Quite Easy To Live On 30,000 B A Month !

[siamamerican]

I'm currently living in San Fran ( not cheap ) and spend less 100k bt. I eat out and party with friends 2-3 nights a week. Have a great life and spending more would add little to no extra pleasure.

I make nearly 800k bt. a month and could easily live a very affluent lifestyle. Not for me! I walk or take my scooter to work and live in a one bedroom apartment. Have an 8 year old car that I rarely drive.

my mother has taught me not to use foul language even towards people who try hard to insult my intelligence

You don't seem too intelligent. Hence it is easily insulted.

It's probably hard for you to realize someone can actually make a good sum of money and not have to flaunt it. I have no problems with you bragging about your wealth and what you spend. That's is what you enjoy and why not do it.

Just wondering, how was that intelligence of yours insulted? You don't have ask your mummy to respond.

[Edonista]

Well this guy smoked but he didnt drink,and he baulked at me paying 1500 b for a bargirl,he actually looked very shocked.

Wouldnt it be a lonely type of life living like him.

I mean there would be better social and support networks for people his age back in Sydney ,Australia,than in Jomtien beach where all he had was his old mates and went off to darts or wherever they went.

I think he had some problems with crime in Australia as he told me the Govt/council owned highrises where he lived were a haven for teenage gangs preying on the elderly,so he was glad to pack up and leave.

I wonder if running away to another country is the answer,i dont think so,because as i said,he may be happy living on the same income as he was in Australia,but the social services are not there.

So he would have no where to come back too if he had to.

At least in Sydney they have Senior Citizen Clubs,never saw one in Pattaya,not that i was looking for them at my age.

Social services are crap. They are just an excuse to hand over money to useless fat government employees.

The only "social services" and old chap needs are those of a girl from Pattaya Beach Road.

[brahmburgers]

let me put it this way, I know a farang guy' who came in to money problems, so is forced to live frugally. His visa situation is ok, though.

He owns his own small house, has no c.card payments, cooks his own meals most of the time, gets some veges and fruits from his garden. He estimates he spends a bit under 10,000/month, a quarter of that on his electric bill.

No satelite TV, and no girlfriend/wife for the time being, because it's known that female companionship costs.

more time to space out in the hills and meditate though, and that's free - and less chance of communicable diseases.

[Captain Chaos]

let me put it this way, I know a farang guy' who came in to money problems, so is forced to live frugally. His visa situation is ok, though.

He owns his own small house, has no c.card payments, cooks his own meals most of the time, gets some veges and fruits from his garden. He estimates he spends a bit under 10,000/month, a quarter of that on his electric bill.

No satelite TV, and no girlfriend/wife for the time being, because it's known that female companionship costs.

more time to space out in the hills and meditate though, and that's free - and less chance of communicable diseases.

Sorry, is this supposed to be good or bad?

[siamamerican]

I'm currently living in San Fran ( not cheap ) and spend less 100k bt. I eat out and party with friends 2-3 nights a week. Have a great life and spending more would add little to no extra pleasure.

I make nearly 800k bt. a month and could easily live a very affluent lifestyle. Not for me! I walk or take my scooter to work and live in a one bedroom apartment. Have an 8 year old car that I rarely drive.

my mother has taught me not to use foul language even towards people who try hard to insult my intelligence

You don't seem too intelligent. Hence it is easily insulted.

It's probably hard for you to realize someone can actually make a good sum of money and not have to flaunt it. I have no problems with you bragging about your wealth and what you spend. That's is what you enjoy and why not do it.

Just wondering, how was that intelligence of yours insulted? You don't have ask your mummy to respond.

Dr. Naam,

Tried to edit my earlier post, but I guess I passed the time limit for edits. Anyhow, read some of your recent posts and you seem to be quite intelligent and you never bragged about your wealth (mistook you for another poster ).

Still a little confused why you question the validity of my post. I live a different lifestyle than others in my income bracket. Why is that so hard to comprehend?

[thomo]

If you're living off a fixed income (such as a pension), then your obviously gonna have a better QoL here than in any western country no matter how little/much it is.

Edited October 12, 2007 by thomo

[Gary A]

Depending where you live in a western country varies more than where you live in Thailand. For example, I lived near Los Angeles, CA the last three years I was working in the US. You will be hard pressed to find anything bigger than a shoe box apartment for less than $1,200 per month. I drove a Honda Civic with a BIG deductible insurance policy and it cost me $130 per month. Going to the supermarket was usually a $200 adventure that happened several times a month. I had no night life because driving after three beers could land you in jail and cost you some major money. Walking to the bar was out of the question because it's likely you would get mugged before you made it home. That was a cost savings for sure but watching TV every night gets to be pretty old. Going to Las Vegas over long weekends was my main recreation.

My point is that living VERY frugally in the LA area cost more than twice as much as living quite well here in Thailand. No one can convince me differently because I have been there and done that. I couldn't afford the T shirt while living there.

[Captain Chaos]

If you're living off a fixed income (such as a pension), then your obviously gonna have a better QoL here than in any western country no matter how little/much it is.

Why "obviously"?

[PeaceBlondie]

I think Gary A just answered the question of why it's obviously cheaper, on a fixed pension and limited bank deposits, to live in Thailand (or 18 other developing countries) than in the UK, USA, Belgium, etc. Since Mexico is not a "Western" country in most respects, I think I can live there as cheap as, or cheaper than, Thailand. I paid 440 baht per square meter in Houston for a studio; 76 baht per sq.m. in Chiang Mai for two bedrooms, two baths, panoramic mountain views, etc.

[thomo]

Well if you're on a fixed income, everything is cheaper here right? well, except wine.

What QoL do you have on $1,000 p/m here and in the west?

What QoL do you have on $10,000 p/m here and in the west?

Just bareable. None.

Very Very Very good. Good.

Etc etc.

[actiondell4]

Well i met another Aussie Expat,51yo,very overweight,has diabetes and a back problem,so he says anyway,even though i did notice at times him lifting things.

Anyway this guy is on the Australian Govt Disability Pension,because he cant work because of his back and other illnesses.

Anyway i dont know how he gets away with it,but he draws the 30,000 baht or so from the government every month PLUS has a small beer bar income,PLUS rents out a small studio he bought about 10 years ago..

He actually lives on top of his beer bar.

Now I know that there are a lot of people in Australia who genuinelly cannot work due to illness,heart probs,disabled etc etc but is this legal that you can live overseas on a Government Disabilty pension?

No obviuosly he doesnt tell the Government Centrelink/Social Security Dept or whatever they call themselves that he runs a beer bar and lets out a flat but think of how many do that.

I want you all to try to think of some guy you think is lucky and is under 60yo and runs a beer bar and he s probaly on some disabled pension and not telling you.

I wonder how many are??????????

[FarangNoi21]

so my tax dollars are supporting half of pattaya on 'disability'? the Thais are so lucky to not have any social programs.

[JetsetBkk]

My Thai wife and I can and do live on less than 30,000 baht per month. I live exactly as I wish and want for nothing. What I live on is considerably less than what I could afford to spend. The rest of the story is that it cost me several million baht to get to this point.

Yes, the people who have already bought a house and therefore don't pay rent are not getting interest on the capital they've spent.

5,000,000 baht (invested overseas, of course) could generate 30 - 40,000 baht/month.

[Gary A]

My Thai wife and I can and do live on less than 30,000 baht per month. I live exactly as I wish and want for nothing. What I live on is considerably less than what I could afford to spend. The rest of the story is that it cost me several million baht to get to this point.

Yes, the people who have already bought a house and therefore don't pay rent are not getting interest on the capital they've spent.

5,000,000 baht (invested overseas, of course) could generate 30 - 40,000 baht/month.

Quite obviously you can't have your cake and eat it too. I could live in a 4,000 baht a month shoe box and collect interest. Why would I want to? They don't put luggage racks on a hearse and I can't take it with me. I prefer to enjoy what's left of the rest of my life.

[lazeeboy]

My Thai wife and I can and do live on less than 30,000 baht per month. I live exactly as I wish and want for nothing. What I live on is considerably less than what I could afford to spend. The rest of the story is that it cost me several million baht to get to this point.

Yes, the people who have already bought a house and therefore don't pay rent are not getting interest on the capital they've spent.

5,000,000 baht (invested overseas, of course) could generate 30 - 40,000 baht/month.

Quite obviously you can't have your cake and eat it too. I could live in a 4,000 baht a month shoe box and collect interest. Why would I want to? They don't put luggage racks on a hearse and I can't take it with me. I prefer to enjoy what's left of the rest of my life.

you can only slum it for so long ......

[sriracha john]

so my tax dollars are supporting half of pattaya on 'disability'? the Thais are so lucky to not have any social programs.

Half of Pattaya is supported by Australian taxpayers??? WOW!

Are Americans in relative close proximity eligible for this Australian generosity or does it only apply to Americans, Germans, Swedes, Italians, Indians, Uzbekastanis, etc. ad nauseum that actually reside within Pattaya city limits?

Edited October 12, 2007 by sriracha john

[Jingthing]

so my tax dollars are supporting half of pattaya on 'disability'? the Thais are so lucky to not have any social programs.

The issue here is fraud, saying you are disabled when you are not. I don't know if Australians are allowed to collect disability income while living abroad.

But FYI, Americans can. SSDI is social security disability income.

Citizenship or Residency Requirements

If you qualify based on the criteria listed above, you may receive SSDI payments if you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, living in the United States or abroad.

Edited October 12, 2007 by Jingthing

[Thaddeus]

My Thai wife and I can and do live on less than 30,000 baht per month. I live exactly as I wish and want for nothing. What I live on is considerably less than what I could afford to spend. The rest of the story is that it cost me several million baht to get to this point.

Yes, the people who have already bought a house and therefore don't pay rent are not getting interest on the capital they've spent.

5,000,000 baht (invested overseas, of course) could generate 30 - 40,000 baht/month.

The important word being could. It could also generate a lot less.

Sorry guys, but I am with Gary on this one, I did the same as him, and I am very happy with the situation.

[Naam]

Dr. Naam,

Tried to edit my earlier post, but I guess I passed the time limit for edits. Anyhow, read some of your recent posts and you seem to be quite intelligent and you never bragged about your wealth (mistook you for another poster ).

Still a little confused why you question the validity of my post. I live a different lifestyle than others in my income bracket. Why is that so hard to comprehend?

no hard feelings SA my reference was not directed at your income but for me it is quite difficult to believe that the amount you are spending can finance your described life style in SFO (which i know is quite an expensive city). if i am wrong please accept my sincere apologies.

[JetsetBkk]

My Thai wife and I can and do live on less than 30,000 baht per month. I live exactly as I wish and want for nothing. What I live on is considerably less than what I could afford to spend. The rest of the story is that it cost me several million baht to get to this point.

Yes, the people who have already bought a house and therefore don't pay rent are not getting interest on the capital they've spent.

5,000,000 baht (invested overseas, of course) could generate 30 - 40,000 baht/month.

The important word being could. It could also generate a lot less.

Sorry guys, but I am with Gary on this one, I did the same as him, and I am very happy with the situation.

Actually, I'm with you and Gary too. I'm only renting until I can find the right location and right woman to settle down with - then I'll buy or build. But, for the point of this discussion, people who pay no rent because they have bought their house should take the lost interest on the capital into account, because I think the OP was talking about people who rent and still spend less than 30,000 a month.

[FarangNoi21]

someone who owns a 5 million baht home and has a 30k a month pension is in a similar financial position as someone with a 70k/month pension.

[Acquiesce]

someone who owns a 5 million baht home and has a 30k a month pension is in a similar financial position as someone with a 70k/month pension.

But certainly does'nt have the same flexibility.

[mikethevigoman]

Yes, very easy to live on 30,000 Baht per month in Thailand, but I wouldn't particularly want to in Pattaya.

As a matter of interest I actually kept records of what I spent in a recent 5 month stint in a village outside Khon Kaen using an excel spreadsheet.

Average monthly expenditure for day to day items........

Shopping & Food 6150

Beer 2550

Cigarettes 1350

Petrol for motorbike 1320

Electricity, Gas & Water 420

Allowance for my Lady 5000

Total 16790

I have no rent costs, but during this period spent about 60,000 on the house and bought some furniture and other items.

Drinking and eating at home, but plenty of spare cash for nights out even if only have 30,000 per month.

She has 2 children

My actual total spend over the 5 month period was 190,000

I spent 15000 last night in pattaya, no i didnt take a woman, i have a severe hangover though !.id struggle on 30 a month for sure,.

[tracer5050]

Thanlks to all for your insite, As i only live in LOS for 4 months a year I want to take care of my Bussiness In the US. but your information is very helpful as next year i plan to move there full time.

I have wondered many times what i would really need to live in a good life style there. Not like a king but ok.

[Gary A]

My Thai wife runs the household, buys the food and pays all the bills. That includes all the utilities, my clothes, her clothes and if we go out to eat. Since I was able to start collecting Social Security last March I started giving her 25,000 per month rather than the 20,000 she had been getting. She is still able to put about 8,000 per month in her savings account. I pay the big ticket items like insurance which is nearly 5,000 a month for two vehicles and my health insurance. She DOESN'T pay my bar bills but she does buy my cigarettes. We normally split the cost of vehicle fuel. This works out well for us.

[Firefan]

Let me see; single, male, Bangkok, own condo. Monthly avg.costs in THB (yearly costs are divided by 12):

Condo fees(Incl. UBC)+maintenance: 5000

Elec.+water+Inet+mobile+tel.: 3500

Transport(taxi+trains): 3000

Groceries(+cleaning stuff+a few beer) 7000

Personal(vitamins,medicine,hair cut Etc.)1500

Health insurance(Thaihealth 1.5M Baht) 2000

Other(Tech,sport gear,membership Etc) 2000

Visa 500

TOT: 24500

So above gets to Baht 24k/mth and as the condo fees are in range with the OP rent I do not find it unresonable that he can live fine for 30k.

Personally I spend about double the above base budget due to mainly entertainment/eating out, a car, clothes and some travel. I earn more than that but why spend it, if it does not add to the happiness factor?

Again; as stipulated many times the OP is much better of here when comparing lifestyle - personally I would not want to be w/o catastrophic health insurance as a single claim easily can be Baht 1M and clean out the OP - and who says he will have time to/or can fly home? But that aside; the OP budget looks doable to me.

Cheers!

[sriracha john]

TOT: 24500

Sheesh....

Why is your phone bill so high? My TOT bill never more than 150 as I use mobile phone for most calls.

[IMA_FARANG]

I didnt know whether to post this on the Pattaya forum or on here so i will post it on here under General, I have been going to Thailand twice a year for a few years now and recently stayed my longest of nearly 3 months.

I often read on various Thai forums on how hard it is to live on less than 60,000 baht a month and how you would live like a pauper etc.

I find far from it.In fact i met guys who live on there Australian Government Pension of $1080 aud per month,around 30,000 baht a month and lived quite well.

All this talk of having to have 60,000 baht etc to have a good life is rubbish.

Many old age Aussies live on the $1080 a month old age pensions in Australia so why cant they do it here?

Take a old aussie guy i met who rents a room for 5000 baht a month,A/cond ,on bus route and walk to Jomtien beach,and he buys his own food and makes it.

When he does go with bargirls,he doesnt pay the same rate as a tourist,in fact he says about 400/500 the most he pays.

He says he has a better life here than in Australia,and has his own computer,goes to the same coffee shop everyday and yes he didnt drink alcohol but i noticed he did smoke.

Im not sure if some of you guys who are the same as me and go once or twice a year think you live the same as a tourist when you live there but you dont.

In fact this guy who was 67yo told me he eats breakfast out about once or twice a week,goes to see his mates everyday at some bar,and takes a girl about once a week.

I told him he should of bought his studio room and he would be saving 5000 baht a month,then he tells me he would be paying Strata management fees plus council rates plus maitenance etc.if he owned it.

Im sure it would still be cheaper owning the studio,but up to him.

He has a small fridge,toaster,and a mini cooker and mostly cooks himself.

He didnt drink ,and i think he may have been a alcoholic in his earlier life as he was divorced and i think not rich, relying on the Australian govt pension.

But as i said i noticed he smoked.

He was paying the standard 20% of his old age pension for his Govt owned studio flat in Sydneys Redfern per fortnight.

He knows where the cheap buffets are ,and eats at them too about once a week .

He had good knowledge of where cheaper prices were .

He lives frugally and the same as in Australia.

I asked him if he gets bored,but he goes walking everyday,reads books,visits his friends at some coffee bar place etc.

No it wouldnt be the life for me,I would get bored,but im not 67yo,i suppose if your retired and 67yo then going out partying with bar girls everynight doesnt appeal to you as much.

Then again his other life would be sitting in a council/govt owned highrise room in the crime ridden Redfern,so that would be boring too i guess.

The point is if you live there you live different to being a tourist,you dont go out every night to GO GO BARS,yytou dont eat out at expensive restaurants etc everynight in your own country.

And he said his studio room in jomtien is far better to live than living in the Govt housing blocks of the Sydneys crime ridden Redfern area where he was living before.

He said he always mostly has about 10000 to 15000 left over a month.

Thats far more left than before when the Govt deducted 20% of his pension for rent for the government housing he lived in.

He says he feels safe here ,theres no young teenage gangs roaming around and he can go for walks at night,and he doesnt have pyshiatric patients and druggies living in his building.

Now this is in Pattaya,obviously living in Udon would be cheaper,obviously Bangkok would be more expensive.

If you can live on 1080 Australian per month in Aussi Land paying more rent than 5000 b a month then you can do it in Thailand.

Obviosly you would have to come back to Australia for the free medical care if something goes wrong with your health.

As example I have an American friend who is retired, age about 70 years now. Married to Thai wife, had 3 kids, all grown now and have moved out. Owns house in BKK near Don Muang (Thai wife actually owner). Been married for at least 30 years. Gets about $1500 pension/retirement every month (but I admit he has been in U.S. stock market for many years and had an income from that greater than pension). He and wife live on pension and it is enough for them.

What does he do? Every weekday he takes bus in from his house to hotel in BKK that he likes. Buys latest copy of Singapore Wall Street Journal (printed nightly off satty feed after market closes in New York). He buys himself a coffe and a couple of buns, and sits there for 2 to 3 hours reading the paper cover-to-cover. Makes notes on what stocks he wants to buy/sell. Takes bus back home in the afternoon, and puts everything into his computer. Makes up his plan to buy/sell stocks. By now, with 12 hour time difference from BKK to New York, he is ready to go on-line with his broker (after he has supper) and make whatever stock trades he wants. Broker is just opening in New York for new day session.

After that, he chats on-line with some of his friends. By now it's time for him to watch a litle t.v. with Thai wife, and then to bed. Wake up the next day, and start over.

On weekends he and wife may take a trip to visit son and daughter. Ocassionally go out to a Thai restaurant with wife and family.

The way he looks at it, he has a full life. He never spends any of the money he makes on stocks, he and wife live on pension. He says he doesn't want anything else to spend money on.

If you want to, it certainly is possible to live that way.

[AGareth2]

I am married with 2 beautiful kids and work as a teacher earning about 40k a month and live in BKk. It is possible to live on my salary but health insurance for the family takes quite a chunk.

[Captain Chaos]

I am married with 2 beautiful kids and work as a teacher earning about 40k a month and live in BKk. It is possible to live on my salary but health insurance for the family takes quite a chunk.

And respect to you Gareth and those who are able / are willing to live on that amount of money, particularly if you have family & kids.

However, it's that statement "it's possible .... but ..." that makes me think that - in the answer to the original title of this thread - it isn't "quite easy" but must require some careful planning, and perhaps some sacrifices (subjective I know) to make the ends meet.

Likely it's easier for a single person I suppose but having only been married for a year and wanting to have kids, I have no intention of reverting to 'eligible bachelor' status for quite some time

CC