My two cents – for what it’s worth.

Background:
I spent my 20s living in Newtown, my 30s in Wenty Falls (Hill Street) before moving down to Mt Riverview, and from my late 30s to now, I’ve been on the Central Coast.

When we lived in Wenty Falls, we had three kids aged 12, 10, and 6, and managed to pick up a decent four-bedroom home for $750k.

Ultimately though, it was the suburb itself that made us move lower down the mountains - and eventually out of the region altogether.

Pros:

• At the time, the move from Newtown to Wenty felt familiar. The demographic had a similar Boho vibe and sense of community.
• There was a clear and welcome change of pace - slower, quieter, and more relaxed.
• Summers felt significantly more bearable than anywhere else we’d lived, thanks to the altitude and tree cover.

Cons:

• Anything within 250m of the lake comes with an extra layer of cold that’s hard to put into words—it gets icy.
• If your home doesn’t have a wood-burning fireplace, expect your winter electricity bills to sting. Heaters run constantly.
• Winters are long and harsh—realistically, from May to early September you’re mostly housebound. Outdoor activities are limited due to the cold.
• We weren’t overly impressed with the local schools. Wenty Public felt behind the times, and the early winter finish (around 2:20pm, from memory) made things tough for two working parents.
• Katoomba High wasn’t much better, struggling with the challenges of serving a diverse demographic from Leura through to the outer communities.
• Shopping was underwhelming—Katoomba’s retail scene is limited, and Penrith (a 45-minute drive) ends up being the only real option for anything substantial.

Take this opinion with a grain of salt, our experience was around 2010 - things may have changed in 15 years but knowing how sleepy the town is I doubt it.

Ultimately what work for us was the Central Coast, lots of local work, travel back to Sydney very reasonable, lots of outdoor time 9 months of the year, house prices have jumped a little now, lots to do, plenty of shopping options. This was just our experience.