Jibbah24 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Afternoon all... I have just 'invested' around an hour reading through some of the 'Cost of Living' threads and I've got to say that I feel a little better having done so. I have been a member of PIO for around 12 months now and the one thing that seems to be ringing in my ears more than any other is that Australia is sooooo much more expensive than the UK. Having looked through some of the figures on the site though this really doesn't seem to be the case. Food certainly seems to be more expensive but then this looks to be balanced out by the fact that utilities and petrol is so much cheaper. I'm beginning to think that the discrepancy here is that people are including their initial set up costs having made the move. Our position is that we will be paying a big whack up front and bringing everything with us.....40ft container full to the rafters (even asked if we could put a roof rack on it to add some more gear!!! :biggrin:) plus another 40ft container with our two cars in it!!!! I would much prefer to take the hit in the UK and cut out the poor exchange rate than face the pain in Aus. Real estate seems to be the other area which is causing a skewed comparison. Australia is still struggling with high purchase and high rents whereas the UK has slowed down and people are currently 'enjoying' the lowest interest rate in decades. This won't last and when the UK rates start to increase the cost of living in the UK will start to feel much higher. I've noted a few of my UK outgoings below and they seem way more than anything quoted on this thread: £500 pm Food £173 pm Council Tax £70 pm Oil (no mains gas) £50 pm Electric £38 pm Water Rates and of course £.136 per litre fuel.....even my bloody LPG has gone up to 70p per litre! Life's bloody expensive everywhere!!! :arghh: Thoughts......??:confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steen1976 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 From what I can gather from my research etc that generally your weekly spend is pretty much equal. But big purchases like cars, electrical items and so on are higher in Oz. Some people say the weekley costs are less, some say its more. But the big issue at the moment is property. It's waaaaay higher in Oz. House prices will take a tumble. New entrants onto the market are currently frozen out. That slows the market until an eventual crash. It will happen in time. But that can push rental costs up if you are choosing to rent. Good point about interest rate rises in the UK though as they are inevitable so worth factoring in when doing a comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpersgirl Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Hmmmmmm I'm interested in this but have NO head for figures at all! We've just started sorting out what we'll be taking with us and have pretty much decided not to take tv's, dvd players and the ilk as ours are getting on a bit and we thought we'd buy new when out there. However reading this is making me wonder whether it might be wiser to buy electrical items over here and include in the shipping? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jibbah24 Posted February 12, 2011 Author Share Posted February 12, 2011 Hmmmmmm I'm interested in this but have NO head for figures at all! We've just started sorting out what we'll be taking with us and have pretty much decided not to take tv's, dvd players and the ilk as ours are getting on a bit and we thought we'd buy new when out there. However reading this is making me wonder whether it might be wiser to buy electrical items over here and include in the shipping? There are plenty on the site that will advocate you getting rid of as much as possible and then just buy it all when you get there. I personally can't see the sense in it as you get hit with a double whammy. Lose around 20% on the exchange rate and pay around 10% more in Oz as many big electrical items are much more expensive. Buying in the UK also means you know your way around the market and where best to get a good deal. One thing to note though is that if you buy new and take them less than 12 months after purchase they could get picked up by customs. Some shippers said not to do it and others said it was nothing to worry about as customs would only get suspicious if you had 'kots' of tv's in your container. We're getting rid of our old CRT tv's and will be sourcing newish one from ebay!!:jiggy: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Hmmmmmm I'm interested in this but have NO head for figures at all! We've just started sorting out what we'll be taking with us and have pretty much decided not to take tv's, dvd players and the ilk as ours are getting on a bit and we thought we'd buy new when out there. However reading this is making me wonder whether it might be wiser to buy electrical items over here and include in the shipping? Hi harpersgirl, I actually brought everything with me... bar a flat screen TV. I am very pleased I did... items like Russell Hobbs Cordless Kettles were half the price in the Uk as to over here, De Longhi Microwave/Ovens etc. and they sailed through Customs.. I purchased as they were packing the container some Linn sound systems:laugh: and this I did declare, enclosing the invoice etc etc. and no problems. Good quality towels, and linen, just removed the price tags, white china dinner services etc. I loath shopping for household goods but certainly I find it easier and cheaper to shop in Europe and have a ready made home when your container arrives.. Others like to start afresh when they land, which I respect also. Best wishes Susie x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selah Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 With immigration, you really have to make a decision about why you want to make the move. If it's for financial reasons it's not a great decision but overall lifestyle - it may be. We were one of those unfortunates who applied in 2007 when property was low and exchange was high - due to a series of unfortunate events we arrived in 2009 when the exchange rate had plummeted and our property value in UK plummeted as well. We would have been mortgage free - now we are sitting here with a mortgage triple the size with a smaller house. Food and clothing is much more expensive. We also pay $440 month on medical insurance and we are on a permanent visa. And the real challenge is because a non-working spouse is counted as a dependent and therefore number of kids and non-working spouse decreases amount you can borrow - it was immediately clear we both had to work. I have to say as well this is in Adelaide which is considered better than other places. Would we move back? Not at the moment. We are both working harder and longer but it's right for us for now. My OH is actually in UK at the moment for an emergency funeral and he is commenting on how much cheaper everything is but still not reason for moving back. We're here and its right for now. I would take EVERYTHING. I bought cheap toasters and kettles from ASDA and just changed the plugs when we got here. That type of stuff is expensive. TV's from here because of signal stuff but really glad I stocked up on t-shirts, underwear, etc for the next couple of sizes for all the kids because clothes are expensive. Good luck and sometimes you just have to do it! Liz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpersgirl Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Thank you both for your replies :wubclub: That's certainly made me think and I'm a big Ebay queen Jibbah so I feel a splurge coming on! lol I actually do enjoy home shopping Susie... much prefer to food shopping or even clothes shopping! I suppose I thought that because of the closeness to China etc those kinda things might be cheaper in Oz...but as you say I''ll be more familiar with what I'm buying here in the UK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockola57 Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 I'LL probably get slated for it,but having recently returned from the UK,back to OZ,i was generally amazed at how cheap many things are in the UK,and equally,when i arrived here in OZ two and a half years ago,i was amazed at how expensive things are here,in comparison to what i was used to,BUT,strangely,as we are both working,and get decent wages,it is better here in OZ for us.We are older now,and more careful with our dosh,and if we wanted all the trappings of wealth many have here,then we would be in the poor house PDQ.This of course was also the case in the UK.If you are coming here and expecting a huge modern house on the seafront with pool etc,and big flash 4 wheel drive then i feel for most people this is just a pipe dream(as it was for us)Most of us cut our cloth accordingly when we get here,out of necessity,and as time goes by we learn to adapt.Don't be put off just because of financial concerns,as there really is more to the equation than just the cost of living.Cant put a price on being happier!!!!:yes::wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpersgirl Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Cant put a price on being happier!!!!:yes::wink: Hear hear!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest36187 Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Depends where you get things. Head to KMart and there are kettles, toasters and sanwich toasters for $9 each! Edited to add: Saying taht, I have no idea anymore what things cost in UK!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berto Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Hi Jibbah24, do you mind if I ask you how much the 40ft container for your cars cost? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest cricketbackinengland Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 You have to examine how your income is spent or how you prioritise spending your money in order to work out it's true value or do any kind of comparison with the UK. For example, if you are a family with 3 growing children, the money you will spend the most will be on food, schools and clothes. These things are more expensive in Australia however you can shop smart and buy food from farmers markets plus clothing from markets too.I personally find that food is is much cheaper in the UK because you have a lot more competition with supermarkets plus you have all the deals like own brands the buy one, get one free. You don't have these offers in Australia so a weekly shop can be expensive. If you're a growing family, you will probably expect to live in a larger house with a yard and pool. Houses are currently more expensive than the UK and mortgage interest rates have gone up 8 times in the last year with more interest hikes on the cards so housing is definitely more expensive. Then there's rates and water rates plus other utility bills. I lived on the Gold Coast for 7 years and struggled to keep up with soaring costs. Now I'm back in the UK, our general household bills are much cheaper by comparison. Yes petrol is cheaper but you have to drive longer distances to get anywhere because Australia is so big. Cars are much cheaper in the UK as are appliances plus you can buy a lot of things at silly prices at car boot sales in the UK. These are brilliant bargain places for things like, household goods, books, CD's, DVD's, children's clothes and toys. All in all, whether Australia is more expensive or not depends on how you prioritise your spending. If you can afford to live comfortably, then it may cost you more in Australia but if you think it's worth it then you probably don't mind paying extra for the additional lifestyle benefits. For me personally, I have much more money in my pocket back in the UK. I found that it was all the hidden costs of living in Australia that reduced my income such as the ridiculously high, extortionate water rates. Since the water companies have been privatised, bills have trebled. There is a war going on between GC residents and the water company as I write. The problem was that I never knew how much higher utility bills were likely to go and more worryingly, there was no regulation to protect the consumer. I found that prices only ever go up in Oz, they don't come down. For example, if the price of bananas went up because of drought, they never came back down again when we had monsoon weather. I find in the UK my food bill is one third of what it was in Oz. I would work out how you spend your money then decide if you could afford to live comfortably in Australia. There can be some surprises. One big surprise for example, is that with the exception of Queensland, if you call an ambulance in any of the other states, you can end up with a huge bill! In Queensland, you pay ambulance cover with your electricity bill. I think you also pay it again on your rates bill. Just in case you get run over twice in one day. Before you move to Australia, go online and read the local news and papers to see what's happening with costs, charges and other expenses in that area and who is paying for it. I also feel much safer with the UK banks. Under Kevin Rudd's government last year, stimulus packages were offered to house buyers to keep the property market afloat. People rushed to buy while interest rates were low, especially a lot of first time buyers. Once hooked into a loan, the banks began pushing rates up quickly. Now many are trapped with mortgages and heading for negative equity as property prices drop. Be careful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 I have alot of friends and family in Australia and all of them say their gas/electric and rates bills are far cheaper than the uk and this has been confirmed by most PIO members who have posted their bills. when we were in Brisbane in April the cost of food was dearer than the uk, but only slightly, beer is alot dearer. Rentals are dear, but to live in such a fantastc house as you can get in Australia, you would have to pay alot in the uk and remember the average wage in Australia is currently about 30% better paid than the uk, but you don't really benefit from this because the exchange rate makes it look like that and it also makes everything seem dear, but you will be paid in dollars when you get there. Also currently here in the uk, millions of public sector workers are 2 years into a 4 year pay freeze and university fees have trebled which will cost us massive amounts. Cars and mortgages are dearer in Oz and you might have to send your children to a private school which will be an extra cost and some people pay for extra medical cover. To me living costs that i have experienced and researched and have been told by alot of people is very similar, its the old swings and roundabouts. Anyone emigrating needs to look at where they are going to live and start with a blank canvess and work out all your costs and then try to compare these costs to the uk, but it is difficult to get a true cost of living barometer, because of the exchange rate and the much better average paid jobs in OZ. The best way to check the costs in each country is by using the $2.2 to £1 rate, which is what alot of the skilled jobs are paid at, i would ignore the crappy exchange rate and the 30% better wages in Australia, it gets too complicated. Best of luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest daithi Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Are there any websites which would give an idea of the differences between oz and ireland for cost of living? daithi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Are there any websites which would give an idea of the differences between oz and ireland for cost of living? daithi Hi mate it is very confusing and i will try to make it as easy for everyone as possible, firstly................... Look at your own wage and family income. And then check the wages in Australia. And then work out your wage into the Australian wages and it will bring you out to a figure. Our income in the uk is £63,000 and our wages in Oz are $135,000. This works out at about $2.2 to £1 and i then look at the costs of everything based on this figure. So.............. if you are paid in Euros the same equation can be applied Most of my family and friends and alot of others on PIO pay between $1200 and $1600 for their rates, we pay this in pounds, which means it is less than half the cost in Australia. This is just one thing, i have worked out that overall living costs seem slightly dearer in Oz, but each state and each persons circumstances are different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fergal007 Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Afternoon all... I have just 'invested' around an hour reading through some of the 'Cost of Living' threads and I've got to say that I feel a little better having done so. I have been a member of PIO for around 12 months now and the one thing that seems to be ringing in my ears more than any other is that Australia is sooooo much more expensive than the UK. Having looked through some of the figures on the site though this really doesn't seem to be the case. Food certainly seems to be more expensive but then this looks to be balanced out by the fact that utilities and petrol is so much cheaper. I'm beginning to think that the discrepancy here is that people are including their initial set up costs having made the move. Our position is that we will be paying a big whack up front and bringing everything with us.....40ft container full to the rafters (even asked if we could put a roof rack on it to add some more gear!!! :biggrin:) plus another 40ft container with our two cars in it!!!! I would much prefer to take the hit in the UK and cut out the poor exchange rate than face the pain in Aus. Real estate seems to be the other area which is causing a skewed comparison. Australia is still struggling with high purchase and high rents whereas the UK has slowed down and people are currently 'enjoying' the lowest interest rate in decades. This won't last and when the UK rates start to increase the cost of living in the UK will start to feel much higher. I've noted a few of my UK outgoings below and they seem way more than anything quoted on this thread: £500 pm Food £173 pm Council Tax £70 pm Oil (no mains gas) £50 pm Electric £38 pm Water Rates and of course £.136 per litre fuel.....even my bloody LPG has gone up to 70p per litre! Life's bloody expensive everywhere!!! :arghh: Thoughts......??:confused: Make that 82p per litre for LPG, Ruislip, BP , Middlesex , today! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Afternoon all... I have just 'invested' around an hour reading through some of the 'Cost of Living' threads and I've got to say that I feel a little better having done so. I have been a member of PIO for around 12 months now and the one thing that seems to be ringing in my ears more than any other is that Australia is sooooo much more expensive than the UK. Having looked through some of the figures on the site though this really doesn't seem to be the case. Food certainly seems to be more expensive but then this looks to be balanced out by the fact that utilities and petrol is so much cheaper. I'm beginning to think that the discrepancy here is that people are including their initial set up costs having made the move. Our position is that we will be paying a big whack up front and bringing everything with us.....40ft container full to the rafters (even asked if we could put a roof rack on it to add some more gear!!! :biggrin:) plus another 40ft container with our two cars in it!!!! I would much prefer to take the hit in the UK and cut out the poor exchange rate than face the pain in Aus. Real estate seems to be the other area which is causing a skewed comparison. Australia is still struggling with high purchase and high rents whereas the UK has slowed down and people are currently 'enjoying' the lowest interest rate in decades. This won't last and when the UK rates start to increase the cost of living in the UK will start to feel much higher. I've noted a few of my UK outgoings below and they seem way more than anything quoted on this thread: £500 pm Food £173 pm Council Tax £70 pm Oil (no mains gas) £50 pm Electric £38 pm Water Rates Please note - the equation i am using is based on the average pay from skilled wages in Australia, not the current exchange rate, you will be earning dollars and spending dollars. Based on the commonly accepted PIO rate $2.2 to £1, below are my monthly outgoings in the uk and someone living in a bigger house in Australia, in red. Rates/ £1450 per year/ $3200 is it the same?...... approx $1600 in Brisbane Gas/electric/ £1600 per year/ $3500 - how much do you pay?...........approx $1900 Petrol/ £1.35/ $2.90 how much? .................diesel - $1.20 car insurance/ £500/ $1100 ? ................incl Rego & fully comp approx $1300 yearly water rates/ £400/ $850 ?................ $416 and of course £.136 per litre fuel.....even my bloody LPG has gone up to 70p per litre! Life's bloody expensive everywhere!!! :arghh: Thoughts......??:confused: I find in the UK my food bill is one third of what it was in Oz. Hope the figure above helps, food definately isn't 3 times dearer in Australia and claims like this are wrong, it is a bit dearer, but some things are cheaper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PositivePixie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Depends where you get things. Head to KMart and there are kettles, toasters and sanwich toasters for $9 each! Edited to add: Saying taht, I have no idea anymore what things cost in UK!!! You can get a white, basic kettle, toaster etc in Asda for about £5 each, so about the same (£1 or so in it), with the pants exchange rate considered - and without the shipping cost. Surely the easiest way to do a living cost thing is to actually put the figures in yourself - for example - we just got back from Tesco, I put all the food and things we just brought into Coles online for an adelaide postcode shop, and it came out at £110 in Tesco and $152.81 in Coles (minus some cooked chicken fillets as I couldn't find them in Coles). Everything else was either the same brand (eg Kleenex) or where I couldn't find the same thing, the nearest equivilant (eg if it was the basic range, the same, if it was mid range, mid range etc). Therefore, it's pretty easy to see for us Coles this week would have been cheaper. And as people keep saying that Coles is expensive for Oz, this leads me to believe our weekly shopping might be a touch cheaper in Oz as we would probably shop around at different places if it meant saving us money (we are tight like that lol). I'll do this for the next couple of months to keep tabs on it. It can see how this isn't the exact same, as whilst we come up with menus for the week and shop to plan, if there is something on offer/reduced etc we will mix and match our shopping list to take advantage of these offers/reductions or whatever, but imho that means Oz will just have to work harder to come out cheaper, and is less likely to be a misleading comparision the wrong way. With regards to utilities - I have found this the hardest thing to estimate anywhere I've been/lived - the last 4 years we were living somewhere with no Gas or Electric bills and a water bill included in our rent. Trying to work out what we would pay when we moved to our current rental in another part of the country was really hard - we looked on lots of websites and forums and asked people who live near by what their bills were, then rounded this up. We estimated about £150 a month for both Gas and Elec (together) from our research, as it turns out it has cost us about £50 a month for both (together) - I am happier we over estimated (and this will be lower in summer when we don't have the heating on as much, as we have pretty much had it on 24/7 with the snow and new kittens to keep warm) as we have had this spare money to spend on things like getting the kittens. So for this we will do what we did here - ask around, look online and then put in a rather top end estimate on our estimated costs spreadsheet. If it turns out lower, lovely, we have extra cash, if not, we at least know what we are getting ourselves into. Same with rents - I'm looking on the websites at properties I think are suitable for us when we first get there (for the first year or so before we start a family), and am budgeting accordingly. Obviously its hard when you don't know the area, but it was the same when we moved here (admitedly we were really lucky with this palce in regards to location) - we'll just pick somewhere close to where we think we might get jobs I guess. My car insurance is HUGE here - I pay close to £1000 a year for our two cars (both v old, v pants etc no reason they are so high other than the area we live I believe as I have full no claims, am in the right age bracket have a 'good' insurance job etc) so I am (hoping) this will be less, or about the same in $ as £ from what I am reading on here and other places. I will probably try and do some online quotes to get better idea of our costs when I have some better idea of areas and postcodes etc to do the quotes. All in all, as I won't be on a fortune, I reckon (as a rough thought) our situation will be pretty much the same, but the spec of our house will be higher (from what I am seeing Oz houses are generally better for the same price and then as you spend more you get hell of a lot more in either space or facillities), we will have more family time, and the sun will shine a little more, and we can do the outdoor things we want to do. For us (who are more than skint in the UK) the move to Oz is a no brainer, financially, family wise, lifestyle etc etc. For others it might not be - surely this is the same with every single thing in life though, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Magnetic6 Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Just to give people a general idea we've just received our first electricity bill that covers the period 14/12/10 to 07/02/11 and it's $194.08. I'm not sure how this compares to the Uk as i never took much notice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 You If you're a growing family, you will probably expect to live in a larger house with a yard and pool. Houses are currently more expensive than the UK and mortgage interest rates I would work out how you spend your money then decide if you could afford to live comfortably in Australia. There can be some surprises. One big surprise for example, is that with the exception of Queensland, if you call an ambulance in any of the other states, you can end up with a huge bill! In Queensland, you pay ambulance cover with your electricity bill. I think you also pay it again on your rates bill. Just in case you get run over twice in one day. rs. Once hooked into a loan, the banks began pushing rates up quickly. Now many are trapped with mortgages and heading for negative equity as property prices drop. Be careful. Tasmania requires NO ambulance cover at all. It is the only state that is FREE. Susie :wubclub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PositivePixie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 f you call an ambulance in any of the other states, you can end up with a huge bill! In Queensland, you pay ambulance cover with your electricity bill. If you call an ambulance in the UK you get a bill too don't forget (ok, you don't actually have to pay it, but it doesn't say this on it, and most people would probably think they have to so pay it). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PositivePixie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Just to give people a general idea we've just received our first electricity bill that covers the period 14/12/10 to 07/02/11 and it's $194.08. I'm not sure how this compares to the Uk as i never took much notice. That is v helpful Magnetic - could you let us know where in Oz you are, and what sort of size your property is? (ie how many beds etc) and if you have people at home all day or not (ie if an adult is there all day you might spend more on elecy than if the property is empty all day) (not so we can come and rob you lol). Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 If you call an ambulance in the UK you get a bill too don't forget (ok, you don't actually have to pay it, but it doesn't say this on it, and most people would probably think they have to so pay it). How strange is that Pixie, upon having a motor bike crash I received a bill in the Uk also... I forwarded to the culprit that caused the crash, but this was a first for me!:wubclub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PositivePixie Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 How strange is that Pixie, upon having a motor bike crash I received a bill in the Uk also... I forwarded to the culprit that caused the crash, but this was a first for me!:wubclub: Most people don't realise you get billed here, its been like that for at least 20 years (my mother got one when I was in Primary school, and I'm 31 now) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Magnetic6 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 That is v helpful Magnetic - could you let us know where in Oz you are, and what sort of size your property is? (ie how many beds etc) and if you have people at home all day or not (ie if an adult is there all day you might spend more on elecy than if the property is empty all day) (not so we can come and rob you lol). Thanks again Very reassured to know you're not planning on pinching my worldly posessions. We're a family of 6 in NSW in quite a big 4 bedroom house, it has aircon but we rarely use it and we don't have a pool. During the day my husband is often at home but don't think he uses too much electricity :biggrin:. We won't be getting gas bills as there's no mains supply to where we live and we've had the same gas cylinder since we moved in, i think it costs $35 to replace them. Our home insurance is $43.37 per month and car insuance for a 7 seater 4x4 fully comp is $68.35. We could have taken out a slightly cheaper policy but opted for one that covers windscreen damage and hire car if needed. Hope this helps x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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