Bangkok Still Cheap Place For Expatriates To Live

[george]

Poll: Bangkok still cheap place for expatriates to live

Bangkok has dropped 10 spots to 105th place in a 2008 worldwide cost of living survey, according to consultancy Mercer. Moscow is the world's most expensive city for expatriates for the third consecutive year.

Mercer's survey covers 143 cities across six continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.

The survey, conducted in March this year, is based on a similar survey done in March 2007. [more ...]

-- Bangkok Post 2008-07-25

[TAWP]

This article has very little to do for us that earn local salaries and are basically only to be read by those that are having expat-deals with their western company...

[bendix]

I reckon it's a pretty accurate assessment. I travel to most cities capital cities in Asia as part of my job and, in fact, have been offered jobs in Singapore and HK in the last six months but the ridiculously high cost of accommodation for small box-like apartments in those cities just makes in untenable, notwithstanding their lower tax rates.

Surprised to see KL cheaper than Bkk. I've always found it quite pricey there (don't get me started on the price of a beer), but completely agree that HCM and Jakarta are unrealisitically expensive for what they are - especially Jakarta. I pity expats there; horrible city and expensive. A place with few redeeming features.

Manila . . . yeah, cheap as chips but a real pit.

[vegas]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

[TAWP]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

Not married, eh?

[vegas]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

[TAWP]

I can send you my paypal or local acc info...

[Firefan]

Yes - Bangkok is still resonable to live in, in comparison to most other big cities in the region/world.

It HAS become much more expensive everywhere in the world - so recent price hikes is not a BKK-specific problem as some try to present it.

CHeers!

[Gravelrash]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

Not that I like to brag of course...

[Familyonthemove]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

LOL !

One thought ..... the survey obviously didn't cover being stopped by the traffic police three times day.

[JiveTalker]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

TWO fridges?

Wow. What can you do with 2 fridges. Store 8 bottles of Leo instead of 4? The mind boggles.

[TopDogger]

I went and brought a new synthetic desk chair from officecentre a few days ago, 4'000. Within 24hrs I got some spam from staples office center in the UK offering a Leather Chair along with a free personal organiser for 50 quid with free delivey, thats over 20% cheaper than Thailand for a much better product.

Edited July 25, 2008 by TopDogger

[junkofdavid2]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

LOL !

One thought ..... the survey obviously didn't cover being stopped by the traffic police three times day.

That's only coz you don't wear a helmet when you take your kid on your moto-cyte

[Familyonthemove]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

LOL !

One thought ..... the survey obviously didn't cover being stopped by the traffic police three times day.

That's only coz you don't wear a helmet when you take your kid on your moto-cyte

That was in India ..... helmets are illegal there

[Inthai]

Interesting story. Found a more detailed report, where Washington D.C. is ranked 107th, or 2 places behind Bangkok....is this for real??

http://www.indochina-travel-reporter.blogspot.com/

[jbhh]

Interesting story. Found a more detailed report, where Washington D.C. is ranked 107th, or 2 places behind Bangkok....is this for real??

http://www.indochina-travel-reporter.blogspot.com/

Maybe that's because the overpaid politicians don't want to spend their money, or because noone wants to live there because they are scared of being "terrorized" hehe... really is hard to believe it's actualy cheaper to live in DC than in BKK.

p.s. married, kid, house, car, computers, laptops, iPoop, TVs, 3 fridges, nanny, can drive myself. Problem: can't pay electricity, car is out of gas, and there is to much month left at the end of the money. Seriously though, the fridges are neccessary I think, the big one contains food, the small ones the drinks

Edited July 26, 2008 by jbhh

[wintermute]

I save around 75% of my salary here. If I lived in your average large U.S. city i'd probably be saving only 20% at best once you calculate in mortgage or rent, insurance, vehicle, gas, etc..

I find Bangkok to be extremely cheap compared to just about everywhere else. I haven't really noticed the big hit the dollar has taken over the past 3 years either. I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

With that being said the downsides are that i'd never want to own property here.

[TAWP]

I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

Bingo.

[JetsetBkk]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

Not that I like to brag of course...

Leather sofa!! (Probably plastic )

[wintermute]

I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

Bingo.

Am I supposed to sympathize with those expats trying to shuffle by teaching english for a few baht? Well, I don't. Foreign expats have the luxury of choice. You can either choose to live here and make crap wages for relatively unskilled labor or you can go back home and get a real job.

[simro]

I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

Bingo.

Am I supposed to sympathize with those expats trying to shuffle by teaching english for a few baht? Well, I don't. Foreign expats have the luxury of choice. You can either choose to live here and make crap wages for relatively unskilled labor or you can go back home and get a real job.

I would rather live in Thailand on basic wages than live in a western (selfish) society, I lived in Phuket for 1 year and have very happy memory's Scuba Diving and doing the odd computer job, I am back at work in my country in a so called real job earning great money, but I was happiest in Thailand on minimal wages.

[wintermute]

I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

Bingo.

Am I supposed to sympathize with those expats trying to shuffle by teaching english for a few baht? Well, I don't. Foreign expats have the luxury of choice. You can either choose to live here and make crap wages for relatively unskilled labor or you can go back home and get a real job.

I would rather live in Thailand on basic wages than live in a western (selfish) society, I lived in Phuket for 1 year and have very happy memory's Scuba Diving and doing the odd computer job, I am back at work in my country in a so called real job earning great money, but I was happiest in Thailand on minimal wages.

I believe people who trade in earning potential for perceived "quality of life" don't have much room for complaints. It's not like they're lower income Thais who are forced to make do with little or no choices available nor are they economic/political immigrants seeking asylum. This sense of entitlement coming from some western expats is truly annoying.

[vegas]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

TWO fridges?

Wow. What can you do with 2 fridges. Store 8 bottles of Leo instead of 4? The mind boggles.

One for the kitchen, and one for the bedroom. Isn't it obvious?

[mzqueenie]

I cringe when I see Sydney on the list at 14th place. Just shows it's ridiculously expensive here compared to what I have seen in Thailand. I rather sit on the beach in Pattaya, than go to school/work everyday through to the city, on our bad trains, boring activities lol.

[tracer5050]

If you want to live like a king you can spend a lot of money in BBK. Ilive in a nice condo not near where all the vistors come.

dont ever want to own here. Can come and go when ever I want to. But live very well on my western retirement. No complaints.

Still think LOS a great place to live.

[Jimjim]

Married, kid, house, car, ipod, PC, leather sofa, LCD TV, 2 fridges, 2nd car coming, nanny, driver....

TWO fridges?

Wow. What can you do with 2 fridges. Store 8 bottles of Leo instead of 4? The mind boggles.

One for the kitchen, and one for the bedroom. Isn't it obvious?

I'm amazed you're rich enough to have an ipod! Wow!

Also, I've seen many with 2 full-size refrigerators in the U.S. One in the kitchen, one in the garage.

[jfchandler]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

Sorry to hear...you hadn't married a Thai lady.... Obviously if you had, you wouldn't have this problem!!!

[TAWP]

I guess i'm lucky. This is why I whine a lot less than the other expats living in Thailand. It's still a great place if you make a western salary.

Bingo.

Am I supposed to sympathize with those expats trying to shuffle by teaching english for a few baht? Well, I don't. Foreign expats have the luxury of choice. You can either choose to live here and make crap wages for relatively unskilled labor or you can go back home and get a real job.

I'm not sure what your malfunction is but most expats here have real jobs(sic).

The point is only that the article is more for those that have the salary from abroad than payed in local salary, since a decline in an economy might help those payed from abroad than those payed locally...

[vegas]

I find it difficult to spend my wacking great salary every month and always have a surplus. Luckily the bank holds it for me for a rainy day.

Sorry to hear...you hadn't married a Thai lady.... Obviously if you had, you wouldn't have this problem!!!

She is Thai on a wacking great salary also.

[vegas]

Yes it's still cheap for beer in a bar, medium price restaurants, travel, groceries, car insurance, gasoline. Not for cable TV.