Cost of living figures

[TiniT]

Originally Posted by anj1976

Hi

I guess u missed House rent, Transportation, Water - if it isnt included in the Rent. I guess that would be.

Hi,

Thank you for the reply. Actually in the list Rent was meant for House rent. Yaa...i missed out the transportation and the water. How much does it cost for water if a single person? Will it reach 100/month? Do anyone have any idea on transportation around townsville?

[CarlZA]

Hi Everyone.

Just want to say this site is very useful. Thanks for all the inputs thus far.

I'm being interviewed for a job in North Ryde, Sydney tomorrow which I'm quite stoked about (I'm from South Africa).

Can anyone give me some guideline as to what cost of living would be like for me and my fiance?

I got a rough estimate of

$1500 towards rent
$500 towards food

and thats about it. I will have a company car and mobile phone, so I'm just left with confirmation around rent, food and then utility costs (elec, water) and entertainment (tv, dsl etc - I'm a huge Arsenal supporter).

Many thanks in advance.

I'll post anything I can get from contacts in AUS back here.

Carl

[leedsboy86]

Originally Posted by CarlZA

Hi Everyone.

Just want to say this site is very useful. Thanks for all the inputs thus far.

I'm being interviewed for a job in North Ryde, Sydney tomorrow which I'm quite stoked about (I'm from South Africa).

Can anyone give me some guideline as to what cost of living would be like for me and my fiance?

I got a rough estimate of

$1500 towards rent
$500 towards food

and thats about it. I will have a company car and mobile phone, so I'm just left with confirmation around rent, food and then utility costs (elec, water) and entertainment (tv, dsl etc - I'm a huge Arsenal supporter).

Many thanks in advance.

I'll post anything I can get from contacts in AUS back here.

Carl

firsly...you need to support rugby league lol

1500 per month seems about right for a good place in northern sydney..of course further away you are the cheaper it gets

when i lived in sydney with my partner it cost us just under $3000 a month total for everything..so it all does add up

[sram466]

Hi hi, I'm new here.

Info here is very useful, great that you are sharing them.

I plan to migrate to Melbourne but now awaiting for my PR application outcome from DIAC.

I would appreciate if you can share with me the living figures for Mel around hampton park like home, kids schooling, grocery, car, utility, insurance etc.

Cheers !

[Dolly]

Originally Posted by sram466

Hi hi, I'm new here.

Info here is very useful, great that you are sharing them.

I plan to migrate to Melbourne but now awaiting for my PR application outcome from DIAC.

I would appreciate if you can share with me the living figures for Mel around hampton park like home, kids schooling, grocery, car, utility, insurance etc.

Cheers !

Have a look at page 4.....

Dolly

[WannaBeInOZ08]

This is fantastic stuff guys! Exactly what we have been looking for to get an idea of the general outgoings in Oz.

[danskitt]

Hi, I would just like to say this is a great thread just what us considerers need.

I am looking to live in Sydney with my Aussie wife and daughter. Nobody has posted a thread with the standard living expenses like gas, elec water etc etc. Are these standard across Australia, for instance a unit of elec would cost the same in reading as it would in middlesborough. So could I use the figures from Perth for Sydney.

Alternatively please can a Sydney resident help out?

Thanks
Dan

[Owainjones]

Hi.
I have been living in Australia for 10 months now and thought I would share some comments about the area I am in and the differences I discovered on arriving.
First off, I want to say that living and travelling in a country are two TOTALLY different experiences and because you may have enjoyed travelling in a country does not necessarily mean you will enjoy living there.
I pictured australia to be a friendly sunny place full of beaches and for the most part thats true. There are miles and miles of beaches and it is hot. But remember there is more to living that just that.
These are a few of the things that have really started to get to me and a reason why I'm returning to Canada as soon as my work here is done.
The grocery stores here are subpar at best. It's difficult to find things you need to cook anything. The selection in products is abysmal asside from vegemite, tim tams, and lamb. The cereal aisle is full of "birdfood" fit only for your elderly grandmother. e.g. they don't even sell honey nut cheerios in Australia.
I realize many probably don't even like cereal, but please trust me, its the same for everything! You'll have the choice between two products, tops.

Produce! You would think a country that grows so much produce would have reasonable prices, oh no. e.g. bananas were 49cents a kilo back home, here anywhere from 89cents to a 1.49. Avocados were 2.75 each the other day.
There is no marble cheese, only white cheese. The deli counters are awful, half the selection as back home. I would love to sit down and write everything out in greater detail but I could potential write a book.

When you go to rent here be aware that the majority of places are unfurnished. Which means no refridgerator, washmachine, nothing. So factor that into the price yo uwill be spending.

Im assuming this is becuase of their weak dollar. But automobiles are through the roof. I saw a used (2006) kia minivan going for $22,000. And that is normal for the Southeast Queensland area anyway.

If you get a landline you are charged for EVERY call you make. Local doesn't matter. They really bend you over there.

Internet. I was paying $50 a month for 60GB in Ontario. Here I pay $80 (plus the landline they make me buy which is $20 a month) for 12GB. So it cost me $100 for 12GB. So bring dvds cause bitorrent is out of the question.

You better hope you like cricket or Aussie Rules, cause that's all they play...and I thought basbeall was boring...try cricket. Aussie rules, don't even bother understanding it. I was expecting to watch a lot of rugby union, but was sadly let down to discover league is extremely popular here. I miss hockey.

The beer. The average alcohol content is 3.5%... I don't know if this is because its hot and you sweat a lot here so you need more water ....I dont know, but when I drink I spend a lot of time in the washroom, or spend an arm and a leg to buy some imports. The only upside, XXXX gold is dirt cheap which is nice on a budget.


The people. Like everywhere it depends on the area, and lot on the socio-eco situation. I have met a lot of very nice people surfing here and I have met a lot of very "bogan" ish people here. I havent come across very rude people. But like everywhere Im sure I will. However, the overall general feel, is similar to Americans. They are overtly patriotic to the point where it seems there are no other countries on the planet. They do their best to keep out Americans things, It is good in that they support a lot of Aussie things, like television shows - however, Im not a huge pro-American kinda person, but the yanks do do certain things expotentially better than everyone else and the aussie will still refuse to support those things because they arn't aussie.

T-shirts. Buy them at home. Average price at your local surf shop....$50. DOn't tell me that piece of frabric cost $50 to make coming thailand...please.

Weather. It gets extremely humid in the summer time. To the point where you don't wanna leave your air conditioned house. So if you're going to come here. Spend the extra $100 a week on a place within walking distance to a beach.


Books. Don't bother. Don't even go into a borders. Use wikipedia, your paying a punt load for the net anyways.

Surfing. Reason why a lot of people come here. It's good when it's good. The good swell only comes in during the fall/winter months. So if you're here spring/summer look into a snorkel set.

There's a lot more I could write and a lot more detail on the things that I have, but chances are no ones made it this far. I think Australia would be a great place to travell around, but to live here, its no Canada.

Apologize if Ive offended any Australians, but I feel people that are moving to live here need to come here with an open mind and not expect everything to be peachy. North America is a rich land, and its hard to get use to countries that don't have the same comforts.
Anyways.....the weather is tropical and a nice change from 5 months of winter, but beleive me when I say you will miss it. Especially hockey!

[danskitt]

I think the biggest thing to consider is that you are not on holiday so need to be totally prepared before making the decision to move. My wifes family live in Sydney so at least when we visit we live like Australians do and not like tourists.

[benz]

what about the rent, gas?