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Old 08-02-2016, 05:52 PM   #21
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I tried that site and wrote it off as it said that San Jose was cheaper to live in than Sacramento.
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Old 08-02-2016, 06:18 PM   #22
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I tried that site and wrote it off as it said that San Jose was cheaper to live in than Sacramento.

That would be strange, but I got "You would need around 6,071.20$ in San Jose, CA to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 4,400.00$ in Sacramento, CA (assuming you rent in both cities)." That seems about right.
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Old 08-02-2016, 10:33 PM   #23
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I hadn't remembered seeing the website on er.org so thought I'd post it here.

Our daughter lives in Santa Monica and she pays $2,600/mo for a 1 bedroom apartment, double what we pay for our 2 bed, 2 bathroom, double integrated garage in The Woodlands.
This is the old 'People's Republic of Santa Monica'?

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Old 08-02-2016, 11:06 PM   #24
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I am a bit surprised at some of the prices they have for the items in the Woodlands...

Buying a condo (apt) is WAY higher than it really is... I calculated the cost of my mom's high rise which is more costly than one that looks like an apt and it came to almost $400K.... you could buy it for less than $120K....

Also, fitness for $51 a month? Heck, LA fitness is $35 and there are some that are $11...

Chicken for 4.50 a lb Not... we get it on sell at HEB for less than $2....

I see this problem with a good number of the items listed... just pointed out a few... I also wonder how they really compare... IOW, a combo meal from McD here includes a HUGH drink and big fries... IIRC, you get a small drink and fries over there...

Now, if they have the prices in England as bad as the Woodlands it might be a fair comparison...


BTW, London is much higher...
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Old 08-03-2016, 01:52 AM   #25
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It is interesting Alan. I had seen this and similar sites and used them in the past. It goes against my gut feeling of time spent in the UK. DW was born in London and her sister lives near Petersfield. Whenever we visit, we are usually impressed by what seem to be the incredibly high prices on everything from groceries to real estate to renting a car. I guess those impressions are incorrect.
I think London and the SE are much more expensive than "up north". In fact new inheritance tax laws come into place this year increasing the allowance by the value of the main residence, adding up to Ł375k, per couple to the tax free allowance. We have a huge house up for sale very close to us, complete with tennis court, for Ł395k. You'd be lucky to get a 2 bed flat in London for that.

Cell phone plans, internet, cable, car insurance are also much cheaper here than we pay in the US.

For ~$10k we bought a very nice 18 month old Hyundai i20 automatic 5 door hatchback (size of a VW Golf) with 10k on the clock from a Hyundai dealer, manufacturer's 5 year warranty transferred to us. When we moved from Yorkshire to Houston in 1987 I recall that car prices were much more expensive in the UK, so even car prices are much closer to the US these days.
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Old 08-03-2016, 06:21 AM   #26
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Alan, not to change the subject, I just find the weather so depressing in the UK. I like you was raised there and left in 82. I joke with friends here and say "I lived in London for 27 years and saw the sun 3 times". We spend to much time wandering around looking and smelling like wet dogs. Tongue in cheek.
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Old 08-03-2016, 09:18 AM   #27
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I think London and the SE are much more expensive than "up north".
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Old 08-03-2016, 10:09 AM   #28
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Alan, not to change the subject, I just find the weather so depressing in the UK. I like you was raised there and left in 82. I joke with friends here and say "I lived in London for 27 years and saw the sun 3 times". We spend to much time wandering around looking and smelling like wet dogs. Tongue in cheek.
We have had really nice weather during the spring and summers of 2010, 2011, 2013 and also for 2016 so far (arrived in May, leaving in November). Being able to afford to live in warm weather during the 4 months of English winters, and avoiding the Texas summers is working great for us. Also, being retired we are not dependant on having the sunny days land on a weekend.
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Old 08-03-2016, 10:46 AM   #29
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When Brexit is fully implemented, will it still be cheap to live in England?

London generates a lot of the taxes which are paid as benefits to other parts of the country.

If the City loses business to other cities in the EU, other parts of the country may also suffer.
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Old 08-03-2016, 11:21 AM   #30
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When Brexit is fully implemented, will it still be cheap to live in England?

London generates a lot of the taxes which are paid as benefits to other parts of the country.

If the City loses business to other cities in the EU, other parts of the country may also suffer.
No idea, only time will tell. We are not choosing to live here because of how cheap it is, this last 6 years have been an unexpected bonus cost-wise.

Although I've visited many times since we left in 1987 it has only been these extended stays since retirement that I've noticed the cost of living here. (not every year here, we spent the summers of 2012, 14 and 15 in N. America, Australia and New Zealand).
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Old 08-03-2016, 02:59 PM   #31
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(We live in a small market town about 10 miles south of Middlesbrough)

Cost of Living
Not Stokesley by any chance is it? I have some friends there (big 'Boro suppporters!) - nice town.

I'm originally from the UK and am always surprised at the fact that for many things the US is more expensive than the UK - when the reputation is the reverse. Admittedly gas is a lot more expensive in the UK, but the cars get much better gas mileage and the distances are shorter, so total spend isn't much different. Also housing is much more expensive compared with where I live in the US (Ohio), although it may not be much different in other parts of the US.

When I first moved here 20+ years ago it seemed like electronics were a lot cheaper here than in the UK, but that difference has mostly been erased now - maybe something to do with globalization?
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Old 08-03-2016, 03:11 PM   #32
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Not Stokesley by any chance is it?
Guisborough.
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Old 08-03-2016, 03:16 PM   #33
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All in all Florida (Not Miami or Palm Beach) is VERY reasonable. House Taxed are about 50% of what I have seen in Texas, but homes are more expensive. Food is reasonable and quality is OK.

One thing I do notice about the US vs Canada for example; is that Supermarkets here in the US look like Farmers market stalls compared to those in Canada. AND the food in Canada for the most part is WAY better quality, especially produce. Milk Eggs and Chicken are way more expensive, other than that costs are comparable. We love walking around Supermarkets in Toronto, it is a pleasure.
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Old 08-03-2016, 03:26 PM   #34
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When Brexit is fully implemented, will it still be cheap to live in England?

London generates a lot of the taxes which are paid as benefits to other parts of the country.

If the City loses business to other cities in the EU, other parts of the country may also suffer.
Some rural areas, sometimes the very same ones that strongly voted for Brexit, get reportedly big development subsidies from the EU.

Oops.

Today in the news as well: biggest monthly drop in consumer confidence since 1990 in the UK. It may be simply aftershock though: it was much lower in absolute terms as recently as 2013.

Then again, London house and commercial prices are reported to be dropping and the purchase manager index also isn't shiny.

I don't see the positive effects for anyone at least for the next 2 to 4 years while uncertainty rules. In the mean time companies will either postpone or shift commitment decisions. I know I wouldn't want to invest in an UK home given the chance I can get cut off from EU access.

Rather shift some operations to mainland pre-emptively, or to ireland.

Bad economy usually means lower prices, so cheapness may continue. Taxes might be higher, which would probably hurt the income earners, not the FIREd crowd.
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Old 08-03-2016, 03:33 PM   #35
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I'm originally from the UK
OT When did the term "The UK" become popular? I know there was an amalgamation in the 1700s, but when did it become common parlance?

I 'escaped' about 56 2/3rds years ago, and at that time 'we' lived in England, (and I imagine the Scots lived in Scotland, etc), and I don't recall ever hearing "The UK"......but, at some undefined point later, it became "The UK this" and "The UK that" every time I encountered a Brit or overheard a bunch of them talking together.

Enlightenment please. /OT
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Old 08-04-2016, 11:12 AM   #36
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OT When did the term "The UK" become popular? I know there was an amalgamation in the 1700s, but when did it become common parlance?

I 'escaped' about 56 2/3rds years ago, and at that time 'we' lived in England, (and I imagine the Scots lived in Scotland, etc), and I don't recall ever hearing "The UK"......but, at some undefined point later, it became "The UK this" and "The UK that" every time I encountered a Brit or overheard a bunch of them talking together.

Enlightenment please. /OT
I guess it was sometime between 56 years ago when you left England and 21 years ago when I left. Not sure I can define it any closer than that!
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Old 08-04-2016, 11:58 AM   #37
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I guess it was sometime between 56 years ago when you left England and 21 years ago when I left. Not sure I can define it any closer than that!
That narrows it down.

(This is/was for me a (relatively) 'serious' question, because at some point (and I'm damned if I can remember when), it seems to me it became "UKUKUKUKUK" in a "Polly wants a cracker" fashion, and it was something I'd never heard before.)

Added: It was 35 years ago I left Canada for a sojourn in Saudi, and since there were numerous Brits (UKsians?) there, it might have been around that time.
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Old 08-04-2016, 12:50 PM   #38
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Where did they buy the grocery items, at Whole Foods? The food prices are wildly inaccurate for the the US, I don't know if they are correct for the UK. The food prices alone make me skeptical of the entire list.
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Old 08-04-2016, 01:31 PM   #39
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Where did they buy the grocery items, at Whole Foods? The food prices are wildly inaccurate for the the US, I don't know if they are correct for the UK. The food prices alone make me skeptical of the entire list.
Same here. Both grocery and restaurant foods are wildly overpriced. Maybe those who provided their data were just tourists eating at rip-off tourist places. Otherwise I really can't imagine where they got those prices.
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:25 PM   #40
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I have used Numbeo for several years. mainly to look at what to expect from an extended home swap. I find the data somewhat biased but not high or low. People tend to complete what is easy based on their personal experience. They might shop at Whole Foods vs Kroger, or complete it based on their memory.

But it is better than nothing.
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