Bushwhacker Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Hi everyone, After doing a bit of research I have compiled a list of living costs for a 20 something couple, no kids. Rental based on $600/wk, not sure whether we'd want city apartment or house out of the city. Rent $ 2,580.00/month Utilities Gas $ 60.00/month Water $ 110.00/month Electricity $ 140.00/month Household Bills House Phone $ 110.00/month Broadband $ 50.00/month TV (Sport,movies,HD) $ 130.00 Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) Living Costs Food Shopping $ 225.00/month Socialising $ 645.00/month Clothes $ 300.00/month Car Car Payment $ 450.00/month (Something like VW golf (newish)) Car Registration $ 11.54/month Car Insurance $ 82.50/month Fuel $ 200.00 It would be great to hear from you all to see if you think this budget is realistic? Thank you in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 You can do most things for less, obviously if you can afford these prices thats great, but we would expect to pay less and we are a family of 4. What wage will you be on? Are you happy with these costs? Where are you wanting to live? Best of luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Have a look on realestate.com.au for rentals at $500 per week i am sure you would get somewhere great for two people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwhacker Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 Have a look on realestate.com.au for rentals at $500 per week i am sure you would get somewhere great for two people. Cheers the for the reply Hoff. What about the rest of the budget? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Cheers the for the reply Hoff. What about the rest of the budget? I have some peoples bills copied, the problem is they vary and its hard to see why some pay less and some pay more, i think it varies, i will go and look for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Please note - the equation i am using is based on the average pay from 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 post yours in red. Rates/ £1450 per year/ $3200 is it the same?...... approx $1280 per yr with an extra bin Gas/electric/ £1600 per year/ $3500 - how much do you pay?...........approx $1800 yr , No gas all electric, 4 bed lowset with pool and workshop Petrol/ £1.35/ $2.90 how much? .................diesel - $approx $70 to fill tank, 1 tank lasts a week car insurance/ £500/ $1100 ? ..........incl Rego - $650 approx fully comp $575 = $1225 Ford Ranger twin cab 4wd . yearly water rates/ £400/ $850 ?................ $404 Trickle feed town water Big 4 bed house in Brisbane. __________________ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GeorgeD Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I would make a couple of changes to your budget... Rent seems OK at $600 per week, if you are looking for a decent 2 bed in the city then you may need to pay a little more, but you'll have plenty of choice near the city or the suburbs at that rent. Some rentals include water charges, so you may not have anything to pay in that regard. Food shopping...you'll need more than $225 per month. I'd be looking at double that amount. Our food shopping in the last two weeks has cost more than $300 for the three of us. Car Registration...not sure where you got your budget from. You can check how much it costs on the QLD Government website: http://www.qld.gov.au/about/driving-and-transport/driving-and-vehicles.html 12 months renewal including CTP (Compulsory Third Party insurance) for a 4 cylinder car costs around $630 per year, so $53 per month. Car Insurance....you should be able to get this for less (although it depends on your driving history, claims, convictions etc). I drive a 3 litre SUV which costs me around $55 per month from memory. Fuel...I'd budget a bit more, say $250 to $300 per month. Fuel costs are going up, and filling up in the city is more expensive than the suburbs. At the moment fuel varies each day from $1.45-$1.60. You can check fuel prices here: www.motormouth.com.au Depending on where you live and where you work, you may want to factor in road tolls. In Feb 2011 I used $96 of tolls. Mainly the Clem 7 tunnel. I've managed to cut this back as I come home a different route since they increased the price and sometimes go to work a different way, time dependant...saves $4 each way. It doesn't sound much, but when you're doing it 40+ times a month, it can cost $160-$170 just on road tolls going to and from work! Home phone & Broadband, you should be able to get this a bit cheaper than you have budgeted. Until you have a rental signed up it's difficult to price this...use Telstra as a budget reference, but you may be able to use a cheaper ISP/phone provider when you move in. Most ISPs use Telstra but the port availability at Exchanges is limited. We found this at our place. We ordered ADSL from TPG who said there was availability (costing $50 for phone and Broadband) only for them to cancel the order three weeks later, the day before install, saying there were no Telstra ports free at the Exchange. Fortunately we were in an area which could get Optus cable, so we took that instead, the only other option would've been Telstra who had additional capacity (which they don't let other people sell on) If you use Telstra to budget then you won't get any surprise costs. You haven't included anything for contents insurance (budget $30 per month), health insurance ($200 per month if you are going to go for it) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicheleW Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Hi everyone,After doing a bit of research I have compiled a list of living costs for a 20 something couple, no kids. Rental based on $600/wk, not sure whether we'd want city apartment or house out of the city. Rent $ 2,580.00/month - we pay $420 pw ($1820 pm) for a 3 bed 4km from the CBD Utilities Gas $ 60.00/month - $0 for us Water $ 110.00/month -$0 for us Electricity $ 140.00/month - $100 pm Household Bills House Phone $ 110.00/month - phone and broadband $150 pm, all local, national and mobil calls free and $10 credit for international calls (Telstra) Broadband $ 50.00/month TV (Sport,movies,HD) $ 130.00 - we don't have this Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) - advise you look at either Optus or Telstra - coverage is a bit sporadic for Vodafone. We don't spend more than $5 a month on mobile calls due to home phone deal. Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) Living Costs Food Shopping $ 225.00/month - approx $300 - $350 per month Socialising $ 645.00/month - approx $300 per month Clothes $ 300.00/month - some months $0 other months a couple of hundred Car Car Payment $ 450.00/month (Something like VW golf (newish)) Car Registration $ 11.54/month - approx $40 pm Car Insurance $ 82.50/month - approx $40 pm Fuel $ 200.00 - we only spend about $50 pm on fuel, generally because we catch the bus everywhere which costs us about $150-$200 pm (2 people) for all our travel It would be great to hear from you all to see if you think this budget is realistic? Thank you in advance Our costs in Purple above. Don't forget about health insurance costs as well, vary between $20 - $70 pw dependent on level of cover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onyaweb Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I have budgeted for flights back to Europe for us every year too, that can be quite expensive. Also I have budgeted for trainfares to/from work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ph0en1x Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Please note - the equation i am using is based on the average pay from 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 post yours in red. Rates/ £1450 per year/ $3200 is it the same?...... approx $1280 per yr with an extra bin Gas/electric/ £1600 per year/ $3500 - how much do you pay?...........approx $1800 yr , No gas all electric, 4 bed lowset with pool and workshop Petrol/ £1.35/ $2.90 how much? .................diesel - $approx $70 to fill tank, 1 tank lasts a week car insurance/ £500/ $1100 ? ..........incl Rego - $650 approx fully comp $575 = $1225 Ford Ranger twin cab 4wd . yearly water rates/ £400/ $850 ?................ $404 Trickle feed town water Big 4 bed house in Brisbane. __________________ Of course if you are living on savings that you exchanged or the money from the sale of your house in the UK to buy a house here the rate at which you exchanged ($1.5 - $1.6) applies. The $2.2 only ever applies if you are using $$$ from an Australian source Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rudi Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I don't understand how my electricity bill is so high!!!!!!! Ours is pretty much always over $1000 a quarter!!!!! :mad: Love Rudi x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ph0en1x Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I don't understand how my electricity bill is so high!!!!!!! Ours is pretty much always over $1000 a quarter!!!!! :mad: Love Rudi x Rudi, ours too, the thing to look forward to is that it is estimated it will double when the carbon tax is implemented:mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicheleW Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 I don't understand how my electricity bill is so high!!!!!!! Ours is pretty much always over $1000 a quarter!!!!! :mad: Love Rudi x We don't have airconditioning which would make a big difference, but given we are in a Queenslander we don't have the need for it. We don't have a pool either and I hear that adds a considerable cost to your power bill every month. All things for the OP to consider with the budget that is for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ph0en1x Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Not sure about in Brisbane but Bananas are $13Kilo in Sydney :biggrin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicheleW Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Not sure about in Brisbane but Bananas are $13Kilo in Sydney :biggrin: Yeah, some shops in Brisbane are that expensive as well but seeing as you can buy them for $4.99 kg in the markets you would have to be crazy to pay that much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest36187 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 There are two of us in our house. Have never had a power bill over $400 a quarter. We dont have a pool, we have air con but have installed solar heat and water recently. W don't use the air con a lot, we never use the tumble dryer unless it is vital! We try and switch as much as we can off when not using. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest36187 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Brissie bananas are about $12 a kilo at the mo. That was in Coles last week anywaysa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ph0en1x Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Yeah, some shops in Brisbane are that expensive as well but seeing as you can buy them for $4.99 kg in the markets you would have to be crazy to pay that much. I wouldn't even pay $4.99 for them, i'd rather let them rot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kissofthegypsy Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Hi everyone,After doing a bit of research I have compiled a list of living costs for a 20 something couple, no kids. Rental based on $600/wk, not sure whether we'd want city apartment or house out of the city. Rent $ 2,580.00/month Utilities Gas $ 60.00/month Water $ 110.00/month Electricity $ 140.00/month Household Bills House Phone $ 110.00/month Broadband $ 50.00/month TV (Sport,movies,HD) $ 130.00 Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) Mobile Phone $ 59.00/month (Vodafone, iphone 4) Living Costs Food Shopping $ 225.00/month Socialising $ 645.00/month Clothes $ 300.00/month Car Car Payment $ 450.00/month (Something like VW golf (newish)) Car Registration $ 11.54/month Car Insurance $ 82.50/month Fuel $ 200.00 It would be great to hear from you all to see if you think this budget is realistic? Thank you in advance Your food shopping might be that some weeks to be honest, food is expensive if you just stick to coles and woolies. Clothes, depends what you like, I buy designer stuff when I go back to england, I wear Paul and Shark, Paul Smith and I can easily blow 300 bucks on a shirt or a pair of shoes. Socialising, depends on hw often you go out, for a night in surfers, with a meal in tedder avenue and taxi we typically spend 200-250. German cars are expensive, look at Jap ones as a substitute. You can buy a house for what it costs for a new porsche over here. I work in Brisbane and live on the gold coast, I prefer the beaches but the commute is a pain by car. Any questions let me know. Sean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Your food shopping might be that some weeks to be honest, food is expensive if you just stick to coles and woolies. Clothes, depends what you like, I buy designer stuff when I go back to england, I wear Paul and Shark, Paul Smith and I can easily blow 300 bucks on a shirt or a pair of shoes. Socialising, depends on hw often you go out, for a night in surfers, with a meal in tedder avenue and taxi we typically spend 200-250. German cars are expensive, look at Jap ones as a substitute. You can buy a house for what it costs for a new porsche over here. I work in Brisbane and live on the gold coast, I prefer the beaches but the commute is a pain by car. Any questions let me know. Sean Crikey you must be doing great if yer can spend $300 on a pair of shoes and a shirt, i know the wages in Australia are great, but yer must be loaded. Me, i spend £15 on each at my favourite shop ......... M.A.Talans ............ or Matalan to the commoners.:laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kissofthegypsy Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Crikey you must be doing great if yer can spend $300 on a pair of shoes and a shirt, i know the wages in Australia are great, but yer must be loaded. Me, i spend £15 on each at my favourite shop ......... M.A.Talans ............ or Matalan to the commoners.:laugh: I used to shop at Matalan until my mom got a job...only joking. I just find the quality of clothes shops in Australia not as good as england, so when I go back I have to fill an empty suitcase. I dont want to go round looking like I have just parked my surfboard lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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