Hello all,

My family and I (self & two teenage children) are thinking of relocating to Victoria at the end of the year. I lived in Melbourne as a child and want to move back to be close to family. As I am a sole parent I do have to be very conscious of budget and schools. Ideally we will be in a diverse, open-minded and family friednly area that has good links to the city and decent schools. I am willing to be up to 1.5 hours from Melbourne. We would like a house (not a flat) aa a garden is a must for our pets and will be renting . Budget up to $450 to begin with. Would love to know of any areas that might fit the bill. Open to all ideas though my least favourite setting would have to be total suburbia. Would prefer semi-rural or inner city to that.