Hey guys

 

I am an Aussie and work in the Middle East. I have a house in rural Thailand and a condo in Chiang Mai. Only saying that to confirm I am committed here - not being a fool or braggart .

 

And I am having dental work done at Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai under general anesthetic. Because I am a wimp.

 

The cost of the dental work is around what I would pay in Oz now that the Oz dollar is 21 baht.

 

Also I went for a couple at the Beer Lab in Chiang Mai tonight. Hoegarden pints were the equivalent of $13 oz.

 

Haters and trolls please go to another thread.

 

Genuine opinions are welcome. I am starting to wonder whether it really is cheaper here.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

The great majority of your budget is and always will be your housing.  Best to start by comparing that. 

Things are not cheaper here.

You try being a Brit.

1 minute ago, fishtank said:

Things are not cheaper here.

You try being a Brit.

Since housing is the main budget item is it not much cheaper in Thailand?

as an aussie I find while the dollar is bloody crap against the baht it is still cheaper to live here, food is very cheap, virtually all other costs are lower here, I have to pay doctors etc where it was free in Australia but over all I am much better off here. Housing is cheap compared to oz too, water and electricity are a lot cheaper here, while there are faults here for me it is much better than back home, in fact Thailand is now considered my home, I love being here and when I go back to Australia I am ready to return here  a few days later, oz has really changed for the worse

For me the rent water and petrol internet is cheaper but precious little else these days just a few weeks ago I came back from the UK with enough cash to change to 100,000bt

for moving costs to get out of Smokey Chiang Mai but when I looked Friday to change it now its 89,000 and the move is on ice I seam to be loosing more money on the exchange rate than I am spending and have gone from comfortable to sweaty in 3 years of a plunging pound and a roaring baht sure I'm not alone but feels like it????

 

I’ve just had my teeth cleaned at a high quality dental surgery in Bangkok for $A55, compare $180 and up in Australia.

Don’t forget that property is not only way cheaper here but there are no council rates, an even bigger factor for someone such as yourself who has two properties.

Is it really a surprise that imported beer is stupidly pricey? Drink the local stuff like most people, or enjoy the imported and be happy that you have a well paid job.

Thank you guys.

 

Yes what you say is right. I just am sort of questioning myself at present. But in total terms i am very pleased with Thailand and particularly with my wife and her family. They are salt of the earth.

 

Thank you for the reassurance.

 

 

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I bet when the aud tests 15 baht a historical low there will still be the same crowd gushing how much cheaper it is, well I guess if living on boiled rice and sucking on a tall archer at home in a fan room in the jungle somewhere then that may be the case right up untill your appendix burst and your screaming on the floor not in pain but telling anyone listening NOT to take you to a hospital.

Famous last words "but but didn't think it would happen to me...

Rent electricity water petrol is cheaper good quality food and anything western not just food tools materials etc and beer is  expensive, medical cost maybe about same, but with NHS UK wins hands down

Sadly thailand is not winning anymore if you want to live a quality western orientated expat life here, it more or less the same cost

A lot has changed in the last five years but that's just stating the obvious.

 

Here in China, my Aussie mates are in a cleft stick as well. The old idea of two summers has long gone out of the window. They can get decent wages here as English teachers  but there's that nasty little thing about pensions and having to be in Aus to claim them. Quite a few have fallen over that hurdle.

 

One mate is 71 and he's still having to work to pay off his unit here, another works more hours than the factory cat to keep his house in Aus and run his Chinese family.

 

Day to day costs are cheaper than Thailand here and a bloody sight cheaper than Aus, so they tell me, so they're kind of stuck. Cant afford to leave.

And to ad insult to injury the famous old boring t shirts saying no money no honey all of a sudden become annoying to look at [emoji383]

2 hours ago, tink2mutt said:

now that the Oz dollar is 21 baht.

 

Also I went for a couple at the Beer Lab in Chiang Mai tonight. Hoegarden pints were the equivalent of $13 oz.

A bottle of Chang less than $3 Oz dollars. ????

1 minute ago, Kwasaki said:

A bottle of Chang less than $3 Oz dollars. ????

ughh so disgusting with additives forcing a full ban anywhere on the planet except thailand, still it's a great price for poison which costs a lot more than that.

3 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

A bottle of Chang less than $3 Oz dollars. 

Tastes better as well IMHO.

Ten year chart THB vs AUD and we just busted through the last resistance and into free fall mode. Hello 15 bht but will be a death by a thousand lashes , give it a few years but it will get there 

Hoegaarden is a Belgian beer.

1 hour ago, poohy said:

Rent electricity water petrol is cheaper good quality food and anything western not just food tools materials etc and beer is  expensive, medical cost maybe about same, but with NHS UK wins hands down

Sadly thailand is not winning anymore if you want to live a quality western orientated expat life here, it more or less the same cost

"NHS UK wins hands down". So how much income tax, national insurance and council tax did you pay at home v how much here?

2 hours ago, seajae said:

as an aussie I find while the dollar is bloody crap against the baht it is still cheaper to live here, food is very cheap, virtually all other costs are lower here, I have to pay doctors etc where it was free in Australia but over all I am much better off here. Housing is cheap compared to oz too, water and electricity are a lot cheaper here, while there are faults here for me it is much better than back home, in fact Thailand is now considered my home, I love being here and when I go back to Australia I am ready to return here  a few days later, oz has really changed for the worse

Could not agree more

A modest 2 bedroom terrace house not far from Bondi will set you back about $850,000 plus

To rent it will be $950 A WEEK

I'm just happy to be here

8 minutes ago, Benroon said:

eh ? Its on every UK supermarket shelf ?

 modified contents

3 hours ago, monkeycu said:

Could not agree more

A modest 2 bedroom terrace house not far from Bondi will set you back about $850,000 plus

To rent it will be $950 A WEEK

I'm just happy to be here

Why are you comparing a first world off the planet popular inner city beachfront in sydney to the shithole fan room you live in here?

Aussies. I haters please
You need literacy classes, for starters.

Apologies my friend. The autocorrect got me. [emoji57]


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11 hours ago, madmen said:

I bet when the aud tests 15 baht a historical low there will still be the same crowd gushing how much cheaper it is, well I guess if living on boiled rice and sucking on a tall archer at home in a fan room in the jungle somewhere then that may be the case right up untill your appendix burst and your screaming on the floor not in pain but telling anyone listening NOT to take you to a hospital.

Famous last words "but but didn't think it would happen to me...

wow....you must be a fun guy to hang around with.......lol

11 hours ago, madmen said:

I bet when the aud tests 15 baht a historical low there will still be the same crowd gushing how much cheaper it is, well I guess if living on boiled rice and sucking on a tall archer at home in a fan room in the jungle somewhere then that may be the case right up untill your appendix burst and your screaming on the floor not in pain but telling anyone listening NOT to take you to a hospital.

Famous last words "but but didn't think it would happen to me...

15 baht to the Aussie dollar is Chicken Little stuff.

In terms of rent, electricity and water Thailand beats Australia by a country mile. Food costs depend on how much Thai and farang food one wants. I'm comfortable with Thai, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, all of which are not expensive. Examples - Udon curry, Japanese restaurant, 139 baht. Excellent spaghetti marinara, Thai restaurant, 150 baht. Superb pork tenderloin, 129 baht.

As far as the OP's dental costs go, I've had three quality implants done here. The cost was a third of that quoted by an Australian dentist. I was ahead even after the 50% refund I would have got from my private health fund in Australia.

I have about 2 million baht here which was exchanged in happier times. My 800K baht deposit for the retirement extensions was established when I was getting 29 baht for one AUD.

Sure, the fall in the AUD is annoying, particularly as IMHO the baht is being manipulated. However, it's not a deal breaker unless Thai health insurance gets into the mix.

I had my appendix out when I was 18 yo.

 

Has not been cheaper for half a decade with exchange rate it made it even worse.

 

saying that, no idea why you paying for dental same as back home when it’s much cheaper .

 

rentals and Thai food remains cheap , everything else is same or more expansive.

 

just returned from Oz, bought loads of clothing at roughly half thai prices. 

13 hours ago, fishtank said:

Things are not cheaper here.

You try being a Brit.

If I was not debt free (for the first time in my life) I could not afford to live in Thailand.  My UK income is far above an average pensioners income and yet I find that I use it all up each month just living. The exchange rate is a nightmare.  Each time I transfer money to my Thai bank I get less than the time before. If I didn't believe that a readjustment of the rate will happen in the near to medium term, I may well reconsider living here. The Bhat is grossly over valued and is hurting the Thai export economy and is unsustainable in the medium term.  The pound is undervalued for all the reasons we are well aware of and may recover, must recover, once Brexit is over and the economy settles down to a new economic reality.  I am ever the optimist. 

When a ship is sinking you need to prioritize what you throw over board first:

 

Alcohol

Rent

Food

Boom Boom

 

13 hours ago, tink2mutt said:

Genuine opinions are welcome. I am starting to wonder whether it really is cheaper here.

Buy yourself a house in Oz, then you'll know for sure.

13 hours ago, CygnusX1 said:

I’ve just had my teeth cleaned at a high quality dental surgery in Bangkok for $A55, compare $180 and up in Australia.

Normal price for cleaning is 600bht.

It's a simple process, why did you pay more?