Can a family survive on ...

[Skrag001]

Hi

We are probably relocating to Aus in the next year or so. We have our permanent residence visas etc etc. I can probably get my current SA company to pay me around 80/90k A$ per year gross to do work for them from there. I know that there are many any factors involved like tax etc etc. But in general will I be able to survive , at least for the first year or so, on a salary of about 80/90k A$?

PS: We would like to be in Sydney (Yes I know its the second most expensive city in the world ).

Regards

Johan

[chzaau]

How many family members make up your household?

[GTrotter]

It all depends where you want to live by far the biggest expense in Sydney is accommodation. Have a look on domain.com.au to get an idea of rentals.

[Skrag001]

My family is me, my wife and our 6 month old girl. Thanks for the link. I am fortunate that I would be able to get away with living a bit further out, if that makes rental cheaper, since I am planning to do work for my SA company.

What is the view on buying property in AUS/Sydney. My feeling is that it might be better to rent for at least a while?

[chzaau]

Here is a tax calculator you can try to use to get an idea http://www.paycalculator.com.au/

An 80 K salary will give you about 56 K including super deduction. That is about 4,666 per month.

Taking rent off working at about 550 per week will be about 28K per year. Leave you with 27,400 per year or 2,283 per month. It will be tight and you will not be able to save very much if anything at all.

Other can offer a rough idea of the average food, but don't forget phones, travel and all that other nice stuff.

If you other half can work that will help to ease the burden.

[HansaPlease]

I'd say 550 a week is pretty high rent for somebody earning 80\90k. If, like you say, you can get away with living further out, you can easily drop that to 350-400 pw for rent, maybe even less. Depends on how far out you're talking.

A small family should easily be able to survive on that, but it won't be a luxurious lifestyle.

Before buying, I would first figure out where you're heading career wise, getting used to living costs, etc. At the moment, interest rates are low, and if they went up drastically, they could easily

cripple you if you're borrowing close to the limit of what you can afford.

[ronfire]

What GTrotter said - accommodation is by far the biggest cost in Australian cities, especially Sydney.

If you're in the position of being able to work for your SA company - would you be working from home? If so, I certainly agree that you can afford to live a bit further out, subject to broadband availability and speed (assuming that will be critical for your work). It's only the two of you and your little one, so your options are definitely more varied than if you had older kids who need more space and facilities like parks, schools, etc. I think you can definitely manage, though I'm no expert on cost of living in Sydney but Perth can't be too different!

Definitely agree with Hansa - take your time before you think of buying a place. Sydney property is crazy at the moment and may very well continue for sometime. You may need to borrow insane amounts of money to buy where you want, have to compete against investors, and interest rates movements can hurt badly. I'd leave it alone for now until you're settled in and know where you want to live for schools, etc. Renting gives you an idea of the locality, what the people are like, etc.

Good luck with everything!

Edited October 22, 2013 by ronfire

[Skrag001]

Thanks guys. All the opinions has been very helpful. I agree that $500p/w seems on the higher side of rental in Syndey. In places like Hornsby and Parramatta it looks like you can get away with rentals from 350 upwards. These suburbs are about 24 km from the center of Sydney, is that far or is that considered near?

Regards

Johan

[monsta]

Thanks guys. All the opinions has been very helpful. I agree that $500p/w seems on the higher side of rental in Syndey. In places like Hornsby and Parramatta it looks like you can get away with rentals from 350 upwards. These suburbs are about 24 km from the center of Sydney, is that far or is that considered near?

Regards

Johan

Skrag001, I think chzaau was meaning a house for over $500pw. If you want a 2 bedroom apartment, you could get it from $350 upwards.

Also mate, you said you are married. Your wife should be able to earn $50 000 - $60 000 per year with a typical office job. Property prices are so high because its usual for both parents to work.

But, if your wife wants to get a job at some point, shop around for a suburb with cheap day care. Kindergarten (pre-school) is usually between $80 - $140 PER DAY. Yes, there is a government subsidy for child care because its so expensive.

But having said all of that... don't move to Sydney! $90 000 per year buys a lot more in Brisbane or even Melbourne.

To answer your 2nd question about how far away Hornsby is... use google maps... the city centre is at central station. So ask Google how long it takes by public transport to get to the City to start work at 9am. I would also at least double any driving time that Google gives you.. Google doesn't consider the traffic at 9am.

Cheers

[Skrag001]

Thanks for the feedback monsta. Unfortunately Sydney is probably the only city my wife would consider going to at the moment since friends of our will be there in a couple of months and the cost would be a small price to pay for the proximity of fiends ... Yep, my wive is very well qualified so getting a good paying job would probably not be a problem. We would prefer for her not to have to work so that why we are willing to scale down a lot ...

I have used google maps as much as is possible but like in Johannesburg practical experience is best. For example Hornsby is about 24km from center of Sydney, which to me doesn't sound like much. If the traffic is comparable to JHB traffic then it will take around an hour, but then the websites says that by train it takes around an hour ... So I guess I'd have to do the trial runs myself when we are on our LSD in feb.

[rozellem]

With the hindsight of almost 5 years in Sydney, if this was for me, I would choose Hornsby. Its bushy and pretty, great shopping, access to a very civilised train ride into CBD, closer to the coast. Parramatta is almost a seperate city to Sydney CBD, densely populated, can be a bit rough round the edges, hotter/colder than Hornby, a mission to drive to, nevermind commute to the CBD. Hornsby is also a stones throw from areas preferred by RSA's (St Ives and the Hills), so you have access to that resourse too, if you wanted it. Your train travel time is 35-40mins from H to CBD. Good luck with your choice.

[Heymanse]

I agree with Rozelle. If I had to choose between Hornsby and Parramatta, Hornsby would win hands down. We started our journey more than 5 years ago in Parramatta and my hubby thought I'd dropped him off in the middle of China (I love at this today, because 5 years on I have more Asian friends than I can count with both hands). Traffic is a nightmare to and from Parramatta not to mention that Parramatta is much like a small city on its own, VERY busy. If you don't mind living in an apartment for a while then you'll be able to save on some rental costs per week and would get away paying around $380 - $500 per week for a 2 bedroom apartment in Hornsby.

You never mentioned in which suburb your SA company's offices are here in Sydney. That might make it easier also to try and give you the best options avaiable.

I think you'll be fine on a $80/90k salary. We started off with half of that and 2 teenage kids, paid $425 per week for our rental and bought a second hand car cash for $5,000 so didn't have the added expense of vehicle finance to cover. We struggled but we got through it. If it is one thing I realised then, was that if you do take a knock on salary, you will survive because you simply have to.

[origincanada]

Skrag I live in Mount Colah which is 2 stations further from the city than Hornsby and I can tell you I love it. Commuting it not bad at all to the city (express train services ) and its quiet and peaceful. Trust me you dont want to live anywhere near Parramatta. Send me PM if you have any questions. Been here for over 5 years now.

[Kappie]

We arrived in Sydney 2 months ago and live in Hornsby. Accomodation is expensive. We pay $500 per week for a 2 bedroom apartment and it seems to be the going rate forbsomething decent. Also, just so you know, Hornsby is also mainly Asian if this will influence your decision. Have a look at Asquith and Mt Colah. Even Berowra if you like a small country town area. Travelling with the train is still approx 1 hour door to door if you work in the cbd. Traffic and travelling by car is terrible.

Also, I'm also looking for long daycare for my 18 month old boy and currently the waiting list at most places are 6 to 9 months.

[AlBrough]

Thanks for this info

[AndreaL]

Thanks for the feedback monsta. Unfortunately Sydney is probably the only city my wife would consider going to at the moment since friends of our will be there in a couple of months and the cost would be a small price to pay for the proximity of fiends ... Yep, my wive is very well qualified so getting a good paying job would probably not be a problem. We would prefer for her not to have to work so that why we are willing to scale down a lot ...

I have used google maps as much as is possible but like in Johannesburg practical experience is best. For example Hornsby is about 24km from center of Sydney, which to me doesn't sound like much. If the traffic is comparable to JHB traffic then it will take around an hour, but then the websites says that by train it takes around an hour ... So I guess I'd have to do the trial runs myself when we are on our LSD in feb.

There are options you can look at instead of the usual 2 parents working and child in day care. Day care is very expensive and in my opinion just not worth being away from your child if you are only going to make a few dollars after the cost. At present the childcare rebate had been capped at $7500 for the next 3 years, but could be cut, changed or means tested in future.

At present you would qualify for Family Tax Benefit part B, which on a $90 000 salary would be around $4100 per year. Depending on your wife's skills she may be able to work from home part-time or something along those lines.

Your biggest expense is going to be rental, so if you are working from home, you have a bit more freedom in where you might live, and further out generally equals better value.

In comparative Australian terms, $90 000 is a good wage, many people are earning much less, but I think new migrants often have bigger outgoings in the first few years. Another thing to discuss with your company is a car, if they provide a lease car option you can also lower your taxable income.

It is about sitting down and weighing up different models and seeing what works for your family. Your little one can start kindy at 4 1/2 if they are turning 5 on or before July 31, which would also free up your wife for part-time work. Part-time and school hours based jobs are very popular.

Best of luck with your planning and choices.

[ruditrix]

Ok. So how much tax will a person pay when gone over with a 489?

[HarryVR]

Parramatta is hectic!! Avoid, unless you'd like to experience Little China and Little Vietnam all rolled in to one experience. You'd have to learn some Chinese and Vietnamese, as most shop signs are in those languages. I think you guys will struggle there.