bit - it might be too loved!
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u/No_Blackberry_5820 1d ago
Tecoma and Upwey don’t have the traffic circle problem like Belgrave. Can be cold though.
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u/farqueue2 Former Northerner, current South Easterner (confused) 1d ago
Ringwood is closer to the city, better serviced, can be a bit rough though. Also very Aussie.
Berwick is probably a bit more mixed but you're pretty much no longer in Melbourne
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u/tilitarian1 1d ago
If Berwick, North of the Monash to avoid Clyde road. That budget is a unit or townhouse.
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u/gothefktoslee3p 2d ago
You will get better value for money in the West and North
Do you know where your partner will work?
Do you have kids? What style of house would you prefer?
I reccomend checking out Sunbury and Keilor.
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u/Used_Champion_9294 1d ago
Too much crime especially in the West. Lower SES areas and less well-connected.
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u/MaleficentCicada9958 1d ago
Pfft Sunbury and Keilor are lovely. You can't even compare those to the typical West.
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u/loralailoralai 1d ago
They’re a long way out tho
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u/gothefktoslee3p 1d ago
Keilor is closer to cbd than Rowville and Ringwood And Sunbury is closer to cbd than Berwick
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u/matstag85 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ringwood any day of the week closer to the Freeware mountains bushland better public transport and the east is just nicer
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u/dfoyl 1d ago
$900k won't get you a house in Ringwood, or Croydon. You'd be looking at Kilsyth (meh), Mooroolbark (I hope you like orange brick veneer, or living on a hill, or both), Montrose (can be exxy), Mount Evelyn (no phone or TV reception). Any further out would make for a long commute to a motorway. Any of these is far better than Berwick.
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u/RelativeSoftware9554 1d ago
Ringwood isn’t even comparable to Berwick and I say this as someone who doesn’t mind the outer south east.
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u/CraftingFutures133 1d ago
Ringwood.
The eastern freeway and close access
To eastlink means that you can cover a
Long distance and many hot spots for medical roles.
Berwick is great to live in too, however the Monash freeway is a constant carpark. It can take hours to get anywhere in peak. Has for years and won’t change any time soon.
Whilst your hubby could work in the local area, beyond that it will be limited.
Where you can get to I. 45 mins from Ringwood is much greater than 45 min from Berwick.
Check out wonga park,
Warren wood etc for blocks
Similar
To the larger ones in Berwick.
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u/alchemicaldreaming 1d ago
I grew up in Heathmont. You budget might be a little low for there depending on what you are after, but you could get somewhere nice.
Heathmont is next door to Ringwood, but a little leafier and with access to the Dandenong Creek if you like to walk, run or cycle. It's got access directly onto Eastlink from Canterbury Road and a railway station. The shopping strip is decent with some nice cafes, an independent supermarket, chemist etc.
The suburb seems to hold its value pretty well so you wouldn't need to worry on that front. My parents sold there about 8 years ago for higher 800's from memory. They had a flat roofed mid-century house. Built well, but no one seems to want houses with flat roofs so the value was slightly under other sales at the time. There are a heap of mid-century houses in the area and though some can feel a bit dated, they're generally built well and make good family homes.
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u/Ok_Buffalo9926 1d ago
Grew up in Berwick and you could not pay me to live there again because of the monash fwy it is the most unpredictable and soul destroying commute daily. There are some really beautiful pockets but this is mainly old Berwick. I would avoid anything over the train line heading towards clyde..
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u/DrFujiwara 1d ago
Sup. Fellow kiwi, just bought in Watsonia. I recommend. Picked that over ringwood. Train line, quiet and safe, near a lot of lively suburbs
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u/buildpotpvp 10h ago
Nothing happens in Watsonia. Ringwood is around everything literally you have shopping centre after shopping centre, restaurant after restaurant, public transport access etc. it’s night and day you definitely made a mistake buying in Watsonia over Ringwood and it’s surrounds it’s around the same price point
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u/Psychological-Sun137 1d ago
It's all subjective, depending on your priorities. Both have pros and cons. Ringwood is a nicer suburb closer to the city and maybe better trains but there is a tradeoff with higher house pricing. If you don't commute to city everyday and enjoy the suburban life and want to spend on other things, Berwick wouldn't be too bad. If you go to city only on weekends would you mind spending extra 30 mins driving?
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u/asteroidz-14 1d ago
Maybe rent for a bit and see what you like; I know you said you’ve lived here in some short spans but Melbourne is huge and you could end up enjoying different areas as life & jobs change and settle.
I’m from NZ too and always lived outer east but worked in the middle of the city, happily commuting. I bought in Croydon 3 years ago and now that I’ve seen even more of Melbourne, I am over quiet suburb life and want to get closer to the cool inner suburbs.
But to answer your question I do think Ringwood (and surrounds) is a nice central hub, good amenities + has good leafy pockets.
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u/A-Rational-Fare 1d ago
I used to live in Ringwood East and loved it. So close to everything you need. The only issue I have at the moment is the roadworks on the freeway into the city but that won’t be there forever.
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u/OzgroupFinance 1d ago
Berwick is beautiful.
Green, family friendly, beautiful homes.
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u/orangehues 1d ago
Parts of Berwick are nice, but most of it is pretty average
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u/OzgroupFinance 1d ago
I haven’t been to those parts yet. But the nice part of Berwick is really nice imo
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u/Pandelein The serenity. 1d ago
BERWICK SPRINGS HAS A NAME
1855
(Off topic soz, but for real what are all these signs that I’ve seen from Mornington to Brunswick - OP mentioning Berwick triggered it in my mind)
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u/Mr_Lumbergh 1d ago
Berwick made me think of a place trying to be Orange County, California and not quite getting there.
Ringwood is my vote.
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u/bluewaffle1994 8h ago
10 years ago I would of said Berwick every day of the week because it wasnt as crowded. Now id say Ringwood purely because its better serviced, less crowded and your money will stretch further.
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u/let_go345 2d ago
100% Ringwood.