syd Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Hi everyone So with my Aus PR visa in hand and with three sets of interviews underway, the move to Aus has suddenly become a very real possibility. A good thing! However, after a few recent conversations with expats living here in South Africa, they've pretty much all said that Cape Town is the best city they've ever lived in - after 20 years in London and 5-10 in Sydney. That's all good and well, but I definitely need to move for work opportunities (limited for non-affirmative employees here, and not the same scale of opportunities in the digital arena), and want to make the best financial move I can. I'm hoping that someone is able to give me an idea of how these would compare in terms of ability to save money from the following salaries, for a single guy living alone: 1. Sydney: $140k including super -- $7500 per month after tax 2. London: £60k -- £3500 per month after tax I'd be hoping to save around R20k-R30k per month (South African Rand), which means: 1. $2700 in savings. Would the remaining $4800 be a livable salary for a single guy living a bus away from work in Sydney, including bus/rent/living costs? 2. £1300 in savings. Would the remaining £2300 be a livable salary for the same above, with tube instead of bus. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 I can believe people being fond of Cape Town, lovely city. For a single guy, $140k would be comfortable in Sydney, and you should be able to save on that, and find a flat in a reasonable part of the city. I'm not so confident that you'd be comfortable on £60K in London - you'd have to live a lot further out of the city and while groceries etc are much the same price in both countries, we've found eating out, entertainment and transport very expensive in London compared to Sydney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srh82 Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 For a decent place in London zone 2, you would be looking at rent of 300-400 pounds per week for a one bed flat, cheaper if you went for a house share, plus council tax and bills. I personally think Sydney would be similar in terms of rent, but transport would be cheaper. I would ask yourself where you really want to live. You should be able to make it work on that salary as a single person in both cities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Which is the better job, career-wise? Either salary is is pretty good and as a single bloke I doubt there would be much difference in the long term. London is the centre of a bigger pond and certainly when my son was a singleton living there that was a feature of his life. In Sydney well, you've got Sydney. It all depends on what other interests you may have too - if you live for surfing at the weekends then London won't cut it but if your passion is for international theatre then Sydney wouldn't do the job as well. Looks like you you are spoiled for choice really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toOZ2012 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 I would also look at career growth in your field. Also, all you need is 4 years(can be less if you already activated your PR) here and you get citizenship which may not mean much right away but could mean a lot if you ever want to come back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sustain Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 London experience, exposure to Europe is far more valuable than Sydney / Pacific Unless of course your career involves making surf boards To be blunt you have to think am I going to learn more, be exposed to more, make me ready for the next level (not just a job increase on the pay scale but level i.e. from Senior Manager to General Manager or General Manager to C Level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syd Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 I can believe people being fond of Cape Town, lovely city. For a single guy, $140k would be comfortable in Sydney, and you should be able to save on that, and find a flat in a reasonable part of the city. I'm not so confident that you'd be comfortable on £60K in London - you'd have to live a lot further out of the city and while groceries etc are much the same price in both countries, we've found eating out, entertainment and transport very expensive in London compared to Sydney. Thanks Marisa, this helps quite a bit. Clearly I'd need to be looking at 70k+ in London, if that becomes a reality. I would ask yourself where you really want to live. You should be able to make it work on that salary as a single person in both cities. Very good question. I just want to make sure that finances match my wishlist Which is the better job, career-wise? Either salary is is pretty good and as a single bloke I doubt there would be much difference in the long term. London is the centre of a bigger pond and certainly when my son was a singleton living there that was a feature of his life. In Sydney well, you've got Sydney. It all depends on what other interests you may have too - if you live for surfing at the weekends then London won't cut it but if your passion is for international theatre then Sydney wouldn't do the job as well. Looks like you you are spoiled for choice really. It's a really good choice, but like you said, it depends what I like to do after work too. Definitely more of a heritage hound that a beach bum I would also look at career growth in your field. Also, all you need is 4 years(can be less if you already activated your PR) here and you get citizenship which may not mean much right away but could mean a lot if you ever want to come back. The citizenship is attractive, especially with PR already secured. No risk of landing up with an employer I don't like, or being retrenched after year 3. London experience, exposure to Europe is far more valuable than Sydney / Pacific Unless of course your career involves making surf boards To be blunt you have to think am I going to learn more, be exposed to more, make me ready for the next level (not just a job increase on the pay scale but level i.e. from Senior Manager to General Manager or General Manager to C Level. No surfboards for me All digital. And yes, London has around 4x the number of opportunities, though it's going to take some hard work to find a willing sponsor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 To be honest as a single man you would have a pretty comfortable lifestyle in either place on those wages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syd Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 Thanks for the thumbs up, Bristolman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quokka2005 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Sounds good either way, you have decent choices. Just don't find a woman with a expensive shoe or handbag habit! :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syd Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 Sounds good either way, you have decent choices. Just don't find a woman with a expensive shoe or handbag habit! :laugh: Hahahaha! Very good advice, which I won't be ignoring Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bell123321 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Can only comment on the London side, but if you were prepared to live a little out of London (30-40 minutes commute) you would find a lot more for your money and have a decent amount of spare money left over each month. The figure you quoted is double mine and my husbands wage nearly and we have a little one. We live about 40 minutes out from London and feel we have a decent amount to live off. From the Sydney prospective your wage quoted is the same as my friend and her husbands who lives around the Epping area of Sydney (They find it tight but do have a decent size house and a little one) but as a singleton it should be more then fine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syd Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 That's really great and helpful news. Thank you Bell! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flag of convenience Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 More the experience sought I'd have thought. Is one of the world's most cosmopolitan cities together with all that entails preferable, than a second tier city, with less in every aspect more to your liking? Some things arise above money value. Just know your own values into what is more important at the stage of life you find yourself at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Sounds good either way, you have decent choices. Just don't find a woman with a expensive shoe or handbag habit! :laugh: I think most women you're likely to meet living and working in London or Sydney will be earning enough moolah to buy their own accessories and then some. I'm in IT and us girls do get quite a fair salary. Of course if the OP is looking for romance, a minibreak to some of the worlds most fantastic cities is on your doorstop if you're in London. Depends whether travel, culture, job opportunities are your thing or whether you'd prefer beach and climate. I'm biased but as much as I love Sydney, I reckon that London is an extremely exciting place to be if you are young, ambitious and willing to work hard. If you're very ambitious work wise, I'd plump for London - chances are a top job may take you all around the world. Both places great though, eminently affordable on your salary level and I'm sure you'll have a brilliant time in either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syd Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 Thanks for the additional food for thought. Looks like I'll be ok either way, so it's just about pursuing the opportunities now and seeing how things pan out. Over to the universe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Thanks for the additional food for thought. Looks like I'll be ok either way, so it's just about pursuing the opportunities now and seeing how things pan out. Over to the universe! A few more thoughts for you to mull over. You mention you're more of a heritage hound than a beach bum - there is no heritage in Australia! Modern Australia is a much younger country than South Africa, and the traditional Aboriginal lifestyle didn't leave a lot of evidence apart from some precious rock art in a few places. One of the reasons my oh was so keen to move to the UK in retirement was the access to the wealth of heritage buildings and museums in the UK and Europe compared to Oz. On the other hand, even though I'm far from a beach bum I really miss the weather in Australia (and in Southern Africa where I lived for three years). The Aussie weather and the outdoor lifestyle are much more like the South African lifestyle, British society is very different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gough Whitlam Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 If you like foreign travel I would avoid Sydney like the plague. Apart from a few destinations in the South Pacific and NZ everything seems to takes hours to get to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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