# cost of living vs wages



## scottishstacey (Dec 6, 2011)

Hi everyone, 

I'm doing my research on what sort of wages we should be looking for to live fairly comfortably on as a couple with no kids. 

He is a excavator operator/truck driver and the minimum wage allowed for immigration for the WTR visa is supposedly 55k based on a 40 hour week. We had a job offer in the past that was 55k but based on a 45 hour week,they said it would go up after a trial but we didn't accept it. 

So basically wondering would 55-60k minimum be enough for a couple to live on before I could find a full or part time job in retail, admin or a cafe/pub. We realise the cost if living is high and wages are usually low so this puts us off a bit but we do want to experience living at that side of the world and feel like we'd regret it if we didn't try. Although at the same time don't want to move to be a lot worse off. 

Most likely christchurch area for obvious reasons but few other areas I'd definitely be interested in moving to if the opportunity came up.


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## escapedtonz (Apr 6, 2012)

scottishstacey said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I'm doing my research on what sort of wages we should be looking for to live fairly comfortably on as a couple with no kids.
> 
> ...


Hi,
I'd say a couple could live within their means on $60k.
Just for info here's a bit of a breakdown on what you will receive in the coffers after tax and acc etc.

Excuse the formatting. Doesn't work well on iPhone/iPad.

Your Salary: $60000.00

Rates as of 1st April 2012:
Tax Rate	Taxable Income	Tax Element	Remaining
Bottom (10.5%)	$14000.00	$1470.00	$12530.00
Low (17.5%)	$34000.00	$5950.00	$28050.00
Mid (30%)	$12000.00	$3600.00	$8400.00
High (33%)	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Totals:	$60000.00	$11020.00	$48980.00

ACC Levy (1.70%) on $60000.00: $1020.00 

Total available to spend: $47960.00
Monthly:	$3996.67
4 - Weekly:	$3689.23
Fortnightly:	$1844.62
Weekly:	$922.31

All payment amounts are approximate, due to specific rounding amounts used by IRD which vary depending on payment frequency. Rates are correct as of April 2012 - March 2013 tax year but are subject to change. This should only be used as a guide. 

Mortgage Guide
With your income of $60000.00, you could potentially borrow: 

(Repayments based on 25 year loan at 5.9% interest)

If you have	Amount	Monthly Repayments
No Children:	$330000	$2130.84
1 Child:	$318000	$2053.35
2 Children:	$300000	$1937.12
3 Children:	$285000	$1840.27
4 or more Children:	$267000	$1724.04

IMPORTANT NOTE: Values can be more or less, depending on loan type, property, area, deposit, lender & personal circumstances. This is ONLY A GUIDE!

You are correct that the cost of living is 10-15% higher than you will be used but some other things are cheaper like motoring costs and insurance and yes wages in general a third less.

Could you live on a salary of £30k in UK ?
Or more to the point, could you live on an income of £2k / $4k a month ?
If you can then there's no reason why you can't live affordably here.
All depends what lifestyle you are used to. 

I'd advise you to be a bit reserved in your choices of rental accommodation at first just to make sure living is affordable for you. In general rent is expensive. Will be a shock to see how much folk want for property here - especially in terms of rent.
If you start off with some headroom you can always review your position when you have been here a while and have a bit of local knowledge.
Good luck

sent by iPhone using Expat Forum


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## scottishstacey (Dec 6, 2011)

Thank you, that's helpful. Was just a bit concerned that we couldn't afford the cost of living as I keep reading how high it is. Yeah we manage on one full time wage, not rich but we manage one holiday a year etc so lucky compared to others. Rent is cheap here though - rent here for a flat with a nice garden is £350! So rent over there would be a shock to me. 

We aren't material people, pros of new zealand would be things like having so many beaches nearby etc. Just little things like that. We are well over a hour from a beach and it's quite skanky lol we only go once or twice a year. 
My concerns are feeling isolated and the high cost of travel,I know this is just part of that side of the world


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## Andrew East (Nov 9, 2012)

scottishstacey said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I'm doing my research on what sort of wages we should be looking for to live fairly comfortably on as a couple with no kids.
> 
> ...


How long is a piece of string? 

Not much help, sorry. But it really does depend on your most expensive outlay - the mortgage or rent. I don't think you can begin to calculate how comfortable you're going to be until you know how much that is likely to be.

Any idea?


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## scottishstacey (Dec 6, 2011)

Rent in christchurch seems to be around 300-450pw so that would take a big chunk. I would hope I could find at least part time work so that would help pay it a little bit. 

That wage doesn't include overtime, in summer here he works 6 days week a lot, sometimes 7. If he didn't need to do this in New Zealand then that would be a plus! Don't mind doing the odd weekend of overtime though. 

Tried making a list of cost of living,keep feeling like I've missed things out.


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## inhamilton (Jun 10, 2011)

Hi,
I agree with Andrew East. How long is a piece of string?
It all depends on what your expectations are. The average household income is around $60k, so you'd be on that, but without children. So there are plenty of families (probably about half the population) who live off that type of salary or less. If you budget, you should be able to afford an annual holiday too, even if its in cabins at camping grounds, which you can find in most holiday resorts, or if your budget allows, in motels.
You can work out a weekly grocery shop by looking at prices online at countdown.co.nz 
I'm not totally up to play with the ins and outs of the different visas. But if you are under 30, can't you apply for a working visa? That might allow you to have a bit of an adventure for a couple of years initially, if you have doubts about the salary level.
All the best with whatever you decide to do.


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