Mount Barker, SA 5251

Hi I would like to know which places are the lower socioeconomic areas?

It's false what he's saying

You should see it now, peak hour grid lock. The council really stuffed up with this one.

Gday Joey, not sure how long ago you commented, however I'm looking at Mt Barker and saw a house in Bluestones (Parkindula Drv) and wondering if you still love it. Any negatives to the area?
Cheers Julian

..I couldn't agree more. I lived in Mt Barker (in a lot of pain) for just over a year. It was just shocking. Appalling traffic, and a lot of road rage on the tiny congested streets and in the shopping centre carparks. Terribly overpriced for what it is. Never again. Just dreadful for the nerves this place.

Dear Sherrie & Southeast,
Really not sure why such negative comments, Mt Barker is still "quiet" in comparison to Stirling & Algate and even Woodside (try and pull off the Nairne Rd at peak-hour!!). You both have been here for a year or less, think of those of us who have been here much longer, I agree the change has been incredible. But I find that with experience you will learn to "avoid" the traffic around the shopping centres and main roads, unfortunatley it is progress and you will not stop it! Yes I also agree Mt Barker is not a "country town" anymore but really has not been for 10 years now, you want country then Mt Torrens, Birdwood, Wellington etc have homes for sale... but NO facilities!

I LOVE this town and what it has offered to my family, & I know of HEAPS of other families that say the same. YES some things need to change and they will in due course, yes there are some bad points but I have lived on the flat & travelled all over the world... Mount Barker is about the best living all round that SA has to offer. Hey, I cannot find anyone who admits they voted Labour in so I'll leave that one alone for now!

Last comment, if you dont like it is quite simple...then leave! It's a free country and there are plenty of other homes elsewhere out there!

I totally stand by my review and now with the population changes it stands to get a whole lot worse. You say you agree with Mt Barker not being a country town anymore which it isn't but that's not how it's sold to people. You state that the upside to Mt Barker over a country town is because it has "facilities" but then go on to say that to get around the traffic problems you need to avoid the "facilities". I may have only been here for a year but I have lived in Nairne for several years prior so I am quite familiar with the area and the changes. It's a shame as I like Mt Barker.

Sherrie,
As I said, it's a free country and we are allowed to share our views... but do not put words in my mouth please! That is, I did not say "I" need to avoid the traffic areas, they truly don't bother me at all. I was suggesting if you had a problem, there are ways around it like ANY suburb in Australia. You say you lived in Nairne, then you had to come to Mt Barker to get to the facilities, so in turn were part of the congestion problem (no offense to others who live in Nairne) you say you hated! We need that 2nd entry/exit to the freeway as will ease some congestion through town. But remember much of the traffic are people travelling through to & from work who live outside the town or are heading to the coast, or are visiting this beautiful area.

So if we get a Westfield style shopping centre to give us heaps of facilities, people will complain, if we don't then people will complain... cannot please everyone. The medical facilities are pretty good, better than in Mannum Walker Flat, Tailem Bend and there are plenty of good doctors and other specialists right here in town. This is not "country town" anymore but it is a town in the country... however it is not Adelaide.

We moved up here years ago to get away from the rat race down in the city, and I stand by my view that we have it sooo good up here in comparison. If you have always been a person who loves the space of the country, then maybe this town is feeling a little cramp these days. But still heaps better than most. I was actually born in a small SA country town nearby, rather be here than there!

Anyway, congestion... have you been down to Gawler, Elizabeth, Glenelg or Noarlunga of late? Wow, that's congestion!

Hey, it's our opinions sure... and opinions are just like belly-buttons... everyone has one :)

Well no I wasn't really adding congestion as living in Nairne we were already part of the congestion per se, we actually moved further out again as Nairne was an issue but I got too sick and my husband had to train overseas so we moved to Mount Barker temporarily. I can't drive so I have to walk anywhere I need to go unless my husband is home so obviously I need to be close to shops, schools etc. But lets say I was to drive to the shops there's Adelaide road in between our street and the shops, so its often a real pain and as you would know, parking isn't so great either.

When we moved here, we couldn't even use a moving truck during the week as there were too many cars parked either side of our street during the day, it can make getting into our driveway extremely difficult! We were even abused once when we had a delivery truck drop something off and one of the people that had parked their car in our street during the day didn't want to wait 2 minutes for him to drop it off into our driveway (the delivery man had to park in the middle of the street).

I am not seeing how they are going to keep this from getting worse as population increases and yes I do not like the suburbs either. I like Mt Barker and particularly the Adelaide Hills but this congestion and planned population increase is keeping me from buying here because it IS going to get worse and is already horrible where we live.

Sorry to hear that you have been abused and had issues in your street, that is not good for anyone I agree. Yes the eastern side of Adelaide road near the car dealership is a pain to cross especially mornings & evenings, that is true also. But this part of Mount Barker is over 30 years old so no thought by the council went in to making wider streets etc back then... it is not a problem caused in the past few years though.

I know people in Hawthorn Rd & Hill St, they "avoid" the traffic just by turning left if the traffic is bad and doing a U-turn down the road or now go around the roundabout by Bunnings. Yes maybe a pain but for the most I rarely hear them complain. If you live here long enough you will learn to move with the flow. not against it, hence why I know there has been an increase in the traffic but it doesn't bother me (I cannot change it so I work with it rather than be a victim of it), and it really is NOT THAT BAD! I can always get a park at the shopping centre, even at Christmas, unlike Marion or the city. The worst part about the shopping centre is some of the "locals" who still think it is a country town and drive as such (no indicators, drive too slow, do not park straight, pull out in front of others without looking etc)... lack of consideration by people I know that have lived in the area for years & years.

Mount Barker on the whole does not suffer with the problems you mention, more "isolated" to a few areas and at certain times of the day. Yes you chose to live in one of the worst parts for traffic congestion I'm afraid, but that should not reflect in the town as a whole. As I said before, go to some of the others central shopping areas in Adelaide and the issues you have faced here are 3 times worse, more people yelling abuse and just generally stressful.... we are no where near this yet for such a pivotal shopping hub in the hills. Solve the problem easy... if you dont live in the Mount, then you cannot come in to shop, see you doctor or specialist or even pass through to another town!! Nah, we know this will not do.

Sorry you have these ill-feelings for the town, others may too but I know that many more love the area and would not give it up for quids. It will get busier for sure, just look at Seaford, Aldinga Beach over the past 5 years... wow! If it gets as bad as you say it will... then I'll move to Darwin!

Good luck finding your piece of paradise, for now Mount Barker is mine & my families :)

Firstly, why does somebody speaking 'their' truth need to be deemed as 'negative'? I seem to only hear people speaking 'negatively' about Mt Barker, wherever I go. I will give credit where it is due, Mt Barker is generally a much nicer environment than Adelaide. Mt Barker is pretty and the climate is much better (to me) than Adelaide's. Adelaide barely rates a mention. I was born there and to me and in general it is simply an angry, feral 'hell-hole' these days. I don't doubt Mt Barker was a great place once upon a time. However to me, it's only average and extremely expensive. Give me towns in the South East of SA or Western Victoria any time. Accommodations are usually much, much cheaper. Facilities are good and climates equally as good or indeed better. If you have found your 'paradise' in Mt Barker, good for you! :-)

I will also add, in other towns there is room to move. Nice, wide streets and much more peace and quiet. If you think Mt Barker is about 'as good as it gets' in SA, I would suggest you visit some more places. Good luck.

My "truth" is no different to both of yours, just what side of the glass you drink from that's all! If that is your experience then so be it, and I am truly sorry to hear you think this way, but I could sit on this forum and write stuff about many other towns in Australia, but at the risk of upsetting people, I keep my views on THEIR towns to myself. Only when someone says something about where I live that has been here for 5 minutes themselves, then I speak up. Yep I hear you about the "feral hell hole" but much of that has moved out further afield so getting to be less a problem (but I am not prejudice on that matter as I have friends from both ends of the scale).
Yes the southeast is beautiful, I give you that... (and yes I know many people around Mt Gambier), so are many other areas in SA but none hold for me & my family the neccessaties we need (school, work, sport etc) that WE find Mt Barker has.... your needs are much different I am sure, but when you say you hear people only speaking negatively about this town where-ever you go, we dont wnat them here anymore than you would have them say about your slice of heaven!

We could go on about it... but for me in my mind I am happy here, so I'll stop before it gets out of hand. I love Mt Barker, you guys don't... leave it at that. Or, you could tell me where you live and I'll start on that...hmmm.... nah, I'm not that thin skinned! For your reference I have visited many places around the world and I am always so happy to get home. I never said Mt Barker is perfect but far from a "hell hole" as you put it. Good luck to you too...

If you read carefully, you would see that I labelled Adelaide a 'feral hell-hole'. I don't believe that 'they' have "moved out", it is only getting worse. I have never seen so many 'rednecks' in my life. This is my view. I have also travelled the world. I also never mentioned Mt Gambier. To me, Mt Gambier is about the worst place to live in the South East. Much of the 'feral element'. Penola, Millicent and Casterton (Victoria) are better options. Kingston, Robe and Beachport are nice spots also. Generally, the higher the population the more trouble you have. Anyway, enjoy your Mt Barker..

You have qualified every point I have made, there's no point in claiming Mount Barker is better then nearby country towns due to facilities if in order to live in a quiet area of Mt Barker with less traffic you need to live on the outskirts with no facilities. You may as well live in a nearby country town considering you have to drive to those facilities anyway.

In regards to your agreement of living near to these facilities where I am, being very bad traffic wise just imagine what that will be like as the population increases at a fast rate over the coming years. Even worse is that those areas of land behind where I am is part of the planned development which will obviously be a double whammy.

Also, as you have stated the centre of Mount Barker is not set out to accustom for these increases and is already pretty close to full capacity so how are these changes going to go? where will people park? You can't compare how it is now to Westfield in Marion as there is a vast difference in every instance.

This is my point and is the most important point for someone wishing to buy a place here as you simply can't just move if you do not like it.

If you want to be close to facilities then you need to live near the centre of Mt Barker, this means, huge congestion issues, noisy traffic at night and hooligans doing burn outs, not much different to living in suburbia.

My problem is I try and find the good in things rather than concentrate on the bad, you know, it's the glass half full vs half empty type of thing. You both have some validity to your points I agree, but really, do you think it is that bad?

If people move up here and they dont like it, most can leave... no use complaining about how bad it is, or the traffic if you hate it. Buying a home or even moving is a very important and sometimes stressful thing, so if you do not research this before you make a decision then it becomes a case of "buyer beware". Do your research properly and the decision will be made before heartache happens. I have been in business for years and I believe anything you do you need to be prepared and leave a back door, just in case! I know people who have left their partners after 20 years just because they dont like the snoring or the toilet seat is left up/down or something stupid like that! So what is so hard about saying "not what I thought, I'll just go somewhere else" when it comes to where you live? Money... no! Too hard, not really if you hate it! Lazy because everyone else should change because I won't... yes more than likely! I am in the process of building again up here because Mt Barkers increase in land value has allowed me to sell up and build new and be freehold, so I have no complaints!

Yes I hear the hoons in their cards from time to time, but it is not 24/7. I hear more dogs barking than loud cars which is annoying to some degree, but again it is only every so often. I am 2-3 minutes from the centre of town so I am close to all facilities but no congestion issues here. I drive through town most mornings & evenings like most with rarely a hickup... only takes me 35 minutes to get right into Adelaide CBD in peak hour and that's parked.

Hey I love the country, I was born on the river in a real small town back then. I am a 4WDer and go away bush camping all the time. But now that everyone has a 4WD does not stop me from going out just because there are more "Toorak Tractors" in the bush. We had a shack up the Murray for years but did not sell everytime a new shack was built nearby or another boat was on the river... we just went up or skied at different times. Their was no use in complaining, just worked around it to benefit ourselves and did not upset anyone else along the way. If got too busy in a camping spot, just would not go back there next time or find another good one nearby. Stress is not good for anyone!

One thing we can agree on is that we disagree with each other... cheers

I don't think it's that bad, I just think (and know) there's a lot better. I was brought up to 'think outside the square'. So, this is what I do. You obviously love the place, so good luck to you. It wouldn't satisfy me, but luckily there's many other places to select from. Enjoy.

When I first chose Nairne, I chose it because as I was looking around the area deciding what area to move to I noticed Mount Barker was "too busy" for me. Of course living just off Woodside road, congestion eventually became a big issue there also but lets not get into that :)


Anyway, so I went in to Mount Barker knowing it was "too busy" for me but I really had no choice and it served it's purpose but I never did expect it too be as bad where I am as it currently is which is a shame as I actually love the road I live on, if the congestion issues weren't so bad I would persist. Anyone knew to the area wouldn't really have any real way of knowing fully what it's like here until actually living here. But what you don't seem to understand about my point and why it needs to be mentioned is that as anyone here knows this congestion issue stands to get a lot worse and thus this is an important factor on making the decision on whether to buy here or not which is what I thought these reviews are for?

It's great for you that you had previously bought a place when it was more affordable and now stand to benefit from the increase in value but for anyone trying to start out one must simply ask is the overly inflated prices (and rents) in MT Barker worth the cost. I absolutely don't think it is.

I believe that anytime you are willing to spend a few hundred thou' on something, you should do the research first (sorry, that's my cautious business mind at work) to avoid issues. If you know of the possible issues and you go ahead anyway, then again I say "buyer beware" and it becomes soely your fault, cannot blame others for what you did not see!

Housing is affordable here, I know of many young couple that have happily purchased here, in Nairne, Littlehampton etc without too many difficulties. We will never see housing near a major city for $50-100K anymore, thats a fact! I am not sure what you think is "affordable" but you can buy good homes for $260-300K. Rentals range from $250-500 per week for a house, nice homes $300-350 per week. I know as I will be renting during the build as have done my homework. Sure there are the $600-900K+ homes but that is just about anywhere in a built up, central area that Mount Barker has become. Except for "way-out" locations there are few places left that you can buy cheap and good and have all the facilities, sort of catch 22 really!

I DO understand you point about the forums are here to advise people the pitfuls they may not see, but really, no really... do you honestly think Mount Barker is as bad as you say it is? If you really think it is then sorry to hear this & I hope one day you will be able to find a place where you will be happy.... truly!

You said "I would rate 0 but it won't let me!" which is why I commented in the first place, these are my opinions only, I don't want to change your mind. I am just letting other readers know the view of someone that has a huge stake in this town with his family! The issues may be in or around your street, but not the whole township! Yes advise people of your experiences in you part of town, sure, but Mt Barker still has a lot to offer many people in comparison to what other parts of Adelaide offer.

You both had your say first and I was having mine, you both rubbished where I happily live so I put my 2 cents in. You are CON & I am PRO.... we won't change this, but now other readers will see a positive view on the town.

And you have every opportunity when writing your review just like I did but you decided to comment here and repeatedly discount my opinion for irrelevant reasons, thus I have clarified several times my reasons and I stand by them. My rating is the lowest it could possibly be, simply because of the development plans, anyone in Mount Barker and surrounds know full well it's structure does not support these changes and thus it will degrade further. The problems are not in just my street c'mon. And yes this is Adelaide not Sydney, prices are very expensive for what you get, whom looks for a house for 50-100k? again you have tried to discount my opinion with rubbish. Perhaps you stand to benefit from these development changes or perhaps you simply have rose coloured glasses on and feel defensive. I have never criticised the town per se or the people but rather the increasing size and thus congestion, it is nothing personal, you can pretend it isn't an issue all you like but it very well is. I have simply stated the truth as I see it, so people can research like you say they should.

If you believe I am trying to "rubbish" your opinion for "irrelevant reasons", then I am sorry you think that. If I had written a piece on how good Mt Barker IS... would you have jumped on to give your opposite opinion, or said nothing? That's what forums are for!

Anyway, you are discounting, even patronising me at every turn yourself, "rose coloured glasses", "defensive" and so on... c'mon! I never said YOU were speaking rubbish!!

I have a fair handle on what is going on now & in the future for the Mount, I know people and from what I have learned I do not believe it will be as bad, if they do what they say, as what the media and some actions groups are making it out to be. If I am wrong and I don't like it anymore, I'll move!

Lets leave it at that. As I said I don't want you to change your mind, but don't try to change mine! I just stuck up for the town I am very fond of, I am sure you would do the same for something you cared for. You have your opinion & I mine.... good luck :)

For anyone considering buying in Mt Barker in todays market, I urge you to look at the suburb data on this website. In one month the medium house price has gone from $340,000 to $515,000 in January! This is not a buyers market like realestate agents are currently claiming, it is overly inflated, they really seem to be trying to push up the prices right now. This doesn't seem to be just Mt Barker either. On the plus side with the new Mt Barker property development (7000 houses I think) over the next 15 years, means there will be even more and more properties on the market which means more competition.

..If I had $300,000 to $600,000 to play with, Mt Barker and/or surrounding areas would be far from my mind of an area to buy in. I realise that different people have different needs, however you could buy a relative palace in other areas of the state or country for this much. I'd probably go straight to Tasmania to buy!

Well, actually it was a very informative discussion for someone who is looking to buy in the area:)

I moved out, I only lasted 1 year :) Even now that we don't have to deal with it on a daily basis we still often avoid shopping there.

Have lived in Mount Barker for just over a year now and have to say the negative comments are hilarious. Coming from Sydney, there is no traffic at all and the population is quiet and carefree in comparison.

I love Mount Barker so far. I can understand if someone is used to this slower paced lifestyle. As a recent urbanite, never have I been able to get everywhere I want to go within half an hour. Travelling 2 hours into the city and then back again used to be the norm. Now the closest thing we get to road rage is being stuck behind a truck on the country roads.

No Mount Barker is terrible. Worst place to find a home, Employment is none existent and is the worst place to go shopping. Shops just come and go

People complain about traffic all the time, without realising they are actually part of it.

Anyways looking forward to move to Mt Barker with my Fam.