Question for the Brits....job-related.

[thegiraffe]

I'm in the job hunt. As you probably know, America's economy is tanking hardcore. I've found a job opportunity in London, but I need to do some research first.

It says it pays about 50,000 USD/year, which translates to like 36,000 pounds (with taxes and all not taken out). Is that doable in London? Can I live off that? I have an intense fear of roommates due to some doozies that I had in college and I eat a lot, so that's a factor. I also tend to crank the heat in winter (I've lived in Florida for 18 years), so that affects electricity bills.

I really have NO way of knowing if I can survive off the salary. I'd need like a flat (I guess that's what you call apartments over there) with a bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom in a safe part of town. I dunno about a car - driving on the other side of the road kinda creeps me out. So uhh....transportation costs too?

Help!! Thanks

[Gravekeeper]

Eeeh, I dunno. Cost of living SUCKS there. A friend of mine works as a military engineer over there and is planning on immigrating to Canada.

Just for perspective, he makes almost three times as much as I do but I have more money left over per month than he does after subtracting basic living expenses.

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[One-Fang]

On the plus side, if you live and work in London you won't need a car. On the down side, your own personal one-person flat? Dude....

BTW, it may be considered a little Americocentric to say YOUR economy is tanking. In case you yanks hadn't noticed, we're ALL tanking. It's not just you. Okay?

[Gravekeeper]

BTW, it may be considered a little Americocentric to say YOUR economy is tanking. In case you yanks hadn't noticed, we're ALL tanking. It's not just you. Okay?

As I once again repeat the mantra: Flee to Canada.

We're actually fine. ;p

[Rapscallion]

If a national company has openings in London, they usually have something called 'London Weighting' in the salary offered.

London - good public transport infrastructure, but it basically sucks pole as a place to be. Plenty of nightclubs and touristy stuff, but expensive as you wouldn't believe.

Rapscallion

[MannersMakethMan]

I'd like to firstly insert a disclaimer: I'm not a Londoner, nor have I ever lived there. I am however in England, so I can try to outline some of the bigger bills you'll be dealing with.

So much depends on where abouts in London you're going to be living, like the rent, council tax, water rates and things, but I'll try and give a rough breakdown based on where I am right now. This isn't in London, so things could be slightly higher, but like I said, if you can narrow down the areas of London you'll be able to get better estimates from the people who live a bit closer.

First things first, taxes. You were allowed £6035 tax free this year (2008/09), after which you pay 20% on anything up to £34,800 and 40% on anything over that. Then national insurance is 11% on anything over £110 per week up to £844 per week, with an additonal 1% on anything over that, so after taxes, your take home pay becomes £26,764.20 from the salary of £36,000

Rent can be anything from £600-£1800 per month in London, so a little more information could be useful, but I'll take a middling value of about £1000 per month.

Water rates vary by supplier and property, so you'd have to find out who your supplier was locally, but mine are charging about £30 per month at the moment. Gas and electricity again vary from place to place, but between the three of us, we ran up about £75 per month on average. Again, check the local suppliers for more information, YMMV.

Council tax is then charged in bands based on the open market value of the property on 1st April 1991. This is again dependent on where you eventually move in to, and discounts are available in certain circumstances, but ours is about £120 per month. YMMV.

I've got no idea about transport costs at all, and again this will depend on where you live relative to where you work and want to go out to. Food is also a difficult one to measure without knowing the sort of things you'd be buying, but I'd guess around £25 per week would cover it.

Taken away, these very rough calculations seem to think you'll have a little under £900 per month spare, or £10,800 over the year. I'll add the disclaimer that I have never lived nor worked in London, nor do I know people who do. These numbers could be quite different for you, and I'd have a look around on the Internet to help you decide what your bills would be like with the local suppliers.

Good luck with everything, and don't be afraid to ask if I can help you with anything else!

[Gravekeeper]

Holy carp. See?

I have 2 basic monthly living expenses: Rent and Phone.

$600 rent. Includes all utilities, security system and cable for a 1 bedroom.
Phone and Interwebs are on the same bill which totals $80 a month.
Transportation to and from work via transit is about $80 a month.
Food, snacks, cat food, etc about...lets see about $80 a week or so?

So total living expenses for Canadia Land per month: $1080 or about £605.

For reference, minimum wage in BC is $8/hour. So even the most menial job here would keep you sheltered ( without need for a room mate ), fed, transported and Interwebbed if you worked full time.

Personally, I only work 4 days a week to keep myself and my cat alive and entertained with quite a bit of financial room to spare. So I can't complain.

[AirHostess]

£36,000-I think that you will be fine to live on that, even in London. The average UK salary is like £24,000 but the most common salary is about £15,000 a year.

Yeah sure it's expensive in London but I survived there on a Junior Civil Servant's pay which is a lot less than that, just fine. Yeah sure, I house-shared with friends, got the tube to work etc but I was fine. On that money you should be able to get a studio flat.

You wouldn't need to drive in central London. The Tube is pretty extensive. To be honest, I wouldn't WANT to drive there!

I loved living in London

Good luck.

[thegiraffe]

Thanks!

Yeah, I'm afraid of driving on the left side of the road. And....is it not common to have a private one-person flat? There are TONS of one bedroom/one bath apartments in the States. I'm just not sure that I would handle the roommate thing well. My dad also said that because I'm an American Citizen I wouldn't pay British taxes, I would pay American ones (which are a LOT less than British ones...holy cow!!)

I've never even been to Europe or the UK....are there suburbs of London that are cheaper but have public transportation into and around London? What does that stuff look like?

Princess....what is a studio flat like? In America, it's like a big room that's the living room and bedroom, a kitchen, bathroom, and closet. Is that the same as over there? That'd be doable.

Also, how is it to travel to Ireland or Wales or the EU? I'd LOVE to go to Italy, Germany, France.... Is it easy? Expensive? What about with the Visa I'd have - would I be allowed in and out of the country?

I appreciate the help!

Oh, and I didn't mean any harm by saying that America's economy is tanking. I get that the entire world's is. I'm a little frustrated about searching for jobs because I just keep hitting dead ends. Sorry if that came off rude.

[sms001]

You might try this link too, thegiraffe. Orlando wasn't in the dropdown list, but Miami was.

http://www.easyexpat.com/en/mod/cost.htm

Basically sez living in London at 50k would be like living in Miami on 35k. Which ain't gonna be a hirise condo in South Beach but is certainly doable, especially for a single person. But how do you measure the value to your life experience of having lived and worked in a different country? I'd say jump!

[sms001]

I'm in the job hunt. As you probably know, America's economy is tanking hardcore. I've found a job opportunity in London....

BTW, it may be considered a little Americocentric to say YOUR economy is tanking. In case you yanks hadn't noticed, we're ALL tanking. It's not just you. Okay?

Didn't seem to me that she even approached "Just America's economy is tanking." I think thegiraffe phrased it concisely to explain why she was considering such a major shift for job hunting.

Might be considered a little U.S. bashing to assume that we are all ignorant about the rest of the world's economic plight. In case you Kiwis hadn't noticed, being condescending toward a group of people based on your stereotypes of them is bad manners. Okay?

[Rapscallion]

Wales is officially another country, as is Scotland, but you don't need anything to cross the border (other than transport). Since you're not an EU citizen, you would probably need to take a passport to go into one of the continental countries.

Isle of Man - they're very laid back. Can heartily advise going there for a break.

Rapscallion

[crazylegs]

Thanks!

Yeah, I'm afraid of driving on the left side of the road. And....is it not common to have a private one-person flat? There are TONS of one bedroom/one bath apartments in the States. I'm just not sure that I would handle the roommate thing well. My dad also said that because I'm an American Citizen I wouldn't pay British taxes, I would pay American ones (which are a LOT less than British ones...holy cow!!)

You're living and working in the UK, to be sensible I would budget for UK levels of taxation.

I've never even been to Europe or the UK....are there suburbs of London that are cheaper but have public transportation into and around London? What does that stuff look like?

There are, but for gords sake check the Metropolitan Police crime maps so you know where you're living first... Public transportation in London is excellent and you can easily get away without a car.

Princess....what is a studio flat like? In America, it's like a big room that's the living room and bedroom, a kitchen, bathroom, and closet. Is that the same as over there? That'd be doable.

A studio flat is the same in the UK as it is in the US.

Also, how is it to travel to Ireland or Wales or the EU? I'd LOVE to go to Italy, Germany, France.... Is it easy? Expensive? What about with the Visa I'd have - would I be allowed in and out of the country?

Wales, easy catch a coach, if you book said coach far enough in advance National Express do cheaper fares.

Ireland and EU are foreign countries and you will need the relevent permissions to do so (a quick google search will tell you all of that though I'm sure).

[gaspode]

And don't forget if you are going to live in London,you have to support Manchester United

[thegiraffe]

I do fully plan on checking the crime maps! Thanks for a link

The reason I mentioned the taxes is because American taxing is at a much lower level than British, so I'd have more net income than a British citizen making the same salary....I see it as wiggle room!

I talked to my Aunt who lived in Belgium for 2 years, and she suggested that I travel on my passport and ignore my visa for traveling purposes, so that sounds like something I would do.

Listen to me....I'm so excited about maybe living in Europe for 2 years, and I've only applied! It would be so awesome!!!!!!

Oh, and I'm gonna run and hide after saying this:

*ahem*

I love playing soccer. I do. But I'm not a fan of watching it, and I'm not sure how I feel about pubs during soccer matches. I don't drink beer (blech!) and I've heard things can get a bit rowdy. I won't trash talk them though, so can that be an amicable solution??


*scampers off*