Well, our time in Germany has come to an end and we're heading back home to Estonia. We came here as my wife was accepted to finish up her university degree at a college here and we thought it would be a fun experience and look good on her CV to boot.
Germany is expensive when compared to Estonia, but not so bad or similar when compared to many parts of the U.S. It really didn't cost us personally during our time here as we're both EU citizens and as such gets some perks in other member countries.
The University system in the German state we're in charges €500 per semester, but as EU citizens with a kid, my wife was admitted tuition free. We also were able to rent out our apartment in Tallinn which almost (not quite but close) covered our rent in this smaller German town. Water and electricity rates are much higher in Germany, so that cost was (will be, as we don't have final bills yet) much higher.
We were able to switch from the Estonian state medical system to the German state system while we were here (thanks EU!) and used it twice (once for wife and once for daughter). Health insurance, even public, can be rather expensive in Germany and it's based on income (I think offhand it's 15%) however you can't be turned away. There are ways to fall through the cracks however as Germany has a dual public/private system (it actually encourages private insurance to ease costs on the public). But in certain circumstances one can get caught between the two and despite mandatory coverage, can be kinda screwed (though you would never be turned away for emergency medical treatment.)
The good part about the public medical is if only one person is working, their insurance covers the whole family. But if two people are working, they both have to have their own coverage. We, however, got the student rate for my wife, which was €50 per month and covered all of us, since I'm ER'd and don't work. So that was a good deal for us, but if my wife worked in Germany, it would be far more expensive for our family than what we would pay in Estonia (which is only for me as the wife and kid are covered cost free and I pay voluntarily into the Estonian system for coverage). The care in our town was very good though and can't fault it for anything. I have read that care overall is better in wealther areas than poorer areas and we were in a small, but fairly wealthy town, so that may play into it. The care we had was for relatively minor stuff, so I couldn't comment how extended inpatient treatment might be.
Food is pretty much comprable to Estonia, but it did cost us more while here. Reason being in Estonia, almost everyone has a relative with a farm and gets tons of free food over the growing season, including us. That or people head to the countless farmers markets everywhere. So in summer, we pay very little for food and like most Estonians consume mostly fresh vegetables, berries and mushrooms over the summer months with some goat/pork/chicken meat thrown in. Here in Germany, despite being a rural area, not too much fresh goodies and most things need to be store purchased which made food for 3 our biggest expense while here.
Some other things that would have been expensive had we stayed long term are things like the car tax. Germany has one and you pay, as I understand it, for the size of engine your vehicle has. That's why most Germans drive small cars, not because they want to, but because it's cheaper to do so. Germans have a love of cars as much as or more than Americans, so they don't drive beaters cause they want to. Estonia has no annual car tax, so that's a big savings (though there is a strict emissions test in Estonia that needs to be passed).
Like in the US, most things in Germany are handled by each individual state with federal law trumping those. Garbage in our area is collected under taxes (free) for paper/plastic, but hazardous waste (diapers, etc) are paid by the user separately. For our small diaper can it's €68 annually. In Estonia it's all paid via tax, no separate fee. Also, in Germany, if you have large items or something not taken normally, you either have to pay to have it removed or you have to wait for the annual "other" trash removal to put it on the curb. It's illegal to put something on the sidewalk with a "free" sign on it. No garage sales either unless regulated by your area. In Estonia, I can put something on the sidewalk or along the road or have a garage sale or whatever I want.
Germans, at least in my town, are sticklers for the rules. If you're not doing something by the book, they'll let you know. Estonia is a live and let live kind of place. Leave me alone and I'll leave you alone. That has it's own upside and downfalls, but I prefer it to a butting into my business all the time society. Our town in Germany is like the HOA I lived under in Florida. Maybe not as bad as that, cause it was the New Yorkers hassling the good people there.
The people here are mildly more friendly than Estonia, but not enough to make a difference. The only thing here (we've been in the state of Baden-Württemberg) that I did really love was the weather. This town in particular (it's a river valley) has the best freaking weather of any place I have lived since my childhood home. The sun (no lie) comes virtually every day of the year, for at least a couple hours. Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. I can count on one hand the days we've lived here over 8 months that we didn't see the sun and have fingers left over.
I wanted to write a short bit on German taxes, though they don't effect us. If you're married with kids, your tax burden, depending, isn't much higher than you'd probably pay in the US. But, if when you're young and single you pay a lot! It's sort of a tax system where the young and healthy pay the most, the old and poor the least and everyone in between based your circumstance. So it's in ones best interest to marry and pop out kids as soon as possible as everythings is way cheaper then.
Estonia has a flat tax for everyone, much better system, easier and more transparent. Filing is simple, very few things can be deducted (school costs can for example.)
Germany compared to Estonia is a bureaucratic nightmare. It's still a paperwork, rubber stamp society circa 1950 USA. Literally, they still use ink and rubber stamps to press against documents to make them official! German efficiency these days is both an oxymoron and a myth.
Estonia, to it's credit, is incredibly efficient and virtually everything can be done online, all documents signed digitally with your ID card, etc. No one uses a rubber stamp for anything except humour.
As a couple with a young daughter we also were not too thrilled with the German school system, which basically at grade 4 decides whether or not you're smart enough to go to college. Homeschooling in Germany is strictly illegal and your kids will be taken away if their not sent to school as directed. Big downside for us. Homeschooling is legal in Estonia, as it is in most European countries. Germany is an exception in this regard.
It is overall a wealthier country than Estonia so the buildings are fancier looking and the highways in better shape. It's also overpopulated and the public litter factor is much worse than when I lived here in the early 90's.
West Germans, based on my personal conversations and media, still regard Eastern Germans as foreign.
From an ER perspective, the property in Germany isn't so bad when compared to the US or Estonia's capital city of Tallinn (where we live). I could easily buy a house here for what I paid for my apartment in Tallinn. But, always a but, you pay around 10% extra in Germany on top of the real estate price for all taxes and fees. And you'd have to be a pretty savvy local to get out of any of that.
My overall impression of Germany is that it's a nice place to visit, but we wouldn't want to live here. It can work well for others though.
While I often compare Germany to Estonia, it's a no brainer for us for many reasons why Estonia is better and we're very happy there. IF, hypothetically, I had to choose between Germany and the U.S. in our situation right now today, I would rather live in the USA, but would have to choose Germany. For one simple reason...health insurance. It might not be the best in the world, but it's really good and better than the nothing I would have othewise.
I think I wrote too much but I tried to be objective, but feel free to call me out on anything, I'm happy to chat about expat life in Europe. I'm sure I left out all kind of relevant things as well. Anyone on one of those Scandinavian Cruises that stops in Tallinn is welcome to meet up with me.
Germany is expensive when compared to Estonia, but not so bad or similar when compared to many parts of the U.S. It really didn't cost us personally during our time here as we're both EU citizens and as such gets some perks in other member countries.
The University system in the German state we're in charges €500 per semester, but as EU citizens with a kid, my wife was admitted tuition free. We also were able to rent out our apartment in Tallinn which almost (not quite but close) covered our rent in this smaller German town. Water and electricity rates are much higher in Germany, so that cost was (will be, as we don't have final bills yet) much higher.
We were able to switch from the Estonian state medical system to the German state system while we were here (thanks EU!) and used it twice (once for wife and once for daughter). Health insurance, even public, can be rather expensive in Germany and it's based on income (I think offhand it's 15%) however you can't be turned away. There are ways to fall through the cracks however as Germany has a dual public/private system (it actually encourages private insurance to ease costs on the public). But in certain circumstances one can get caught between the two and despite mandatory coverage, can be kinda screwed (though you would never be turned away for emergency medical treatment.)
The good part about the public medical is if only one person is working, their insurance covers the whole family. But if two people are working, they both have to have their own coverage. We, however, got the student rate for my wife, which was €50 per month and covered all of us, since I'm ER'd and don't work. So that was a good deal for us, but if my wife worked in Germany, it would be far more expensive for our family than what we would pay in Estonia (which is only for me as the wife and kid are covered cost free and I pay voluntarily into the Estonian system for coverage). The care in our town was very good though and can't fault it for anything. I have read that care overall is better in wealther areas than poorer areas and we were in a small, but fairly wealthy town, so that may play into it. The care we had was for relatively minor stuff, so I couldn't comment how extended inpatient treatment might be.
Food is pretty much comprable to Estonia, but it did cost us more while here. Reason being in Estonia, almost everyone has a relative with a farm and gets tons of free food over the growing season, including us. That or people head to the countless farmers markets everywhere. So in summer, we pay very little for food and like most Estonians consume mostly fresh vegetables, berries and mushrooms over the summer months with some goat/pork/chicken meat thrown in. Here in Germany, despite being a rural area, not too much fresh goodies and most things need to be store purchased which made food for 3 our biggest expense while here.
Some other things that would have been expensive had we stayed long term are things like the car tax. Germany has one and you pay, as I understand it, for the size of engine your vehicle has. That's why most Germans drive small cars, not because they want to, but because it's cheaper to do so. Germans have a love of cars as much as or more than Americans, so they don't drive beaters cause they want to. Estonia has no annual car tax, so that's a big savings (though there is a strict emissions test in Estonia that needs to be passed).
Like in the US, most things in Germany are handled by each individual state with federal law trumping those. Garbage in our area is collected under taxes (free) for paper/plastic, but hazardous waste (diapers, etc) are paid by the user separately. For our small diaper can it's €68 annually. In Estonia it's all paid via tax, no separate fee. Also, in Germany, if you have large items or something not taken normally, you either have to pay to have it removed or you have to wait for the annual "other" trash removal to put it on the curb. It's illegal to put something on the sidewalk with a "free" sign on it. No garage sales either unless regulated by your area. In Estonia, I can put something on the sidewalk or along the road or have a garage sale or whatever I want.
Germans, at least in my town, are sticklers for the rules. If you're not doing something by the book, they'll let you know. Estonia is a live and let live kind of place. Leave me alone and I'll leave you alone. That has it's own upside and downfalls, but I prefer it to a butting into my business all the time society. Our town in Germany is like the HOA I lived under in Florida. Maybe not as bad as that, cause it was the New Yorkers hassling the good people there.
The people here are mildly more friendly than Estonia, but not enough to make a difference. The only thing here (we've been in the state of Baden-Württemberg) that I did really love was the weather. This town in particular (it's a river valley) has the best freaking weather of any place I have lived since my childhood home. The sun (no lie) comes virtually every day of the year, for at least a couple hours. Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. I can count on one hand the days we've lived here over 8 months that we didn't see the sun and have fingers left over.
I wanted to write a short bit on German taxes, though they don't effect us. If you're married with kids, your tax burden, depending, isn't much higher than you'd probably pay in the US. But, if when you're young and single you pay a lot! It's sort of a tax system where the young and healthy pay the most, the old and poor the least and everyone in between based your circumstance. So it's in ones best interest to marry and pop out kids as soon as possible as everythings is way cheaper then.
Estonia has a flat tax for everyone, much better system, easier and more transparent. Filing is simple, very few things can be deducted (school costs can for example.)
Germany compared to Estonia is a bureaucratic nightmare. It's still a paperwork, rubber stamp society circa 1950 USA. Literally, they still use ink and rubber stamps to press against documents to make them official! German efficiency these days is both an oxymoron and a myth.
Estonia, to it's credit, is incredibly efficient and virtually everything can be done online, all documents signed digitally with your ID card, etc. No one uses a rubber stamp for anything except humour.
As a couple with a young daughter we also were not too thrilled with the German school system, which basically at grade 4 decides whether or not you're smart enough to go to college. Homeschooling in Germany is strictly illegal and your kids will be taken away if their not sent to school as directed. Big downside for us. Homeschooling is legal in Estonia, as it is in most European countries. Germany is an exception in this regard.
It is overall a wealthier country than Estonia so the buildings are fancier looking and the highways in better shape. It's also overpopulated and the public litter factor is much worse than when I lived here in the early 90's.
West Germans, based on my personal conversations and media, still regard Eastern Germans as foreign.
From an ER perspective, the property in Germany isn't so bad when compared to the US or Estonia's capital city of Tallinn (where we live). I could easily buy a house here for what I paid for my apartment in Tallinn. But, always a but, you pay around 10% extra in Germany on top of the real estate price for all taxes and fees. And you'd have to be a pretty savvy local to get out of any of that.
My overall impression of Germany is that it's a nice place to visit, but we wouldn't want to live here. It can work well for others though.
While I often compare Germany to Estonia, it's a no brainer for us for many reasons why Estonia is better and we're very happy there. IF, hypothetically, I had to choose between Germany and the U.S. in our situation right now today, I would rather live in the USA, but would have to choose Germany. For one simple reason...health insurance. It might not be the best in the world, but it's really good and better than the nothing I would have othewise.
I think I wrote too much but I tried to be objective, but feel free to call me out on anything, I'm happy to chat about expat life in Europe. I'm sure I left out all kind of relevant things as well. Anyone on one of those Scandinavian Cruises that stops in Tallinn is welcome to meet up with me.
