What's not good about Adelaide

[Guest richdownunder]

Hi,

 

I have seen lots of good comments recently about living in Adelaide, but I'm interested to find out from recent arrivals what they don't like about living in Adelaide and it's surrounds and why. I'm also keen to understand why Adelaide was selected over some of the more popular cities - Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Also, to as I like to keep things balanced, it would be great to see some more of the positives that I've read so far.

 

Thanks, Rich

[spanners]

Lack of competition for everything - especially cars. As SA has a low population theres no real competition and everything seems to have a fixed / inflated price.

[Guest weegie]

Hi Rich,

 

We're going to Adelaide as I needed a Regional Sponsorship to get enough points for the visa - Adelaide is the only decent sized city that allows you in on Regional sponsorship. Visited Melbourne last year and loved - that would have been my first choice.

 

I've noticed a few posts recently that the graffiti is pretty bad in Adelaide. I noticed this in Melbourne too - although the council there have tried to embrace it to an extent and there is a lot of officially recognised street art.

[NicF]

Hi Rich

 

I've been living here for just over 5 weeks and so far I don't really have any negatives about Adelaide (sorry), but I'm a bit of a silver lining person. Actually, just thought of one negative - it's rained far too much over the last couple of weeks. This isn't especially normal though and the weather should start drying and warming up soon. I moved to Adelaide because my OH is from here and we moved to be close to his family. No point in being anywhere else in Australia really.

 

I love Adelaide, but it's not for everyone and a lot of the things I love about it are things that other people don't like. It's a relatively small city centre and is not the most contemporary or happening of places and someone coming here looking for a bit of life would probably be a bit disappointed. The city and surrounding areas are very much laid out in a grid formation which is a bit unnerving when you first experience it, but after a while you get used to it and start navigating around based on the fact that most of the roads are on a grid. Oh and the road signs generally just tell you the names of the roads that come off the junction and there is very little in the way of signs telling you what areas you are heading towards. You soon get used to this and navigate by road names but it's very wierd to start with. And there are lights at practically evey junction which can mean the same journey can take 15 minutes or 30, regardless of traffic, depending on whether you hit most of them on green or red.

 

We've driven around or through a lot of the suburbs in Adelaide, and while there a lot of suburbs I wouldn't want to live in there aren't many that I would say weren't nice. There are a lot of play parks and open green spaces around and many BBQs that are free to use. The beaches are generally well kept and safe and rarely get really busy. And unless you live really far out then most places are a relatively short drive away. The suburbs by the beach tend to be slightly less green and leafy than the ones near the hills (most suburbs are less treey than where I am - you can only get more trees if you actually live in a forest), although there are some leafy beach suburbs. Most of Adelaide is quite flat until you get in to the foothills and the hills beyond (not sure if the North East suburbs count as the foothills but these are hilly as well). And parking in most places outside the city is free, either all day or for a limited period.

[thearmchairdetective]

What's not good about Adelaide?

 

Why me not being there of course.

[flossybeth]

Well we've found these past few weeks looking for somewhere to rent that actually the state of houses that people are prepared to let people live in in return for money! I'm not sure if this is particular to Adelaide or not never having rented before (after student days!). Many of the houses in the areas we've been looking haven't been updated since the 70's, dirty nets hanging at windows, walls with fingerprints and smudges all over them and on and on and on. I'd be embarrassed to let people in if this was my home never mind ask people to pay me to live in it. Unless of course you're prepared to pay upwards of $400 for a new build which then you either have poor build quality or small room sizes.

 

Food shopping is pretty dull and expensive, but I'm hoping once we are settled into an area I'll be able to use markets and such more. There also seems to be a fast food outlet every 100 metres or so which I can't believe can be sustainable but it must be. And like someone else said the weather since we arrived has been pretty rubbish - but that's not Adeliade's fault!

 

On the other hand we have seen some lovely counrtyside and how else could we have spent a Saturday looking down from the World's Biggest Rocking Horse if we hadn't come to SA?!

 

And we came to SA because we needed the State Sponsorship for our visa points but before we came it sounded like the right sort of City for us - small, rural, beaches, a mediterranean climate etc etc, let's hope it lives up to our expectations. We have to live in the City for my husbands job - if it was up to me we'd all be underground up in Coober Pedy . We arrived at the end of July.

Edited August 27, 2012 by flossybeth
adding reasons for choosing Adelaide

[Guest matt n mel]

Well we've found these past few weeks looking for somewhere to rent that actually the state of houses that people are prepared to let people live in in return for money! I'm not sure if this is particular to Adelaide or not never having rented before (after student days!). Many of the houses in the areas we've been looking haven't been updated since the 70's, dirty nets hanging at windows, walls with fingerprints and smudges all over them and on and on and on. I'd be embarrassed to let people in if this was my home never mind ask people to pay me to live in it. Unless of course you're prepared to pay upwards of $400 for a new build which then you either have poor build quality or small room sizes.

 

Food shopping is pretty dull and expensive, but I'm hoping once we are settled into an area I'll be able to use markets and such more. There also seems to be a fast food outlet every 100 metres or so which I can't believe can be sustainable but it must be. And like someone else said the weather since we arrived has been pretty rubbish - but that's not Adeliade's fault!

 

On the other hand we have seen some lovely counrtyside and how else could we have spent a Saturday looking down from the World's Biggest Rocking Horse if we hadn't come to SA?!

 

And we came to SA because we needed the State Sponsorship for our visa points but before we came it sounded like the right sort of City for us - small, rural, beaches, a mediterranean climate etc etc, let's hope it lives up to our expectations. We have to live in the City for my husbands job - if it was up to me we'd all be underground up in Coober Pedy . We arrived at the end of July.

 

I couldn't agree more about the 70s decor!! We couldn't really afford some of the furnished short term lets that are advertised on here as we are on a very tight budget and OMG the state of the place we rented as a holiday let that 1st week! It was like the hotel in The Shining- and I got bitten by the bed bugs! OH kept calling it Bates' motel- shady or what?! TBH we left it too late to organise one of the short terms, so we just had to bite the bullet. Never again!!!!!!!

[sidestep]

Roads. Poorly maintained and some idiot at the Dept for Transport seems to have decreed that all manhole covers in the road be placed exactly where your car wheels would go over them instead of in the middle of a traffic lane so your wheels would go either side.

[Misplaced]

Roads. Poorly maintained and some idiot at the Dept for Transport seems to have decreed that all manhole covers in the road be placed exactly where your car wheels would go over them instead of in the middle of a traffic lane so your wheels would go either side.

 

Having just come back to the UK after our reccie I have to disagree. The roads in Adelaide are far better than I the UK it's one of the first things we noticed..... I could drive without trying to dodge loads of potholes.

[Guest chooklady]

Most places have 7 degrees of separation between people, in Adelaide it's about 2. So if you are gossiping about someone in a Cafe or pub, just be careful becasue that person's aunt, mum, best friend, second cousin is sitting right behind you!!!

 

Also Adelaidians generally believe that they can drive anywhere around Adelaide in 20 mins......more like 30 mins....makes for some inconsiderate driving

 

I loved Adelaide..,,butt of interstate jokes, but a fantastic place to live, small enough it;s friendly, not big and ugly and infriendly like Melbourne or Sydney....

[thearmchairdetective]

I love Adelaide,

I can't explain why but it reminds me of Oxford.