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Thread: Is $88K a good salary in Wellington

  1. #1
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    Default Is $88K a good salary in Wellington

    I am offered a salary of 88k on Wellington.
    Is it a good salary.


    What kind of lifestyle we can maintain with this.

    We are moving from Sea, WA? Would be great if somebody can compare what is this salary equvivalent to in Seattle.

    We are family of three (Me, Wife + 18 months baby)


    Amit

  2. #2
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    Salary is relative. To put it simple, yes it is a good salary for a family of 3, you can easily afford good house (rent of abt $2k), groceries ($1k), misc expenses ($1k), travelling ($400), shiny 2nd hand car installment & fuel ($800), savings ($1k).

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sun777 View Post
    Salary is relative. To put it simple, yes it is a good salary for a family of 3, you can easily afford good house (rent of abt $2k), groceries ($1k), misc expenses ($1k), travelling ($400), shiny 2nd hand car installment & fuel ($800), savings ($1k).
    hmmm, not quite sure about the sums there. My reckoning is that the above adds up to a bit more than the 88k less tax (depends a bit on additional benefits).

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    Hello and welcome.

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    Thanks Duncan, sorry Amit you may have to reduce about $600 between those figures.

    Try using this online tool for tax deduction:

    NZ Tax Calculator 2011-2012

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  7. #7
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    Depending on your lifestyle, $88,000 is a liveable salary in Wellington and (from memory) above the average Wellington household income. The figures given above provide a good indication of the split across expenses.
    Personally we spend less on food and vehicle/transport costs, though whether you prefer to eat out a lot or where you live and work plays a big role here.

    The other aspect that you need to factor in is what one off or irregular costs or purchases you may need to make; the $1k per month savings may cover this though that again depends on personal circumstances.

    Shawn

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    From memory average household in Wellington was about 110k last year. But that by definition includes all the double income families. $500 a week rent for a single person is surely going to get you a very nice place, and depending on your outlook you could halve that for a flat share which may be better at least for the first 6 months whilst you build a network of friends and get set up.

  9. #9
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    The average salary in Welly is about $76k, but as Duncan says, it may be different for households. I'm on a not disimilar wage to what you're talking about and we live on my salary. Hubby's wage is our savings or luxuries and allows us a very comfortable lifestyle.

    I would say Sun777 isn't far off the mark with the figures. We pay about the same rent for a 3-bed house in a desirable suburb (not that there are undesirable suburbs in Wellington, but we happen to live in a very nice one). Our grocery spend is a bit less (just two of us + dog though), and our transportation costs differ, but I commute into the city by motorbike, which is an awful lot cheaper than bus or car, unless work provides you with a car parking space, but even then petrol in a car will cost more than a bike.

    We don't have to budget, but like I say, we have two salaries.

    Seattle isn't the cheapest place in the US, IIRC it has one of the highest sales taxes in the country (won't I look forward to that on our visit next month?!). I guess you could liken Wellington to Seattle in terms of surroundings - natural harbour, easy access to all things water, but a much smaller city centre.

    I think a lot of Americans make the mistake of looking at prices here and forgetting that tax is included in the sticker price in NZ. We were working out meal costs the other day and converting US$ and NZ$ and after tax and tip, you'll actually pay a similar amount to eat out here.

    And the coffee's much better too

  10. #10
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    I'm from Seattle.
    I'd say 88k in NZ works out to roughly high 60s in Seattle. Though I'm 2 years out of the Seattle market.
    Cost of living is generally more here. Though there are hundreds of factors.

    Oh and the coffee is good, though not better. (counting starbucks as the pinnacle of Seattle coffee is like counting a meat pie as the pinnacle of kiwi cooking).

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