moschops

Hi all,
I have been offered a job with a wage of $37,500 per year.
Just wondered what sort of lifestyle this would give me, my wife and our 1 year old son? We will also be taking £100,000 with us when we move to Melbourne hopefully this November.
Any info would be greatly appreciated.

stephenwhite68

sounds good to me ....
i will not be looking for too much more when we go

HiddenPaw

where in melbourne do you hope to live?
cost of living in mel can be high...but of course there will be a lot of variations between suburbs. Is your 100k GBP for a house deposit? $37k is quite low to be honest, less than the average wage, but if you weren't planning on living in the city or inner suburbs it could go a lot further.

suggest you look for 'Hevs' thread on 'living the dream mortgage free' - should give you some ideas of finances
best of luck

Bordy

I must be WELL below average then.

HiddenPaw

I meant it seems quite low to support a family of 3.

Bordy

Yeah you would need a second income I'd reckon. I'm one of those guys who's Mrs earns more than me.
So combined income is probably around $70K

owieb

Does that include super? Sometimes wages are quoted as including super which means you'll lose 9% off this salary, if it's plus super then you'll get that paid in addition to the $37,500.

I'd say that was a low salary to live off. I know we couldn't live off that (there's two of us with one on the way). £100K will help towards a house, but I doubt it will make you mortgage free, so you may still end up having to get a mortgage.

trehere

Would agree that with a family and a mortgage 37k sounds pretty low. Think the average Australian wage is around 32-35k so you're above average but would still say without a second salary things will be hard. People I work with are paying approx $150-200 a week for shared accomodation and struggle on a salary of approx 40k to maintain a nice lifestyle along with it.

DPD

It all really depends on the industry. But I would say you'd need a second wage to supplement it, even if only a part time wage.

jayr

To confirm what others have said, that ain't such a good wage. However, it's all relative. What do you earn now? The thing to really compare is your monthly net income (of taxes etc.) in the UK to what the net Oz income would be from $37.5k. If both similar, then your current standard of living will be the same or better in Oz.

Ceri

Hi,
That really is a low wage to support three of you. If you are using that 100k for a house that will automatically get eaten up straight away. I think you'll be very hard pushed to find a decent house for $240,800 ( roughly 100GBP) in Melbourne. You'd be hard pushed to find a decent sized brick one here in Brisbane with that these days ,when our housing market is much cheaper than Melbourne's. (by decent I mean in a good area, not an old fibro, and room to swing a cat) ... so you're going to have mortgage of some sorts.

I do think you are going to find it really tough to live on that wage. If your wife is intending to work as well and add another $37,000 plus . then $74,000 is starting to look more like it ( it's still bordering on a low income for a family though with a young child) . And you should be able to get along on that combined income..

I haven't got a clue what you do, but that wage sounds extremely low paid for anyone. If you were a young ( 18 to very early 20's) single person with no ties , just starting out in your career - then it would be ok for that type of age group. . I'd really think twice about that job, and look around for something else - anything under $50k is a very poorly paid job, and you will be really struggling to make ends meet here.

Could you support your family in the UK on 15,000 pounds? ( which is what $37,000 roughly is about). Please don't expect the cost of living to be any cheaper here than in the UK, as it's not. It really is swings and roundabouts here. While one thing may be cheaper the next is not. The cost of living tends to be very much the same in both countries in the long run.

Good luck

gedge

Oz average wage is now $49000.
But there is no breakdown for cities/regions.
Think that $37.5k is low if it's your only family income.

Ceri

Trouble with averages - it's not telling you about the poverty which some people live in, work in, ie really struggling to make ends meet with an income of $49 thou , or whatever the national average is. I personally don't know anyone who is supporting a family on 30, 40 thou etc - just that one wage.. Averages also take in the young work force - they don't really describe what the situation is like - a lot of those very low income earners live in housing commissions, living on extra help from centrelink - you name it.

We have no kids, no mortgage .. only two of us.. and there is absolutely no way we could live on $37,000 ( before tax as well) . This person ,I personally think is going to find it a real struggle to support his wife and kiddie on just $37,000. That is such a low income for anyone.


cheers

Badge

agree with Ceri. It's low; no too ways about it. There is afamily mortgage free who earn 50K and they were under the pump - at times. I see so many people starting on this salary - some tradies too. Professionals seem to get 50-60K.

Still, you have an advantage in that GBP100 will just about buy you a 3 bed house in the bland SE suburbs but it will be brand new, have little character or, certainly gizmos. I would rather have a small mortgage but then I can service that mortgage.

It might be enough, if for example, you don't drink, don't eat out, just do the grocery shop with the occasional treat, don't buy anything expensive. I would be OK myself as I am completely non fashion conscious! However, as we all know what costs are the emergency and one-off payments - eg car repairs, annual car ins, annual rego, annual contents insurance, kid's outings, dental. This all amount to hundreds of dollars and if they all come along at once...

BM

scoobydoo

Moschops.....we are a family of 3, renting a house, with 1 income of 60k. We are not struggling but do tend to panic towards the end of the month!

What you have been offered is too low unless your wife is able to work too. Bear in mind that if she does it is going to mean the additional cost of childcare...or her working weekends and you not seeing much of each other!