richard aa

hi is there anybody out there who has experience of nz living costs, ihave a rough idea and have visited but it would be nice to hear from anyone actually doing it and surviving or not as the case maybe, i know everybody is different but a starting point would be good ie: food , electric,heating,rates that sort of thing, once all thats in the bag its an easy calculation whats left for leisure(if any) i have enough for a property and a car but thats about it, any advice greatly received cheers:scared:

deedee

this is really difficult to answer as everyone has different ideas of living standards.However, a friend of mine lives near Gore,South Island,has a nice house on an acre,new car,wife and has a pretty good standard of living.He makes ends meet easily enough in NZ on 30k nz$ a year as a tractor driver!45 hours a week,30 more a week in the pub with his wife......he's one of the happiest people i know even if he's drunk most of the time.Make of that what you will

Ben.M

Here's a couple of sites that have information on the cost of living in NZ -

http://www.movetonz.govt.nz/Bml/away/living/cost.htm
http://www.nz-immigration.co.nz/cost-of-living/

HTH,
Ben

Flyboy

Very hard to answer as it is so dependant on your own situation, however I earn more dollars than I did pounds and they seem to go a bit further here as well. I have a pretty good lifestyle and I live in Auckland so I guess if you live elsewhere you will be even better off as Auckland is so expensive. Having said all that I am single and have no kids so my outgoings are a lot less than others although my drinks expenditure is probably a lot more!!!

stephen john

Hi Richard

We are in the same position as you,just enough hopefully to buy a house and car,the thought of not having enough money has crossed our minds several times.We have 3 kids and will be earning an average nz wage but we look at the reasons for going against those for staying and NZ wins hands down.Having read other posts we have come to the conclusion that we wont need the same amount of money for entertainment clothes etc which takes a big chunk out of our wage after the morgage and car loans. In NZ Petrol is alot cheeper and you may have to take cold showers!! food bills look about the same. Yes we will be earnig a3rd of our joint incomes here but lifes to short to put of til tomorrow and im sure if we come back our families wont see us destitute.We have also asked them to put money in the childrens building society accounts instead of sending presentsincase they decide to return.
Hope this helps
Claire

smithone

To give you an idea here's my monthly budget. This is for 2 adults no kids with a mortage of $350k. This excludes entertainment and any savings. All costs in NZ dollars.

Mortgage $2,000.00
Food $700.00
House Insure $95.00
Car Insure $49.30
Life insurance $46.60
Telecom and internet bill $60.00
Rates @ $1604 pa $133.67
Sky $56.00
Petrol $135.00
Cleaner $120.00
Power $120.00
Total Expend $3,515.57

As you can see the biggest expense is mortgage. If you don't have this burden then you can live pretty cheaply.

Enteratinment costs vary according to your chosen lifestyle.

Dinner for 2 at a reasonable restaurant in Auckland is about $100
Indian Takeaway for 2 about $30
2 at the Cinmea $18
Tennis club membership per annum $350
Weekend in Queenstown about $1000
Week in Fiji about $5000
Flights back to the UK about $2000 return economy

Hope this helps

GetMeOutOfHere

Thanks v.helpful post.

So thats say net figure, what would you have to earn(Gross) to pick up 3.5k per month? Be interesting to see the tax :scared: & stoppages aswell.

Ta

Flyboy

Tax rate is a bit less down here:

0-38,000 = 19.5%
38,001-60,000 = 33%
over 60,000 = 39%

To take home 3,500 / month I reckon you would have to earn around the low 50k/annum

See www.ird.govt.nz for more info

richard aa

hi guys ive just read with total amazement this tax table above, i am totaly shocked tat a man earning just under 38000 a year will only pick up roughly $592 .....the that poor guy works his nuts off and gets a pay rise to 39000 or above which is still pretty poor wage and ends up earning $90 a week less at $502
this to me makes me very uneasy about moving to a country that penalises you for trying to do better ,the same poor guy (probably me) then has to earn at least $ 4 an hour more to make the same amout !!!!!! why bother !!! just earn crap money or earn a fortune no in between > i am astonished !!!!!.
it seems that an average guy will earn about $50000 a year so it seems to me the average man gets a far worse deal in nz than in the uk !!!! or am i missing something please could some one tell me if this is true , i am 3 weeks from moving to nz , i am now very upset my fault i know but not a happy bunny any more .

Ben.M

Richard, I would imagine it's exactly the same as in the UK in that only the portion of income over the lower limit is taxed at the higher rate... e.g., if income is $39,000 then $38,000 (less any allowances) is taxed at 19.5% and just $1,000 taxed at 33%.

Could be wrong but somehow I doubt it...

Ben

richard aa

how silly do i feel now, you are right of course i have just checked on the site you recommended and there it is clear as day what a plank!!! this site has done more for my sanity than any other during this stressfull time , ben .m you are a life saver many thanks

theguitardoctor

Ha,

You lot should worry - I will get taxed at 33% on everything - from $0 upwards (no tax allowances in NZ). Yes, it pays dividends if I hit the really high end earnings, but as a propsective sole trader I doubt I ever will. Still, this is pretty much what I pay here when you take tax and NI into account. It's not about the money though, it's about the lifestyle......

At least I'm able to take a reasonable amount of money over. Hopefully I can then buy a larger propery with a much smaller mortgage than compared to the UK, by putting a large payment down. This way I don't need to earn as much anyway as my outgoings will be lower....it all balances out in the scheme of things..

all the best, Rich.

Ben.M

No worries Richard, we'll put it down to stress...

Take it easy,
Ben

southerner

Hell, I used to be an NZ tax accountant many years ago, so it of course could have all changed.

It was always a stepped tax rate for individuals. For companies (if that is where your flat 33% rate comes from) it would be usual to pay a salary out to the working shareholders of (you guessed it) about $38000. As much as you could justify would also be paid out to the wife/partner to get the full benefit of the lower personal rates.

Obviously, the above is not meant as professional advice, and readers should seek up to date information from a practicing tax accountant or the IRD if they feel it necessary. (at least I still remember how to caveat everything - old habits die hard).

The new higher rate has only been introduced by the now Labour Govt, just to really encourage all us high flying kiwis overseas where our future really lies. It was threatened to be a 50% top rate, I don't know whether that is still on the cards.

theguitardoctor

Hi Southerner,

Can I do this as a sole trader though? I thought all my profits were taxable at a flat 33% rate?

regards, Rich.