Am I Missing Something? (Salary/Cost of living)

[NZ4me]

Hi,
I'm new to the forum - I've looked around on the forum but am having trouble getting an idea of the cost of living in NZ. I'm in Canada and thinking about going to CHCH. A position I'm looking at would pay about NZ$100k/year which based on a few websites I've seen, seems to be quite a good salary.

Based on some posts on this board, some online calculators, etc it seems that I might require about NZ$1500/week to support a wife and child, or about NZ$78k/year after taxes.

However, if taxes are roughly 25% then my $100k will put $75k in my pocket which won't be enough to "live on" in NZ.

The obvious answer is to tighten the belt a notch, but I am wondering if I am missing out on something? $1500/week didn't seem crazy/extravagant and $100k seemed like it could allow one to be a comfortable or "mildly" extravagant.

Why the disconnect? Have I over-estimated expenses? Under-estimated salaries? It seems like it will be quite difficult to get by on a single income there... can anyone enlighten me?

Thanks!

[topcat83]

Originally Posted by NZ4me

Hi,
I'm new to the forum - I've looked around on the forum but am having trouble getting an idea of the cost of living in NZ. I'm in Canada and thinking about going to CHCH. A position I'm looking at would pay about NZ$100k/year which based on a few websites I've seen, seems to be quite a good salary.

Based on some posts on this board, some online calculators, etc it seems that I might require about NZ$1500/week to support a wife and child, or about NZ$78k/year after taxes.

However, if taxes are roughly 25% then my $100k will put $75k in my pocket which won't be enough to "live on" in NZ.

The obvious answer is to tighten the belt a notch, but I am wondering if I am missing out on something? $1500/week didn't seem crazy/extravagant and $100k seemed like it could allow one to be a comfortable or "mildly" extravagant.

Why the disconnect? Have I over-estimated expenses? Under-estimated salaries? It seems like it will be quite difficult to get by on a single income there... can anyone enlighten me?

Thanks!

Hi there
$100k NZD is a good wage in NZ. You should be able to live comfortably on that.

Your expenses will depend on what you want to do, and how you plan to cook. If you're used to convenience food, then your food bill will be expensive. If you're prepared to cook from basics, and to use seasonal foods then it will be cheaper.

Consider NOT having private medical insurance - that will cut costs down too. It's not absolutely necessary here. You may have to wait for non-emergency treatments, but the NZ health service is excellent (from our experience) when you really need it.

Don't expect a millionaires lifestyle - but then I expect you wouldn't get that in Canada either

[sdh080]

Originally Posted by NZ4me

Hi,
I'm new to the forum - I've looked around on the forum but am having trouble getting an idea of the cost of living in NZ. I'm in Canada and thinking about going to CHCH. A position I'm looking at would pay about NZ$100k/year which based on a few websites I've seen, seems to be quite a good salary.

Based on some posts on this board, some online calculators, etc it seems that I might require about NZ$1500/week to support a wife and child, or about NZ$78k/year after taxes.

However, if taxes are roughly 25% then my $100k will put $75k in my pocket which won't be enough to "live on" in NZ.

The obvious answer is to tighten the belt a notch, but I am wondering if I am missing out on something? $1500/week didn't seem crazy/extravagant and $100k seemed like it could allow one to be a comfortable or "mildly" extravagant.

Why the disconnect? Have I over-estimated expenses? Under-estimated salaries? It seems like it will be quite difficult to get by on a single income there... can anyone enlighten me?

Thanks!

I've got a spreadsheet here that I compiled on various "overseas" options that were open to me, I've got various scenarios as to renting/mortgage/just the two of us/baby and one wage.

I worked it out in conjunction with some friends in NZ, some research on the internet and a few other things.

In the NZ column, I figured out the figure for living costs at between $700 and $1000 a week including rent/mortgage etc etc, now from a salary of $100,000 after paying tax etc that would still leave you with around $2000-$2500 a month.

I'm sure some others may tell you differently but that's my take on it.

[Eleisha]

Our joint salaries added up to more than $100k and whilst we (family of 5) didn't exactly struggle on that there was very little left over for at the end of every fortnight and we watched the pennies.

We put no money away in savings and paid nothing into pension funds during the time we lived in New Zealand.

[northernlassy40]

Hi, I think 100k a year for N.Z is a very good salary, My husband runs his own I.T business and is on similar money, He works very hard and we only just manage to get by every month.
I think the general cost of living here is much more than in the U.K where we originate from, e.g: power, rates and taxes are higher, grocery bills for our family of 4 are usually around the $300 a week area, and we are not extravagant and really watch what we spend.

If we were in the U.K on this sort of money we'd have no problem, but then i guess this is the price we pay for living in New Zealand.

It seems to be very hard to get by on just a single salary, I really don't understand how people on low incomes or minimum wage survive here.

I would seriously consider all of this if you are coming to New Zealand for a better or stress free lifestyle, as it may not end up how you wish it to be.

I don't want to put you off from a new life here, as it is a lovely country, amazing scenery, but then i guess canada has that too, there is certainly not as much crime, and life here seems to be less complicated, things are easy to do and places are easy to get to, traffic is low, compared to the U.k, and most people are friendly enough, I guess it all depends on what your expecting and what your used to.

Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by NZ4me

Hi,
I'm new to the forum - I've looked around on the forum but am having trouble getting an idea of the cost of living in NZ. I'm in Canada and thinking about going to CHCH. A position I'm looking at would pay about NZ$100k/year which based on a few websites I've seen, seems to be quite a good salary.

Based on some posts on this board, some online calculators, etc it seems that I might require about NZ$1500/week to support a wife and child, or about NZ$78k/year after taxes.

However, if taxes are roughly 25% then my $100k will put $75k in my pocket which won't be enough to "live on" in NZ.

The obvious answer is to tighten the belt a notch, but I am wondering if I am missing out on something? $1500/week didn't seem crazy/extravagant and $100k seemed like it could allow one to be a comfortable or "mildly" extravagant.

Why the disconnect? Have I over-estimated expenses? Under-estimated salaries? It seems like it will be quite difficult to get by on a single income there... can anyone enlighten me?

Thanks!

[NZ4me]

Thanks for all your feedback everyone! As I mentioned, I estimated $1500/wk which may be a bit high, but better to estimate high than low! $700/wk seems a bit optimistic - we have one child, a toddler, so that is not such a huge expense.

We're certainly not looking to "escape" anything or run away from where we are, it's just working out that an opportunity may open up, and we see it as a bit of an adventure - we just don't want it to be a hardship posting! (Been there, done that!) Our goal isn't to immigrate but we are open to it - just looking to see a new part of the world, travel a bit, see the culture and make the best of life.

But with all that in mind, I am, of course, concerned about making sure we are financially "comfortable".

Thanks!

[Eleisha]

It depends so much on how much your rent or mortgage is going to be. In my experience people tend to underestimate those two costs before they arrive, mostly because although there are plenty of cheap places around you have to spend rather a lot more to get something that's of a good quality.

Where are you headed for and how much are you planning to spend on accommodation costs?

[NZ4me]

I am looking at going to Christchurch and had budgeted somewhere around $350/wk to rent a house. I got this number by looking at some of the online rental sites. But had no way of judging the neighbourhood, etc.

There are a few postings on this board that listed out all expenses and were close to about $1200 - $1800/wk (total), so that's more or less what I was using as a guide. I realize that everyone is different - we may spend more in some areas and less in others... just trying to get a rough idea.

Thanks!

[Eleisha]

Perhaps someone in Christchurch could say how reasonable that figure is and what the areas are like.

Have you got some examples?

[ClemClan]

Originally Posted by NZ4me

I am looking at going to Christchurch and had budgeted somewhere around $350/wk to rent a house. I got this number by looking at some of the online rental sites. But had no way of judging the neighbourhood, etc.

There are a few postings on this board that listed out all expenses and were close to about $1200 - $1800/wk (total), so that's more or less what I was using as a guide. I realize that everyone is different - we may spend more in some areas and less in others... just trying to get a rough idea.

Thanks!

Hi there, we live in Christchurch and I would say that $350 - $450 per week is a realistic rent. It all depends what your looking for, with there being 3 of you? you could manage with a two bed house to start with so that would be cheaper, but obviously you want to find a decent house to rent. They kind of base rent on a $100 per bedroom. That seems to be the case with some properties but not always. Unfortunately when we arrived we rented a house that was very expensive and on reflection we should have not chosen that particular house, but there you go, hindsight is a wonderful thing!

If your looking for accommodation on the internet or through a real estate in order for you to move in as soon as you arrive, choose carefully and keep all correspondence with your future landlord and ask for more pictures of the property if there aren't many available.

Your salary that you've mentioned in previous posts is a good wage in NZ. It can depend on the size of rent and mortgage - whether they're reasonable. But I consider $100k a good salary and good start for you and your family.

If there's anything else I can help you with regarding Christchurch just let me know, I'll try my best! Good luck with everything!