How much was your pay cut?
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:39 am
#16
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From: Doha, Qatar
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by iaink
No, Petrol is really half the price. But you will have to drive twice as far to get anywhere, and with the average vehicle being about a 3.0l, you dont get UK economy anyway.
Yes, but my point was it is only half price if you maintain the same wage. It wont be half price for someone earning £40k in the UK and then being offered $C40k in Canada. And with all the extra driving it will probably work out worse.
True, the cost of living is not what it once was here. Heating costs for one have increased enormously in recent years, and property costs in many places are rising fast. Insurance costs are not cheap either. Some things are cheaper, some are not. Unless you are coming with a lump sum to eliminate the mortgage costs, I dont think $56k will give you fantastic amounts of disposable income anywhere in canada anymore, and just making ends meet for a family might be about all you do. People get by on less, but Im sure they would prefer not to have to!
We could eliminate the mortgage, but I'm sure over time the savings would still end up dwindling.
I get more than that (mid 60s), have a lowish mortgage and property taxes (~$800/month), but my house is not new, and my energy bills are not low, with two small kids we dont have much to spare..and thats with no car payments etc to worry about at the moment either.
Yes, but my point was it is only half price if you maintain the same wage. It wont be half price for someone earning £40k in the UK and then being offered $C40k in Canada. And with all the extra driving it will probably work out worse.
True, the cost of living is not what it once was here. Heating costs for one have increased enormously in recent years, and property costs in many places are rising fast. Insurance costs are not cheap either. Some things are cheaper, some are not. Unless you are coming with a lump sum to eliminate the mortgage costs, I dont think $56k will give you fantastic amounts of disposable income anywhere in canada anymore, and just making ends meet for a family might be about all you do. People get by on less, but Im sure they would prefer not to have to!
We could eliminate the mortgage, but I'm sure over time the savings would still end up dwindling.
I get more than that (mid 60s), have a lowish mortgage and property taxes (~$800/month), but my house is not new, and my energy bills are not low, with two small kids we dont have much to spare..and thats with no car payments etc to worry about at the moment either.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:40 am
#17
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From: Eastern Ontario, Canada
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Majj
I am being offered a 35% reduction in my current salary for the privelage of moving to Ontario, based on the current exchange rate (UK £ to CAN $). How much of a pay reduction has everyone else taken?
Secondly has anyone done a standard of living comparison for the UK to Canada. i.e. if you earn say £30/40/50k in the South East, how much you would need for Ontario to maintain the same standard of living? But the standard of living is supposed to be better isn't it? Thats the whole point surely?
Secondly has anyone done a standard of living comparison for the UK to Canada. i.e. if you earn say £30/40/50k in the South East, how much you would need for Ontario to maintain the same standard of living? But the standard of living is supposed to be better isn't it? Thats the whole point surely?
The 2001 census data at http://www12.statcan.ca/english/prof...dex.cfm?Lang=E
will give you some idea of income and housing costs by location with Ontario averages.
Don't expect to get a mortgage of 10X income like you can in the UK though.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:42 am
#18
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From: Ontario
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Atlantic Xpat
The real questions are 'what is a fair salary for my job in the location I want/am prepare to live?' and 'Does that salary give me and mine the quality of life that I am looking for?' Location plays a tremendous part in this. F'r example a Materials Manager might make $80k in the GTA but I can tell you that in Newfoundland (outside the oil biz) the pay is considerably less. As a Materials Manager in St. John's I've accepted I am going to earn less than one living in the GTA. I am reasonably happy that my pay and benefits compare favourably with the market in my area though and since this is where I want to live it's something I have to put up with.*
I could spend my time fretting about the differences in pay between my last Uk job and now but it is a waste of time. Yes my first position in NL (more senior and better paid) was around 30% less than my UK salary (at that exchange rate, it would be 10% at todays exchange rate). Comparison of current position would be much worse. But again meaningless if you get my point.
* I moved to Newfoundland because of my wife. This makes my comparisons/goals/drivers different to someone moving to Canada as Skilled Worker/PNP etc. If I were a SW I would certainly be looking for 'better' lifestyle than UK, (so would to an extent agree with dbd33) otherwise why bother?!
So as ever the answer is research, research, research. And then make your own judgement as to what you and yours will be happy with.
I could spend my time fretting about the differences in pay between my last Uk job and now but it is a waste of time. Yes my first position in NL (more senior and better paid) was around 30% less than my UK salary (at that exchange rate, it would be 10% at todays exchange rate). Comparison of current position would be much worse. But again meaningless if you get my point.
* I moved to Newfoundland because of my wife. This makes my comparisons/goals/drivers different to someone moving to Canada as Skilled Worker/PNP etc. If I were a SW I would certainly be looking for 'better' lifestyle than UK, (so would to an extent agree with dbd33) otherwise why bother?!
So as ever the answer is research, research, research. And then make your own judgement as to what you and yours will be happy with.
Well, yes, it very much depends on why you want to move. My line of thought is that a move from London to the GTA is a big step backwards in terms of intangibles; Toronto's uglier, it has no history and one has no family here, so it has to come with lots of stuff. If one is moving to be with family then fair enough but otherwise the lifestyle is only better if one has more money than at home.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:44 am
#19
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From: Upstate South Carolina
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Atlantic Xpat
The real questions are 'what is a fair salary for my job in the location I want/am prepare to live?' and 'Does that salary give me and mine the quality of life that I am looking for?' Location plays a tremendous part in this.
I was thrilled to be getting $50k at first...till I found that other less able people, in this area doing the same job were on more than 10% more.
Anyway, there are some websites that offer standard of living comparison that might help the OP,
http://www.homefair.com/homefair/ser...199&internal=T
and there are sites that list what sort of salaries people get in an area
http://salary.monster.ca/
I wouldnt like to vouch for there accuracy.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:45 am
#20
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Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 10,146
From: St. John's, Newfoundland
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by dbd33
Well, yes, it very much depends on why you want to move. My line of thought is that a move from London to the GTA is a big step backwards in terms of intangibles; Toronto's uglier, it has no history and one has no family here, so it has to come with lots of stuff. If one is moving to be with family then fair enough but otherwise the lifestyle is only better if one has more money than at home.
Agree entirely. The only thing I've found in my (admittably short) time spent visiting TO that would make it worth spending more time there was peameal bacon and cask conditioned ale.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:47 am
#21
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From: Upstate South Carolina
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by flashman
The 2001 census data at http://www12.statcan.ca/english/prof...dex.cfm?Lang=E
will give you some idea of income and housing costs by location with Ontario averages.
Don't expect to get a mortgage of 10X income like you can in the UK though.
will give you some idea of income and housing costs by location with Ontario averages.
Don't expect to get a mortgage of 10X income like you can in the UK though.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:48 am
#22
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Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 30,771
From: Upstate South Carolina
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Majj
This sounds a similar situation to the UK, i.e earning say £33k and having a small mortgage of say £400, it wouldn't leave a large amount left over.
The cost of gas is an absolute thing, it costs so much per liter
Its costs half as much per liter here, regardless of wage The exchange rate may go up and down, but you will be paid in CDN, so its irrelevent. I guess you are thinking about the cost as expressed as an annual percentage of your income? Gas is really a bad example to take for living expense comparison, as its not a level playing field in terms of the type of cars here and the distances driven. It might be a wash, but you will pay far more for insurance anyway
Last edited by iaink; Sep 19th 2006 at 1:56 am.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:52 am
#23
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From: Doha, Qatar
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by flashman
The 2001 census data at http://www12.statcan.ca/english/prof...dex.cfm?Lang=E
will give you some idea of income and housing costs by location with Ontario averages.
Don't expect to get a mortgage of 10X income like you can in the UK though.
will give you some idea of income and housing costs by location with Ontario averages.
Don't expect to get a mortgage of 10X income like you can in the UK though.
Sep 19th 2006 | 1:59 am
#24
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Joined: Aug 2003
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From: Doha, Qatar
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by iaink
True, but you probably wouldnt be paying over £100 a month for heating oil and £50 for electricity throughout the year
The cost of gas is an absolute thing, it costs so much per liter Its costs half as much per liter here, regardless of wage The exchange rate may go up and down, but you will be paid in CDN, so its irrelevent. I guess you are thinking about the cost as expressed as an annual percentage of your income? Gas is really a bad example to take for living expense comparison, as its not a level playing field in terms of the type of cars here and the distances driven. It might be a wash, but you will pay far more for insurance anyway
The cost of gas is an absolute thing, it costs so much per liter
Its costs half as much per liter here, regardless of wage The exchange rate may go up and down, but you will be paid in CDN, so its irrelevent. I guess you are thinking about the cost as expressed as an annual percentage of your income? Gas is really a bad example to take for living expense comparison, as its not a level playing field in terms of the type of cars here and the distances driven. It might be a wash, but you will pay far more for insurance anyway
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:00 am
#25
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 9,606
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by dbd33
I pay about $56k gross in alimony
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:03 am
#26
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From: Doha, Qatar
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Atlantic Xpat
As with everything about Canada, generalisation can make comparisons meaningless. Earning $56k in one place can put you in a different comfort zone from $56k in another.
Comparing UK salary to Canadian salary is a bit meaningless IMHO. There are so many variables - for example I moved when the exchange rate was $2.35, so if I earned GBP 40k for argument sake I would be looking for $94k here. If the exchange rate is 2.1 or $2 as it was not so long ago I've 'lost' $10k so to speak!
The real questions are 'what is a fair salary for my job in the location I want/am prepare to live?' and 'Does that salary give me and mine the quality of life that I am looking for?' Location plays a tremendous part in this. F'r example a Materials Manager might make $80k in the GTA but I can tell you that in Newfoundland (outside the oil biz) the pay is considerably less. As a Materials Manager in St. John's I've accepted I am going to earn less than one living in the GTA. I am reasonably happy that my pay and benefits compare favourably with the market in my area though and since this is where I want to live it's something I have to put up with.*
I could spend my time fretting about the differences in pay between my last Uk job and now but it is a waste of time. Yes my first position in NL (more senior and better paid) was around 30% less than my UK salary (at that exchange rate, it would be 10% at todays exchange rate). Comparison of current position would be much worse. But again meaningless if you get my point.
* I moved to Newfoundland because of my wife. This makes my comparisons/goals/drivers different to someone moving to Canada as Skilled Worker/PNP etc. If I were a SW I would certainly be looking for 'better' lifestyle than UK, (so would to an extent agree with dbd33) otherwise why bother?!
So as ever the answer is research, research, research. And then make your own judgement as to what you and yours will be happy with.
Comparing UK salary to Canadian salary is a bit meaningless IMHO. There are so many variables - for example I moved when the exchange rate was $2.35, so if I earned GBP 40k for argument sake I would be looking for $94k here. If the exchange rate is 2.1 or $2 as it was not so long ago I've 'lost' $10k so to speak!
The real questions are 'what is a fair salary for my job in the location I want/am prepare to live?' and 'Does that salary give me and mine the quality of life that I am looking for?' Location plays a tremendous part in this. F'r example a Materials Manager might make $80k in the GTA but I can tell you that in Newfoundland (outside the oil biz) the pay is considerably less. As a Materials Manager in St. John's I've accepted I am going to earn less than one living in the GTA. I am reasonably happy that my pay and benefits compare favourably with the market in my area though and since this is where I want to live it's something I have to put up with.*
I could spend my time fretting about the differences in pay between my last Uk job and now but it is a waste of time. Yes my first position in NL (more senior and better paid) was around 30% less than my UK salary (at that exchange rate, it would be 10% at todays exchange rate). Comparison of current position would be much worse. But again meaningless if you get my point.
* I moved to Newfoundland because of my wife. This makes my comparisons/goals/drivers different to someone moving to Canada as Skilled Worker/PNP etc. If I were a SW I would certainly be looking for 'better' lifestyle than UK, (so would to an extent agree with dbd33) otherwise why bother?!
So as ever the answer is research, research, research. And then make your own judgement as to what you and yours will be happy with.
If I got offered 90% of my current salary I would be over there like a shot. I do think that with the exception of housing the average cost of other day to day expenditure in the UK is similar to that in Canada now.
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:06 am
#27
Mans
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 343
From: Oakville
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Majj
Well according to this the average male earnt around $C68k in Oakville in 2000! So $56k ain't going to go nowhere.
I had a great income in UK......now its NIL as gone back to do a postgrad course to re-licence here.
It will also take me a while to get anywhere near my old salary....but thats not our priorty. Our priorty was a better place to raise a family, more quality time etc etc....yes lower income but are we happier ..YES
As to comparison in cost of living....virtualy impossible...yes things appear cheaper...but you use more petrol, houses are bigger and winters are colder so utility bills are high, we are doing more activities than in the uk so bills are higher!
Also Oakville is not cheap....but then we used to pay Private school fees in London which we feel is not necessary here.
I think it will be a struggle on that income for a while (esp in Oakville) but depends ultimately on how you measure quality of life...earnings is a factor but there are many other factors to consider too.
All the best
Mans
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:06 am
#28
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: Ontario
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Souvenir
Just out of curiosity, can you write that off against tax?
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:14 am
#29
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 9,606
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Majj
Well according to this the average male earnt around $C68k in Oakville in 2000! So $56k ain't going to go nowhere.
Sep 19th 2006 | 2:25 am
#30
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Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 13,402
From: South of Calgary
Re: How much was your pay cut?
Originally Posted by Mans
I had a great income in UK......now its NIL as gone back to do a postgrad course to re-licence here.
Sounds like us - I earn a good salary at moment - likely this will be reduced by 2/3 in real terms until I requalify - but going into it with eyes wide open and will try to refrain from begging unless absolutely necessary (if Butch won't allow my family to sleep in his basement
)You pays your money and takes your pick
