jo9999

We've lived in the area (Norfolk) around 8 months now and have just decided to buy. Norfolk Village State School is excellent and the area has a lot of young families. House prices are affordable and on the whole the area is very safe. It feels like a rural village, with the benefits of easy access to Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
A big problem is access to broadband internet. On moving here we were told by Telstra that there were no ports available, nor could we wait list for one we just had to keep applying and hope one came available. And Ormeau doesn't appear to be on the NBN, so for a growing area, that's definitely not in the middle of nowhere the service is shocking. We have had to rely on unreliable and expensive mobile broadband, while we keep on applying to get broadband.

Nothing is too far from Springwood, great shopping nearby, excellent primary schools (although the secondary schooling is average). A nice leafy suburb with the Springwood forest park and some houses with lovely views. You can still pick up a family home here for under $400,000 (just). There are numerous childrens parks but some are a bit run down. The public transport can be a bit of an issue - local buses which are unreliable, the 555 from Springwood Station is more reliable but there is very limited parking, an unsafe drop off zone, and sometimes you get 2 straight after each other and none for 20 minutes. There are numerous restaurants in the area, but not much in the way of nightlife. On the whole, a nice place to live, convenient to the Gold Coast and the City, with everything you need nearby. We have lived here for 5 years and have seen very minimal crime and experienced none.