Bermudashorts

Oh well excuse me for taking time out of my day to repeatedly respond to your questions and try to make sense of your odd calculations and insistence that childcare expenses will increase your salary.

Who has said that $86k is a no go by the way. I have said that it does not compare well with £55k in Glasgow. I would never tell anyone what figure they should or should not be able to live on.

Anyway I am out.

rsbhj

superb

rsbhj

Would love to hear from some families who have made the move and had similar salaries for the initial few years of settling.

Geordie George

I'm not in Melburne (I'm in Sydney), but just looking at your monthly predicted outgoings, they seem horribly low. Where are you considering renting? (Perhaps those in Melbourne could provide some input on areas you're considering?) Also, with school fees, again they seem low for two children - even in the state system. I'd also second BS, monthly costs don't reflect actual costs. Things like childcare (really that cheap?! Wow!) and school fees are often termly, rather than monthly - it can be a bit of a feast or famine thing. Of course you can have monthly savings plans and stuff to account for that, but the rebates can reflect the actual costs - ie, not a set amount monthly. Could you scrape by? Probably. Would it be fun? For me and mine, no. (And we live on one income in Sydney, so are hardly living life large!) For yours? Who's to say? I'm with the others who are advising some bigger picture thinking - look at it overall, not per month. Good luck!

jad n rich

Re housing. Been in melb a year. Rentsl properties that are decent often go way over the asking price. Loads of applications, having 4 kids won't be an advantage . Buying a house, I have not been to one auction that did not sell for more than price guide. Usually between 150 and 300 k over. Medical costs. Out of pocket for us with Medicare and private 3 kids was usually about 8 k a year. Yep centerlink benefits are huge compared to UK. Its sending Australia broke. You probably will get some huge amount but declare all your income and savings even from overseas. Govt in oz will find it and you will repay with penalty. Its also checked annually so if you start on low income but yearly total is high you repay. Be aware the age pension is income and asset tested in oz. Most people who work will be making superannuation payments . The employer pays some but if you are self employed, contractor, own business you need to budget out of your own pocket. So just on housing, medical and possibly pension you are probably very under budget. Plenty in melb live on 95 but I would be allowing more like 600 a week rent for a family house in a area with good state schools.

verystormy

We moved to Sydney in 2008 on a salary of $75k. So probably similar to what you are looking at (probably a bit higher). We are now looking at returning to the UK where I am in line for a salary of £45k. We have made a lot of research and a lot of visits back. We will be significantly better off on £45k than we would be on $85k in Australia.

Going from £55k in Glasgow to $85k in Melbourne would be madness. You would be looking at a lifestyle of about half of current. Maybe worse.

Factor in trying to buy a house in Melbourne and I would say living on $85k would be closer to living in Glasgow on £20k.

If you looked at my very first posts on here back in 2008, you will see people warning me that even for a couple with no children, $75k wasn't going to get us far. I ignored them. I was wrong. Since 2008, Australia has got a LOT more expensive.

rsbhj

Thanks for the post. I'm looking at suburbs west of Melbourne 25-30km out, looking online plenty 3bed houses for $400 a week, schools fees is just for 1 kid, 1 in school 1 in nursery, the fees were worked on $100 a day nursery and $22 a day after school for 2 days a week. The school stuff at $125 a month was just to cover anything else, you think this would be higher? I checked the rebate and benefit checker and after that was taken into account yeah the cost dropped a huge amount.

I know this is going to be so tough and hard, its something I want to do so much, but its proving to maybe be a bit to much to get by on the annual income.

It absolutely scares me to think about living like this but sometimes you got to take a hit to get further, hopefully I can work out a way.

I don't want to be dependent on benefits but with the huge reduction in the fees its looking like something that will help us over the initial few years, until salaries increase.

Geordie George

I just think your figures have left out a lot of stuff. Some of our costs:
- school band for First Born $460 per annum (excluding uniform costs, not sure of that yet, but bound to take it past $500) (and First Born does go to a public school, not private. It's just that all school activities cost. School started yesterday - we had to provide the usual stuff - whiteboard markers, tissues etc. There's the termly 'voluntary' contributions you're expected to pay etc, etc, etc.)
- weekly violin lesson for First Born $40 per week
- swimming lessons for First Born and the Gorilla $324 per term
- Guides for First Born - I can't remember these fees off the top of my head, but there's annual insurance, term fees and then the uniform, plus costs for any extra activities such as Fun Days, camping, canoeing etc

Just adding in stuff like that easily adds another $300 per month to your costs.

Things here tend to work in terms for school and extracurricular activities, that's why I'm saying that monthly stuff is more tricky.)

rsbhj

Really appreciate the posts from all and the advice and info

A lot to take into account with the kids school costs, not to mention the extra care needed during hols!

I'm looking at this now, and if my previous figure are all way off them I'm going to be at a loss on $82k, I really need to be looking at a min of $100k joint income to even stand a chance!

goldchoccycoin

Your Electricity and Gas seem a bit low to me - especially as I imagine you will use heat and cooling more as new arrivals (poorly insulated houses are the norm here).

I can't comment for Melbourne but my friends in QLD with 2 kids are living close to paycheck to paycheck on significantly more than $100K. Usually higher childcare costs but also just 'living' costs - fish and chips at the beach, day trip to a farm or similar, gymnastics and swimming clubs etc.

Also - part time work is challenging to find as there is a lot of competition from other working parents.

Maybe wait til kids are older (both in school) - bit easier then to have two wages coming in.

Best of luck.

old.sparkles

There's only 2 of us and we are Adelaide but I had a look at our past bills

elec - approx. 75month
gas - 60month
water - 50 month

2 mobiles on pre-paid 30 month for both (don't know too many people so credit was never used up - it does expire though if you don't top up in time)


I'm not sure new arrivals will notice the cold as much initially - we spent our first winter here walking around in shorts and T-shirts and so far have never used heating. The air-con gets a work out some weeks though

Bills above were based on gas for cooking and hot water (doesn't include Barbie costs though)

ETA - in rental we were responsible for service charge and water usage but no sewerage charge

Beoz

Well on the glass half full side of things (we are a rare breed on here) you have obviously done your sums, some of which I cannot fathom, and some of which go into too much detail in my opinion to be accurate enough, but you obviously know how to live within your means in Glasgow so there's no reason why you can't do the same in Melbourne. Plently of people have your financial responsibilities and earn less income so if you are happy with that then run with it.

msmyrtle

I read the posts with the cost breakdowns and I must admit my eyes glazed over. But I wanted to add to verystormy's comment

My OH is making roughly that in the UK now, and I doubt he would even consider moving back to Australia for less than $120k

jad n rich

i am sure there are plenty of familes that manage on 85k in melb, as the poster has said, there will be plenty of centerlink benefits on that wage to top it up.

Would you get welfare on that amount in the UK? Thinking not?

However that aside. One cost that is never considered is the cost of travel when a family in OZ. Say you want to go back to Uk for family visits. Family of 4 thats easily 10k just in fares if you go in the long school hols which fall at christmas time.

I dont know the advantages the OP thinks they will get by being in Melbourne.

i know in the western suburbs you will get the more rustic charms of melbourne, ie not the posh bits. We live north west ish renting as we need to be very close to the airport. Its rough as guts if you listen to the news, but one year on, the worst we had was a break in next door the day after we moved into unit. Son who looks quite young for 22 was nearly dragged into car walking home one night. He looks like a kid but the guy soon found out he wasnt! Scary though. Got jostled by attempted pick pocket on Chapel street, and watched 2 muggings, one in city shopping centre and one in kensington driving past. Minor for city living on the scale of things, apart from car incident which was the worst thing happened anywhere.

We actually own land ( bought yonks ago not now!) in a posh inner suburb so renting in the grittier bits is no real issue its by choice, not all we can do. I actually quite like it! lots of interesting stuff around it reminds me of Asia in many ways, and its so easy to get to the city and airport. But bottom line, its not paradise, its not crime free, its just like any city. We also can escape to QLD anytime for clean fresh air, space, beach blah de blah. Up there to me is more 'Australian" as in what you would see on emigrate down under or whatever its called. I dont think where we rent in melbourne would feature on that show

All good, I love the variety.

rasen78

Do you realise you will be paying tax on your UK income? It will be classed as an additional income, and the ATO will want their share.