Many expats live in Thailand on less than 45,000 baht a month

[Zikomat]

44 minutes ago, TSF said:

I don't know how anyone could spend 90,000THB a month unless they were doing lots of shopping, or giving it away to TGs to buy buffaloes for mum & dad, or just squandering it by ringing bells in bars. I get by on a 3rd of that amount and I'm about 10K overweight, have a beer-gut from drinking too much Heineken, I drive a nice car, have more clothes than I need. If I was suddenly given an additional allowance of 50K a month I honestly don't know what I'd do with it, other than have some holidays. I certainly couldn't eat/drink any more, and I own enough junk to fill a warehouse.

That ‘ringing the bell’ thing makes up 4/5 of my expenses in TH. I just can’t help myself )

[Matzzon]

20 minutes ago, Zikomat said:

Not mentioning the psychological problems caused by humiliation at the border and immigration every two month.

What kind of visa are you on if you need both border and Immigration every 2 month? Are you living in Thailand on exempt entries? In that case you´re abusing the visa and permission to stay system. Not to mentioning circling around the system to not need to show sufficient funds for living here.

Edited August 25, 2019 by Matzzon

[Matzzon]

20 minutes ago, Zikomat said:

That ‘ringing the bell’ thing makes up 4/5 of my expenses in TH. I just can’t help myself )

Nope, and nobody else can do it either.

[JaiLai]

I don't know how anyone could spend 90,000THB a month unless they were doing lots of shopping, or giving it away to TGs to buy buffaloes for mum & dad, or just squandering it by ringing bells in bars. I get by on a 3rd of that amount and I'm about 10K overweight, have a beer-gut from drinking too much Heineken, I drive a nice car, have more clothes than I need. If I was suddenly given an additional allowance of 50K a month I honestly don't know what I'd do with it, other than have some holidays. I certainly couldn't eat/drink any more, and I own enough junk to fill a warehouse.

Interesting thread, here’s what I’ve spent this month ( so far ), pretty normal month

Road trip for 4 days - approx 25k
Petrol for 2 cars and 2 bikes - 10-12k ( drive 3-4000km each month)
Electric bill - 6-7k
Car # 1 service - 3.5k
Car # 2 service - 2.5k
Dog food - 5k ( 5 big dogs )
Vet bills -3k ( unfortunately 1 of them got blood parasites from ticks - he’s on the mend though )
Gardeners and handy man for a few off jobs - 12k
Groceries- 15k
Socialising - 20k ( ish )
Currently away for a few days - 15-20k

I’m mid 40s, not really a big drinker & don’t smoke, this is a normal month for me, oh and I’m married, no kids ( thank god! )

I don’t think it’s an extravagant lifestyle and that’s what it costs.

Could save a few baht I guess by not going away but I think would get a bit bored at the house all the time.

have a great day




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[bkk6060]

1 minute ago, JaiLai said:

Interesting thread, here’s what I’ve spent this month ( so far ), pretty normal month

Road trip for 4 days - approx 25k
Petrol for 2 cars and 2 bikes - 10-12k ( drive 3-4000km each month)
Electric bill - 6-7k
Car # 1 service - 3.5k
Car # 2 service - 2.5k
Dog food - 5k ( 5 big dogs )
Vet bills -3k ( unfortunately 1 of them got blood parasites from ticks - he’s on the mend though )
Gardeners and handy man for a few off jobs - 12k
Groceries- 15k
Socialising - 20k ( ish )
Currently away for a few days - 15-20k

I’m mid 40s, not really a big drinker & don’t smoke, this is a normal month for me, oh and I’m married, no kids ( thank god! )

I don’t think it’s an extravagant lifestyle and that’s what it costs.

Could save a few baht I guess by not going away but I think would get a bit bored at the house all the time.

have a great day




Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

That is about 120,000.

Seems just about right for a nice active lifestyle.

[mommysboy]

10 hours ago, Zikomat said:

Spend around 120 k a month for 5 years in TH. Still getting squeezed out by the visa requirements. Get those cheap asses out and leave me alone! Do they have wives or are they on retirement visa? Who cares - just kick them out of the country and let the smart ones like me stay here without stupid annoyances.

That's beautiful, man....... poetry.

 

 

[mommysboy]

Rather distressingly, I must admit that living an increasingly austere life is making me very healthy.????

[gearbox]

23 minutes ago, JaiLai said:

Interesting thread, here’s what I’ve spent this month ( so far ), pretty normal month

Road trip for 4 days - approx 25k
Petrol for 2 cars and 2 bikes - 10-12k ( drive 3-4000km each month)
Electric bill - 6-7k
Car # 1 service - 3.5k
Car # 2 service - 2.5k
Dog food - 5k ( 5 big dogs )
Vet bills -3k ( unfortunately 1 of them got blood parasites from ticks - he’s on the mend though )
Gardeners and handy man for a few off jobs - 12k
Groceries- 15k
Socialising - 20k ( ish )
Currently away for a few days - 15-20k

I’m mid 40s, not really a big drinker & don’t smoke, this is a normal month for me, oh and I’m married, no kids ( thank god! )

I don’t think it’s an extravagant lifestyle and that’s what it costs.

Could save a few baht I guess by not going away but I think would get a bit bored at the house all the time.

have a great day




Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Mr Spender ????

 

Something doesn't add up in your spending. No kids, away for quite a few days, driving around quite a bit, yet 6-7k for electric. You are either mining bitcoins or growing hydroponic pot ????

 

 

[JaiLai]

Mr Spender [emoji846]

 

Something doesn't add up in your spending. No kids, away for quite a few days, driving around quite a bit, yet 6-7k for electric. You are either mining bitcoins or growing hydroponic pot [emoji846]

 

 

 

It’s just what I spend.

 

2 interesting points though, unfortunately I’m not good at growing pot and I wish I could mine BC.

 

6-7k is based on 2 18,000BTU air cons on about 18 hours a day, I have house sitters when I’m away ( for the dogs ), my dogs like AC.

 

The reason for all the driving is I have a second property in Pattaya ( 4K a month fees plus about 600-1000 for electric ) depending on how much I’m using it.

 

 

 

 

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[Mike Teavee]

2 hours ago, BigFalang said:

I'm not working yet, but I've recently moved to BKK and I'm going to start working here within a few months now. I've already gotten a job, just waiting to get my work permit and a few other things in order before i start.

My salary is going to vary, 55-90k a month depending on how well I do each month. 

Terrible month - 55k.
Decent month - 70k.
Great month - 90k.

Now even if I had a terrible month at 55k and I payed 10% taxes I think I'd still be fine with 50k. I have just signed a contract on a nice 1BR that I pay 13k/month for. Internet, electricity and water and I'm up on 15k. The company deducts 1k every month for health insurance, I can only go to one hospital but it's close to my condo and it's a decent hospital. That leaves me with 34k. 

Spending 600THB/day for food, cigarettes etc is fine for me, that's 18k for one month and I'm now down to 16k. Lets say that every weekend I spend 3k besides the 600THB/day that would be 12k every month and I'd be down to 4k having already covered ALL of my expenses. So then I've spent 46 out of my 50k. The remaining 4k I can either save or buy some clothes etc.

So for 50k THB/month you can definitely have a decent living standard in Thailand as long as you don't go crazy 7 days per week. To be honest even if I'd only get a set salary of 55k a month paying 10% taxes I'd still live a good life and be very happy. I don't really understand the people implying that you need to eat food for 50THB if you're going to spend 45k-50k/month, it's simply not true.. You might not be eating imported gold sprinkled caviar every day but you definitely won't be struggling to get by.

If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you & have you given any thoughts to your retirement as saving 4K pm isn’t going to get you very far.

 

i’m guessing you’re young & if so, you should have a long hard think about making the most of your maximum earning years (30ish-50ish)

 

<deleted>, I’m 53 & was earning 10 times your salary 23 years ago... 

 

 

[khunpa]

Our family have around 100.000 THB in fixed expenses every month (Without food). But on the good side, half of that will be gone in 2-3 years, when our car and house are fully paid off.

 

However, still find it pretty amazing people can live here with a family for less. Just our kids school fee is 17.000 THB per month (one kid). And insurances for the whole family is around 12.000 THB per month.

[BritManToo]

3 minutes ago, khunpa said:

However, still find it pretty amazing people can live here with a family for less. Just our kids school fee is 17.000 THB per month (one kid). And insurances for the whole family is around 12.000 THB per month.

Insurance and private school is for rich folk with more money than sense.

That's 30k/month saved right away.

[BigFalang]

25 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you & have you given any thoughts to your retirement as saving 4K pm isn’t going to get you very far.

 

i’m guessing you’re young & if so, you should have a long hard think about making the most of your maximum earning years (30ish-50ish)

 

<deleted>, I’m 53 & was earning 10 times your salary 23 years ago... 

 

 

I'm a young guy, yes. I'm 22 years old and I do my best to save money as soon as I get the chance. Like I said I will be making 55k on a terrible month, the point I was making was that you can get by on 50k while still maintaining a decent lifestyle. 

If I have a decent month and keep the same budget I can save 24k. If I have a great month and keep the same budget then I can save 44k.

If you were making 550k-900k THB/Month when you were thirty years old that's great for you. I'm really happy for you and I hope you have made a great life for yourself. Hopefully I will be as fortunate as you! I really don't see how it's relevant though.

Edited August 25, 2019 by BigFalang

[khunpa]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

Insurance and private school is for rich folk with more money than sense.

That's 30k/month saved right away.

Well, I think good education and being properly insured makes pretty good sense ????

[khunpa]

1 minute ago, BigFalang said:

I'm a young guy, yes. I'm 22 years old and I do my best to save money as soon as I get the chance. Like I said I will be making 55k on a terrible month, the point I was making was that you can get by on 50k while still maintaining a decent lifestyle. 

If I have a decent month and keep the same budget I can save 24k. If I have a great month and keep the same budget then I can save 44k.

If you were making 550k-900k THB/Month when you were thirty years old that's great for you. I'm really happy for you and I hope you have made a great life for yourself. Hopefully I will be as fortunate as you! I really don't see how it's relevant though.

Since you are young, I think you saving what you can makes good sense (no matter how small it is). The important thing is to not create a huge and expensive debt, like many young people do.

[BritManToo]

3 minutes ago, khunpa said:

Well, I think good education and being properly insured makes pretty good sense ????

If you really worried about your kid having a 'good education' you wouldn't be living in Thailand.

My kids been in hospital, it was free and they did a good job.

Edited August 25, 2019 by BritManToo

[Nyezhov]

2 hours ago, TSF said:

I don't know how anyone could spend 90,000THB a month unless they were doing lots of shopping, or giving it away to TGs to buy buffaloes for mum & dad, or just squandering it by ringing bells in bars. I get by on a 3rd of that amount and I'm about 10K overweight, have a beer-gut from drinking too much Heineken, I drive a nice car, have more clothes than I need. If I was suddenly given an additional allowance of 50K a month I honestly don't know what I'd do with it, other than have some holidays. I certainly couldn't eat/drink any more, and I own enough junk to fill a warehouse.

I've made that point before....what is there to spend your money on if you are retired and aren't a Thai girl ATM?

Last year I spent basically $50 a day and had a great time.

This year I will basically spend the same and live in a more expensive place.

Here is my difference:

I don't drink

I don't have a girlfriend

I have every toy I need.

Life is great.

 

[khunpa]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

If you really worried about your kid having a 'good education' you wouldn't be living in Thailand.

If you pay for it, there is actually very good education... even here in Thailand. 

[manjara]

1 hour ago, JaiLai said:

Interesting thread, here’s what I’ve spent this month ( so far ), pretty normal month

Road trip for 4 days - approx 25k
Petrol for 2 cars and 2 bikes - 10-12k ( drive 3-4000km each month)
Electric bill - 6-7k
Car # 1 service - 3.5k
Car # 2 service - 2.5k
Dog food - 5k ( 5 big dogs )
Vet bills -3k ( unfortunately 1 of them got blood parasites from ticks - he’s on the mend though )
Gardeners and handy man for a few off jobs - 12k
Groceries- 15k
Socialising - 20k ( ish )
Currently away for a few days - 15-20k

I’m mid 40s, not really a big drinker & don’t smoke, this is a normal month for me, oh and I’m married, no kids ( thank god! )

I don’t think it’s an extravagant lifestyle and that’s what it costs.

Could save a few baht I guess by not going away but I think would get a bit bored at the house all the time.

have a great day




Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Seems to be about the same as my wife spends, though perhaps on slightly different things. Less roadtrips, more staff doing jobs. We also have 5 dogs, but we have 3 kids as well, which adds considerably!

It also doesn't include the 80k a month that I pay for school (for 2 of them).

My wife is always telling me it's not an extravagant lifestyle and that she doesn't spend on herself, but it still irks me that whenever there's an unusual expenditure (roof needs fixed or pool needs a new pump) she comes back for more!

 

 

[bkk6060]

7 minutes ago, khunpa said:

If you pay for it, there is actually very good education... even here in Thailand. 

But what is it truly worth?  I doubt Fortune 500 companies or silicone valley or are recruiting from Thailand universities..

 

[Mike Teavee]

14 minutes ago, BigFalang said:

I'm a young guy, yes. I'm 22 years old and I do my best to save money as soon as I get the chance. Like I said I will be making 55k on a terrible month, the point I was making was that you can get by on 50k while still maintaining a decent lifestyle. 

If I have a decent month and keep the same budget I can save 24k. If I have a great month and keep the same budget then I can save 44k.

If you were making 550k-900k THB/Month when you were thirty years old that's great for you. I'm really happy for you and I hope you have made a great life for yourself. Hopefully I will be as fortunate as you! I really don't see how it's relevant though.

Apologies I was just trying to give you a wake up nudge that you might want to consider maximizing your “earning Years”

 

if I was 22 I would do exactly the same as you, but would put a time limit on it & go “Back” (Singapore is a great place to earn a good salary) before it becomes too late to do so

 

Never forget chatting with a guy in Night & Day bar (Soi Nana) who was having a drink up because he was heading back to the UK, he asked me how long I’d lived in Thailand & I said I was on holiday, but you look like an expat... I am, I live in Singapore... and his exacts words were that he wished he had lived somewhere like Sg as he was having a hard time finding a new job because people see 10 years in Thailand on his cv & think he’s just been partying

 

 

Wish you all the best sir, you obviously have a good head on your shoulders & are a damn sight more sensible than I was at your age (1 year salary in debt on credit cards)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[khunpa]

16 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

But what is it truly worth?  I doubt Fortune 500 companies or silicone valley or are recruiting from Thailand universities..

 

You ever seen or met very rich Thai people? I know many, without foreign degrees. And besides that, we can send our kid abroad later in life, if we choose so (and he wants). Living in Thailand with kids, does not mean they will automatically turn out to have a terrible future.

 

Our kid is 5 years old, very smart, happy and speaks 3 languages. I think he will be okay (Even if he grows up in Thailand)

Edited August 25, 2019 by khunpa

[Zikomat]

2 hours ago, Matzzon said:

What kind of visa are you on if you need both border and Immigration every 2 month? Are you living in Thailand on exempt entries? In that case you´re abusing the visa and permission to stay system. Not to mentioning circling around the system to not need to show sufficient funds for living here.

It is a bit more complicated. I stay on SETVs. Which means I get 2 month visa at some embassy outside TH, then, after 2 month I visit immigration to get one month extension. One month later I cross the border again and so on. So I deal with the authorities twice every 3 months. 

[khunpa]

27 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

If you really worried about your kid having a 'good education' you wouldn't be living in Thailand.

My kids been in hospital, it was free and they did a good job.

Happy to hear your kids got good and free hospital care. 

 

A couple of years ago, my wife was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Luckily we were very well insured and could get the best doctor to operate her. Today she is fully recovered. I doubt she would have been alive today, had we not had that option (or it would have cost us all our savings...). So for me insurance can not get too cheap. Just my personal view.

Edited August 25, 2019 by khunpa

[BritManToo]

22 minutes ago, khunpa said:

Our kid is 5 years old, smart and speaks 3 languages. I think he will be okay (Even in Thailand)

My kids are 8 and 20, both in government schools, both native speakers in 2+ languages.

My son isn't particularly bright, according to his teachers, but he can already speak more languages than them..

 

But it's interesting to see others reproductive strategies.

You go for one which you lavish all your money on, risky as he might turn out gay or a druggie or just plain lazy, or die in a m/c accident.

I reproduce as often as possible, and spend the minimum on each, spreading the risk.

(3 boys + 1 girl in my last family, 1 boy and 1 stepdaughter in my current family)

I encourage all my sons to reproduce as often as possible.

Edited August 25, 2019 by BritManToo

[KiChakayan]

On 8/24/2019 at 9:11 AM, Mike Teavee said:

Really do love the guys who say they can afford to leave 800K in the bank but don't do so on some principal or other & then go on to call us guys who do "Brain Washed" (Or worse), just speaks volumes... 

Couldn't agree more, can't help it but it gives me a condescending smile every time I read it.

[DEKEM]

my 2 cents...

 

live on less than 30k baht a month.  have an apt in bangkok.  and one in pattaya.  each are studios about 30sqm in size.  in near center of town.  one I pay 5400 baht a month.  the other 6200 baht a month.  have cable tv and internet.  in bangkok I pay about 1000 baht a month for a true package that includes 1gb fiber internet, trueID tv box, and 15gb data 4g cellphone plan.

 

fox news, bloomberg, 6 other news channels...  wb, usa football, usa basketball, etc.

 

when in pattaya, I go to these all-you-can-eat buffets that cost me about 120 baht.  sizzler salad bar is 139 baht.  terminal 21 food court is 35 baht a plate of food. sometimes I go to casa pascal for their all-you-can-eat buffet with a european theme that is 262 baht.

 

I joined the jetts gym which is about 1300 baht a month.  24/7.  can use any of their branches in bangkok or pattaya.  around the world for that matter.

 

for entertainment, I like roaming around malls people watching.  surfing the net, playing computer games, and hanging out with friends at night is what I do.

 

maybe once every couple of months, I travel to another country for a week visit.  round trip ticket to vietnam, philippines, etc around 100 to 200 dollars round trip.  

 

all on less than 30k baht a month.  great life.  ..could spend more.  but why?

 

to me, the most important thing in life is happy memories.  to achieve that goal, I stay away from people who are into the "keeping up with the joneses" braindead mentality.  I also stay away from whiners, complainers, morons, etc.   imagine what life would be like if you surround yourself with people who are always negative.  or always in competition with you.  run, forest, run.

[Matzzon]

39 minutes ago, Zikomat said:

It is a bit more complicated. I stay on SETVs. Which means I get 2 month visa at some embassy outside TH, then, after 2 month I visit immigration to get one month extension. One month later I cross the border again and so on. So I deal with the authorities twice every 3 months. 

Great! Thank you for contributing to abusing the tourist visa system, by living in Thailand on them. Now we can see the result out of too many people have been doing that for too long time. Congratulations, you all achieved your purpose.

[Destiny1990]

36 minutes ago, KiChakayan said:

Couldn't agree more, can't help it but it gives me a condescending smile every time I read it.

Seems more like a smile of ignorance !

[khunpa]

47 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

My kids are 8 and 20, both in government schools, both native speakers in 2+ languages.

My son isn't particularly bright, according to his teachers, but he can already speak more languages than them..

 

But it's interesting to see others reproductive strategies.

You go for one which you lavish all your money on, risky as he might turn out gay or a druggie or just plain lazy, or die in a m/c accident.

I reproduce as often as possible, and spend the minimum on each, spreading the risk.

(3 boys + 1 girl in my last family, 1 boy and 1 stepdaughter in my current family)

I encourage all my sons to reproduce as often as possible.

I can't quite follow your "reproduction-argument", in relation to us sending our kid to an international school or spending money on good insurances? 

 

I think every family base their monthly spending on what they can afford and most parents want the best for their kids. Why would I not send our kid to a good school and buy good insurances, when I can afford it?  

PS: All those sons are going to cost you a lot of Sin Sod... unless they turn out gay, of course ????
 

 

Edited August 25, 2019 by khunpa