2013 Living Cost Comparison Gpb Vs Thb

[exeter]

When you list your pro's and con's Thailand wins overall. Costs are much smaller here, so a better lifestyle. Of course there are things we miss about the UK but thats the choice we have made. Biggest problem here is solving the healthcare issue, perhaps you cannot solve it as we get older but it needs addressing and funding, its free in the UK but do you want to hang about waiting for a free hospital visit or enjoy life?

Would not mind some good real ale but I will accept the lower cost brews available here.

[nong38]

Yes the real ale is a miss but the number of times you get it in a pub when its as it should be amkes it an easy decision. I miss the railway funnily enough probably because its not up to much here at the moment and its a great way to see the country but, its a pretty easy decision to stay here rather than put up with all the political correctness, safety regulations, high prices, trying to find someone who speaks English, I am sure I have made the right decision when all is said and done, no where is 100% right but the UK is declining in that area at an alarming rate. Healthcare is indeed the big joker in the pack, lets hope it does not get played but be prepared just in case.

[RAZZELL]

Comparisons are somewhat meaningless.

You can pay £6.50+ for a pint of Guinness in Bangkok.

Location, location, location.

RAZZ

[wolf5370]

You forgot the main costs in Thailand against UK which are as follows

Schools .

Thailand = 10000 baht a month for International school

UK = Free

Hospitals. Thailand expensive for Emergency treatment.

Uk = Free

That's hardly like for like - Thai kids (half Thai with Thai citizenship) can go to state or even temple schools for next to nothing, cost of books, lunches, uniform etc compared to UK similar costs (trips/swimming/teachers fund/blah blah blah) probably out weighs the Thai state school costs.

In the Uk I had my kids in private education, primary, and it cost me 30 grand a year for the two - not many schools in Thailand that would come close to that (Prem maybe).

My electric bill here is low too - generally its around 1500baht/mo -= worse has been 3,500 (that included a café open all day 7 days a week on top), and best was probably about 4/5 years ago when I got a bill for 950 or so - but usual bill is 1600 (one on my desk right now is 1655.77). It is aircon that causes high bills, I rarely have aircon on, prefer a fan or two instead and open windows. In the UK I used to pay 65/mo buit that was a long time ago now - my family pay three times that now in their homes.

Petrol/gas is expensive in the UK, 98% tax or something like; it can be got here for mid thirties, which could easily make it hit half the cost of the UK (which took another rise this week I think).

Last time I rented in the UK - between buying houses, for a period of four years ending some fifteen years or so ago, I paid 1,650/mo for four bedroom house, big garden, in the sticks in Kent. First house I rented here (most expensive I have rented here) - cost me 18k bht/mo, which at the time was around the 300 quid mark - 5 bedrooms (CM). Cheapest I have lived in was 5k/mo 3 bed two story plus office, large lounge, large kitchen, small yard - I have also p[aid 16k for a cottage in a gated community and 10k for my house now (2 bed/2 story + lockup).

Food is not comparable as both here and there have cheap and expensive items (imports are expensive).

Water bills are very cheap here - in the UK introduction of metering pushed costs much higher than once rated bills were (also privatisation).

Council tax is another biggie in the UK - my last home in the UK was F/G banded and cost me two grand a month. Here I pay 20b a month for rubbish/garbage collection - and nothing for fire/police/road sweeping/etc.

Night outs are much cheaper here - I could not imagine going out with the lads in the UK with 1,000 baht ion my pocket (equivalent of) - here I would expect to get back home rat-arsed with change and having eaten too.

I think it is possible to live here much more cheaply that in the UK - that does not mean that it WILL be cheaper for every individual, it depends what your needs and desires are in each country - but for me, its vastly cheaper here. I live on a month here what I spent daily in the UK - but then I lived differently too.

[nong38]

Comparisons are somewhat meaningless.

You can pay £6.50+ for a pint of Guinness in Bangkok.

Location, location, location.

RAZZ

Location being talked about about are the UK and Thailand, comparisons are not meaningless they are pretty accurate, of course it will vary around either location but things are much cheaper here in most areas (electrical and autos excepted) Daily living costs are much easier to cope with here than in the UK. I see talk of a VAT rise to 8% in about 7 years to pay for the infrastructure improvements and I think UK 20%!

Unless you can claim a lot of benefits or require a lot of hospital visits Thailand wins hands down!

[mccw]

Last Updated 07:46 06/04/2013

Emma Birchley, East of England Correspondent

Months of heavy rain followed by extreme cold are set to hit harvests and push the price of the weekly shop up ever higher.

More than a quarter of winter wheat could not be planted last autumn because of waterlogged fields and attempts to catch up this spring have been hampered by frost.

But poor grain yields do not just affect the price of bread and biscuits.

Animal feed is 50% more expensive than 15 months ago, in turn increasing the cost of producing meat, milk and eggs.

Mother-of-three Sarah Tait is concerned. She has already seen her weekly bill rise from £80 to around £100 in the past 18 months or so.

She said: "It is a worry. It just means there will be other things we don't buy because we have to buy food and retailers have got you really because you have got to pay what the prices say."

Other crops including potatoes, tomatoes and sugar beet have also been delayed.

In the 12 months to February fruit has risen in price by almost 12%, vegetables are up 7%, meat costs 4% more and bread and cereals are 3% more expensive - all above general inflation, which stands at 2.8%.

On the Euston Estate in Suffolk crops like winter barley have struggled from the start after being sown in November rather than the end of September due to the weather.

Estate manager Andrew Blenkiron expects the late planting to have a 20% impact on yield.

He said: "There are areas of the field that we couldn't plant because it was so wet and usually we would try to work through the winter and try to patch it up, but there's still water lying in it in early April."

UK growers should also have planted 50% of their spring cereals by now but have in fact only managed to sow 15% due to the weather.

Shoppers are being advised by Richard Dodd from the British Retail Consortium not to be too worried.

He said: "Customers shouldn't panic about the impact on food prices of this weather, of course it's adding an extra pressure, but at the same time the cost of lots of key world commodities, things like wheat are actually coming down, and that's certainly balancing out any upward influences from weather.

"And of course retailing remains incredibly competitive so as the retailers battle it out for every bit of spending that is to be had from customers, they are doing all they can to protect customers from any effects."

But at the beginning of the year, Waitrose's managing director Mark Price warned the price increases in some commodities will be "massive".

And it will be some months before the full impact of the bad weather on crops becomes clear.

-from sky news app

[somtampet]

You forgot the main costs in Thailand against UK which are as follows

Schools .

Thailand = 10000 baht a month for International school

UK = Free

Hospitals. Thailand expensive for Emergency treatment.

Uk = Free

That's hardly like for like - Thai kids (half Thai with Thai citizenship) can go to state or even temple schools for next to nothing, cost of books, lunches, uniform etc compared to UK similar costs (trips/swimming/teachers fund/blah blah blah) probably out weighs the Thai state school costs.

In the Uk I had my kids in private education, primary, and it cost me 30 grand a year for the two - not many schools in Thailand that would come close to that (Prem maybe).

My electric bill here is low too - generally its around 1500baht/mo -= worse has been 3,500 (that included a café open all day 7 days a week on top), and best was probably about 4/5 years ago when I got a bill for 950 or so - but usual bill is 1600 (one on my desk right now is 1655.77). It is aircon that causes high bills, I rarely have aircon on, prefer a fan or two instead and open windows. In the UK I used to pay 65/mo buit that was a long time ago now - my family pay three times that now in their homes.

Petrol/gas is expensive in the UK, 98% tax or something like; it can be got here for mid thirties, which could easily make it hit half the cost of the UK (which took another rise this week I think).

Last time I rented in the UK - between buying houses, for a period of four years ending some fifteen years or so ago, I paid 1,650/mo for four bedroom house, big garden, in the sticks in Kent. First house I rented here (most expensive I have rented here) - cost me 18k bht/mo, which at the time was around the 300 quid mark - 5 bedrooms (CM). Cheapest I have lived in was 5k/mo 3 bed two story plus office, large lounge, large kitchen, small yard - I have also p[aid 16k for a cottage in a gated community and 10k for my house now (2 bed/2 story + lockup).

Food is not comparable as both here and there have cheap and expensive items (imports are expensive).

Water bills are very cheap here - in the UK introduction of metering pushed costs much higher than once rated bills were (also privatisation).

Council tax is another biggie in the UK - my last home in the UK was F/G banded and cost me two grand a month. Here I pay 20b a month for rubbish/garbage collection - and nothing for fire/police/road sweeping/etc.

Night outs are much cheaper here - I could not imagine going out with the lads in the UK with 1,000 baht ion my pocket (equivalent of) - here I would expect to get back home rat-arsed with change and having eaten too.

I think it is possible to live here much more cheaply that in the UK - that does not mean that it WILL be cheaper for every individual, it depends what your needs and desires are in each country - but for me, its vastly cheaper here. I live on a month here what I spent daily in the UK - but then I lived differently too.

NHS is not free,

[mccw]

Hospital car parks UK

Thai Free

[chiang mai]

arrested but didn't do it - Thai $$

UK

[nong38]

Hospital car parks UK

Thai Free

Who can afford to run a car in the UK now? Lots but its very expensive, I got rid of mine and arrive at the hospital by pubic transport if the need arises. Before i got rid of it it cost me 15 pounds a week just to sit across the road before i fueled it,how much would cost today to fill a 75 litre tank? Its a lie the streets are not paved with gold, they full of leeches.

[Naam]

Hospital car parks UK

Thai Free

Who can afford to run a car in the UK now? Lots but its very expensive, I got rid of mine and arrive at the hospital by pubic transport if the need arises. Before i got rid of it it cost me 15 pounds a week just to sit across the road before i fueled it,how much would cost today to fill a 75 litre tank? Its a lie the streets are not paved with gold, they full of leeches.

that kind of transport you use sounds quite interesting Nong. can you tell us more?