Wife and I are considering retiring in the docklands. We like the idea of being able to walk to all the main areas; we’re close to the CBD but not in it. It’s somewhat easy to get onto the freeway. What is it like living there?
I see a lot of negative feedback, but we lived there for a year 3 years ago and loved it. It felt like a quiet suburb but right next to the city with a free tram.
Second this. It’s a concrete wind-tunnel with spectacular views and a ton of convenience. And because half the apartments are empty, you can throw parties and no one cares.
When we first moved to Melbourne we lived in a building on Siddeley Street (opposite South Wharf DFO) and absolutely loved it! Fabulous place to live, amenity everywhere but still quiet and chill after working hours - so many beautiful spaces to walk, great food options, I can’t talk highly enough about it. My only advice is to look at places that don’t face the water if the party boat businesses are still booming, because that was annoying.
When it came time to buy though our broker sent us some info about the Docklands black zones, and the buildings we loved most all had either no sinking fund or insane body corp fees. So we ended up in Port Melbourne. Very similar vibe here but apartments for owner/occupiers were a lot more attractive.
Very good advice here and I did something similar. I found a really nice apartment in Docklands, but the strata was eye-watering expensive and after reading some minutes, there were some issues with the building and tenants that I didn't want to be a part of.
Port Melbourne is great and convenient (not talking about the new area down Williamstown Rod, but the more around Bay St) for beach, restaurants, cafes and close enough to the city.
People will tell you it's dead. But I guess you have to ask yourself if you would expect any other suburb where most of the real estate is residential, to be 24/7 party town.
In saying that, I would get an airbnb facing the harbour on a Saturday night during the summer to test how you feel about the coming and going of party boats. You might not be bothered by it but it can be a different vibe to what you would experiance on a Saturday morning when inspecting a place.
Otherwise, it's easy to get onto the highways (except from Vic Harbour area). Free tram zone, quick trip to all the entertainment and facilities the CBD has to offer. Some buildings might feel more community oriented than others and this usually comes down to if they are more high end and attract a retirement type crowd or if they are cheaper and have more of a student or airbnb type community.
Anyway, renting in the area as others have suggested is probably a good idea before you commit.
I lived there in a townhouse from 2019-2024. Absolutely loved it. It’s quiet enough that it feels peaceful but right next door to the city with a free tram if you cbf walking. Victoria harbour and the Yarra are lovely to walk and run around and we made good friends with our neighbours and community garden volunteers. We’re looking to move back there next year.
Have lived on Harbour esplanade and Lorimer St. Would recommend it, never understood the no soul crowd. Spoilt for choice being walking distance to CBD but being quieter on weekend (unless there is footy at marvel).
Less night noise than the CBD and you are fairly spoilt for restaurants compared to surburbia. Without kids I would do it again but you have to avoid a building that is heavy on Airbnb (typically around londsale side)
Bought a 2 bdr apartment and lived in the Docklands for 8 years in the Nolan building before moving back to the burbs in 2023. Location and closeness to the CBD, free tram zone, and amenities of The District are its positives.
Couple of things to be aware of:
check the OC rates and that OC committee proactively has the best interests of maintaining the overall building and security
you're moving to a high density area. Be aware that neighbour noise, Airbnb's and weekend party crowds, and party boats operate in the area. You're sharing walls with neighbours and all that that can bring
Docklands small businesses such as restaurants , cafes, and retail took a hit over COVID lockdowns so there were a number of businesses that left. Walk around The District Docklands, or along the waterfront areas and this is evident. Regeneration will take time
Owner's corporation? Most people call it the strata/body corporate. Some are dominated by vested interests and don't have the resident's best interests at heart (ie protecting the interests of the developers wrt repairs and such).
Lived there for a few years. I also don't really get the hate. Listen to people who have actually lived there and not the weekenders who come once for the footy and decide it's a dead area. Literally everything is walking distance or a free tram ride into cbd. No need for a car if you don't want. Shops can be quiet in Docklands but that never bothered me. You may hear drunks around Friday and Saturday nights carrying on. I'd also suggest renting to start and being careful of buying. It's oversupplied with units, body corporate fees can be high as well as questionable build qualities in some of the apartments. Also, not unique to Docklands but prepare to be woken up and fire alarm evacuated if you choose a high rise apartment a few times in a year. Walking along the harbour was always nice 👍 I live in a nice SE spot now but still miss Docklands.
I've lived there in two different stints. While the location in relation to the city is good, the whole area is also a cold wind tunnel. There isn't much to do in Docklands itself. After 5 everything shuts down and traffic is gridlocked until 7 since the whole area is a one lane road.
I used to think of it as a cheaper alternative to living close to the city but it's not cheap anymore. It's kind of a soulless place, if you care about that. But if you're fine with living in a high rise that is always windy then it'll be fine for you.
edit: Living near Costco was a good perk of living there, but that is gone. I think there's a movie theater there in its place. Personally I'd consider that an upgrade. The Docklands library is actually pretty cool. I've only been there once but it was nice and had a ping pong table inside. The library is in the Vic Harbour part of Docklands. This is another issue with Docklands: if you live in one of the harbours then it will take you a long time to walk out of it, or to the other harbour, since you have to walk around the water. In those warm summer nights, though, nothing beats a walk around the harbours
The whole place is a planning and architectural disaster, showcasing what happens when an urban development in the city is designed by a committee of people with vested interests.
I assume you meant wide, not wife. But the idea of having an old bridge that was only for wives to use like an old historical leftover of from a time when wives used it to do the shopping. Or maybe it was used so wife's could get home quicker and prepare dinner for their husbands, or some other Ye Olde sexiest reason.
I liked it. Lived there pre-covid. Most of the benefits of CBD living without the noise or crazies. Free tram at your door. Close to Etihad and Southern Cross. Good bike path access if you’re into bike riding.
I have family that live there and love it. Have been in their apartment for maybe 10 years or more now. The only painful thing is parking for visitors - they’ve got parking for their place but their building has a small visitors park where in theory you should have one visitor only and you put a parking pass in the window but people abuse it so the parking is full meaning if we want to visit, we need to use multi story parking. It’s fine for us but just something to note for have multiple visitors at one time.
I don’t live there but been to Home Apartments Docklands a few times (I live in Home apartments Richmond). Worth checking out it’s all rentals only, pet friendly, and awesome amenities with community activities. Easy access to everything I’d live there in a heartbeat but Richmond is more convenient for work. Good way to test out the area without the commitment.
If i ever had the money, i would move to Docklands in a heartbeat. Quiet hidden gem that is practically right next to the city, the views of the buildings and the yarra river is amazing
I lived in a sub-penthouse at 100 Victoria Harbour, Victoria Point building. The building is well-constructed, but the strata fees can be quite expensive. I would purchase on the south side rather than the west , as the aircon on the higher floors do not cope. Also don’t purchase near the garbage chute, it stinks and it’s noisy. u/MiriJamCaveThe the sub penthouses extends/runs the width of the building with windows and large balconies at both ends of the apartment. Great natural light and cross breeze during summer.
Tbh it’s not as good value for money compared to apartments in the cbd, especially if you no longer need a car. I live in a 3 bedroom apartment with no carapace (purchased in 2023) and the equivalent apartments in Docklands were about $100k more expensive, plus $100k for each car space. Some apartments we looked at at 3 car spaces which was just ridiculous and jacked up the prices accordingly.
Apart from that I love living in the city and not having a car has been no problem at all. I often take my granny trolly to the south melb market for nice meat & fruit, and do the rest of my grocery shopping at QV woolies.
Where did you buy and how much was it? if its not rude to ask.
The 'hidden' body corp fees are often quite high if there's any amenities like a gym I've found.
I haven't lived in docklands but I do recommend Southbank. Similar distance from CBD but close to botanic gardens to get your greenery, close to restaurants, close to arts precinct. Easy to get to onto Westgate if you're headed south, city road to go across to east.
Quiet, not much to do, but close to stuff there is to do. Depending which apartment, you may not be as close to transport or amenities as you'd want to be (if mobility is an issue)- for example, I skate at the rink there and also needed to go to the post office one day, and it was on the other side of the harbour. Took me as much time to walk over there as it would have to walk to the tram, wait, ride, and finish walking to the post office.
It's good if you actually want it to be quiet with not much going on. It's pretty clean (but sterile), far less people and chaos of the city and without the junkies while still being close by.
Consider St Kilda Road - remarkably low traffic and consequently surprisingly quiet - beautiful trees and very well serviced by trams. Melbourne’s premium boulevard!
Its good but you have to be careful which building. Some of the newer ones around there rattle and shake when it gets windy. The older ones are awesome though
It’s really underrated and hidden gem sort of place, many aren’t even aware it exists. Loads of parks and walking areas, beautiful harbour and lots of couples and kids / families, shopping centre and cafes and free tram makes it all a great inner city location.
If you like the quiet it's great. Nice and close to the city, a few really good green spaces and less meth heads than the CBD. There's a high count of young Indian families and retired boomers living there so it's pretty peaceful.
Marvel stadium causes traffic jams when there's an event on though. Also seeing more nimbyism from the Boomers lately though. They don't seem happy anywhere unless they can make their environment suit them. Restaurants around there are just ok.
I work in the Docklands and see a lot of young asians in their 20s with annoying apartment size dogs, which could mean annoying yapping sounds through the wall if you live next door to them.
It’s windy, but I lived there for 4 years and loved it. It was 15 min drive to work, and my partner jumped on a 20 min tram to work. Close to everything but not in amongst the chaos like Southbank and the CBD. Only negative of apartment living was the 1 evac we had, turned out to be a dodgy toaster and no real harm done, but it went on for long enough that we grabbed stuff and headed out to the stairwell. Building manager was also a bell end and moving in/out can be awkward because of lift restrictions in certain buildings. As a cyclist I loved it, and it’d be even better now.
A friend from Sydney visited in Nov to look around at flats with a view to moving here in retirement (Sydney weather and prices driving the move). While looking in Port Melbourne (where I live) a RE agent agreed that Docklands had a lot of appeal did warn them that there is little capital gain to be had in that area (which is one of their considerations).
I have worked on most buildings in Docklands. Almost all of them have issues with water leaks and wind noise. It's great for keeping us busy, not so great for residents. The prices charged for the quality are way, way out of proportion.
Having said all that, Home Docklands is the only one I'd personally consider. It has the same issues but, to a lesser extent, very limited parking, is quite expensive and you will get noise from Marvel during events. However, the apartments are actually well designed and spacious and the amenities are quite good and you have concierge service.
Oh.. and it's rent only. Hacer, the builder, has several of these apartments around Melbs, with more coming and they are all rent only.
Lived in 888 Collins st. for 4 years and we loved it. I also don't get the hate. It can be windy at times but it's quiet, clean, nice running route along the harbour and close to city within free tram zone. Also wondering if we should just go back and buy an apartment there but the strata probably be too high for us.
If you can do without a car (or hire one when you need to) why not get a lovely heritage apartment up the other end of Collins Street. Fitzroy Gardens, Cafes, MCG , beautiful buildings.
What’s not to love?
Lived here 5years previously in Southbank(11years). We live in a townhouse and the community we have found is what we were missing in Southbank. We know all our neighbours, meet up all the time, check in on each other- our OC got rid of 90% of AIRBNBs after a short stay group burnt down a shared shade cloth. Many are retired- and are in the one level units. Our building manger is the bees knees- everything is fixed asap and his notes and the ocs are transparent. Only negative is the parking for visitors- we’ve get our family/friends to park in Woolworths.
Best, I lived there for 2 years and loved the location and ease of jumping on a tram or walks to southern cross train station.
It’s very quiet and always clean. I’ll be back there for sure.
I think Docklands can be split to the north side, the stadium side, the south side around the library, and the south east end near flinders st.
the south side around the library is the quietest and the windiest. lots of corporate offices. spending lockdown there must be the most awful compared to the other areas. but maybe ideal if that's what you're looking for in retirement.
across the victoria harbour is the north side, where the district shopping centre is. it's probably the most practical to get your groceries, shopping, dining, movies, etc done without leaving docklands.
the south east side is probably the most connected, with obviously the cbd and southern cross station just there, and dfo south wharf and the crown complex just walking distance. however the only decent accommodation options seems to only be on siddeley st and maybe on mccrae st.
around the stadium is a bit of a mixed bag, and even if you go there every week i think the big crowd and the noise would still be too much
Spot on. North and south side are different. I used to love south side for a few months and it was totally fine. Had no issues at all. Quick tram to the CBD and never really saw any junkies around. The big ANZ building is on Collins St so during business hours the place is super safe.
I visited the dfo on the north side one of the weekdays and I was shocked at how dead it was. Half the mall was empty. There was an EB games there which was cool 😂
Overall though I had no issues, loved taking a morning walk, agree it got a bit windy but im from NZ so didn’t really mind nothing a puffer jacket couldn’t fix
Lived there for a while. Didn’t hate it, but it’s cold and soulless in my opinion. The docklands project hasn’t worked out how they envisioned it. Considering its close proximity to the CBD, it feels isolated and cut off, maybe because the CBD stops at southern cross and there’s no need to go any further. I personally wouldn’t live there again
Lived there for years. Which section are you talking about? Vic Harbour is usually pretty quiet, but we left because of all the current building work - it's SO loud these days with the various construction efforts going on and I wouldn't want to be near that. You have good city connectivity either there or Newquay, but poor shop accessibility - expect to rely on the smaller grocery stores. You'll frequently find traffic to be an issue if you drive, and expect roads to be completely inaccessible at certain times like NYE or graduations.
Don't move to the side over the water in South Melb. It's technically Docklands still, but it has basically no access to anything. I think that's Lorimer Street? Yarra's Edge etc. PT is a nightmare that side, you'll be reliant on cars for any travel and you'll have to deal with DFO being in the way.
Ultimately really enjoyed my time in vic harbour before it got loud (I miss the restaurants!), but you are sacrificing a few things by living there if you don't drive, and driving there is a nightmare.
Windy... and check the buildings fire detection policy. Lots of evacuations due to people cooking causing smoke without fire = $5000 fire truck costs for the person who was cooking.
My son lived here after living in Port Melbourne.
Said he found it a stressful apartment vibe.
Like he couldn’t ever switch off from his day and relax. It had an undercurrent
I offtend spend a few days in high rise apartment at docklands. While is nice for while gets boring.what really annoyed me is on the 28th floor how long to takes to get out the door get the lift go through the foyer just to get to one shop across the road and back again.look out at bussy times the lift can take ages
You've gotta be prepared to live in a city city, theres some green but it's loud and busy (though not as busy as you might expect), but if thats ok with you then you can't beat untestricted access to everything the CBD has to offer and not needing to drive much.
It’s dead and unpleasant most of the time. Is windy and cold and grey.
Down St Kilda Road or South Melbourne would be more interesting. Now there’s the new Anzac Station too and all the trams. You close to both Botanic Gardens and Albert Park and not far from the beach.
Socially dead, with quiet atmosphere aside from the junkies and social housing.
Like what other people said, rent a place in the area you like first before committing.
District Docklands is the worse area, South Wharf is better but do your research first.
been working there for past few years - agree with soulless, windy and cold vibes. Going for lunch time walks can be a bit depressing given all the closed shops and just lack of any vibes. I don’t think au could live there - seems fairly depressing
Has friends that were a tennis ball throw away from Etihad Stadium, they enjoyed amenities being nearby - but found the everyday hussle which is so easy in suburbia difficult; large grocery shops, visiting friends etc.
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I see a lot of negative feedback, but we lived there for a year 3 years ago and loved it. It felt like a quiet suburb but right next to the city with a free tram.
Second this. It’s a concrete wind-tunnel with spectacular views and a ton of convenience. And because half the apartments are empty, you can throw parties and no one cares.
I have a friend who lives there and seems to like it. But has had a bunch of fires from people chucking vapes down the garbage chute.
Why do vapes start fires??
Same reason as e-bikes - batteries treated badly tend to warm up and catch fire
The batteries, clowns if they're actually throwing it down the chute and letting it bang the walls of it.
It might be that the rubbish gets compacted the battery gets damaged.
I work in the Docklands and there is always piles of empty mega sized nangs dumped next to bins or in the bushes.
Yeah why are there so many nitrous bottles just in Docklandia? I never noticed them this much in CBD.
People rent airbnbs to have parties and have the nangs delivered.
Why can’t the youth just have proper drugs like we used to?
They’re causing fires in recycling facilities.
You get a lot near Viv market and flagstaff station these days. I think it’s because of the rise in residential buildings in that area.
Walking from Southern Cross to my office in Docklands I would pass probably 10 of the mega nangs every morning. Like 2 or 3 at each bin.
There’s probably about 10 outside each of the bins near my office. I don’t understand
Same around Parkville for some reason.
Rent a place in the buildings you’re interested in for a couple of weeks. And find out everything you can about your strata
That’s a good idea. We might actually do that for all the suburbs we’re thinking of retiring
How do you rent for a couple of weeks?
Air BnB
When we first moved to Melbourne we lived in a building on Siddeley Street (opposite South Wharf DFO) and absolutely loved it! Fabulous place to live, amenity everywhere but still quiet and chill after working hours - so many beautiful spaces to walk, great food options, I can’t talk highly enough about it. My only advice is to look at places that don’t face the water if the party boat businesses are still booming, because that was annoying.
When it came time to buy though our broker sent us some info about the Docklands black zones, and the buildings we loved most all had either no sinking fund or insane body corp fees. So we ended up in Port Melbourne. Very similar vibe here but apartments for owner/occupiers were a lot more attractive.
Very good advice here and I did something similar. I found a really nice apartment in Docklands, but the strata was eye-watering expensive and after reading some minutes, there were some issues with the building and tenants that I didn't want to be a part of.
Port Melbourne is great and convenient (not talking about the new area down Williamstown Rod, but the more around Bay St) for beach, restaurants, cafes and close enough to the city.
Yay for Siddeley St! I also loved living there, so convenient but not quite in the city.
Windy
And cold
This I agree haha
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There's a weird funnelling effect that happens there, whatever prevailing wing the rest of Melbourne has, you can x 1.5 at least.
People will tell you it's dead. But I guess you have to ask yourself if you would expect any other suburb where most of the real estate is residential, to be 24/7 party town.
In saying that, I would get an airbnb facing the harbour on a Saturday night during the summer to test how you feel about the coming and going of party boats. You might not be bothered by it but it can be a different vibe to what you would experiance on a Saturday morning when inspecting a place.
Otherwise, it's easy to get onto the highways (except from Vic Harbour area). Free tram zone, quick trip to all the entertainment and facilities the CBD has to offer. Some buildings might feel more community oriented than others and this usually comes down to if they are more high end and attract a retirement type crowd or if they are cheaper and have more of a student or airbnb type community. Anyway, renting in the area as others have suggested is probably a good idea before you commit.
Avoid purchasing an apartment with windows facing west. It’s a living nightmare during the summer months.
I lived there in a townhouse from 2019-2024. Absolutely loved it. It’s quiet enough that it feels peaceful but right next door to the city with a free tram if you cbf walking. Victoria harbour and the Yarra are lovely to walk and run around and we made good friends with our neighbours and community garden volunteers. We’re looking to move back there next year.
Have lived on Harbour esplanade and Lorimer St. Would recommend it, never understood the no soul crowd. Spoilt for choice being walking distance to CBD but being quieter on weekend (unless there is footy at marvel).
Less night noise than the CBD and you are fairly spoilt for restaurants compared to surburbia. Without kids I would do it again but you have to avoid a building that is heavy on Airbnb (typically around londsale side)
Bought a 2 bdr apartment and lived in the Docklands for 8 years in the Nolan building before moving back to the burbs in 2023. Location and closeness to the CBD, free tram zone, and amenities of The District are its positives.
Couple of things to be aware of:
check the OC rates and that OC committee proactively has the best interests of maintaining the overall building and security
you're moving to a high density area. Be aware that neighbour noise, Airbnb's and weekend party crowds, and party boats operate in the area. You're sharing walls with neighbours and all that that can bring
Docklands small businesses such as restaurants , cafes, and retail took a hit over COVID lockdowns so there were a number of businesses that left. Walk around The District Docklands, or along the waterfront areas and this is evident. Regeneration will take time
This is great information. Thanks for this, but what is OC?
Owner's corporation? Most people call it the strata/body corporate. Some are dominated by vested interests and don't have the resident's best interests at heart (ie protecting the interests of the developers wrt repairs and such).
Yeah I’ve just called it strata. Makes sense
Lived there for a few years. I also don't really get the hate. Listen to people who have actually lived there and not the weekenders who come once for the footy and decide it's a dead area. Literally everything is walking distance or a free tram ride into cbd. No need for a car if you don't want. Shops can be quiet in Docklands but that never bothered me. You may hear drunks around Friday and Saturday nights carrying on. I'd also suggest renting to start and being careful of buying. It's oversupplied with units, body corporate fees can be high as well as questionable build qualities in some of the apartments. Also, not unique to Docklands but prepare to be woken up and fire alarm evacuated if you choose a high rise apartment a few times in a year. Walking along the harbour was always nice 👍 I live in a nice SE spot now but still miss Docklands.
I've lived there in two different stints. While the location in relation to the city is good, the whole area is also a cold wind tunnel. There isn't much to do in Docklands itself. After 5 everything shuts down and traffic is gridlocked until 7 since the whole area is a one lane road.
I used to think of it as a cheaper alternative to living close to the city but it's not cheap anymore. It's kind of a soulless place, if you care about that. But if you're fine with living in a high rise that is always windy then it'll be fine for you.
edit: Living near Costco was a good perk of living there, but that is gone. I think there's a movie theater there in its place. Personally I'd consider that an upgrade. The Docklands library is actually pretty cool. I've only been there once but it was nice and had a ping pong table inside. The library is in the Vic Harbour part of Docklands. This is another issue with Docklands: if you live in one of the harbours then it will take you a long time to walk out of it, or to the other harbour, since you have to walk around the water. In those warm summer nights, though, nothing beats a walk around the harbours
The whole place is a planning and architectural disaster, showcasing what happens when an urban development in the city is designed by a committee of people with vested interests.
Apparently it looks good on the plan, ie from the air. Eg the broadness of Harbour Esplanade. But it’s not like Salamanca or Darling Harbour
Is that because Darling Harbour has a wife pedestrian bridge, while Docklands does not AFAIK?
I assume you meant wide, not wife. But the idea of having an old bridge that was only for wives to use like an old historical leftover of from a time when wives used it to do the shopping. Or maybe it was used so wife's could get home quicker and prepare dinner for their husbands, or some other Ye Olde sexiest reason.
The traffic is ok post COVID, there are far fewer workers
I liked it. Lived there pre-covid. Most of the benefits of CBD living without the noise or crazies. Free tram at your door. Close to Etihad and Southern Cross. Good bike path access if you’re into bike riding.
Owning apartments can be a big headache because of strata, building management, fees and so on, that's probably the most important thing to look into.
It's windy around the buildings, there's lots of construction again and there's not much to do since each building has their own private amenities.
It's nice by the water, the free tram is pretty good, it's easy to drive places (except when there's traffic especially any event at Marvel).
Loved it. Quiet and still so close to the city. Good food and bars around.
Quiet.
Very quiet
Deathly quiet
Too quiet
I have family that live there and love it. Have been in their apartment for maybe 10 years or more now. The only painful thing is parking for visitors - they’ve got parking for their place but their building has a small visitors park where in theory you should have one visitor only and you put a parking pass in the window but people abuse it so the parking is full meaning if we want to visit, we need to use multi story parking. It’s fine for us but just something to note for have multiple visitors at one time.
I don’t live there but been to Home Apartments Docklands a few times (I live in Home apartments Richmond). Worth checking out it’s all rentals only, pet friendly, and awesome amenities with community activities. Easy access to everything I’d live there in a heartbeat but Richmond is more convenient for work. Good way to test out the area without the commitment.
I lived there 15 years ago and loved it. Back then, people were saying it was dead/no vibe etc.
I found it to be really pretty along the waterfront, there was plenty of stuff on, and it was super close to everything.
Currently living in Docklands and love it. Easy access to the city and inner suburbs, free tram zone, not as dead as others seem to think it to be
If i ever had the money, i would move to Docklands in a heartbeat. Quiet hidden gem that is practically right next to the city, the views of the buildings and the yarra river is amazing
Underrated. Though difficult to find a good or interesting apartment as there’s a lot of supply that’s the same
Is there any particular building/block you recommend?
I lived in a sub-penthouse at 100 Victoria Harbour, Victoria Point building. The building is well-constructed, but the strata fees can be quite expensive. I would purchase on the south side rather than the west , as the aircon on the higher floors do not cope. Also don’t purchase near the garbage chute, it stinks and it’s noisy. u/MiriJamCaveThe the sub penthouses extends/runs the width of the building with windows and large balconies at both ends of the apartment. Great natural light and cross breeze during summer.
Seconded
You'll have to spend some time trying to find exactly the right place, and it is a lot quieter than other city areas (but that's a feature not a bug).
The library is quite nice too, and District is slowly getting better (still a bit bleak overall though)
Shh let them keep thinking Docklands is shit ;)
Tbh it’s not as good value for money compared to apartments in the cbd, especially if you no longer need a car. I live in a 3 bedroom apartment with no carapace (purchased in 2023) and the equivalent apartments in Docklands were about $100k more expensive, plus $100k for each car space. Some apartments we looked at at 3 car spaces which was just ridiculous and jacked up the prices accordingly.
Apart from that I love living in the city and not having a car has been no problem at all. I often take my granny trolly to the south melb market for nice meat & fruit, and do the rest of my grocery shopping at QV woolies.
Where did you buy and how much was it? if its not rude to ask.
The 'hidden' body corp fees are often quite high if there's any amenities like a gym I've found.
I’m in one of the highrises at the bottom of Lonsdale :) and paid a tad over $700k.
Thanks for the info.
Happy apartment living. 🙂
I haven't lived in docklands but I do recommend Southbank. Similar distance from CBD but close to botanic gardens to get your greenery, close to restaurants, close to arts precinct. Easy to get to onto Westgate if you're headed south, city road to go across to east.
Quiet, not much to do, but close to stuff there is to do. Depending which apartment, you may not be as close to transport or amenities as you'd want to be (if mobility is an issue)- for example, I skate at the rink there and also needed to go to the post office one day, and it was on the other side of the harbour. Took me as much time to walk over there as it would have to walk to the tram, wait, ride, and finish walking to the post office.
It's good if you actually want it to be quiet with not much going on. It's pretty clean (but sterile), far less people and chaos of the city and without the junkies while still being close by.
Consider St Kilda Road - remarkably low traffic and consequently surprisingly quiet - beautiful trees and very well serviced by trams. Melbourne’s premium boulevard!
Its good but you have to be careful which building. Some of the newer ones around there rattle and shake when it gets windy. The older ones are awesome though
Have lived there for 4 years, loved the convenience of the place.
It’s really underrated and hidden gem sort of place, many aren’t even aware it exists. Loads of parks and walking areas, beautiful harbour and lots of couples and kids / families, shopping centre and cafes and free tram makes it all a great inner city location.
Family member lives at the end of Collins street. She said it’s awesome
Peaceful. But boring after a while.
If you like the quiet it's great. Nice and close to the city, a few really good green spaces and less meth heads than the CBD. There's a high count of young Indian families and retired boomers living there so it's pretty peaceful.
Marvel stadium causes traffic jams when there's an event on though. Also seeing more nimbyism from the Boomers lately though. They don't seem happy anywhere unless they can make their environment suit them. Restaurants around there are just ok.
Hmmm, not a fan of traffic jams. Is it usually chaotic in the weekday mornings/evenings?
It's generally not an issue. It's just sporting events and especially concerts that cause significant traffic jams.
No, any other time it's really pleasant.
I work in the Docklands and see a lot of young asians in their 20s with annoying apartment size dogs, which could mean annoying yapping sounds through the wall if you live next door to them.
What do the nimbys not want built?
Other buildings
The library is great. The bars leave a lot to be desired.
It’s windy, but I lived there for 4 years and loved it. It was 15 min drive to work, and my partner jumped on a 20 min tram to work. Close to everything but not in amongst the chaos like Southbank and the CBD. Only negative of apartment living was the 1 evac we had, turned out to be a dodgy toaster and no real harm done, but it went on for long enough that we grabbed stuff and headed out to the stairwell. Building manager was also a bell end and moving in/out can be awkward because of lift restrictions in certain buildings. As a cyclist I loved it, and it’d be even better now.
Windy, expensive, but brilliant! You're just minutes away from the CBD buzz, without all the messy bits.
A friend from Sydney visited in Nov to look around at flats with a view to moving here in retirement (Sydney weather and prices driving the move). While looking in Port Melbourne (where I live) a RE agent agreed that Docklands had a lot of appeal did warn them that there is little capital gain to be had in that area (which is one of their considerations).
Try Yarra's Edge area in Docklands. Many of the buildings have banned AirBnB and are much more liveable.
What is the normal annual fees for owning apartments these days
I went to visit a mate that lives and the interior of his building felt like the scene in matrix where neo goes to visit the Oracle
Which pill did you take?
I am medicated yes
Have you considered Melbourne 3004? Just outside the cbd, close to Southbank, south Melbourne, st Kilda, south Yarra…the list goes on. All walkable
I have worked on most buildings in Docklands. Almost all of them have issues with water leaks and wind noise. It's great for keeping us busy, not so great for residents. The prices charged for the quality are way, way out of proportion. Having said all that, Home Docklands is the only one I'd personally consider. It has the same issues but, to a lesser extent, very limited parking, is quite expensive and you will get noise from Marvel during events. However, the apartments are actually well designed and spacious and the amenities are quite good and you have concierge service. Oh.. and it's rent only. Hacer, the builder, has several of these apartments around Melbs, with more coming and they are all rent only.
Lived in 888 Collins st. for 4 years and we loved it. I also don't get the hate. It can be windy at times but it's quiet, clean, nice running route along the harbour and close to city within free tram zone. Also wondering if we should just go back and buy an apartment there but the strata probably be too high for us.
If you are after close to the city but not there vibe maybe check out West Melbourne or North Melbourne
Pretty dead / quiet on a Sunday but I enjoyed living there for 4 years.
If you can do without a car (or hire one when you need to) why not get a lovely heritage apartment up the other end of Collins Street. Fitzroy Gardens, Cafes, MCG , beautiful buildings. What’s not to love?
Usually the OC rates (if owning). Being heritage, the insurance is usually very expensive.
Lived here 5years previously in Southbank(11years). We live in a townhouse and the community we have found is what we were missing in Southbank. We know all our neighbours, meet up all the time, check in on each other- our OC got rid of 90% of AIRBNBs after a short stay group burnt down a shared shade cloth. Many are retired- and are in the one level units. Our building manger is the bees knees- everything is fixed asap and his notes and the ocs are transparent. Only negative is the parking for visitors- we’ve get our family/friends to park in Woolworths.
Best, I lived there for 2 years and loved the location and ease of jumping on a tram or walks to southern cross train station. It’s very quiet and always clean. I’ll be back there for sure.
Soul-less. It was finally improving a bit and then COVID hit. Dead again since.
Source: I worked there for 12 years.
Residents have it better, speaking as a former resident and worker in the area.
It’s good that there is now an extra woolworths and cinema.
The pier is also gone, excited to see what they do with it in 2029
Wouldn’t north Melbourne give you all the same benefits as docklands but be a nicer place to live? 🤔
Good suggestion. We’ll have to suss it out. Would South Melbourne be similar? Or is that too poshy?
I think Docklands can be split to the north side, the stadium side, the south side around the library, and the south east end near flinders st.
the south side around the library is the quietest and the windiest. lots of corporate offices. spending lockdown there must be the most awful compared to the other areas. but maybe ideal if that's what you're looking for in retirement.
across the victoria harbour is the north side, where the district shopping centre is. it's probably the most practical to get your groceries, shopping, dining, movies, etc done without leaving docklands.
the south east side is probably the most connected, with obviously the cbd and southern cross station just there, and dfo south wharf and the crown complex just walking distance. however the only decent accommodation options seems to only be on siddeley st and maybe on mccrae st.
around the stadium is a bit of a mixed bag, and even if you go there every week i think the big crowd and the noise would still be too much
Spot on. North and south side are different. I used to love south side for a few months and it was totally fine. Had no issues at all. Quick tram to the CBD and never really saw any junkies around. The big ANZ building is on Collins St so during business hours the place is super safe.
I visited the dfo on the north side one of the weekdays and I was shocked at how dead it was. Half the mall was empty. There was an EB games there which was cool 😂
Overall though I had no issues, loved taking a morning walk, agree it got a bit windy but im from NZ so didn’t really mind nothing a puffer jacket couldn’t fix
Lived there for a while. Didn’t hate it, but it’s cold and soulless in my opinion. The docklands project hasn’t worked out how they envisioned it. Considering its close proximity to the CBD, it feels isolated and cut off, maybe because the CBD stops at southern cross and there’s no need to go any further. I personally wouldn’t live there again
Lived there for years. Which section are you talking about? Vic Harbour is usually pretty quiet, but we left because of all the current building work - it's SO loud these days with the various construction efforts going on and I wouldn't want to be near that. You have good city connectivity either there or Newquay, but poor shop accessibility - expect to rely on the smaller grocery stores. You'll frequently find traffic to be an issue if you drive, and expect roads to be completely inaccessible at certain times like NYE or graduations.
Don't move to the side over the water in South Melb. It's technically Docklands still, but it has basically no access to anything. I think that's Lorimer Street? Yarra's Edge etc. PT is a nightmare that side, you'll be reliant on cars for any travel and you'll have to deal with DFO being in the way.
Ultimately really enjoyed my time in vic harbour before it got loud (I miss the restaurants!), but you are sacrificing a few things by living there if you don't drive, and driving there is a nightmare.
Windy... and check the buildings fire detection policy. Lots of evacuations due to people cooking causing smoke without fire = $5000 fire truck costs for the person who was cooking.
Otherwise good area.
It's awful..windy cold concrete every where literally nothing to do with a deadass mall full of empty art galleries
Live else where
Bleak
My son lived here after living in Port Melbourne. Said he found it a stressful apartment vibe. Like he couldn’t ever switch off from his day and relax. It had an undercurrent
I offtend spend a few days in high rise apartment at docklands. While is nice for while gets boring.what really annoyed me is on the 28th floor how long to takes to get out the door get the lift go through the foyer just to get to one shop across the road and back again.look out at bussy times the lift can take ages
You've gotta be prepared to live in a city city, theres some green but it's loud and busy (though not as busy as you might expect), but if thats ok with you then you can't beat untestricted access to everything the CBD has to offer and not needing to drive much.
It’s dead and unpleasant most of the time. Is windy and cold and grey. Down St Kilda Road or South Melbourne would be more interesting. Now there’s the new Anzac Station too and all the trams. You close to both Botanic Gardens and Albert Park and not far from the beach.
It’s too windy, too shady and too dead for me.
I’d much rather East Melbourne/Carlton.
Terrible lifestyle. We stayed there temporarily and it just felt soulless
Socially dead, with quiet atmosphere aside from the junkies and social housing. Like what other people said, rent a place in the area you like first before committing. District Docklands is the worse area, South Wharf is better but do your research first.
It's a cold, windy hellhole with insufficient people around to even notice if you freeze the d3ath.
been working there for past few years - agree with soulless, windy and cold vibes. Going for lunch time walks can be a bit depressing given all the closed shops and just lack of any vibes. I don’t think au could live there - seems fairly depressing
Dead
Pretty awful lol.
Has friends that were a tennis ball throw away from Etihad Stadium, they enjoyed amenities being nearby - but found the everyday hussle which is so easy in suburbia difficult; large grocery shops, visiting friends etc.
Nice, good for 20s to 30, but not good for families.