Roseville Suburb Review

High-end, leafy and quiet suburb will be paradise for some, boredom for others, yet is inherently pretty - and very pricey.

Summary: Aspirational, peaceful and highly green, Roseville is a high-end North Shore suburb that’s a land of sprawling and manicured gardens largely dotted with impressive Euro-influenced older brick homes. It’s located in a desirable position which provides peace and quiet without sacrificing distance or connectivity from Sydney city, and has a massive shopping counterpart right next door. It’s no surprise, then, that it brings equally massive pricetags, and is not what anyone would ever call “lively” despite some handy amenities.

Key stats

The one word that best sums up Roseville would probably sit somewhere between “enchanting” and “boring” that may not actually exist in English.

There are aspects to this suburb that are achingly desirable, with exceptionally-crafted greenery throughout that has a very-British aspect to it and brings to mind the kinds of homes that fabled authors of the past would craft stories of fantasy, or whimsical children’s books from within.

That might sound really wanky, but even the most urban-loving, counter-culture hipster shouldn’t be able to deny the inherent charm many aspects of this suburb have.

Sure, there’s a bit of a “retirement village” feel due to all the old money here – but if you’re able to appreciate impressively-sized houses that have some history behind them, highly-safe streets that are no problem to walk down even late at night, and extremely clean and well-kept public spaces, Roseville checks all these boxes and then some.

There’s a marked contrast between Roseville’s back streets and its main retail strip. The suburb is bisected by the busy Pacific Highway, which is both noisy and continually congested as the region continues to grow.

Driving to and from here along main arteries is generally not good especially during peak, and it offers some decent bus services anyway making using public transport desirable if possible.

It’s along the highway where you’ll find both its train station – a well-maintained transit hub that provides a 20-ish minute commute into the Sydney CBD – and the suburb’s options for dining and shopping on either side.

Unlike some of the other absolutely dead green and upmarket North Shore suburbs elsewhere further north, to its credit Roseville’s handful of storefronts and cafes/restaurants is quite good given its size.

While there’s no major supermarket or anything of the like, it’s got small-scale fresh produce shops, newsagents, burger joints, chemists and the like on the east side of the station and a couple of quality local restaurants (shout out to SaltPepperNutmeg) and niche stores on the west.

It’s quite a friendly little local scene, where you may actually get to know the name of your local grocer, newsagent or burger joint owner and does feel fairly intimate as a result despite all the money on display. Its array of services oriented around healthcare – think chiropractors, medical clinics and the like – are helpful for the older crowd as well.

It’s also on the west where you’ll find perhaps its only unique “attraction” – the cool and quaint little Roseville Cinemas. This is a cosy little Art Deco-style venue for catching a flick which harks back to the days of old, and shows both major movies as well as a mix of overseas and arthouse films.

For anything bigger-scale shopping-wise, the best course of action is to hop on the train and head one stop over to Roseville’s big neighbour.

It’s hard to find two neighbouring suburbs in Sydney which differ from each other as starkly as Roseville and Chatswood. All it takes is one hill to separate an eternally-packed, high-density hub of transport, shopping and eastern dining versus Roseville’s mellow streetscape. Roseville residents can thus reap the benefits of a quick, major-city-style shopping journey before easily heading back home to peace and quiet.

Suburban Enchantment

In terms of its streetscape, Roseville is highly leafy and pretty overall, and in general exudes wealth. It’s dotted with retreat-style homes in which chimneys are still a thing, several of which are enormous manor-style homes complete with tennis courts – particularly along the likes of Shirley Road.

Think of a place in which the houses have names like “Eaglewood” and “Langhurst” and you’ve got an idea of what Roseville offers.

It’s also quite a “churchy” suburb dating back to its historic past, with multiple church buildings still here and in operation, while there’s also a certain Dutch/Scandinavian influence on many of its buildings. While historically it was pretty much the opposite of multicultural, Roseville’s demographics have continued to changed slightly.

Its extremely safe overall with one of the lowest aggregate crime rates in the region, and also very clean and well-maintained – a credit to the efforts of the local council. Roseville’s also quite walkable other than the steep portion of its east side where the hilly and busy Archibold Road runs parallel.

For such a leafy suburb in general, Roseville is a little lacking in public parkland. What there is here IS very nice and, again, kept in great condition – Loyal Henry Park on the west side is pretty if plain and unspectacular, while Roseville Park (with its oval and more sports equipment) is where to go for the more active types.

For a relatively small suburb, Roseville offers good schooling options both within its borders and close nearby. There’s both public and private options to choose from, while other facilities in Lindfield, Killara and other highly-regarded spots aren’t too far away.

It’s easy to see why Roseville is thus a desirable suburb for cashed-up families. Its mix of safety, good schools, decent green spaces and room to move check most of the boxes those with kids could want while offering the prospect of a reasonable commute to the CBD for parents.

Most of Roseville is the aforementioned low-density, sprawling homes however there are some options for apartment living. The majority of its blocks are mid-rise and located along Boundary Road – a busy and noisy thoroughfare that’s consistently packed with traffic.

If you’re the type who needs plenty of entertainment in their lives, Roseville is most certainly not the suburb for you.

Outside of its cinema and The Roseville Club (a decent RSL), there’s not much to do here outside of kick the ball around at the park with the kids or go play a round at the Roseville Golf Club. Chatswood’s presence nearby helps alleviate this a lot, however it’s never going to be the Inner West or home to any other kind of vibrant nightlife.

Roseville’s natural aspects are among its strongest points

Price-wise, Roseville ranks about as high as one might expect for a desirable and spacious slice of the North Shore.

Given the size of many of its homes it’s hard to find anything freestanding here for under $2 million, and even that typically scrapes the lower limit of what’s available. There are some smaller/less grandiose properties that go for under this amount, but they’re few and far between.

“It’s dotted with retreat-style homes in which chimneys are still a thing, several of which are enormous manor-style homes complete with tennis courts.”

Its rentals for apartments are also a fair chunk higher than the Sydney average, and with most of the newer blocks being located along the busiest and noisiest parts of Roseville it’s possible to end up losing some of what makes the suburb special in the first place.

Road noise and being adjacent to traffic are typically not why anyone would choose Roseville as a place to live. Rental prices for decent 2 bedroom apartments here average around the $600 per week mark – well above the overall standard even for Sydney.

The Verdict

For some, Roseville is going to be the epitome of “wealthy boring North Shore Sydney”, while for others it’s going to be a classy, quiet and pretty secluded escape from the urban bustle without sacrificing city connectivity.

It’s got a low crime rate, pretty and clean streets, and enough small-scale retail and dining to get by on a daily basis. For conveniences sake, Roseville is in many ways lucky for Chatswood’s existence as both the younger and older crowd can benefit by not having to travel too far for all shopping needs.

Families and retirees are traditionally going to be the demographic this suburb’s most tailored towards, but for younger professionals who aren’t fans of the “grit” or constant need for action other regions of Sydney offer it can still be appealing too.

Its prices will likely be a barrier for many of those who want to live here however, as it’s far from cheap and a tough market to crack into property-wise. In all, Roseville’s a suburb that makes you just want to curl up beside a fireplace – assuming you can afford to.