# Is it a mistake to move to UK?



## dragonflyblu (Oct 8, 2007)

We have accepted a job in Bath, we are now waiting for the work permit and then we will get the visa. A very long expensive and complex process compared to our job in germany.

This is the offer we have accepted

OFFER A
Salary: £28,000 
Relocation: £2,500
Benefits following completion of 12 week probation period:
- 21 days holiday a year (+ bank holidays)
- private health insurance
- life assurance
- company pension scheme
- productivity bonuses (currently £500 quarterly)
- profit share scheme


But now I am getting nervous. This is more thann we earn in germany, but the percentage of income to live in Germany seems to be much lower. 

we are a family of my husband myself and our 10 month old. We need to send 750 pound a month to aust to cover our bills there. So we are left with about 1000 a month (after tax) to pay rent/bills.

Now its not all about money. I mean being an expat is the experience first al foremost for us. But are we going to manage. Should we even be going to the UK?


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## dragonflyblu (Oct 8, 2007)

Thanks Colin, I am pretty sure we will love the lifestyle. I am excited about walking around the city (both bristol and bath) and going to the seaside sometimes, which i understand is not too far away in the train. I guess i am just afraid that we will struggle too much. i dont mind money being a bit tight but I dont want to not afford food or that train fare. I suppose many families in the UK live on much less a year and they manage?


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Yes Bath is a very nice place indeed. You are also within striking distance of beautiful Devon & Cornwall, and over the Severn Bridge to Wales.

Depends what kind of a house you want to live in, but for instance my daughter lives in a two bedroom flat in the middle of Solihull, a very nice town south of Birmingham, and she pays £500 a month rent plus bills. Her Council tax is around £900 a year, her electric is about £45 a month

I just found this property site for you .... which doesn't make good reading ... most of these will probably be open to a bit of bartering

Find a house to rent in Bristol - Property Management - Grant Management

Petrol is just under or around £1 a litre


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## dragonflyblu (Oct 8, 2007)

it sounds wonderful. We have puppet shows here and I suspect they are very funny but they are in german and alas we dont understand the language!

Thabjs for all your thoughts, memories, responses. I have been looking at real estate sites. The council tax is a bit of a mystery and theagents seem to think everyoine knows what the hell it is. I suppose it is a tax we pay instead of the landlord and we pay it monthly??? so I should add council tax to monthly rent to do a budget? I think we can get something 1 bed for about 400-500 a month. I would love to live in a smaller town, have a garden joind a local vege garden allotment. 

We wont have a car, unless we get a big bonus! So we may just get bikes. Everything seems so close. a couple of hours ride and we would be ain a new area.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

dragonflyblu said:


> it sounds wonderful. We have puppet shows here and I suspect they are very funny but they are in german and alas we dont understand the language!
> 
> Thabjs for all your thoughts, memories, responses. I have been looking at real estate sites. The council tax is a bit of a mystery and theagents seem to think everyoine knows what the hell it is. I suppose it is a tax we pay instead of the landlord and we pay it monthly??? so I should add council tax to monthly rent to do a budget? I think we can get something 1 bed for about 400-500 a month. I would love to live in a smaller town, have a garden joind a local vege garden allotment.
> 
> We wont have a car, unless we get a big bonus! So we may just get bikes. Everything seems so close. a couple of hours ride and we would be ain a new area.



Council tax is payable to the local authorities for your rubbish removal, fire service, schools etc etc. Most rents dont include this so you must budget extra. You can elect to pay it monthly, usually payable per annum over 10 months.

You will probably also have water rates ... this is normally payable twice a year .... its either a fixed charge or you may have a metered property.


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## Big Pete (Aug 7, 2007)

I could do a big entry on this post , but i wont 

All i would say is Good Luck ,


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Big Pete said:


> I could do a big entry on this post , but i wont



I am pleased


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## Hurricane (Aug 12, 2007)

I can vouch for Bath, very beautiful, lively and cultured city, and close to place like Wells, Glastonbury, Cheltenham and for some real British history Bristol.

I lived 5 miles from Bath for a while before we moved to Cheltenham and I just love the honey coloured buildings and majestic Cotswolds.................although I don't miss the bloody cold.


Prices are surprisingly cheap for such an amazing city and area, too far for Londoners to commute which helps.


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## Big Pete (Aug 7, 2007)

Stravinsky said:


> I am pleased


why did you shout ? lol


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## MichelleAlison (Aug 25, 2007)

You can also pay water rates monthly unless you have a metered property.

Rents do not normally include council tax and water rates. These are always payable by the person(s) who rent the property.

The following website sets out council tax costs for Bath for 2007-2008. As you can see, they are not cheap.

Council Tax Charges 2007-08 - Bath & North East Somerset Council

The price you will be charged per year depends on the value of your property with Band A being the cheapest property.

Band A £864.46
B £1,008.55
C £1,152.62
D £1,296.70
E £1,584.85
F £1,873.01
G £2,161.16
H £2,593.40

Hope that helps.


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## yummymummy150 (Sep 8, 2007)

Hurricane said:


> I can vouch for Bath, very beautiful, lively and cultured city, and close to place like Wells, Glastonbury, Cheltenham and for some real British history Bristol.
> 
> I lived 5 miles from Bath for a while before we moved to Cheltenham and I just love the honey coloured buildings and majestic Cotswolds.................although I don't miss the bloody cold.
> 
> ...


HI hurricane, My daughter married a boy from Cheltenham they have just bought a home in Gloucester where my inlaws are so we do vist a few times a year better summers than Scotland.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

yummymummy150 said:


> HI hurricane, My daughter married a boy from Cheltenham they have just bought a home in Gloucester where my in so we do vist a few times a year better summers than Scotland.


I was born in Gloucester ... well ... Bishops Cleve


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## yummymummy150 (Sep 8, 2007)

Small world, my hubbys family are RAF, They ended up buying ex RAF at Innsworth. My daughter went to stay with Gran and fell in love.
Tricia


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## Aase (Jul 8, 2007)

I don't really know much about rental prices in Bath as I live in London where prices are very high. We own a few properties which we let to people and in addition to rent they also pay council tax (about £1000 a year in our area), electricity (about £500 a year), gas (about £250 a year), TV licence (about £120 a year) and telephone lines (about £130 a year for line rental + for any calls they make). This all adds up to about £2000 a year which you have to add on to your rent. Food is expensive in the UK but if you shop wisely and don't buy expensive stuff you can probably live on about £200 a month. If you don't have a car and need to use public transport then that's another cost. In London it's £0.90 per ride on the bus, I have no idea how much it would be in Bath. 

You're probably better off if you can find somewhere in the suburbs as rentals will be lower and you'll get more for your money. Cycling is great and if you get yourself a baby seat then you can get around easily. 

I am not sure if you'll be entitled to child benefit but if you are then that's about £67 per month for the first child.

Best of luck with your decision! Personally I find England very expensive and find that we pay taxes on everything. I have lived here for 15 years now and prices have gone up a lot over the past few years, especially when it comes to utilities, petrol, rents, etc. 

Aase - in London for now but hopefully moving to Cyprus next year.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Aase said:


> Best of luck with your decision! Personally I find England very expensive and find that we pay taxes on everything. I have lived here for 15 years now and prices have gone up a lot over the past few years, especially when it comes to utilities, petrol, rents, etc.
> 
> Aase - in London for now but hopefully moving to Cyprus next year.


Thats because you live in London Aase ... Its just so expensive there its unbelievable.
Are you from Norway Aase ... I only met one other person with your name and she came from Bergen.


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## Aase (Jul 8, 2007)

Yes, I am from Norway. 

I know London is exceptionally expensive but council taxes and utilities cost the same all over. In fact, our council bills are lower than many other areas outside of London... What really pushes prices up in London is the cost of property.

Aase


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Aase said:


> Yes, I am from Norway.
> 
> I know London is exceptionally expensive but council taxes and utilities cost the same all over. In fact, our council bills are lower than many other areas outside of London... What really pushes prices up in London is the cost of property.
> 
> Aase



Yes ..... agreed.
But on visits to the capital I found such simple things as getting a sandwich or a cup of coffee were costly
Of course, not living there I have no real experience, but most people I know who have lived there say its expensive


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## Hurricane (Aug 12, 2007)

yummymummy150 said:


> HI hurricane, My daughter married a boy from Cheltenham they have just bought a home in Gloucester where my inlaws are so we do vist a few times a year better summers than Scotland.


Cheltenham is a beautiful place, and I passed my driving test there so I have a bit of a soft spot for it anyway.

I can fondly remember the Book festivals they have there.


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## yummymummy150 (Sep 8, 2007)

Stravinsky said:


> Yes ..... agreed.
> But on visits to the capital I found such simple things as getting a sandwich or a cup of coffee were costly
> Of course, not living there I have no real experience, but most people I know who have lived there say its expensive


Two of my sons live and work in London, They love it when they come home and they can go out have a meal and a few drinks ,so cheaply,And they get ther washing done free.


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## treb (Sep 28, 2007)

Having just left the UK i would say on the salary do not go, i was earning £42,000 a year, my mortgage was £1350 per month, with other bills, gas, elec, water rates, council tax and the like, it was just too much, think hard before making the move, thats why i have left


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

I stopped work some 7 months before I left the UK and lived on £1000 a month in a rural Warwickshire area .... I had no mortgage though .... paid £1500 a year council tax, and that was just about comfortable.


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## dragonflyblu (Oct 8, 2007)

Thanks MichelleAlison for the council tax details. Wow they are expensive!

Aase these details are great! I know its more expensive to live in London but it really helps to have an idea of the more expensive so i can work from something. We dont have a TV so I can save there. And we rarely use public transport, since I am a stay at home mum I just tend to walk everywhere. after all i have lots of time with no meeting to rush to or structured work to start. And my hubby walks alot to, but will definately get him a push bike. Phone/internet is something we wil really have to look into. We use Skype and dont need a home phone juts the internet so maybe some savngs there?

Its a bit scary going to another country where all we hear is how hard it is to live!


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## Hurricane (Aug 12, 2007)

dragonflyblu said:


> Its a bit scary going to another country where all we hear is how hard it is to live!


Don't be too put off, it can be expensive here in the Uk, but it depends what your lifestyle is.

We used to grow all our own veg but we just don't have the time any more, but our weekly shop from our local greengrocers is £15, and I make a massive soup from that too, we shop at the local butchers, fishmongers, and bakers, and a little deli in town gives us all we need in terms of luxuries, its only really cleaning stuff that we ever have to go to the supermarket.


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## yummymummy150 (Sep 8, 2007)

Hurricane i live in Scotland and have always lived Trifty(better for your health, and purse.)Partly because i have a large family,My choice. they nearly all gone on to there own lives.Now i save for my life in the sun. but i have enjoyed most of my life in Uk.


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## dragonflyblu (Oct 8, 2007)

we dont buy any pre-made food except cheese, yoghurt, tea coffee etc. we dont buy biscuits or anything like that because they are so easy to make. for some reason i thought fresh food was expensive. thanks you have put my mind at ease.


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## STGO (Nov 11, 2007)

I have done house moves in the Bristol/Bath area many moons ago.

If anyone is familiar with the towns, can you imagine what its like moving in/out with all those concrete steps to negociate??

Glad i dont do that type of move anymore.


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## stefane (Mar 19, 2009)

money are better


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## jlms (May 15, 2008)

*Houses are smaller.*



dragonflyblu said:


> We have accepted a job in Bath, we are now waiting for the work permit and then we will get the visa. A very long expensive and complex process compared to our job in germany.
> 
> This is the offer we have accepted
> 
> ...



Something you may not know is that houses in England are much smaller than properties in Germany or Austria, so you will have either to get rid of a lot of your stuff or pay to store it somewhere, because most likely it will not fit in your English home.

I would say that £1000 a month after tax for a family of 3 is really tight.

Assuming you spend £500 for all your housing needs as suggested by somebody else (rent, council tax, TV license, water, electricity and perhaps gas, service charge if you are in a flat and probably storage as mentioned above) you would have £500 left for food, transport, clothing, phone (either land-line, mobile or both), Internet access, etc.

Divide that by 30 and you are left with £16.66 a day for all your other expenses.

Gosh, I know it can be done, but you better really check your numbers.

You can check grocery prices in any website ( http://www.asda.co.uk is an old , cheaper shop), as for public transport it depends where you will live and where your job location would be, but golly, I would make sure to be as close as humanly possible in order to save in fares.

You would receive a few tax breaks for your child, but it is peanuts in the great scheme of things.

Sorry to be less than cheerful, Bath is a great town, if you had your full salary available I would think you would be fine, but your commitments in Austria may probe too much for your budget.

In any case research thoroughly, as you say it is not all about money, but I am sure you don't want to live counting the last of your pennies every month :-(


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## MichelleAlison (Aug 25, 2007)

Something that posters have forgotten to mention are the costs of looking after a 10 month old baby i.e. nappies, baby wipes, baby milk and all the other things a baby needs. These are certainly not cheap. Have a look at Tescos, Sainsburys and Morrisons as well as Asda to see the prices. You can also have a look at Boots and Superdrug to compare the prices. Just google all these.


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## jlms (May 15, 2008)

*Sandwiches?*



Stravinsky said:


> Yes ..... agreed.
> But on visits to the capital I found such simple things as getting a sandwich or a cup of coffee were costly
> Of course, not living there I have no real experience, but most people I know who have lived there say its expensive


Buy in Pret a Manger and you will pay close to £5 for a sandwich and a drink.

Buy in a nondescript cornershop and you will pay £2 or £3, tops.


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## JennyHG (Mar 24, 2009)

jlms said:


> Buy in Pret a Manger and you will pay close to £5 for a sandwich and a drink.
> 
> Buy in a nondescript cornershop and you will pay £2 or £3, tops.


I agree. Try the back streets of city centres and you are far more likely to find something reasonably priced. A premium is charged in areas where there are likely to be a lot of tourists, especially in London. Or you can get lunch in a Tesco Express or similar without breaking the bank.


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