Guest spreadingwings Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Based on some numbers given to me by someone over there, the numbers below are the monthly costs needed to live in Sydney. Does this sound about right? Are there any numbers that too high / too low, or any items missing? Costs are for two adults living together in a rented detached house in a decent suburb. Rent $3500 Electricity $100 Water $100 Petrol $130 Tolls $30 Opal card $200 TV $60 Medical $250 Life insurance$ 350 Mobile $30 Internet $60 Groceries and general spending $1000-$2000 Also, is public medical free for permanent residents? Is private medical insurance still required or is public good enough? THANK YOU Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
octatonic Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Public is very good if my mum's recent cancer treatments are anything to go by. Whether you should take out private health will depend on how much you are earning. There is a tax rebate for higher earners to take themselves out of the public system. Can't help with the rest as I haven't live in Sydney recently so don't really know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spreadingwings Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Public is very good if my mum's recent cancer treatments are anything to go by.Whether you should take out private health will depend on how much you are earning. There is a tax rebate for higher earners to take themselves out of the public system. Can't help with the rest as I haven't live in Sydney recently so don't really know. Good to know that public care is decent quality, thanks! Are permanent residents (versus citizens) allowed access to medicare from day 1 of arrival? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parley Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Rent is obviously highly variable depending on where in Sydney you want to live. Many would pay a lot less than that what you have put. Obviously not everyone could afford $750 per week for rent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
octatonic Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Good to know that public care is decent quality, thanks! Are permanent residents (versus citizens) allowed access to medicare from day 1 of arrival? Yes they are. Have a read of this: http://www.immi.gov.au/Live/Pages/australian-permanent-resident-information.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 rent depends on where you'll be. The areas I'm looking at will only get me a 2-bed apartment for $750 PW, so to get a house, you'd have to go a pretty long way out of the CBD. So depending on where you work in relation to where you can afford to live, you may need to look at your petrol/tolls/OPAL costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
octatonic Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 I actually found my old Bondi flat on an Australian property website a few weeks ago. I used to pay $200 a week, in 2000. Now it is $650 a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 rent depends on where you'll be. The areas I'm looking at will only get me a 2-bed apartment for $750 PW, so to get a house, you'd have to go a pretty long way out of the CBD. So depending on where you work in relation to where you can afford to live, you may need to look at your petrol/tolls/OPAL costs. My daughter rents a 2 bed terrace in Paddington Sydney, with small garden for $750 per week. It's a lovely area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 My daughter rents a 2 bed terrace in Paddington Sydney, with small garden for $750 per week. It's a lovely area. that's pretty good @ramot! I haven't even looked at Paddington as I assumed it would be hugely expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 It really is such a great area, seems to have a bit of an atmosphere that is lacking in other areas, and good transport. they only moved there about last June, and paid more in Bondi for 2 bed 2 bath flat, but they are small, and long, but have a great character. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 that's pretty good @ramot! I haven't even looked at Paddington as I assumed it would be hugely expensive. Sydney is odd like that. All the inner suburbs are hugely expensive but there are still pockets of little old flats and terraces which are a bargain if you don't mind a bit of shabby chic and a few cockroaches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Sydney is odd like that. All the inner suburbs are hugely expensive but there are still pockets of little old flats and terraces which are a bargain if you don't mind a bit of shabby chic and a few cockroaches. Sorry I find that statement a bit odd, don't think the area is particularly shabby or shabby chic, and cockroaches can be dealt with. an interesting comparison on rental prices: Sydney/London We rent our ex council terrace house small garden in the shabby(?) council part of Islington for 500 UK pds weekly and the tenants have to pay council tax on top. So probably comes out more expensive for a similar property in London. Much prefer the Paddington area to our London one, which is now sadly full of feral street children.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Sorry I find that statement a bit odd, don't think the area is particularly shabby or shabby chic, and cockroaches can be dealt with. an interesting comparison on rental prices: Sydney/London We rent our ex council terrace house small garden in the shabby(?) council part of Islington for 500 UK pds weekly and the tenants have to pay council tax on top. So probably comes out more expensive for a similar property in London. Much prefer the Paddington area to our London one, which is now sadly full of feral street children.. I wasn't talking about the area, I was talking about the actual properties. Bondi is a perfect example where you'll find renovated flats going for $1000 a week and original 1920's flats going for less than half that - but they will be a bit worn round the edges and may not be all that well maintained. Of course there is always that kind of variation of price and quality in any suburb, but in the inner suburbs it seems to be more extreme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Sorry I thought you meant Paddington, sure you are correct about Bondi, but out of interest my daughters terrace is fully renovated, but I have to be honest, our UK terrace is in need of a bit of tlc. How ever as it is always rented out, our latest tenants have been there for 3 years, we repair and replace always, but will update it if we ever put it up for sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted January 4, 2015 Share Posted January 4, 2015 Sydney is odd like that. All the inner suburbs are hugely expensive but there are still pockets of little old flats and terraces which are a bargain if you don't mind a bit of shabby chic and a few cockroaches. after having looked at domain.com.au for quite a few months now, I do see what you mean. There are some fairly good bargains to be had, if you don't mind decor from the previous decades! In London, it all seems to be a rip off, no matter what the state of decor is. I'm personally keen for a second bathroom and a smart kitchen, which a lot of the older places don't necessarily have. But I may have to re-evaluate once jobs/salaries become clearer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 5, 2015 Share Posted January 5, 2015 Sorry I thought you meant Paddington, sure you are correct about Bondi, but out of interest my daughters terrace is fully renovated, but I have to be honest, our UK terrace is in need of a bit of tlc. How ever as it is always rented out, our latest tenants have been there for 3 years, we repair and replace always, but will update it if we ever put it up for sale. I mean both. It's common throughout the Eastern Suburbs. It always surprises me to see old unrenovated 1930's unit blocks being rented out cheaply between million-dollar mansions in Bellevue Hill, for instance, when the landlord could be charging double the rent if he only gave the place a basic renovation. I can only imagine they're owned by elderly landlords who either don't realise what they're sitting on, or don't want to spend any money. Your daughter is very lucky to have found something fully renovated for a reasonable price! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 that's pretty good @ramot! I haven't even looked at Paddington as I assumed it would be hugely expensive. It is hugely expensive for many people - depending on what sort of work you do. A great many people only earn around $50,000 per annum which after taxes would leave just about enough to cover that rent in Paddington. As an example I have just secured a new job as a software developer after being out of work for most of last year. I have over 20 years experience and my salary is $65,000 per annum. There is no way I could afford to pay $750 per week rent. Your budgeted electricity cost looks too low. My mum's last quarterly bill was almost $600 and she lives in a very small house on her own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARYROSE02 Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 I imagine that $750 per week is split between two, which seems reasonable for a terrace in Paddo. I imagine (or hope) that my one bedroom flat in Surry Hills would rent for between $500 and $600 per week (with a garage.) The young guys I know who rent around here seem to pay $250/300 for a room in a terrace house. Some of those monthly costs seem reasonable, others I'm not sure about. I guess, in some suburbs, rent goes down, whilst commuting costs goes up, as you go further out from the City, and then you have to add on the other, non-financial 'costs' of time wasted commuting. If you lived in Paddo, you could practically walk into the City, downhill at least, to the City, too. I don't have medical insurance, although it's something I've been meaning to look into. I try to use 'bulk-billing' doctors, and pay cash for other services, dentists, podiatrists, etc. Last year, I did pay 'big bucks' for two operations, although I could have waited longer and had them done in public hospitals. As I spent over $3,000, I think I will be getting some tax relief on my 2014/15 return. $30 monthly for a mobile? I wish! But that's an extravagance I don't mind paying - $81 per month including $11 insurance, and another $93 per month for Foxtel. Perhaps I should drop Foxtel, but my phone is on a two-year contract. Anyway, it's Sydney, Australia's 'Big Apple' and you have to pay for the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkeith109 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Sydney Morning Herald published an article about rental costs yesterday: http://smh.domain.com.au/real-estate-news/sydneys-most-expensive-suburbs-to-rent-bellevue-hill-northbridge-castlecrag-20150116-12rn9l.html?eid=email:nnn-13omn656-ret_newsl-membereng:nnn-04/11/2013-news_am-dom-news-nnn-smh-u&campaign_code=13INO010&et_bid=22347934&promote_channel=edmail&mbnr=MTMwMjAxNzg Dunno where you got ur figures from, but Sydney is affordable for anyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Sydney Morning Herald published an article about rental costs yesterday: Dunno where you got ur figures from, but Sydney is affordable for anyone. Those are median figures, which means they include everything from studio apartments to houses. In the inner city areas, where there are lots of small apartments, that skews the figures. Also you do realise that rental figure is per week? And the OP did say she wanted a "decent suburb". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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