Inner West
About the Inner West
Leave the city, over the ANZAC Bridge and the first harbour hugging suburbs you see are Balmain, Rozelle and Glebe. Head straight up Victoria road and pass more stunning bridges and waterside suburbs such as Drummoyne and Huntleys Point until you meet back up with the Lower North Shore’s Hunters Hill. Or travel inland to trendy and arty Marrickville, Ashfield, Newtown, Leichhardt and so many more suburbs. Here hipsters rub shoulders with soccer Mums, business people, old time Greeks and Italians and many other diverse tribes creating an eclectic sense of community. If it’s urbanism and multiculturalism you want, then this is the place for you.
What To Do Where
Eating and Drinking: As mentioned, diversity is the key word in the Inner West. Whether you’re health conscious or a lover of fatty meat, you will be spoilt for choice. Wonder through Leichardt and Haberfield or “Little Italy” for the best pasta, pizza and coffee.
And then head over to Petersham or “Little Portugal’s” leafy streets for an amazing range of pastry delights including traditional Portuguese tarts and a wonderful array of charcoal style chicken.
Go to Ashfield or “Little Shanghai” for amazing Chinese Food and onto Marrickville for great Vietnamese food and just about any other culinary delight you can imagine.
Go exploring after dark and you’ll find the most interesting bars from quirky “holes in the walls”, upmarket whisky bars and wine bars to your down to earth pubs that offer great live music – there’s no doubt that locals and visitors have no excuse to be bored here! Many of the pubs have now been modernized to keep up with the ever-changing residents and vibe of the area.
Shopping
The Inner West offers shopping for every taste and wallet. Most people like to shop locally, which adds to the community vibe.
In Balmain and Rozelle, you can shop for local and world famous designer ranges or rummage in their local markets for second hand finds.
Find vintage shops in Newtown and “flea” markets in Rozelle, Glebe and Marrickville that’ll leave you laden with all kinds of unique bargains. If it’s amazing fresh food you’re looking for, try the farmers markets in Marrickville and Lilyfield.
Then move further west to Drummoyne or Homebush for dollar saving outlet shopping and a little further to Ryde, Burwood or Strathfield for a shopping malls full of high street fashion.
The Great Outdoors / Exercise
Just like all other Sydneysiders, whether swapping tattoo stories in local cafes or as members of the sailing and rowers clubs, the hipsters of the Inner West love to be outside. Watersports such as kayaking, sailing and water polo are very popular in suburbs like Drummoyne, Balmain, Haberfield, Concord and Hunters Hill.
There are parks galore too such as 40 hectare Sydney Park in St Peters and Victoria Park in Camperdown. On a sunny day, they are full of people enjoying music, sport, picnics and more. Runners and strollers enjoy the famous ‘Bay Run’ which will take you around the cove. There are plenty of places to swim too like the historical harbour Dawn Fraser Pool in Balmain or if you’re averse to the harbour water head to Drummoyne or Leichhardt for their open air pools. Then Ashfield pool is about to have $20,000,000 spent on it!
Celebrity Homes
Having so much harbour and exquisite views attracts many a celebrity to the Inner West of Sydney, like:
Schools:
The Inner West is very family friendly and has some of the best public and private schools in Sydney. People travel far and wide to attend Newington College, St Scholasticas’s, Fort Street High School, PLC, Meriden School, International Grammar School, MLC, Santa Sabina College, Burwood Girls High School and Balmain’s Sydney Secondary College. The University of Technology Sydney in Ultimo and the University of Sydney in Camperdown are both highly regarded.
Public Transport:
Train: As both the Bankstown and Inner West lines travel through the Inner West, the area is well serviced with train stations, which will take you out to the Blue Mountains and beyond or into the city. The Bankstown line will be converted to Sydney Metro by 2024, which will offer fully automated trains every four minutes in peak hour.
Ferries: The Inner West is serviced by Ferries and River Ferries. These services stretch from Parramatta to Circular Quay covering Cockatoo Island, Balmain, Balmain East, Birchgrove, Greenwich Point, Sydney Olympic Park, Hunters Hill, Cabarita, Abbotsford, Woolwich, Darling Harbour and more.
Buses: Being so close to the city, there are express and local buses on most corners of the Inner West.
Light rail: The light rail line goes from Dulwich Hill to Central Station and by 2019 it should extended to Kingsford, Randwick and Circular Quay, which is a main ferry hub.
Driving: If you’re in a hurry and don’t mind the toll, the Cross City Tunnel links the Inner West to the city and the Eastern Suburbs. Love it or hate it, Stage 1 of the controversial West Connex project is due to be completed by 2019. When it is, supposedly, Paramatta Road’s heavy traffic will be sent underground, no doubt, heralding the gentrification of Parramatta Road.
Inner West Property Market
Being so close to the CBD, with so many harbour suburbs and parks to enjoy, its café and bar culture coupled with the Inner West’s relative affordability (compared to the Eastern Suburbs) there’s no wonder auction clearance rates are consistently the highest in the country. Having said that, the days of finding bargains around this area are long gone.
It has a huge variety of property including grand terraces, large houses, cottages and all kinds of apartments. As the area used to have a working harbour many of the cottages were built for the workers, so can be narrow and dark with poor noise insulation, so buyer beware. However, the gentrification of the area, over the last decade or so, has seen many of these houses opened up and modernized.
Last Word On The Inner West:
Every suburb has its own personality, so if you’re thinking of living in the Inner West take your time to explore and make sure your needs and wants match the suburbs you’re looking at.
If you would like to get our professional opinion on the Inner West and what suburbs would best suit your lifestyle and pocket, please feel free to contact us.
Or call: (+612) 8095 0037 or (+61) 412 362 133