julianerik
Reviews
"A great place to live"
My partner and I recently purchased a three bedroom house on Chapman St for under 500k. The restaurants are great lots of quality restaurant options (indian, malaysian, vietnamese) for good prices. Decor isnt often great but most restaurants avoid that dingy feel. Our neighbours are great and I often have little convos over the back fence, not intrusive. It takes about 22mins to get to the cbd, about ten to Highpoint, Sunshine city centre has most stores you would need, everything essential plus Bunnings and JB hifi. There is an abundance of green space many well taken care of parks with lots of childrens equipment. Many streets are wide and tree lined.
In our six months here we have not encountered any crime. The station always seems to have PSOs around and feels safe for my female partner who frequently gets back at 8-9pm weekdays. I was sceptical when my partner said 'why don't we look in Sunshine?' because of the bad rep. The reality for us has been an above average suburban experience. There are a couple of good cafes doing breakfast on weekends.
Sunshine is culturally diverse and if you're a closet racist you're unlikely to feel comfortable. Sunshine is also economically very diverse. I've seen a few $1000 prams being pushed around and a number of beaten up Hyundai Excels (which cost about the same). The Sunshine cbd has plenty of asian groceries and fresh produce markets, it also has those staples like Safeway and Aldi.
Probably the worst thing about Sunshine is its reputation. It's not an Ipod suburb like Brunswick or Fitzroy, in terms of rep its probably in with West Heidelberg and Melton (not that there is anything wrong with those suburbs per se). The reality is different from the rep for us and many friends from the Eastern suburbs who can't afford out that way and have made Sunshine home.
This is why people should consider Sunshine- 3 bedroom fully renovated period house, generous North facing backyard, 2 bathrooms, walk in robe and ensuite, own driveway, friendly neighbours, great food, convenient shops, great access to public transport all for under 500k.
Great for
- Great parks
- Transport
- People
- Close to the City
- Many Attractive Period Homes and Public Buildings
Not great for
- Not a 'cool' suburb yet
Who lives here?
- Professionals
- Singles
- Families with kids
- Hipsters
- Students
I agree- we've never encountered crime in Sunshine during our two years, either. I also find that the multicultural suburb is really well assimilated. I feel a lot of warmth and respect for the new migrants who have arrived in Sunshine who are friendly, polite and family-oriented. There is no room for "chips on the shoulder" in Sunshine; it's like all of us who are here, realise how lucky we are. Beyond the emotional fondness, the decision to buy in Sunshine is a great financial move; our house has just received a valuation from the bank, and it has gone up in value 16% in two years. Let's all live in Sunshine and be happy and get rich!
The reality is Sunshine is undervalued given its reputation, but I believe gentrification is on the way. Sunshine is a hotspot when it comes to naming suburbs within 15km of Melbourne CBD where you could still buy properties less than $500k.
We bought a 4 bedroom property back in 2007 for less than $300k. So just imagine how affordable it was back then! The property you bought for under $500k would be worth more than that after gentrification!