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UK vs. Aus disposable income


dapstar970

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Hi I'm new to PIO. I've recently been offered a job to re-locate to Sydney from Birmingham in UK. I will potentially be moving around 1st November along with my wife and 2 daughters (age 5 and 9 months).

 

I currently negotiating my salary with my employer. Is there anything I should watch out for? From all the very useful posts on PIO i have read that I should be looking for around double my annual salary in the UK, in order to live the same standard of living in Sydney??

 

However, my employer is working this out based on the amount of disposable income left as a %. Basically I have a disposable income of around 78% in the UK. My employer has offered me an annual salary in AUS with around 74 % disposable income. Based on the research i've done some things are more than double the price(some cheaper e.g. fuel). For example, rent in Sydney is 3 times as much as my current UK rent!??

 

Does it sound reasonable to calculate the AUS salary based on disposable icome percentages?? Can someone point me in the direction of a cost of living calculator website?

 

Any comments would be helpful.

 

Thanks,

Dan:biggrin:

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Guest siamsusie

Welcome to Poms In Oz Dapstar,

 

I do hope you enjoy our forum and that you manage to get some answers to your queries.

 

 

Susie x

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Guest webster

Ask your employer if you can arrange for salary sacrificing/salary packaging. This will enable you to sacrifice part of your gross salary for your rent (or whatever you choose), meaning you only pay tax on the salary thats left after the sacrifice. There is a fringe benefits tax that the employer is liable for but if its organised well, it can benefit both parties. A brief overview can be found on the australian tax office website, see http://www.ato.gov.au/content/00227771.htm

 

Goodluck!

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Guest Guest 47403
I have no idea i just posted the link, i'm not in a position to validate it

 

Ok lol

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If you earn £50k now you should aim for $125k (or more) in Sydney. I don't fully understand your new employers method of calculating on the basis of disposable income. An example might be useful.

 

Cheers.

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Depends how you want to live, if you want big cars, big house... Then budget for the worse, if you don't need foxtel like the simpler pleasures such as spending days out having picnics with the family it can be cheap living. Seems to me if you're living at a level afforded by your 'profession' that'll be roughly the same level the world over. But the old level of 2 - 2.5 pound to the dollar still seems to work

As regards disposable income we seem to have more here but then again i refuse to pay for things like phone lines, broadband deals etc. Horses for courses really also I'm in melbourne shire and went for cheap living on the fringes not city living.

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If you earn £50k now you should aim for $125k (or more) in Sydney. I don't fully understand your new employers method of calculating on the basis of disposable income. An example might be useful.

 

Cheers.

 

Thanks for all the useful replies. Fleabo example below

 

Say Income per annum in the UK is £25000. After Tax and National insurance your left with 78% disposable income of £19500, for example.

 

In AUS after the Tax and Super the dispoable income is say $38000 based on a $50000 gross pay per annum. This works out at 78% disposable income.

 

So, comparing a UK and AUS salaries I have 78% disposable income....in both countries...so should be alright!?!?!

 

I don't think this is reasonable, plus AUS is more expensive (sometimes double UK)...

 

Anyone know where I can check out the cost of living index for Sydney?

Cheers

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Guest Ph0en1x

The cost of Living in Sydney is pretty much the same as London, so if you cant find anything detailing Sydney check out London

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Guest The Ropey HOFF
Hi I'm new to PIO. I've recently been offered a job to re-locate to Sydney from Birmingham in UK. I will potentially be moving around 1st November along with my wife and 2 daughters (age 5 and 9 months).

 

I currently negotiating my salary with my employer. Is there anything I should watch out for? From all the very useful posts on PIO i have read that I should be looking for around double my annual salary in the UK, in order to live the same standard of living in Sydney??

 

However, my employer is working this out based on the amount of disposable income left as a %. Basically I have a disposable income of around 78% in the UK. My employer has offered me an annual salary in AUS with around 74 % disposable income. Based on the research i've done some things are more than double the price(some cheaper e.g. fuel). For example, rent in Sydney is 3 times as much as my current UK rent!??

 

Does it sound reasonable to calculate the AUS salary based on disposable icome percentages?? Can someone point me in the direction of a cost of living calculator website?

 

Any comments would be helpful.

 

Thanks,

Dan:biggrin:

 

Hi Dan

 

it is a common mistake by most newbie migrants to work out the costs in Australia by using the current exchange rate of $1.5 to £1 and then they work out , wrongly that everything seems dearer, but you will be paid in Australian dollars, not English pounds and the average skilled wage in Australia is paid at about $2.2 to £1, so this figure gives you the true cost of everything and remember ........... Sydney is like London and both of these major cities cost alot to live there in rent.

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Guest Ph0en1x
Hi Dan

 

it is a common mistake by most newbie migrants to work out the costs in Australia by using the current exchange rate of $1.5 to £1 and then they work out , wrongly that everything seems dearer, but you will be paid in Australian dollars, not English pounds and the average skilled wage in Australia is paid at about $2.2 to £1, so this figure gives you the true cost of everything and remember ........... Sydney is like London and both of these major cities cost alot to live there in rent.

 

2.2 only ever applies if the source is from Australia. If the money is the result of a house sale or savings that are being used then you should always use 1.5

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Guest The Ropey HOFF

I know that more than anybody but i am talking about emigrating and living there, we are down over $200,000 because of the exchange rateand if i was in Australia i would be buying things from the uk online, but the costs of things in each country are similar, if you are living in the uk and earning pounds, or living in Australia and earning dollars, just a word of warning for folks emigrating ................ make sure the wage you are looking at is roughly about $2.2 to £1 because if you accept any less you could be struggling.

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Guest mozziebite

Hello Dan - is there any way you can negotiate school fees into the package, we had two school age kids and had to fork out over $9,000 immediately, we were aware of this before we went (although I did think they might have allowed me to pay monthly but noooooo!) but after talking to people once in Aus some had haggled with employers and got this paid for.

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I know that more than anybody but i am talking about emigrating and living there, we are down over $200,000 because of the exchange rateand if i was in Australia i would be buying things from the uk online, but the costs of things in each country are similar, if you are living in the uk and earning pounds, or living in Australia and earning dollars, just a word of warning for folks emigrating ................ make sure the wage you are looking at is roughly about $2.2 to £1 because if you accept any less you could be struggling.

 

http://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/Aussies-ripped-retailers-yahoo7finance-1024260367.html

 

This should clear up any misunderstandings about costs of items, ie food, clothes etc.

 

your average Australian consumer is getting shafted :Randy-git:

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Guest The Ropey HOFF

Cheers for that like i say everything is cheaper abroad if you live in Australia, whereas everything is dearer abroad if you live in the uk, thats what happens when one country is booming - AUS and the other country is struggling - UK.

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Guest The Ropey HOFF

Like i say, because the Australian dollar is so strong against most major currencies because Australia is booming .............. things are cheaper if you buy them on line and have them shipped to you, but everyday costs are very similar from what i have worked out, but after this 4 year pay freeze we are suffering here in the uk, it might end up being cheaper living in Australia, because workers there have been getting average wage rises of nearly 5% over the last 10 years .............. makes a difference yer know.

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Like i say, because the Australian dollar is so strong against most major currencies because Australia is booming .............. things are cheaper if you buy them on line and have them shipped to you, but everyday costs are very similar from what i have worked out, but after this 4 year pay freeze we are suffering here in the uk, it might end up being cheaper living in Australia, because workers there have been getting average wage rises of nearly 5% over the last 10 years .............. makes a difference yer know.

 

You need to read the article I posted. Most, if not all Australians cannot buy overseas on-line from suppliers with a presence in Australia, their Australian credit cards are not accepted, so they are forced to buy within Australia and therefore are being charged at a premium for identicle items that can be purchased at less than half the price in other countries.

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Guest siamsusie

There is not one credit card of ours that has not been accepted over seas which includes Amazon, Book Depository, M&S, Next, Tesco on Line, John Lewis. All US sites have also accepted our CC's as well.

 

I have not had one issue at all.

 

Susie

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It says companies with a presence in Australia will not sell to Australians over the internet from one of their over seas stores.

 

I didn't think Tesco's, John Lewis, M&S and NEXT had a presence in Australia. Correct me if im wrong, im not the shopper type.

 

Heres the link again

http://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/Aussies-ripped-retailers-yahoo7finance-1024260367.html

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Guest Ph0en1x
You need to read the article I posted. Most, if not all Australians cannot buy overseas on-line from suppliers with a presence in Australia, their Australian credit cards are not accepted, so they are forced to buy within Australia and therefore are being charged at a premium for identicle items that can be purchased at less than half the price in other countries.

 

.

 

 

 

In relation to amazon as there isn't an amazon.com.au i order from the US and UK site, unfortunately some items they will not ship to Oz. The last example was a new Video Camera, they would not ship it, must be to do with warranty. I simply had it shipped to a friend in the US and he shipped it here

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