RioMarina Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 With the pound souring and the dollar plumetting wage comparisons don't seem so favourable. Well done to anyone who went back to the UK at 1.4. Wise people! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jac2011 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Either way the currency falls I suppose you can only judge the quality of life by the life you can afford in the country, that part doesn't alter whether the currency changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 The exchange rate has no bearing on wages, when we migrated to Australia, the exchange rate was 2.6 - whilst I saw it drop to 1.5 it made no difference whatsoever - my salary stayed the same and what it paid for stayed the same (well my salary went up a bit as did the cost of living but unrelated to the exchange rate) Conventional wisdom says that your Australian salary needs to be 2.2 x your UK salary to have a similar lifestyle. Of course the exchange rate does impact the capital you can bring over which will impact your start-up lifestyle and the kind of deposit you may have for a house down the line. You don't have to bring everything over at once though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RioMarina Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 The exchange rate has no bearing on wages, when we migrated to Australia, the exchange rate was 2.6 - whilst I saw it drop to 1.5 it made no difference whatsoever - my salary stayed the same and what it paid for stayed the same (well my salary went up a bit as did the cost of living but unrelated to the exchange rate) Conventional wisdom says that your Australian salary needs to be 2.2 x your UK salary to have a similar lifestyle. Of course the exchange rate does impact the capital you can bring over which will impact your start-up lifestyle and the kind of deposit you may have for a house down the line. You don't have to bring everything over at once though. If you read the text it states comparable wages OZ to UK. Forgive me but the only direct product at that particular time when comparing wages is the exchange rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 If you read the text it states comparable wages OZ to UK. Forgive me but the only direct product at that particular time when comparing wages is the exchange rate. Yes, but as LR says such comparisons are always irrelevant whatever the exchange rate is. The only meaningful thing is what your wages can afford to buy you in the country you are earning and living in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rallyman Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Not much point in comparing wages to exchange rate unless you are moving to another country , then it's about weighing up quality of life to maybe losing out short term , Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewRomford Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 With the pound souring and the dollar plumetting wage comparisons don't seem so favourable. Well done to anyone who went back to the UK at 1.4. Wise people! This is a narrow sighted view - if the exchange rate changes again - should all that shifted back head back over to Oz again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northshorepom Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Agree with most of the above, the lesson most should take from this is that converting your salary at the prevailing exchange rate as a way of working out whether or not you'll be better off is a mistake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou8670 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 The exchange rate is only relevant when you're moving from one country to another and transferring funds, otherwise it's the cost of living against your salary in that country which is relevant. For us 1.9 is fab news as we are looking to move considerable funds to Oz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peach Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 With the pound souring and the dollar plumetting wage comparisons don't seem so favourable. Well done to anyone who went back to the UK at 1.4. Wise people! Nearly two years since you first started the Doomsaying, jusy sayin. http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/money-finance/147645-australian-economy-collapse.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 The exchange rate is only relevant when you're moving from one country to another and transferring funds, otherwise it's the cost of living against your salary in that country which is relevant. For us 1.9 is fab news as we are looking to move considerable funds to Oz. To a point. Imported goods in oz will get more expensive. Even home grown goods which require imports such as oil will also get more expensive. So the oz wages will lose spending power, just as uk salaries have in the uk over the last five years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Nearly two years since you first started the Doomsaying, jusy sayin. http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/money-finance/147645-australian-economy-collapse.html What do you call a really slow crash? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARYROSE02 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I'm very pleased that the pound has gone up against the dollar, because my income from the UK will be worth more, but when I first came to Australia, I never cared how wages, prices, cost of living, whatever, compared. Perhaps I should have done, but then I might never have 'taken the plunge!?' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 (edited) The exchange rate has no bearing on wages, when we migrated to Australia, the exchange rate was 2.6 - whilst I saw it drop to 1.5 it made no difference whatsoever - my salary stayed the same and what it paid for stayed the same... Of course the exchange rate does impact the capital you can bring over... I had exactly the same experience - there was a huge change in the exchange rate after I migrated. It should've had an effect in theory (more expensive imports etc) but I didn't notice any difference to my standard of living in Oz. You can't compare salaries between one country and another using the exchange rate - you have to look at what it buys in the country where you earn it. Edited January 23, 2014 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 To a point. Imported goods in oz will get more expensive. Even home grown goods which require imports such as oil will also get more expensive. So the oz wages will lose spending power, just as uk salaries have in the uk over the last five years. Yes but as long as wage rises match inflation you are not really affected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northshorepom Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 To a point. Imported goods in oz will get more expensive. Even home grown goods which require imports such as oil will also get more expensive. So the oz wages will lose spending power, just as uk salaries have in the uk over the last five years. That's not really happened due to exchange rates because the key pairing is with the US dollar, since that is what oil is priced in, and what the renminbi is still effectively tied to. GBP hasn't been so depressed against either of those, it's more been a case of the A$ being inflated against other currencies (and thankfully now easing) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARYROSE02 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 That's not really happened due to exchange rates because the key pairing is with the US dollar, since that is what oil is priced in, and what the renminbi is still effectively tied to. GBP hasn't been so depressed against either of those, it's more been a case of the A$ being inflated against other currencies (and thankfully now easing) I did not know what the 'Renminbi' is! Had to Google it. I was talking to a bloke in the doctor's waiting room, thought he was American, but he lived there for a long while, and has a US pension. He was toying with the idea of retiring to Huddersfield, and wanted to know what the cost of living is in the UK, "What is the cost of a pint of beer?" I don't know, probably cheaper in Huddersfield than Southampton. One of my neigbours has sold his unit - similar to mine, though upgraded - for $600,000, so with my UK home benefitting from the FX rate, I could be a millionnaire (but I can't spell it?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Wages are still the same no matter the exchange rate! Anyone who based wages off exchange rate was very simple minded! Its good news for tourists and people moving over here as whatever they bring over is worth a lot more than six months ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpo1971 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Makes absolutely no odds. Still got loads of spare cash in my pocket. Talk about clutching at straws! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lozzachino Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 At the end of the day its down to luck. We moved money to aus in march 2013 when the dollar was pretty much at its lowest. Why? Because we were moving in april. Couldnt wait any longer. We now have to send money back to the uk next month to pay for a new boiler in our property. You get what you get, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Unless you have millions and exchange for fun, there is nothing you can do about the rate. we are far better off in aus than in the uk, plus we have the benefit of feeling like we are on holiday every weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Yes but as long as wage rises match inflation you are not really affected. Unlikely in an economy with rising unemployment, but things may change. IMHO, oz has a year or two of readjustment pain to endure, but it won't be the end of the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newjez Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 That's not really happened due to exchange rates because the key pairing is with the US dollar, since that is what oil is priced in, and what the renminbi is still effectively tied to. GBP hasn't been so depressed against either of those, it's more been a case of the A$ being inflated against other currencies (and thankfully now easing) A pound was worth over two US dollars when I visited Florida in 2007. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RioMarina Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Nearly two years since you first started the Doomsaying, jusy sayin. http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/money-finance/147645-australian-economy-collapse.html This isn't even sport. Too Easy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fensaddler Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 The real cost of living exchange rate has been 2 - 2.2 for a long time. This was the advice I got when I moved out here and it remains entirely valid - and it is the only worthwhile comparison for wages. The rest is just noise, and only matters if you are moving capital about or buying goods from abroad. So the exchange rate heading towards 2:1 is great for us when we sell our UK house (there has to be some good news from that money pit...) but not so great for my CD collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicolac34 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I think using the current exchange rate to compare wages has long been disputed as a reliable way to work out whether it is worth making the move. It all depends on what that salary buys you. I've not noticed any change in my living costs here due to the rate rise. I do however notice the difference in exchange rate when I have to send money each month back to the UK to cover studnet loans. Having debt still in the UK and paying with the aussie dollar has gone from being cheap (at 1.4) to rather expensive (at 1.9). I hope to clear it all by the end of the year, but it's getting harder, my husbands student loan is now $3,000 more than it was when we first came out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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