Hello,

First off...congrats on your job. I don't know how much help I'll be, but feel free to ask and I'll do my best. My family and I moved to Brisbane 3 months ago from the US. My husband works downtown, so we wanted to live somewhere that had easy access to the CBD, public transport and shopping within walking distance. We ended up moving to Paddington. We walk down to the Rosalie shopping area several times a week. We absolutely love the area. If I recall correctly, the Matre hospital is on the opposite side of the river. I don't know if you will be getting a car or using public transport.

January is when the school year starts so from what I've heard, the real estate market is a bit pricier around that time as many people are moving. We were told when we leased our house that it would have gone for 30 or more dollars per week if it had come open in late December/early January.

I have a couple sites that I've found to be useful, but I'm not certain if posting links to outside sites is allowed. There is one that I used to determine my husband's commute to work while I was looking for a house. It calculates everything including the walk to and from public transport. If you want any of these links or have any other questions, feel free to email me.

Laura