Moving from United Kingdom to USA. Is it worth it?

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Edited by: grubas Aug 5, 11, 08:37 #121

In the US, even if you and your spouse have a minimum wage job you can live decent in the US,

What???Dude, tell me how can you live a decent life on $7.25/h (DE min wage)????Pack of smokes is $6.Who are you trying to kidd?
I was struggling as hell making $13/h and you are telling me that you can live a DECENT life on $7.25/h?Not without food stamps and housing assistance.Get a life dude my cable bill is $120/month.

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Edited by: Pinching Pete Aug 5, 11, 08:46 #122

I was struggling as hell making $13/h

.. ahh but you live on the E. Coast, my man. Try the south or midwest.. you could easily get by, nothing lavish but decent food / housing. $13.00 won't cut it in the N. East you're right. Smoking is expensive, don't do it , so I don't have the expense. Which means I won't have the bullsh.t cancer expense either. Try the midwest or south; you won't have to be on assistance or welfare at all.

The US is going through a revamping right now but it's not the apocalypse or anything and it will get better but it's going to be maybe 5 years or so.

pipThreads: 11 Posts: 1,293 Joined: Jul 4, 11 ♀	Aug 5, 11, 10:54 #123
I can't help but imagining urban decay in Vegas. Do I want to put my young family in that kind of environment? Yes the houses are dirt cheap and the weather is great, but...? I have been to Vegas. Trust me, it is not the kind of environment you want to raise a family in. It got hit hard by the recession. It ain't pretty.

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Aug 5, 11, 15:25 #124

my mother proudly (!) lives on $800 a month. I have no idea how she does it. Granted, her house and car are all paid for, but the bills like insurance, electric, gas, water, must be at least $500/month. With the $300/mo remaining, she manages to keep herself and her dog in fresh vegetables, and still sends some money to her sister in Poland.
For entertainment she gardens, fixes (tinkers with) everything, plays with her stocks and checks on everyone via facebook. She is my hero. ;)
In contrast, my living expenses, even after the house was paid off, are still close to 3K/month!

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Edited by: FUZZYWICKETS Aug 5, 11, 17:02 #125

f stop wrote:

my mother proudly (!) lives on $800 a month. I have no idea how she does it. Granted, her house and car are all paid for, but the bills like insurance, electric, gas, water, must be at least $500/month.

electric, gas and water, in an avg sized house, is nowhere near $500/month. that would be crazy.

i have 120 sq meters and I pay under $200 a month for electric and water, no gas bill. also, for someone living alone, it would be even cheaper (less showers, less laundry, etc.).

regarding medical insurance, I'd have to ask how old your mother is. if she's 65 or over, she's completely covered by Medicare.

assuming your mother doesn't drive a sports car, her car insurance is minimal. again, i don't know how old she is but if she doesn't commute to work every day, she's probably registered as a part time driver. if i knew what state she lived in, i could probably take a good guess at how much she's paying. northeast, maybe $800-$900 a year, midwest/down south, maybe $400 a year.

convexThreads: 46 Posts: 7,185 Joined: Nov 25, 09 ♂	Aug 5, 11, 17:43 #126
electric, gas and water, in an avg sized house, is nowhere near $500/month. that would be crazy. That would be having an airconditioner in the south. regarding medical insurance, I'd have to ask how old your mother is. if she's 65 or over, she's completely covered by Medicare. Think she meant insurance for the house/car.

FUZZYWICKETSThreads: 12 Posts: 1,999 Joined: Nov 3, 09 ♂	Aug 5, 11, 17:51 #127
convex wrote: That would be having an airconditioner in the south. i live in the deep south. those are my numbers.

pgtxThreads: 49 Posts: 6,327 Joined: Feb 14, 09 MEMBER ♀	Aug 5, 11, 17:53 #128
airconditioner in the south. when you have 4000 sq feet house... or like living in igloo/sahara conditions... even with 115F outside, i don't pay that much... i'm not sure how much A/C cost in Poland?

convexThreads: 46 Posts: 7,185 Joined: Nov 25, 09 ♂	Aug 5, 11, 17:56 #129
How much is your homeowners insurance? Can get very expensive. 10 years ago our electricity bill in Austin was over $300 a month during the summer in a 2br apartment.

grubasThreads: 20 Posts: 1,452 Joined: Feb 1, 10 ♂	Edited by: grubas Aug 5, 11, 17:58 #130
That would be having an airconditioner in the south. Nah,it's not that bad.Last month I had AC running 24/7 and the total electric bill was $305 but AC is a necessity here.Oh ,and the AC unit is like 5 years old,with older one I guess the bill would be higher.

pgtxThreads: 49 Posts: 6,327 Joined: Feb 14, 09 MEMBER ♀	Aug 5, 11, 18:00 #131
How much is your homeowners insurance? Can get very expensive. $600-700 a year, i think... 10 years ago our electricity bill in Austin was over $300 a/c gets more expensive with a 2 stories house and 2 a/c units...

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Edited by: f stop Aug 5, 11, 18:23 #132

my estimates of my mother's bills are: electric:$150 (summer), internet+phone:$100, water:$100(water cost has been sky-rocketing in FL, and she waters her garden almost every day), gas:$50, car and house insurance:$100.
My electric is over $400/month in the summer, ~$100 in the winter (I have a big house with 3 AC systems. Don't ask, I'm working on it...).
Her home insurance is $600. Mine, hurricane alone is over $6000.. that's why I don't have any.

FUZZYWICKETSThreads: 12 Posts: 1,999 Joined: Nov 3, 09 ♂	Aug 5, 11, 18:56 #133
GOTTA do central air.

f stopThreads: 33 Posts: 2,861 Joined: Dec 9, 09 ♀	Aug 5, 11, 19:06 #134
two of them are central. The third, the new experiment, is ductless, which I think I'll be switching to.

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