# Salary offer - Cost of living



## dimkatsar

Good morning,
I would like to have your opinion about a salary offer i was recently given.
The offer is about 80k annual.Could someone inform me about the current tax system in Germany?.For example, the scales for single or married,with or without
children.
Are there any other taxes someone needs to pay except the income tax?.

I am currently single,no children.So how much my net income will be per month?.Moreover, how much is the cost of living in general?.The company i am supposed to work is located in Darmstat.Does anyone have a figure about for example the house rents in that area?.Are they expensive?.

Is that a good offer?.

Thank you and i will be waiting for your response.


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## James3214

Try the following income tax calculator
German Income Tax Calculator 1999-2011, FreeWare

You don't have to pay the church tax unless you wish to be buried in the local churchyard!
Due to your high income you will also need to take out private health insurance but you need to get quotes based on your risk, age, health, etc and how much you wish to contribute to costs yourself.

Darmstadt has reasonable house rents and I think 80k is a very, very good offer!

Check out what is available on rent on sites like immobilienscout24.de, etc


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## dimkatsar

James3214 said:


> Try the following income tax calculator
> German Income Tax Calculator 1999-2011, FreeWare
> 
> You don't have to pay the church tax unless you wish to be buried in the local churchyard!
> Due to your high income you will also need to take out private health insurance but you need to get quotes based on your risk, age, health, etc and how much you wish to contribute to costs yourself.
> 
> Darmstadt has reasonable house rents and I think 80k is a very, very good offer!
> 
> Check out what is available on rent on sites like immobilienscout24.de, etc


Thank you a lot!
By the way, i came up with the following web site shown below.But i am really confused with the tax categories you need to choose in order the taxes to be calculated.For example,i am not married (yet),i dont have children and suppose my fiancee will be unemployed until she finds a job.So based on these,can you tell me how much the overall tax will be for me?.
Lohn- und Einkommensteuerberechnung

I have also heard, that the company can contribute by paying at least 50% of your health insurance.Is that true?.I say this,because the company didnt mention anything about health insurance cover.Do i need to ask them if they can also cover the half of my health insurance?.Otherwise,do i need to pay all by myself!!!???.How much it costs generally???.

What about Darmstat?.Is it a nice area town?
Thank you again!


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## James3214

You will probably be category 1 and based on that calculator (try yearly and 80k not monthly), your net income will be around 42k or 51k (without pension/insurance ). If you are an 'employee' of your company, you will probably find your company has its own or recommended health insurance scheme where they will pay 50% but you can always find your own more competitive private insurance. I pay around 300€ a month but pay the first 500€ or any costs (including doctor/dentist). You need to get some quotes but it really depends on your health (pre-existing conditions), age, self contribution, etc. 
Darmstadt is not far from me and I have only ever driving through it. I think its an ok place to live but there are a lot more nicer areas to live nearby if you don't mind commuting.


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## dimkatsar

James3214 said:


> You will probably be category 1 and based on that calculator (try yearly and 80k not monthly), your net income will be around 42k or 51k (without pension/insurance ). If you are an 'employee' of your company, you will probably find your company has its own or recommended health insurance scheme where they will pay 50% but you can always find your own more competitive private insurance. I pay around 300€ a month but pay the first 500€ or any costs (including doctor/dentist). You need to get some quotes but it really depends on your health (pre-existing conditions), age, self contribution, etc.
> Darmstadt is not far from me and I have only ever driving through it. I think its an ok place to live but there are a lot more nicer areas to live nearby if you don't mind commuting.


Can you suggest me some areas near Darmstadt?.What about Munich?.Is it far from Darmstadt?.Is it expensive?.I would not mind to live a little bit far from Darmstadt as long as the rents are lower.
Do you pay extra costs for your dentist?Why is that?. Are they not covered from your health insurance?
thanx again!


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## James3214

Try somewhere in the Odenwald. I cycle a lot around that area south of Darmstadt and really beautiful area to live, although I am not sure what its like to commute in the morning, you could choose somewhere nearer the A5 motorway for faster access.
Forget Munich that is nearly 400kms away!
I pay the first 500€ a year for my doctor/dentist costs because my health insurance premiums are a lot lower. You could pay 100-200€ more a month and get everything refunded by the insurance company but I think 500€ is a good price to pay for keeping a nice pair of healthy, gleaming white teeth and gums!


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## dimkatsar

James3214 said:


> Try somewhere in the Odenwald. I cycle a lot around that area south of Darmstadt and really beautiful area to live, although I am not sure what its like to commute in the morning, you could choose somewhere nearer the A5 motorway for faster access.
> Forget Munich that is nearly 400kms away!
> I pay the first 500€ a year for my doctor/dentist costs because my health insurance premiums are a lot lower. You could pay 100-200€ more a month and get everything refunded by the insurance company but I think 500€ is a good price to pay for keeping a nice pair of healthy, gleaming white teeth and gums!


What do you mean by saying "the first 500eur"?.Any other amount except the first 500eur will be normally covered by your insurance?.
So i need to pay every month 500eur only for dental insurance???.I thought it would be that amount covering more than dentists.Have i understood well or not?.
I mean 500eur (dentist) + any other amount for any other type of health insurance?.I think thats a lot of money.Am i right?
do you think that my salary 80k/year (gross) would be enouph for 2 persons with one or without a child??

Sorry i am asking you all these things


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## James3214

I don't think I have explained it clearly enough. 
My private health insurance premium is 357€ per month. I have a policy which means that for any claims in one year I have to pay the first 500€ of any claims (be it hospital, doctor or dentist bills). Once I have paid that 500€ in the year I don't pay anything more. Even if I need expensive heart surgery or a costly life saving operation, the insurance company will pay.
That is why my insurance premium is cheaper, because I pay the first 500€ myself.
You can get health insurance without paying any costs yourself but your premiums will be higher. 
The insurer will insist though that you go to the dentist and doctor regularly to try and pre-empt any problems that could happen. In fact, my insurance company refused to pay out part of my first (high) dentist bill because I hadn't had any treatment for a while before that.

For a salary of 80k I don't think 500€ is a lot to pay considering the escalating cost of health care and the high standard that is provided in Germany. 80k is by far, far more than enough for both of you (+/- child) to have a really, really, good standard of living in Germany. A lot have a good lifestyle with a lot less than that.


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## dimkatsar

James3214 said:


> I don't think I have explained it clearly enough.
> My private health insurance premium is 357€ per month. I have a policy which means that for any claims in one year I have to pay the first 500€ of any claims (be it hospital, doctor or dentist bills). Once I have paid that 500€ in the year I don't pay anything more. Even if I need expensive heart surgery or a costly life saving operation, the insurance company will pay.
> That is why my insurance premium is cheaper, because I pay the first 500€ myself.
> You can get health insurance without paying any costs yourself but your premiums will be higher.
> The insurer will insist though that you go to the dentist and doctor regularly to try and pre-empt any problems that could happen. In fact, my insurance company refused to pay out part of my first (high) dentist bill because I hadn't had any treatment for a while before that.
> 
> For a salary of 80k I don't think 500€ is a lot to pay considering the escalating cost of health care and the high standard that is provided in Germany. 80k is by far, far more than enough for both of you (+/- child) to have a really, really, good standard of living in Germany. A lot have a good lifestyle with a lot less than that.


..and a last question! .Can you suggest me some good real estate web sites to have a look?.Are they on German?Because i dont know nothing.Usually, before renting a house, does the landlord requires you to pay him a deposit plus the current rent?.
Is it easy in general to find a proper house for 2 or do i need to visit Germany earlier to start looking for an apartment?.
Thank you for once again for all your advice!I really appreciate this!
keep in touch!


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## James3214

That immobilienscout24.de suggestion is probably the biggest but there are many others and too many to list here. Just google 'Wohnung zu vermieten Darmstadt' for a list.
Landlords require a deposit (normally 1-3 months) rent and the rent up front. Without German knowledge it is going to be harder so I would suggest getting agencies to sort out viewings, etc. You will probably have to pay 1 or 2 months rent commission but it will save you a lot of hassle especially with the language, etc. If you don't want to pay commission look for places advertised with 'kein provision'.

If you can I would try and live in an hotel or apartment/hotel and take a lot time to find a place.
Occasionally, owners rent out their properties for fixed periods (when they work away) or you could also take a room in a shared house or apartment to keep costs down.
This website is a good one as it also indicates if the owners/renters speak English. Darmstadt is a university town and a few US bases are (or was) nearby so you might be lucky with finding English speakers. 
http://www.wg-gesucht.de/1-zimmer-wohnungen-in-Darmstadt.23.1.0.1.html

Good luck and come on here and share your experience for others making the same steps.


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## Turbineguy

Not to bud in because James really has a handle on his information!! But I have just moved here (Berlin) from Canada only a month and a bit ago. And I will agree that it is way easier to pay for an agency to search for you. Tell them exactly the house/apartment you have in mind and your max rental budget. They will find it for you. I am in that very process now with my agency. Home is who I am dealing with, do not know if they serve your location. Your new employer may even cover this cost as mine has. If you are being paid 80,000 Euro per year I think you can live a very, very nice life here!! If I am not mistaken the average salary is 27,000 Euro per year. As for your fiancee finding a job as you mentioned it may not be so easy unless she has an exceptional skill that just can't be found here!! My wife stayed back in Canada for the time because of this reason, she holds only an "average" job. Sounds passe but you really can learn much about the location you are going to from Google searches and other forums too. Hope my 2 cents help as we are all learning together!!


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