St Mary's/West or Straty/Burwood

Hi all! I just got notified by my real estate agent that I'll now have to cop a 20% rental increase to my 1 bedder no car park in Darlinghurst. Spoke to a broker and I can purchase something for $800k which funnily means a mortgage repayment that is lower than the rent haha. So I'm keen to make a move.

I'm really considering Burwood/Strathfied which has a good commute to work which is at Town Hall, and the price point looks great. This also works with my lifestyle as I am single (36) and can mingle amongst it in the inner west/city area.

However a friend has told me that I could get a house out in the St Mary's/Granville/Guildford (basically anything west of Paramatta) and while the commute sounds terrible, I do have the option of WFH Thursday and Fridays. I even know of some people in the office who do 4 days WFH (might be a long shot though). The only reason I'd do this option is cause I guess a house appreciates more than an apartment, no strata/body corporate, and I can stay clear of any special levies/dodgy builders.

Has anyone been in a similar situation and what did you end up doing?