Saving money in Australia??

Svizzera

Hi,

So I have never been to Australia on a WHV (must be the only person left on this island who hasn't at this rate).
I'm hearing quite a lot that the wages are very high in Australia. But can I ask, how high are they really, when compared to living costs? (I'm equally aware that the cost of living has gotten sky-high, and that the AUD is very overvalued against the EUR, which can exaggerate things somewhat).

Realistically, how much do you save per month, on average, if anything? Or do you basically end up spend all your money there before returning home?

Would be inteersted to hear from anyone who's been there and can advise, regardless of what job. I'm inteested to find out.

Thanks!

Tigerandahalf

It is like anywhere? What type of job and pay rate will you secure? Will you go out on the piss 3 nights a week or eat in fancy restaurants? Do you want to travel and see as much of the place as you can?

markymark21

It is possible to save a lot of money in Australia even if you want to enjoy yourself and not have to look after every penny. If you have a boyfriend/girlfriend its even easier. You could do what me and the missus have done whereby we use my account (and my wages) as our savings and then use hers as the spending account. By doing this we have saved a heap since we arrived in November despite spending alot of money on trips, holidays, socializing etc etc


But at the end of the day it all depends on what kind of job you get and how much you get paid! If you land in Oz and all you get in 20 hours working door to door sales you can forget about coming home with wads of cash!

Frisbee

It's certainly possible.

We didn't try save when we were in Perth which, in hindsight, was pretty stupid. We've opened a joint savings account now though that we put $300 a week each into, so now we're saving 2400 a month. That still leaves us with plenty for rent, transport, food, going out etc.

I take $100 out every Friday when I get paid and then do my food shopping for the week after work. 7 breakfasts, 7 lunches and 7 dinners. Whatever is left over from that, which can be anything from 20 - 50 dollars depending on what I buy goes into a jar and herself does the same.

The idea is to use the money in the savings account for when we go travelling after we leave Oz and our flights home etc. And then the money in the jar we just use for everyday unexpected expenses like if we get lazy and order Pizza or go away for a weekend or something.

After all that then we both would have a couple of hundred dollars left in our accounts that we use if we're going out at the weekend or what not.

Pisco Sour

markymark21 wrote: »

You could do what me and the missus have done whereby we use my account (and my wages) as our savings and then use hers as the spending account.

Jaysus, that's a recipe for disaster if you ever broke up!

Coileach dearg

04072511 wrote: »

Jaysus, that's a recipe for disaster if you ever broke up!

Yep. It's the only way to go though to keep track of what you're spending. Myself and herself are paying off a mortgage now off my pay and living off hers.
You don't really appreciate how expensive this place is until you start doing this. Even Aldi shopping is fairly dear. The price of seafood is unreal in this Country, I'd love to see the comparison between buying it here and at home.
We only eat out/take away once a month now and drink out once a month.

Saying that though, ten times happier here than I would be at home. There's no price on that!

Svizzera

Just be careful you don't go buying any property in Australia! I would not touch it. All the indicators point to a massive bubble.

What's income tax like? Say you are earning minimum wage, what tax would you pay? And if you're a higher earner, does the taxation rate rise dramatically (ie. the two-tier rate system here) or just incrementally?

markymark21

04072511 wrote: »

Jaysus, that's a recipe for disaster if you ever broke up!

Ha fact! We've been travelling/working/living together for the past few years now so I'm pretty sure we won't be breaking up any time soon... I hope!

Coileach dearg wrote: »

Yep. It's the only way to go though to keep track of what you're spending. Myself and herself are paying off a mortgage now off my pay and living off hers.
You don't really appreciate how expensive this place is until you start doing this. Even Aldi shopping is fairly dear. The price of seafood is unreal in this Country, I'd love to see the comparison between buying it here and at home.
We only eat out/take away once a month now and drink out once a month.

Saying that though, ten times happier here than I would be at home. There's no price on that!

We're paying $40 a kg for Whiting in work! So yeh, seafood is expensive! I said to the chef why don't ya stick Mackerel on the menu. He looked at me like I had two heads!

mel.b

Svizzera wrote: »

Just be careful you don't go buying any property in Australia! I would not touch it. All the indicators point to a massive bubble.

What's income tax like? Say you are earning minimum wage, what tax would you pay? And if you're a higher earner, does the taxation rate rise dramatically (ie. the two-tier rate system here) or just incrementally?

See www.ato.gov.au

Tax rates 2011-12
The following rates for 2011-12 apply from 1 July 2011.

Taxable income
Tax on this income
0 - $6,000
Nil
$6,001 - $37,000
15c for each $1 over $6,000
$37,001 - $80,000
$4,650 plus 30c for each $1 over $37,000
$80,001 - $180,000
$17,550 plus 37c for each $1 over $80,000
$180,001 and over
$54,550 plus 45c for each $1 over $180,000
The above rates do notinclude the Medicare levy of 1.5% (read Guide to Medicare levyfor more information).
The above rates do not include the Flood levy (read Flood levy information for individuals for more information).

supp

mel.b wrote: »

See www.ato.gov.au

Tax rates 2011-12
The following rates for 2011-12 apply from 1 July 2011.

Taxable income
Tax on this income
0 - $6,000
Nil
$6,001 - $37,000
15c for each $1 over $6,000
$37,001 - $80,000
$4,650 plus 30c for each $1 over $37,000
$80,001 - $180,000
$17,550 plus 37c for each $1 over $80,000
$180,001 and over
$54,550 plus 45c for each $1 over $180,000
The above rates do notinclude the Medicare levy of 1.5% (read Guide to Medicare levyfor more information).
The above rates do not include the Flood levy (read Flood levy information for individuals for more information).

fyi the non taxable rate has just been increased (not yet implemented) to $18k but not sure about non residents.

The Sweeper

Svizzera wrote: »

Just be careful you don't go buying any property in Australia! I would not touch it. All the indicators point to a massive bubble.

All whose indicators, exactly?

davepatr07

Yea it is possible to save though again as someone mentioned it is alot easier if you have a partner or spouse with you.

Having said that I do find food here and living expenses very high compared to Ireland especially food. I went back to Ireland in March to bring the partner to meet family and noticed how cheap food is especially if you shop at Aldi or Lidl even Tesco. There is much more choice of food in Ireland then both here in Oz and NZ.

One thing I will say is Mobile phone companies here are a RIP OFF! No Optus!

markymark21

davepatr07 wrote: »

Yea it is possible to save though again as someone mentioned it is alot easier if you have a partner or spouse

One thing I will say is Mobile phone companies here are a RIP OFF! No Optus!

I pay $40 a month and get unlimited calls and texts and a fairly hefty 4gb of data, I'd call that a pretty good deal!

Internet connection is fast as well. I use the personal hotspot connection between the iPhone and laptop alot and even with multiple pages open it still runs pretty smooth

Tigerandahalf

The Sweeper wrote: »

All whose indicators, exactly?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_property_bubble

The above is an interesting article.

hussey

OP a good way to save money is to open an online savings account
the best deals around are uBank and rabo
https://www.ubank.com.au/ub/web/usaver/online-savings-overview
http://www.rabodirect.com.au/high-interest-savings/default.aspx?WT.svl=hdr

davepatr07

markymark21 how did you get that deal? I'm not in Oz for very long, will going back to NZ next yr so being lazy and using Prepaid Optus. Found Virgin expensive too. I was talking to a girl in work that is on a contract plan with Optus and she is not happy with them. That is a good deal ya got have to say.

Won't be saving with Optus on prepaid that's for sure!

hussey

davepatr07 wrote: »

markymark21 how did you get that deal? I'm not in Oz for very long, will going back to NZ next yr so being lazy and using Prepaid Optus. Found Virgin expensive too. I was talking to a girl in work that is on a contract plan with Optus and she is not happy with them. That is a good deal ya got have to say.

Won't be saving with Optus on prepaid that's for sure!

Optus prepaid for $40 you get a lot of calls 1Gb of data and unlimited text,
what plan were you on? the cheap ones are poor, the 45-50p/m is nearly always enough, unless you are always on the phone

But the deal Mark is talking about is
http://www.amaysim.com.au/mobile-plans/amaysim-unlimited.html

which piggybacks off Optus

Zambia

The Sweeper wrote: »

All whose indicators, exactly?

In fairness there are some

1: 100% mortgages on offer ...never a good sign

2: Pressure on the Goverment to interfere with stamp duty

3: Equal pressure to maintain high first home buyer grant

4: I went to an auction near me for a decent flat block of land 550 sqm to see if stuff was moving, I was the only f**ker there no one turned up to buy it.

5: Builders stating work is slowing

6: Higher cost of living Elec, gas and water all flying up.

Not as exposed as Ireland was but its still out there on a ledge.

The Sweeper

Zambia wrote: »

The Sweeper wrote: »

All whose indicators, exactly?

In fairness there are some

1: 100% mortgages on offer ...never a good sign

2: Pressure on the Goverment to interfere with stamp duty

3: Equal pressure to maintain high first home buyer grant

4: I went to an auction near me for a decent flat block of land 550 sqm to see if stuff was moving, I was the only f**ker there no one turned up to buy it.

5: Builders stating work is slowing

6: Higher cost of living Elec, gas and water all flying up.

Not as exposed as Ireland was but its still out there on a ledge.

FWIW I do think there'll be an adjustment, but not the crash Ireland experienced. Properties that suffer most in an adjustment are the city houses, sold for 1.4m and now valued at 950k. A family home out in the burbs bought for 400k may drop to 375k but it'll be back up and over 400k again within five years (or less).

Australia doesn't have enormous and unsustainable debt, and does have a mineral resource sector that bolsters the economy.

How long do folks think you buy property *for*?

Svizzera

The Sweeper wrote: »

FWIW I do think there'll be an adjustment, but not the crash Ireland experienced. Properties that suffer most in an adjustment are the city houses, sold for 1.4m and now valued at 950k. A family home out in the burbs bought for 400k may drop to 375k but it'll be back up and over 400k again within five years (or less).

Australia doesn't have enormous and unsustainable debt, and does have a mineral resource sector that bolsters the economy.

How long do folks think you buy property *for*?

''Australia doesn't have enormous and unsustainable debt, and does have a mineral resource sector that bolsters the economy.''

Really? The Household debt to income ratio in Australia is ever increasing and is among the highest in the world, over 100%. Household debt is what matters, not Government debt. The average income in Australia is much less than the income required to sustain such large, increasing mortgage repayments on overvalued properties. Something has to give.
Australia is also far too reliant on China (ie. the mining sector) to keep its economy plugging away. If China 'hard lands', there will be a definite ripple effect in Oz, notably the mining sector, leading to job losses and wage reduction...not exactly things that would be supportive to any property market.

Personally, I wouldn't go near the market. I remember hearing of people buying houses in estates at the 'peak' in Ireland...and then 2 years later having neighbours move in who paid 40% less than then they did..for the exact same property.

Slidey

Zambia wrote: »

In fairness there are some

1: 100% mortgages on offer ...never a good sign

2: Pressure on the Goverment to interfere with stamp duty

3: Equal pressure to maintain high first home buyer grant

4: I went to an auction near me for a decent flat block of land 550 sqm to see if stuff was moving, I was the only f**ker there no one turned up to buy it.

5: Builders stating work is slowing

6: Higher cost of living Elec, gas and water all flying up.

Not as exposed as Ireland was but its still out there on a ledge.

The ads for mortgages on the radio here in Perth that say if you have €1500 you too can own your own property and the ream of ads for getting your property portfolio together so you can retire and pay less tax in the mean time remind me all too much of home.

My work is directly linked to the mining of iron ore which everyone and their dog knows that China is stock piling it at the minute

davepatr07

Hussey, I got the Optus prepaid while in Brisbane after meeting up with a German couple in Adelaide who used them because of the cheap International call rates (using International Sim card). Not sure which plan as I didn't ask for one I just wanted to get the cheap Int call rates for phoning Ireland and NZ.

As far as I know if I just top up a small amount like $10 or $15 even $20 dollars a quick ph call during the day for 3-4 minutes soon nearly eats all that credit up. Find it easier to txt more as it is cheaper though you do have to make calls from time to time. If I top the International Sim up with $30 credit it lasts for ages. I've spend 4 International ph calls that have been over 50 minutes so far in the past week and still credit left over.

Perhaps the larger amount I top up with on the Oz sim (Domestic) the more I can get out of it. Will try the $40. Cheers

The Sweeper

Svizzera wrote: »

Really? The Household debt to income ratio in Australia is ever increasing and is among the highest in the world, over 100%. Household debt is what matters, not Government debt.

Six months ago, the household debt to disposable income ratio was 151%, down from 155% five years previously. Yes, it is among the highest in the world, but it's not at crisis point quite yet and it's not 'ever increasing'. In early 2010 it had gone up to 156%, but again it was September last year when it dropped to 151%.