Latest news with #Cranebrook
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Single satellite image showing suburbs now - compared with the 1990s - proves the great Australian dream has been shattered. MATT JONES reports
A simple satellite image of Sydney 's western suburbs sums up what the average Aussie family has lost in the past three decades. The picture shows two suburbs, Cranebrook and Jordan Springs, separated by the Northern Road - and 30 years of history. On the older Cranebrook side, nice-sized homes were built in the 1980s and 1990s on 600-plus square metre blocks. They boast big yards for the kids to run around in, and, sometimes, swimming pools. On the newer Jordan Springs side, it's tiny homes squashed in next to each other like sardines. You have to zoom in on Google Earth to see a small strip of grass in each backyard; homes are separated by just inches, and you can't even park two cars side-by-side in the driveway. Where would you want to raise a family? Due to the cost of property, it's almost impossible to achieve the great Australian dream of owning your own house nowadays. But if you're lucky enough to buy your own house in a new suburb, it's still a grim situation compared to what Australia once built last century. In the 1980s and 1990s many families were able to live in a four-bedroom home with two bathrooms, two living areas, a double car garage and front and back yards big enough to play in. And all that was, often, achieved on one parent's average wage. I know this is a fact because that's how I, and everyone I knew, grew up in western Sydney. Not many households earned more than $70,000 a year in the 1990s but we still had plenty to show for it. But 25 years later in Australia – that's all gone now. In my household, dad went to work six days a week and my two brothers and I were raised at home by mum while he was away. Now, both parents must work fulltime to buy a home, or rent, and the kids get sent off to daycare to be raised by virtual strangers. How did we get to that awful situation in a couple of decades? 'Did anyone see all this coming? It's a good question,' Peter Drennan, director at research and data insights company told Daily Mail Australia. 'You need to look back to last century when conditions were easier and when one income was enough. 'I moved regionally, away from Sydney, to buy a house like they used to make them.' From the end of World War II to 2000, Aussie families didn't have to give up backyards for community playgrounds and living in strata complexes. In the late 1960s, more than 70 per cent of Australian households owned their home. And they were better homes, on a quarter-acre block, surrounded by a garden, with a Hills Hoist and a barbecue out back. Some even had pools. In the new suburbs today you can't even fit a hot tub in the backyard. Every time I drive through a newly built Sydney suburb like Jordan Springs I just think about how good '80s and '90s living was. The way we've constructed our 'new' suburbs for the current and next generation to live in is depressing. Sure, technological advances have made some things easier and more convenient but I'm glad I grew up with the phone attached to the wall rather than in my pocket. 'That's not something that's mentioned a lot when they do comparative studies, that a home 40 years ago is different to one now in terms of the size of the land and the build quality,' Mr Drennan said. 'Houses now are made to be as cheap as possible because the costs of producing everything has gone up which means the quality of the house isn't what it used to be.' According to analysis from since 1975 the average home price in Australia's capital cities rose by a stunning 3,435 per cent. In that time average fulltime wages increased by just 1,183 per cent. In Sydney the median home price increased from just $34,000 in 1975 to $1,627,625 in 2024 – a price-to-income ratio that has nearly quadrupled. data recently revealed that mortgage repayments in Sydney now require 143 per cent of the national median monthly wage - which was up from just 44 per cent five decades ago. In Brisbane house prices climbed by 3,801 per cent, increasing the price-to-wage ratio from four times in 1975 to 11 times today. It means the city's monthly mortgage repayment now consumes 81 per cent of the average wage, compared to 31 per cent in 1975. It's worse in Melbourne with mortgage payments taking up 91 per cent of monthly wages. Only half of the housing market was affordable to service a loan in September 2024 for a household with a relatively high gross income of about $172,000 per annum. The facts and figures show just how easy the Baby Boomers had it. 'I've gone through the numbers and it was much easier for the Baby Boomers even if they say it wasn't,' Mr Drennan said. 'They may have had high interest rates for a few years but that doesn't mean it was harder. 'Baby Boomers bought homes when prices were just four to five times the median wage, while today's families are paying double to triple that.' Things are very different to what they were at the turn of the century, so what will buying a home and the family environment look like in another 25 years' time? 'There needs to be a fundamental change that's going to impact the change in house prices and, currently, there's nothing,' Mr Drennan said. 'It could happen, but something needs to change, whether it's a government change or something that's unknown at the moment. There's nothing that's being done right now to change things.' That just makes me want to go out to the backyard of the old family home and hug the Hills Hoist, maybe even swing around on it again.
News.com.au
4 days ago
- News.com.au
Western Sydney medical centre wrecked after teen allegedly crashes stolen car after cop chase
A teenager has been charged after allegedly crashing a stolen BMW into a medical centre and causing extensive damage following a police chase through Sydney's west. About 11.30PM on Friday, police attempted to stop the SUV, which they allege was stolen from a Cambridge Park hotel that night, on the Northern Rd, Cranebrook. When the driver allegedly failed to stop, police initiated a pursuit but terminated it a short-time later due to safety concerns. Police allege the BMW later collided with a Mitsubishi SUV on the Great Western Hwy at St Marys, before crashing into a nearby medical centre. The alleged driver – a 16-year-old boy – was arrested at the scene with the assistance of the Dog Squad after attempting to hide in the centre. He was treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to hospital under police guard. The teen was later charged with police pursuit not stop drive dangerously, take/drive conveyance without consent of owner, and never licenced person drive vehicle on road. He to appear before children's court on Saturday. The driver of the Mitsubishi – a 39-year-old woman – was also treated at the scene, but was not taken to hospital. The Traffic and Highway Patrol Command have since established a crime scene with Strike Force Puma to investigate the incident. Images of the medical centre obtained by 7News showed extensive destruction, including a broken sign and debris strewn across the floor.
RNZ News
01-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Emergency warnings and evacuation orders in place across NSW coast, after damaging rain and winds
By Anton Rose , Isabella Ross , ABC The tree fell onto the front part of the vehicle in Cranebrook, narrowly missing the driver. Photo: ABC News Several regions across the state are being warned to take shelter and almost 30,000 people are without power after a severe weather system battered parts of NSW overnight . The SES has issued warnings for those around Burril Lake, near Ulladulla, to seek shelter after downpours have caused significant rises in waterways there. About 200 properties are impacted with floods reaching above floor level in homes, NSW SES said. Others in Sanctuary Point, near Jervis Bay, have been warned to move to higher ground after hazardous flooding has made it unsafe to evacuate. Evacuate now alerts have also been issued on the Central Coast by the SES after severe coastal erosion in Wamberal and The Entrance. So far, seven emergency warnings remain in place along the NSW coast. Almost 30,000 people are waking up on Wednesday morning to widespread outages. Multiple providers are reporting disruptions across their networks from Newcastle to as far south as Batemans Bay on the South Coast. According to their own figures, Endeavour customers appear to be the most impacted, with 17,000 homes without power. The SES on scene after a boat with people on it came loose in Kiama overnight. Photo: Supplied: NSW SES NSW SES crews have responded to more than 2,320 incidents since the start of this event, including floodwater rescues around the South Coast. The falls topped at more than 200mm in Ulladulla overnight, with flood rescue crews responding to a series of requests for help in Shoalhaven. "These incidents are a timely reminder that roads are slippery, and conditions can become dangerous quickly," SES Acting Assistant Commissioner Allison Flaxman said. "Please never drive, walk or play in floodwaters. If you do come across a flooded road, turn around and find an alternative route." NSW SES crews have responded to more than 2,320 incidents since the start of this weather event. (ABC News: Nabil Al-Nashar) Photo: ABC News: Nabil Al-Nashar Overnight, a motorist was taken to hospital after a large tree fell, bringing down high-voltage power lines in Cranebrook. On arrival at the scene, crews found the the tree lying on the roadway with a damaged vehicle nearby, the driver sustaining minor injuries. The severe conditions also brought trees down onto power lines and railway tracks at the foot of the Blue Mountains in Lapstone. Major train delays and power outages occurred following the damage. - ABC
Daily Mail
01-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Heartbroken family of Dannielle Finlay-Jones reveal the one change that could've saved their daughter after she was killed by her Bumble match
The family of a woman who was killed by a man she met on Bumble claim tougher bail and AVO laws might have meant their daughter would still be alive today. Jacky Finlay-Jones refuses to say the name of the man who murdered her only daughter, Dannielle, at her friend's home in Cranebrook, western Sydney, on December 18, 2022. The 31-year-old had been on just three dates with Ashley Gaddie, 33, when he brutally assaulted her before fleeing to the Blue Mountains, where he was found on a cliff two days later. Although Dannielle didn't know it at the time, Gaddie had five AVOs taken out on him by five different women and was on bail for a domestic violence offence when he killed her. Dannielle met Gaddie on a dating app. He only had to give his first name before having access to thousands of women, despite his history of gendered violence. Ms Finlay-Jones and her son, Blake, on Sunday said they've struggled to move forward in life when domestic violence is still such a prevalent issue in Australia. 'As much as we have hoped and prayed that we were the last person this would ever happen to, that things would change, there has been over 100 deaths last year, the numbers are going up and it's just devastating,' Ms Finlay-Jones told 'Danni would still be here if there had been stricter bail laws for repeat offenders and tougher rules around AVOs. In her case the man, we don't use his name, had five AVOs taken out on him by five different women.' Blake, who was due to meet Gaddie over Christmas lunch, said Gaddie's existing AVOs would have been a massive 'red flag' for the family, had they known about them. Worsening the family's situation was the death of Gaddie, who was found unresponsive in his cell in April 2024. His death meant Dannielle's murder would not be heard in court and Gaddie 'will always to the outside world be known as the accused'. Now, the Finlay-Jones family has to wait through a backlog of cases before the coroner can reach Dannielle's. 'We understand a small wait, but it has already been one year since the accused took his own life, one year of your lives are still in a holding pattern, one year of any recommendations that may have helped other domestic violence victims come out of the inquest wasted due to the time delay, the wait is just horrible, it is almost like they have forgotten the victim's family and friends,' Ms Finlay-Jones said. The frustrated mother said it's unfair for her family, and other victims', to be forced to live in 'limbo' while domestic violence continues to rule headlines. 'These men have a pattern, they are charming, the love bombing, then the controlling, and then the escalation,' Blake said. 'It's almost like a hate crime, like a woman's hate crime and there he is on the end of an app. Swipe the wrong type of situation, a murder waiting to happen.' Ms Finaly-Jones believes the only way her family will get closure will be with a coronial inquest with recommendations on how to prevent further deaths. NSW Local Courts confirmed no dates have been set for a coronial inquest into Dannielle's or Gaddie's deaths. Attorney-General Michael Daly said 'the NSW Government is working to strengthen the coronial system'. 'Funding worth $18 million for the Bondi Junction inquest has allowed an additional magistrate to be appointed. This ensures other inquests and inquiries can continue to progress,' he said. 'We have also made it harder for accused serious domestic violence offenders to get bail and ensured those who are bailed are electronically monitored by Corrective Services.'
News.com.au
18-05-2025
- Health
- News.com.au
Teenager hospitalised after falling off e-bike in Cranebrook, Sydney
A teenager has been flown to hospital after suffering head injuries following an accident on an e-bike in a major city. A teenager has suffered head injuries following an e-bike accident in Greater Western Sydney. Paramedics were called to Cranebrook after reports a teenager had fallen off an e-bike on Saturday about noon. A CareFlight helicopter was called to transport the teenager, who sustained head injuries as a result of the fall. A specialist doctor and paramedics provided critical care to the teenager at the scene before he was flown to Westmead Hospital. The teenager remains in a stable condition.
