# moving to aberdeen from the US



## tillman1180 (Jun 2, 2010)

I'm a single 29 yr old man relocating to Aberdeen with my company. I've been offered a base salary of 40,000 pounds. Is this enough for a single man in my position to live comfortably not posh but simply comfortable with enough money left for social activities.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

tillman1180 said:


> I'm a single 29 yr old man relocating to Aberdeen with my company. I've been offered a base salary of 40,000 pounds. Is this enough for a single man in my position to live comfortably not posh but simply comfortable with enough money left for social activities.


You should be, it's nearly double average earnings in Scotland. Your net income will be a little under £30,000 or £2,500 a month. You'll probably spend half of that on rent, council tax, utilities and other bills (tel, broadband, insurance). At least you don't need medical insurance as you'll be fully covered on National Health Service (though your company may offer private medical insurance as a perk - you'll be taxed on its value). Having paid for food, clothing and commuting, that should still leave you enough for entertainment and holidays, perhaps even running a small car. 
Of course much depends on where you live and what sort of property you go for, but avoiding luxuries you should be fine. Average rent for a modest one-bedroom apartment or flat in Aberdeen starts from around £125 a week or £540 a month, but pay a bit more for a better standard and location, maybe £600 to £700 a month with a parking space etc.


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

Hi 
Welcome to the forum,
Aberdeen is an expensive city as the oil/gas boom has pushed prices up but you should live a good life on your salary. 
Aberdeen is in the North East with the North sea on its shore and your winter heating bills will be large and you will probably need some form of heating in the summer more so if you are from a hot state. On the plus side it is a beautiful city with a good night life and you are close to the best salmon fishing in the world!

Maiden


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## Shipresa (Dec 9, 2008)

*Your salary may be high but living here costs a lot*

I've been here 2 years, and my husband now 12. He too has a 'higher than average for Scotland' salary in the oil business but life is expensive.

Council taxes are about £2000 a year. Make sure your rent includes them or not!

Those £125 a week flats are in really dire areas of Aberdeen. West end, Ferryhill - nearest the places of work - go about £850-1000 a month.

Will you be buying a car? Although houses are super expensive, rentals are more reasonable in Banchory, Stonehaven or Westhill. But since you are young and single, I cannot stress enough that you'll be happier in Aberdeen itself...for the main reasons of social and the commute times (horrific over the protected one lane bridges into town.)

Where you live is very important in Aberdeen - not for the 'posh'-ness or snobbery - but for your safety. 

Food, beer and restaurants are more expensive. I just came back from York (England) and even though a tourist town, prices for a night out are half of Aberdeen, and 2 times more fun. Many people in Aberdeen go home to Glasgow, etc. on weekends, by the way. You should look into sharing as many do own flats in town and are there only for work.

A friend recently bemoaned a £7.50 cider at a trendy cafe in town. These are NYC prices.... £40k is a fine enough salary for living here, just probably not enough to become rich on your savings for sure!

ETA: don't rent anything with electric heat and/or single-glazed windows! You'll go broke.


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