ErinBlackmore

I've lived in Wagga for only 6 months, but feel like I've gained a pretty good sense of the place in that time. Wagga is a great town with a lovely country vibe, and I am still taken aback by the friendliness of the locals. Customer service in Wagga is terrific most places you go and everyone seems to be up for a genuine chat - there's none of that mundane "Would-you-like-fries-with-that?" scripted verse, but legitimate conversation. It's lovely.
The town itself is easy to navigate around, has great shopping options, gorgeous parks, and of course the Murrumbidgee river running through is beautiful.
I find the downfall of Wagga is it's lack of opportunity. The unemployment rate is high, and job seeking is hugely competitive. The main employment opportunities seem to lie within the health sector (lots of jobs for doctors, nurses and other health professionals) and university professionals. I am fully qualified in a career I've been working in for 11 years, and when the job I moved to Wagga for fell through, I found myself sort of stranded here unable to find more work in my field and having to resort to applying for the likes of supermarket work, and finding even that kind of work INCREDIBLY difficult to obtain. Basically, DON'T move here if you don't already have a secure job lined up beforehand, or an exit-option if it doesn't work out (ie, don't stupidly lock yourself into a 12 month lease on a house in case things don't work out! Ha.)
A bad experience like the one I've had in moving here would normally taint most people's perception of a town, but despite the difficulties I've personally had since being here, I still find Wagga to be a really endearing town. There's nothing quite like going for a run around Lake Albert, watching kids enjoy the animals at the Wagga Zoo (which is free!) and visiting the gorgeous places surrounding, like Junee with it's awesome chocolate & liquorice factory!
There are a few "dodgy" areas, as is the case with any town, however the interesting thing I found in Wagga as opposed to other towns, is how spread out the "slum" areas can be.... in that, the "dodgy" areas are quite often less sectioned to suburbs as they are streets. When I was house hunting I found it notable that one street would be quite upper-class and pristine, then you'd go round the block and there's police tape, burnt out car bodies and graffiti abound (not even making that up!) I was lucky to know some locals before moving here, and was worded up on the "bad" streets and areas - Suburbs worthy of steering clear of if you can help it are Tolland, Ashmont (the locals lovingly refer to as "Trashmont") and some parts of Kooringal. But I encourage anyone to drive around and scope all areas out for yourself - you'll very quickly get a feel for the surroundings, it's pretty black and white here.
All in all though, Wagga is a beautiful place to live if you have a purpose here.