PrimroseHill wrote:I moved here from UK about 6months ago with my OH & Teen. I used to earn around the same as the original poster and OH was also earning the same. Did I feel that I had more disposable income in UK compared to SG?
1.We lived in Central London (equivalent to D9-D11). We now rented a
condo - 3bed condo in a old development, D9-11. $6k per month. We rented out an investment
property in Central London for similarish amount and thats only a 2bed flat.
2. Council Tax in London - GBP240 per month. Here - no idea.
3. Public Transport - Tube - GBP90 per month & taxis were a treat. Here MRT and taxis - $100 per month (and thats an awful lot of cab rides)
4. Utilties - back in London GBP760 per month (heating & electric) excl water which was GBP340 oer 6 monthly. SG (everything and almost 24/7 air con) - $500 per month.
5. Groceries - London, did an awful lot of Waitrose/local deli/local fishmonger/local grocer, GBP600-800 per month. SG - combo of NTUC Fairprice/CS/Swiss Butchery - $600-800 per month.
6. Restaurants, London we tend to eat out most weekends and at non-Michelin restaurants, local pizzeria/pasta places for GBP80-100 per meal. SG- depending- pasta places will be $160 onwards, chinese/foodcourt- $30?
7. In London, Teen goes to independent private school GBP15k per annum. SG -
International School - $24k.
8. Car - petrol was crazy in London. No idea in SG yet. Insurance - GBP2k per annum in UK. Congestion GBP10 per day, if driving. GBP2.00 per 10mins parking.
9. Private medical - company
And so far, OH has been taking a break to find his feet. So, I am the only breadwinner. Company paid for the relocation. So far, I found that I have more disposable income left every month compared to London. Its the taxation. Its the 40% and VAT at 20% thats a killer. Also the NI contributions. Inform your HMRC office. Keep up the NI payments.
Hi PH, that's a very useful guideline list.
I'd just like to add some comments from my experience, FWIW [one caveat this is c5 years ago].
1) Likewise, I let out my former London home for more than I pay in rent here (West London > D11/12). [That said I know it is going to be in a heck of a state and need £works, when we get back].
2) Worth noting that this varies widely by borough/district. My council tax was maybe £500pa. But as a rule of thumb the more left-wing a borough council, the higher it will be (often *significantly*). Also note, in the UK, the tenant is solely liable for Council Tax (this assumes you rent a whole dwelling, and are not a flat-sharer).
3) Zone 1-2 Travelcard (bus, tube, tram, lightrail) = £120.60/mo, £1256/pa. Refer
www.tfl.gov.uk. Zone 1-3 incrementally more, but not that much.
4) I blinked at this one! Heavens! My gas (heating, HW + hob) was about £40pm. My electricity maybe £50pm. I had the thermostat in my place (c800-900ft2) set at 21c. In contrast my sisters nearby house, they had the thermo at 25c, and I always broke a sweat and had to half undress when I visited. It's easy to be lazy and up the 'thermo' if it's a cold day, but the costs rise exponentially. You can adjust yourself to lower ambient temperatures within a week or two. I didn't forget my dads mantra 'If you're cold put a sweater on!'.
5) £40-50/pw/pp for groceries from M+S (often being daily basics, + fresh ready made meals for dinner). +£12-15pw at the local deli for pates, hams, cheeses + good bread, that covered lunches. When you start going out and buying joints of meat, fresh fish, specialist ingredients like say scallops or crab this will rise quickly.
6) We tend to live in a basic way at home, but then go and splurge the 'savings' on the occasional high-end meal. It's a bit like us buying most everything here from NTUC, occasional specialist meat + fish from Cold Storage etc., and then treating ourselves to dinner at the Fat Cow or similar once a month.
7/8/9 - Can't comment, though figures sound about right. A car in London is a huge financial burden, more so if you do not have off-street parking. But that discussion is not for this post.
p.s. I'm not really in a position to give further comparatives to SG, as I don't commute and the wife pays the utilities. My grocery bills also, are likely to highly skewed by the incredible price of beer and wine here, so probably not worth trying to estimate.