Hi there! Thought I should add an Australian comment in here. I have purchased several front loader washing machines second hand over the years, and am shortly going to purchase another, as the one I have had for four years prematurely died (the inner metal drum came loose and cheese-grated the outer plastic drum... it was impressive).
All up I am a much bigger fan of front loaders. They use less water, use less detergent and (in general) tend to be gentler on clothes (this is important as I have a very small wardrobe).
I'm currently in Perth, the land of crazy-high-salary and FIFO but the best hint on Gumtree is to look for something which looks relatively new and the reason for selling is moving (maybe put 'moving' as part of your search terms). Don't pay more than $200 to $250 for a decent one, although you'll get something that is serviceable for much less of course.
If you do decide to go with second-hand, when inspecting pay particular attention to the gasket on a front loader- these are expensive and fiddly to replace (but definitely within the realms of doable for a mustachian). Also pay attention to the smell of the drum. Most people don't clean their drum, leave the door shut so it is humid all the time and/or use far too much detergent and fabric softener so it smells. The smell is pretty straightforward to get rid of, but you can usually use it to bargain down a private seller.
Don't get a dryer if you live in Melbourne and only do 1-2 loads per week if you're not in a humid climate (I have lived most of my life in colder parts of Australia than Melbourne, with minimally heated houses, and have never needed one). All that lint you see in the dryer is clothes wearing out. Also- consider making some laundry liquid about 10L for about AUD3.00, and it's dead simple. Google has a heap of recipes, or I will post mine if you want.