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We recently bought a place in Hazelmere. It's a very small suburb that a lot of people don't know about. As a result, the crime rate in Hazelmere is one of the lowest in Perth according to the stats, which matches with the experience of the people I know who have lived there for a long time. It has quite a country feel to it, with most properties on bigger blocks which I think has contributed to the low rate. This is likely to change over the next 10-20 years though, the council is in the process of putting in place a subdivision plan that will see a lot of Hazelmere properties able to be subdivided into smaller lots.

Access to both Midland and the city is brilliant, road options include Guildford Road, or the bypass and new Great Eastern Highway, and most parts of Hazelmere are walking distance (under 1.5km on foot) to train stations that provide a direct link to the city. It's a short five minute drive from most residential spots to the centre of Midland for a diverse range of shopping - Midland Gate covers off a lot of retail and cinema options, and West Midland also has bigger stores - Harvey Norman, Good Guys, big camping and kitchen stores and the like.

The new Midland Health Public Campus and St John of God Hospital is being built on the doorstep of this suburb (less than 1.5km for most properties), so access to health will be excellent, but this is still a year or two from completion. As a result of the hospital, there is also road investment planned (underpass to get across the rail line) that will further improve the access from Hazelmere to the services in Midland.

In terms of resale value, I think that Hazelmere has the opportunity to get quite a boost in values if the council decides to increase the zoning on properties. In addition, the completion of the new hospital and activation of the pedestrian precinct around it, should increase values. Additionally, there are few areas that offer the bigger lot sizes that are characteristic of Hazelmere, only 25 mins from the Perth CBD for the price range you find here.

Interestingly, most people living in Hazelmere own their own home, only 17% of people living in Hazelmere are renting compared to 28% across the Perth metro. I think it's because it's a nice place to live, so people stay there themselves rather than renting places out. So, all in all, I think - great place to live now with all the convenience of Midland but with more space and less crime, and great opportunity for price growth into the future.

This cul de sac is a gorgeous quiet street with the green expanse of Forster Park at one end and a secret cut-through for super close on-foot access to Belmont Forum at the other. Top notch spot.

Lovely quiet cul de sac with the stunning Faulkner Park a stones throw away. The library is across the road.

Lovely quiet cul de sac with the stunning Faulkner Park at the end of the street. The wildlife diversity is fantastic.

This is a lovely street that I walk through several times a week. It's a nice quiet, out of the way spot that centers around a nice green park.

I lived in Cloverdale for a number of years, a very convenient suburb with good access, good shopping and nice lifestyle.

It has great access to the city - less than 20 minutes and you're there. It's also well located in terms of Great Eastern, Leach Hwy, Tonkin Hwy - no matter which way you're headed (North, South, City, East), there's an efficient route to get there.

Belmont Forum is brilliant - huge variety of shops and easy walking distance from a lot of homes in the suburb. They are open late, and always felt safe walking to and from the shops and around the place, even after dark.

There has been a lot of fresh new housing popping up all over the place over the last 5 years, which is attracting a lot of young professionals but there is also still a large number of older people that have lived in the area throughout their lives.

The parks and gardens throughout the City of Belmont are top notch, always green and well reticulated with lots of trees and native plants with birds etc. Great places for walking especially if you have a dog. Brilliant spot for kids is Faulkner Park, with the big volcano on Abernethy Road near the Forum, for the older ones, the skate park next to that is brilliant. Where skate parks are normally a bit scungy, this one seems to attract a lot of parents and kids, and older kids with great attitude. Quite clean and tidy.

Where we lived was friendly, but I think that probably varies by street. We also never had any problems with crime. Given it's very close proximity to the city, it's quite undervalued - bound to go up in value.

I've lived in the section of Fisher Street opposite Forster Park.

The outlook over the park is lovely, and is oriented right so that you can catch the cool breeze in summer. The park is an attraction for people who come early in the mornings to walk their dogs, couples walking together, and for various sports teams on some evenings, depending on the season. The security is great, with a lovely contingent of friendly retirees keeping a general eye on the street all the time. If you're out the front, they'll be sure to pause for a natter and to keep you up to date with the latest news on the street. The host of gum trees lining the park gives the place a lovely shady, leafy feel as well as housing a host of birds that will visit your garden if you have native varieties.

It's a quiet street, with very little through-traffic but great access. Just around the corner from main access routes such as Leach, Tonkin, Abernethy to Great Eastern and Orrong that feeds into the Graham Farmer, I found that it was quick to get to where ever I was headed - the eastern side of the city is an easy 15 minutes away.

Belmont Forum is within walking distance, providing a great selection of shops, cinemas, restaurants, supermarkets (Coles, Woolworhs and IGA), medical options and anything else you could want. Each Sunday, the carpark transforms into the amazing Rotary markets, where you can find anything and everything you can think of.

Overall, I'd say that this street is a safe, leafy, peaceful spot that's hop skip and a jump to the city.