Mooroolbark, VIC 3138

Very nice people, new station, thriving with renovated houses, good schools and beautiful views.

The East and Greater Melbourne! Very low crime, excellent walking paths and cycle trails, lots of public transport options including Train and Buses (great Telebus service). Open unchaperoned parkland, a mix of both private and public schools, zero tolerance for drugs, lovely township shopping, huge investment by both federal and state, large number of homeowners. Very little Public or Social housing. Attractions include the Yarra Valley, Yarra River and Mt Dandenong Ranges in close proximity.

I've lived in Mooroolbark for approximately 10 years now , and I have to say that I've loved every minute of it.
There certainly are areas that need some work , but there are also incredibly beautiful streets lined with greenery and nice houses. Some examples of which include Kirkford drive, Great Oak court, Partridge way, Hilledge lane, Drummer Hill lane , High Tor and Hayrick lane (and many more ). These streets tend to come at a premium compared to the median house price of the suburb but are definitely worth it due to their peaceful nature.
Even so investing in this area is typically worth it due to the regions rapid gentrification and increasing house prices.

Mooroolbark itself is also in close proximity to some really stellar schools in neighbouring suburbs such as Oxley and Luther which is great for families.

Look around outside the suburb, it's calm isn't it!

Bought a place in Mooroolbark two years ago as I was working as a Senior Project Engineer while they were doing upgrades in the area. Mooroolbark is a scum hole of a place to live. Graffiti, hoons, bogans, junkies and high crime rate. Nothing around, and the internet is terrible!

Now that the construction project I was assigned to has come to a conclusion I have sold my place on Cambridge Road and now purchased another property in Prahran where I have always lived prior to the works in Mooroolbark and boy can I tell you does it feel good to be back and away from the scum of Mooroolbark!

Pros: Great value, Green neighbourhoods, Schooling options
Cons: Mooroolbark Terrace, Development projects and the erection of units

Some of the reviews here probably aren't entirely representative of Mooroolbark given the community is changing. This is an area of growth (massive price increases over the last couple years) with a lot of new people arriving. There are still many established households that have been here for a long time.

Property: Most of the long term established people a beginning to realise how much their property has gone up in value and are cashing out given they don’t like the change (read medium density development). There is quite a lot of ‘mum and dad’ developers buying the full blocks, chopping up the land and reselling the original house (with half the land) for the same price. This makes it difficult for new starters wanting a house on a full block.

Schools: Mooroolbark has a number of primary schools and enables a lot of choice. Make sure you look around though as some of these schools are small and might be limiting for your child. There tends to be few high schools in the area and tend to be large in student enrolments – not a negative or positive necessarily as it depends on your child’s learning style.

Greenspace: Lots of it and is the biggest selling point that you discuss with your friends at BBQ’s without starting a debate. Close to the yarra valley and Dandenong ranges.

Night life: There isn’t much of a night life. Restaurants are reasonably busy of an evening along brice ave and Manchester rd but once dinner is done the it’s pretty quiet. I have never had a problem walking around at day or night and don’t feel any more/less unsafe then other areas around Melbourne.

Crime: Let’s not be ignorant here; there is undesirable activity happening in Mooroolbark just like there is anywhere else. Being connected to the local emergency services I get to witness first hand a lot of it. However, my experience and the crimes stats indicate that Mooroolbark is fairly normal.

Transport: Generally it’s the lilydale line (train) for city commuters and mostly driving. I personally found this difficult when I first moved to Mooroolbark. Majority people exclusively drive their car. The yarra ranges council suck at infrastructure for walking and riding bikes. Take the development at the “five ways” roundabouts for example – 50ish townhouses are built along Manchester Road increasing the density and Yarra Ranges allows the pedestrian crossing to be REMOVED crossing Manchester road. Not a lot of logic there. Let’s Hope when Hungry Jacks is built at the five ways (soon), more consideration will be taken regarding this. The Manchester rd railway crossing is on the state government’s to-be-removed list but will not happen not for a while yet. At this stage there is not enough parking at the train station for train commuters. Naturally the community has improvised and overload the reserve opposite Hookey Park everyday.

Mooroolbark terrace: on Brice ave/Bathurst st/Charles st is a sad old shopping centre that has needed to be scrapped years ago. Thankfully change is in the air as most of the shops are empty making way for development. Rumours suggest that a large number of apartments on top of a new shopping centre will be built – I would speculate that Woolworths would be behind such a project.
Coles: are always busy most of the time like most suburban areas. The area is starting to connect well with the red earth community centre, cafes, Library, brice st shops and train/bus station.
Chirnside park shopping centre: although not Mooroolbark, it services the area. Currently in the planning stage for a multimillion dollar upgrade.
Croydon: also not Mooroolbark but has most things you need close by.
Food: Locals will understand this – pizza or pizza or pizza or fish and chips or fish and chips or fish and chips or fish and chips, indian, thai, kebab, maccers, kfc. Basically there is not a lot of variety.

Work: Next to nobody works in Mooroolbark as there is little industry. It’s a mobile workforce where most people must commute (drive/train) out of Mooroolbark everyday to get to work. Take a look at the census data that backs this up.

These reviews are always interesting to see what people think, and you can see it tends to be divided to extremes– die hard passionate defending their decision to live here or complete negative who can’t see a single positive at all. Mooroolbark fits in the middle. You might be reading this because you want to move to the area because you can no longer afford to buy into a closer suburb. I was the same a number of years ago and don’t regret it. Mooroolbark is not amazing and but terrible either. The area is changing for the better.

It really has become a suburb to be proud of. Conveniences that are easy to find, with all the major stores within 10-15 minutes by car or public transport. It costs so much to get into the area now but I guess you get what you pay for. I've travelled the world and have lived in a number of other suburbs both in Victoria and interstate. Many of the places I have lived are very close to the city and with that is also that city vibe and also the trouble that comes with that. But Mooroolbark is a lively town during the day with friendly people but at night its quiet and the shops are mostly closed. What I do hate is that there are so many older people moving on or scaling down, leaving houses with large parcels of land and because of this, unfortunately, there are greedy developers that have nothing to do with the area and want to line their pockets are carving up the neighbourhood, extremely rude actually. Also Yarra Ranges Council should start restricting these types of developments and start mixing up the suburb with some bigger homes, some two stories and some five bedroom single story houses, it's time for some diversity now! There's been enough apartments built and dual occupancies are now a bit overkill. So that change would be nice to see.

Regarding Mooroolbark, here are some things that others haven't touched on. Proximity to Eastland Ringwood only three train stops away, Go Carting, Ten pin bowling, great sports facilities and plenty of open spaces, some of the best private schools are accessible via the train line as well as a number of private schools in the area, Train to Puff and Billy via Ringwood, and in the other direction direct access to the Warburton Trail (awesome bike ride), the Yarra Valley. Mooroolbark is really in the centre of everything, via the Eastlink which is only 10-15 min away. Whether it's to the Coast or the Bush or City vibe, Mooroolbark is within reach of all of these without too many delays, the Dandenong Ranges, and all the tourist hubs that are only a stones throw away.

The things that would be nice to see is the Brushy Creek running free again and like others have said the Terrace Shopping Centre in Brice Ave needs to be demolished and a Woolworths with fuel or a mixture of shops there in its place, the Terrace is dead and old and overdue for a revamp, I don't know how people make a living in that place actually.

That said there's plenty of things to do otherwise if you're into physical activity. Mooroolbark has a long history and I would say Mooroolbark is part rural, part suburbia, and also unique and quiet but has plenty of things to see, I've been here over 20 years and still finding unique places around Mooroolbark. Yes, all-in-all and very good suburb that is under appreciated by some locals and overlooked by good people looking for other good people. Great place to live, period! I just wish there'd be a few more younger people have a go at building new homes that make a bit of a statement. Venture out to some places like Greenvale and the house cost for a small piece of land is when compared to Mooroolbark, I just don't understand why a 864 Square Meter block doesn't appeal to a young family wanting to demolish and rebuild a newer home? But I guess it's easier to see something built than envisage a final investment opportunity. Finally I was on a flight from Singapore and found an Album by Barney McAll called Mooroolbark, listened to all the tracks. You can see why after his return home that he named the Album after the town. In a similar way although I've only been here for 22 years I feel that my heart is in the place.

To all the negative reviewers I say get out into the world and then you will see how incredible Mooroolbark really is. No place is perfect but if you can find peace then it's good enough.

I dont understand some of the negetive comments made.
Old railway station? Its basically brand new!
Scrubby main st? All new paving, planting, parks, updated library, new signage! Sorry, what part of that is scummy?
Nothing licensed ? Bricies pub and the Moo Bar are obviously not good enough!
Maybe these people should open their eyes and really see how lucky they are.
Honestly, i love Mooroolbark. I have one child at Mooroolbark East Prinary which is one of the best schools in the eastern suburbs and my other child is at Mooroolbark College which is wonderful. Good disapline, little bullying, extensive range of classes.
The shops, although not numerous are unique and friendly. More small town than suburbia with everything from delies to the wool shop and even a cobbler!
We are also less than 5 mins from chirnside shopping centre that has Target and Kmart
We must be the capital of eateries from restaurants to take away.
I grew up here and since have lived in 3 states and numerous suburbs and can hands on heart say that we have the best place to live.
No suburb is crime free but we are pretty low down in the crime stats.
There is always plenty of social activities too. The community centre is well run and boasts semi annual theatre productions as well as many classes and plenty for kids to do as well.
I guess some people will whinge no mater what.
My only grumble is The Terrace shopping centre which is old and tired, however i believe that it is to be fixed up soon, other than that
Complete thumbs up from me

I moved from Glenroy to Mooroolbark about 2.5yrs ago and still enjoying the location. We live in assisted housing like several other neighbours so housing/cost of living is not too important for us.
Schools are fairly good, but unfortunately there's not much else in Mooroolbark..... Cafe's & restaurants are non existent, and shops are very basic.
The open spaces & green surroundings are far better than the west.
Sharon .

A suburb with nothing going for it!!!
High crime rate, basic infrastructure, below par schools, and some very seedy characters living there. (All with old commodores)
Being in Mooroolbark it's easy to notice most residents are in the lower income bracket.

Mooroolbark station is very dangerous and the main streets of Mooroolbark are very scummy. Not a nice suburb.. I feel unsafe in Mooroolbark. So many hoons & druggies.

Being a safer than average suburb according to the 'Victorian Burglary Statistics' study conducted by RACV's Victorian crime statistics analysis. And a quite committed Police presence in the community. It's these things that people don't consider when purchasing a property, which if they did Mooroolbark is a suburb with very little crime, there is value in that, that's my considered experience. One of the few places that people mostly know each other and if they don't they are aware of someone who might know you! It can be a little personal if you are new to the area even when visiting, someone might ask you 'You're not familiar are you a local?' or something along these lines. Great place to live but if you love absolute privacy you may find it hard going but no where near as bad than if you're up to no good. Then you're really going to struggle and a rejection is likely to be a forthcoming offence. You may even get the TAXI treatment e.g. We've called a TAXI for you mate! Why the person may ask? To take you to the place where you belong! Where's that? As far away as possible! But seriously jokes aside, yes it's a place where you need to smile more and stress less and if you are up to no good you'll probably end up in a deep depression. Just a lovely place and the potential is only being discovered.

Hi all, I used to live in Doncaster East then move to Templestowe in the 70's. My old stomping grounds were Balwyn, Kew and Box Hill etc. Mooroolbark is like stepping back in time, I've been here over 20 years and it's a beautiful, hospitable and lovely place to live. Most people are friendly and realistic. My understanding is that people from the area who have been here for some time know it's value and often after visiting the old areas they grew up in have returned home with a sigh of relief. Mooroolbark has undergone some major development recently but hasn't lost it's sense of calm unlike the feeling you get inner city (to the locals, you know what I'm talking about). There are a number of churches in the area, if you're into that? But that said, they do impact you, those lovely christian people, just way too friendly and descent and good for the community. Mooroolbark is a Blue Ribbon Liberal seat and currently Tony Smith is the speaker of the house in Canberra. Mooroolbark was once considered by the outer leafy suburbs of Canterbury etc to be the bushland. But what a reversal, now Canterbury is in the stink, it's unhealthy while the cars spew out poison that can't dissipate and the crime rate is off the chart. Housing in Mooroolbark is basically affordable but it isn't likely to stay that way anymore as some people are doing knock down and rebuilds which is a bit unfortunate because the families can't get into the area as easy as they once could, but still some large parcels of land were you can step outside and take in that peace and fresh air. Compared with other suburbs it's a hidden Gem and the longer it stays that way the better. We can afford the apparent luxuries of Balwyn and Canterbury and we have looked there a few times. But apart from the schools which are very good and at a premium fee cost, there's not much else going for the suburbs unless you like to sit around and drink coffee and be constantly trying to compete with the neighbors. They internet has made proximity to the city pointless I mean St Andrews is fine example of that (second highest wealth in Australia). Staying in Mooroolbark and love the place.

In the last 5 years, Mooroolbark has undergone some recent developments to the shopping precinct and the train station due to the population growth. The suburb is popular amongst young couples, families and the retired as the house prices are reasonable for those who are aiming to live in the Eastern suburbs.
The properties I have listed in the area rented in under 2 weeks time as there is a high demand. It is a great area to consider an investment property due to the substantial rental return. Once leased I had an abundance of people requesting more opportunities to rent.

Monique Holgye - Property Manager

Mooroolbark is not too bad compared with neighbouring suburbs. It seems to have changed allot from back in the 80's when I went to school here. There are allot of boy racers in their crap sounding Commodores speeding around the streets. When we sit out on our back patio, all we can hear are the Commodores didgeridoo sounding exhaust systems especially if it has just been raining due to their RHP (Raining Horse Power).

Also there seems to be an increasing problem with Houso's & drugs which is particularly bad on Blackburn Rd (#69).

Houso's aside, Mooroolbark is a great neighbourhood for the working class with plenty of shopping areas and good public transport. Internet seems to be ok with the NBN slowly being introduced and there are plenty of options for schooling.

Over all we are happy to be here.

Telebus needs to go into new estates, fixed line broadband may not be available

I have lived here most of my life so I don't have much of a comparison although I couldn't picture myself living anywhere else.

Mooroolbark is a beautiful leafy suburb with great people and peace and quiet.
Plenty of options for shopping, dining and public transport.
We moved away from Mooroolbark for 6 years after purchasing our first home and made the awful
choice of Lilydale.
Moved back to Mooroolbark and what a difference. Lilydale stinks, is only good for industry &
is owned and run by Supersoil.

Remove Supersoil from Mooroolbark and it would be 10/10.

we moved here 12 ears ago...i did not know much about the suburb but it has turned out that it has been a wonderful place to live .....it has been interesting to hear peoples comments over the years....when we moved i found it a very quiet,safe ..lovely neighbours...as an adult i was totally unaware of any crime or what was happening at the station....after 4 or 5 years i became aware of the problems at the station only becuse my children were travelling by train...there were alot of problems going on...but even tho we live very close to the station ..i had never felt unsafe ..and neither thave any of my friends....since then...many security people were working to eradicate the problems at the station..security cameras were installed at the station as well as in the main street..this has made mooroolbarks reputation among the public a lot better..even tho we ave felt very safe all along....but it is no longer known as a dangerous station...there are so many restaurants,,takeaway...supermarket options close by...nqr /aldi/coles/iga//safeway/ close to yarra valley...mt dandenong....45 mins to city...lots of parks and lakes..a lovely place to live

Yes there are a few seedy pockets (as with any suburb) but generally speaking, its a fantastic place to raise a family. I have lived here for 14 years, bought here when i first got married. I have had 3 children since and have sent my children to the nearby primary school (bimbadeen) and also the high school. We have been delighted with the quality of education at the schools, our children have loved their time there so far. There is an abundance of local kindergartens and day care facilities to choose from and parks/playgrounds are everywhere! I have been blessed with amazing neighbours over the years so that has also given me a pleasant experience here.
I think the best area of mooroolbark is definitely the rolling hills/bimbadeen area. Peaceful, great views, big blocks that are reasonably flat and everything is within walking distance. Takes me 8 mins to station, 20 mins to chirnside cinemas as i have 3 playgrounds within a 2 min walk.
Mooroolbark has far too many takeaway shops (I think there are11 fish and chip shops and about 10 or more pizza places) but with some of the best wineries and cafes all within a 15 min radius. The moo bar is great for a late night wine with the girlfriends too.
Negative points are crappy reception for mobile with anyone other than telstra.
This is a great value for money town- rental prices are good in terms of investment (if you go for a 4 bedroom as they are in high demand), its nowhere near as dear as croydon and is much prettier with great views from a lot of the town. I couldn't recommend it highly enough!

NEWLEYWEDS: My husband and I recently located to Mooroolbark from the inner Easter suburbs and we just love it. It is only a stones throw from the Yarra Valley where we often go for breakfasts on the weekends, or where I go to the farmers markets to pick up some local yummy goodies. The fruitshop at Chirnside Park is amazingly cheap- about 6 times less than what it would cost in Balwyn even when my mum and sister come to my house they do their fruit shopping with me. I work in the city and start early so it takes me around 40 mins by car. It is an easy drive up the Eastern Fwy then onto Maroondah Hwy. We are still sussing out the takeaway places but we are already liking the Hull rd fish and chip store. We live in a quite crt where we will definately be bringing up our family. The neighbourhood seems friendly with lots of young families. We moved out for the extra space and we now have mountain views. Couldn't be happier.

Good

Great metro suburb. Perfect for family living. Close to everything. Good options for the kids.

Mooroolbark is one of the best value-for-money suburbs in Melbourne. It is ideal for young familes, or young couples. We have been here for over 7 years and the area ticks most boxes including plenty of childcare and schooling options, a 3 to 5 minute drive to shopping destinations (Coles, Safeway, K-Mart, Bunnings, Target, Office Works, Harvey Norman, Retra Vision etc.) green parks and recreational facilities, a 7 day Medical Centre, and numerous public transport options including various bus routes and the Mooroolbark train station which is set to go a Government funded $3 million dollar upgrade.

Some negatives include the nightlife and eating out - it's almost non-existant. However there are a lot of small cafes and good bakeries, plus all the usual suspects like McDonald's, Subway, KFC etc - plus I reckon Melbourne's best charcoal chicken and souvlaki shop.

The houses are solid and mostly well presented with most being on good sized blocks between 800 to 1000 square metres, (there are small pockets of Mooroolbark which are a renovaters delight). All in all for the price compared to other surrounding suburbs, I believe the area is awesome value for money. Suprised some are critical, you buy where you can afford to and make the most of it. We like it here, and so do many others.

After living here for almost 4 years, I think that the place is pretty average. The further you move away from the shopping precint/station area, the better things are.

Parking around the station for city commuters is shocking! Hoons, vandals and general antisocial behavious is rife on the weekends around the shopping precint. Avoid!

Towards Chirnside or Lilydale are much nicer areas - green with lots of parks and great views. There are some great schools for younger kids.

I don't mind living here.

Like neighbouring Croydon, Mooroolbark has lost is edge as a safe suburb. Youths roaming the streets at night, drugs, graffiti and crime have really spoilt this once great outer eastern suburb.

We moved from Boxhill and brought our house 7 years ago in a court in moroolbark which is rarely busy and everyone in the court is familar with who lives in the court. so only local traffic from the court and our court is fairly peaceful, the local primary school my children attend is great . We are close to public transport and the shops ,although parking down at coles is terrible at the best of times,but chirnside park shopping centre is close by . We have had no damages to property or in our court and a neighbour who has lived in the court for 35 years told us the only trouble there've experienced was a hand mower he left out went missing and that was 17 years ago other than that he's had no problems.
One thing we have found in Mooroolbark is there are alot of dog owners I think just about every 6th house in our area has a dog or two very annoying when dogs are left to bark and the owners wont reprimand them the court we live in is up on a rise so sumtimes we can hear a dog bark from one of the neighbouring streets otherwise I think a great place.

Where to start. The local McDonald's has turned into a hoon hang-out. Not a night goes by when I don't hear idiots doing burnouts around the streets. The local kids are turning to dirt motorbikes, and can be found at the parks tearing up the turf doing burnouts.

We've had several hundreds of dollars damage to our letterbox, lighting and plants thanks to faceless vandals over the years. The lazy police could not care less, and just ask you to try to catch the vandals on camera, so that you do their job for them. But I guess that's politician-policeman though for you, of which Mooroolbark has the misfortune to have two. They seem to think if they just tell everyone everything is fine, then they'll believe them. In the meantime, Mooroolbark continues to go down the gurgler.

There isn't near enough car parking at the train station, and the train platforms don't feel safe to be at night. As someone else posted there are a lot of takeaway places in Mooroolbark, most of which are of very poor quality pizza and chip shops. The graffiti problem in Mooroolbark has gotten worse over the last couple of years. The class of people moving into Mooroolbark seems to be getting lower and lower. Several of my new neighbours have been breeding like rats, and now their offspring are becoming menaces to society by throwing rocks at random people walking down the street, breaking windows, stomping on plants, bashing and/or graffiti street signs, having loud, drunken parties into the very early hours of the morning.

On the plus side,....ummm....hmmmm....we seem to get decent mobile reception, and internet speed, but that's about it.

This used to be decent place to live, but I'm afraid those days are long gone. I can't wait to leave.

Mooroolbark is a quiet leafy green suburb perfectly set amongst the hills and trees. Views to die for and the perfect area to raise a family. The best primary schools in the area hands down is St Peter Julian Eymard and rolling hills. I have lived here for 7 years and i can only think of a handful of nights where you can hear anything it is dead quiet apart from the wild life mostly possums and owls, there is no night life what so ever. As long as it stays as is i will live here.
The downside.... too many subdivisions being allowed and could do with another high school.

We have lived her for just over 3 years and whilst we have a beautiful house & property in a nice quiet court, once you leave this court it all goes downhill! Half the people living in Mooroolbark don't seem to care about their properties at all, many are run down, lawns never mowed, gardens never touched, old cars dumped, rubbish etc. The council areas are just as bad and are never maintained. As for the shopping, the Coles would have to be the worst I have ever been too. Have had to make several complaints to head office due to "off" meat they are selling! Mobile phone reception is terrible with 3 or Vodaphone. Mooroolbark was rated to have the most takeaways shops in the eastern suburbs which I find disgusting, proves my point that many people in this suburb are lazy! The only good thing is the house prices have increased in the last 3 years so we will soon be able to sell and move to a nicer area.

We've lived here a couple years now, having moved from Croydon. By comparison, Mooroolbark is much quieter and safer than Croydon, yet still has the conveniences of transport and shopping. My son loves Manchester Primary School, and has made lots of friends. I'm glad we made the move.

The main shopping precinct, located on Brice Avenue, has a wonderful village atmosphere and will cater to most of your shopping needs and is well serviced by trains, buses and taxis. Shoppers are spoilt for choice really with Chirnside Park Shopping Centre only a couple minutes drive away, Croydon Centro and Kilsyth Shopping Centres within 5 minutes, Stockland Lilydale within 10 minutes, Eastland Shopping Centre within 15 minutes and Doncaster and Knox Shopping Centres within 20 minutes.

Mooroolbark is a very green suburb, and being quite close to the beautiful Dandenong Ranges, there are some fantantic views to be seen. There's been a fair bit of investment and development in Mooroolbark over the last couple of years, including a new Gym, Medical Centre, several Shops, a Service Station, and now even the Train Station is getting a revamp.

Kids are well looked after as well with many parks and reserves, an indoor swimming pool, and they can join soccer, tennis, netball, football, basketball, lawn bowls and cricket clubs too. There's also 9 schools in Mooroolbark to fulfill their education needs, as well as 2 Swinburne University of Technology campuses nearby in Croydon and Lilydale.

Being a suburb of such convenience, Mooroolbark is perfect for young and old, big families and small. Why not stop by and see for yourself?