Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 We've talked in the past about comparative house prices around the world. Here's a UK calculator, in case you are interested. Remember that each room is going to be much smaller than in the US. One pound usually = about 1.5 USD L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 We could afford to live nowhere. :laugh: Guess I'll stay on my little patch of cornfield. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerileanne99 Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Yikes. Hubby is British and we intermittently discuss the possibility of moving back...a dream that would probably be killed by the US Dollar! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 Yikes. Hubby is British and we intermittently discuss the possibility of moving back...a dream that would probably be killed by the US Dollar! I don't think it's the US dollar: land is tight in the UK, so we are used to living in small spaces and paying a lot for them. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Forget it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 I can afford most of Ireland, the Highlands, Wales, Northumberland... I picked the "cheaper end of the local market." Northern Ireland, in this case - there are no data for Ireland as it is outwith the UK. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Northern Ireland, in this case - there are no data for Ireland as it is outwith the UK. L Thanks for setting me straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Whatever. "Like" everyone else's post but play the schoolmarm with mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 Whatever. "Like" everyone else's post but play the schoolmarm with mine. I'm sorry you feel that way, Sink. I am happy to like your post - I just forgot. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 Our house has very small rooms. Anyhow, I presume that your houses aren't made out of office supplies either. Well.... I think that there are a few prefab houses left that were built of, I don't know, egg boxes just after the war. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 We could afford a bit of the housing, but, like here, I suspect the ability to get the actual LAND (acreage/hectares) would be a problem there due to not having as many rural areas (supply and demand). It's the same here around cities. We have to be away from the cities to afford our farm. (We also like being away from the cities, so it's a win-win.) The link provided did not offer an option to add how much land one wanted to own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 We pay MUCH less for our house in TX than a similar house would be in the UK. It's more like what our house would cost if we still lived in the DC area. We could definitely afford my MIL's house (though it is a bit smaller than our house). She's in County Limerick in RoI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 We could afford a bit of the housing, but, like here, I suspect the ability to get the actual LAND (acreage/hectares) would be a problem there due to not having as many rural areas (supply and demand). It's the same here around cities. We have to be away from the cities to afford our farm. (We also like being away from the cities, so it's a win-win.) The link provided did not offer an option to add how much land one wanted to own. I think it would assume a small garden/yard to go with those houses. Farming land costs between 7,000 and 8,000 pounds per acre. I don't know how that compares. That is for land without permission to build - a plot with planning permission around here would be 80,000 to 150,000 pounds. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 I think it would assume a small garden/yard to go with those houses. Farming land costs between 7,000 and 8,000 pounds per acre. I don't know how that compares. That is for land without permission to build - a plot with planning permission around here would be 80,000 to 150,000 pounds. L That's pretty similar to land prices around here. It runs around $12,500 per acre for larger plots. It can go $50,000 + per acre for just a house site. The more rural you get, the more you get for your money. The closer you move to a city, the more those prices increase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura in CA Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Fun! We could afford anywhere except (of course) London & immediate environs. But then, we're coming from California, so our house is absurdly overpriced. (I grew up in WNY, I know what a well-over-half-million-dollar home looks like, & ours ain't that!) We could afford East Sussex! Yay! But again, I knew that, b/c I've haunted sites such as http://www.rightmove.co.uk/ (we've vacationed multiple times in East Sussex & have dreamed of relocating ... <*sigh*> ...) My husband was offered a post-doc years ago in Oxfordshire, but between a relatively low salary & high taxes, even renting something moderately sized would have been a stretch. We took the high-salary, low-tax Swiss post-doc ... But talk about high real-estate prices! Friends of ours were able to buy a Swiss house only when the in-laws sold one of their houses in Belgium and put the entire purchase price toward their down payment on a (modest) Swiss house ... Anyway, thanks for posting the link! I'll show Hubby! It's fun to dream ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerileanne99 Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 I don't think it's the US dollar: land is tight in the UK, so we are used to living in small spaces and paying a lot for them. L Absolutely, space at a premium! But actually in this case I was thinking in terms of the fact that all of our savings are in dollars! We own our house, but even selling it would of course be dollars...the exchange rate would do us in:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 I couldn't get it to load. I suspect that we could definitely afford to live in the UK and would adjust to the smaller spaces. In our area, one can buy a 1400 sq.ft. home on 20 acres for about $70,000.00 and it's the acreage that sells for more than house! We had such a bad fall off of the housing market that homes just aren't worth much. We have friends that sold 800 acres with a terrible, sad, needing $50,000.00 in repair farm house and falling down barn for $480,000.00 and then turned around and purchased a 3000 sq.ft. home with a pool on 2 acres, absolutely immaculate, small kitchenette with the master bedroom suite for their mother, all appliances included in the main kitchen - nice ones too - all for $136,000.00 If you can get a job in Michigan north of the burbs of Detroit, there are some bargains to be had. Personally, I think I'd love to move to Scotland and I'd be willing to live in a smaller place to do it. But, I don't think DH would likely find employment there in his field of choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 I couldn't get it to load. I suspect that we could definitely afford to live in the UK and would adjust to the smaller spaces. In our area, one can buy a 1400 sq.ft. home on 20 acres for about $70,000.00 and it's the acreage that sells for more than house! We had such a bad fall off of the housing market that homes just aren't worth much. We have friends that sold 800 acres with a terrible, sad, needing $50,000.00 in repair farm house and falling down barn for $480,000.00 and then turned around and purchased a 3000 sq.ft. home with a pool on 2 acres, absolutely immaculate, small kitchenette with the master bedroom suite for their mother, all appliances included in the main kitchen - nice ones too - all for $136,000.00 If you can get a job in Michigan north of the burbs of Detroit, there are some bargains to be had. Personally, I think I'd love to move to Scotland and I'd be willing to live in a smaller place to do it. But, I don't think DH would likely find employment there in his field of choice. A three-bedroom house near here is on the market for offers over 320,000 pounds, so around half a million dollars. From a quick scan, I think it might be about 1200 square feet. Planning regulations are very strict, even in the country, so prices don't really drop very far, even in hard times. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Whatever. "Like" everyone else's post but play the schoolmarm with mine. Wow. :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 We've talked in the past about comparative house prices around the world. Here's a UK calculator, in case you are interested. Remember that each room is going to be much smaller than in the US. One pound usually = about 1.5 USD L We love to watch UK property shows and are always stunned at the prices when people want to move to the country. The small acreage costs are just staggering from our perspective. We watched one once where a couple wanted to buy a small farm (in this case in the size range of about 15 hectares (which I think we figured to be just under 40 acres). The agent could NOT find anything for them in their price range in all of eastern and southern England. Nothing. It was a big number (to us), too. So we were just amazed. I can't remember what the couple settled on, but there were huge compromises to be made, of course. I have to wonder how much workable farm land actually goes up for sale. I would gather that most would keep it in the family for the sheer value of it and the fact that it is seems so hard to come by any of it. And, to the original question of what could we afford... likely not much, if anything, even if we sold our farm here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 A three-bedroom house near here is on the market for offers over 320,000 pounds, so around half a million dollars. From a quick scan, I think it might be about 1200 square feet. Planning regulations are very strict, even in the country, so prices don't really drop very far, even in hard times. L Just like in CA. Crazy expensive! Do most people inherit properties? I am just wondering how younger generation is affording to own given the cost, London especially. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
horsellian Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Just like in CA. Crazy expensive! Do most people inherit properties? I am just wondering how younger generation is affording to own given the cost, London especially. In London, you rent! Or you have a very high paying job (think bankers or what have you). Honestly the %age of home owners is currently going down and the age of first-time buyers is going up because prices are so high compared to salaries. However, because prices are high, that makes rent high too - where we live at the moment we can afford our mortgage, but we couldn't afford to rent the (identical) house 2 doors down as the rent is 2.5x our mortgage payment! Many younger people who are able to buy are doing so with support from their parents, either "inheritance in advance" if parents have the cash available or with parents co-signing mortgages to allow them to borrow enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 Just like in CA. Crazy expensive! Do most people inherit properties? I am just wondering how younger generation is affording to own given the cost, London especially. I think that more and more people are going to be renting for longer. Our flat in London is rented out to three young professionals (in their late twenties). They don't save a penny: they all eat out all the time and have gym memberships, etc. I can't see how they will get a deposit together. It used to be that young professionals moved out of London to the suburbs where things were more affordable. But the affordable house that my brother bought in the suburbs fifteen years ago (he's a computer programmer; his wife is an administrator at a school - previously part time, now full time) is now worth over three-quarters of a million pounds . And that's only thinking about professionals.... Further away from London is cheaper, but a lot of the jobs are concentrated in the South East Yes, some will inherit houses and use the capital to buy their own property. And given that families tend to be small, the capital will usually only be split two ways. But parents are living longer, so the capital doesn't get passed down so easily. There are differences in cost of living: the NHS is much cheaper than the US health care system, which puts more money in people's pockets. The income tax situation is similar to that in the US, but petrol taxes are high. That means that one can save money by reducing driving - public transport is much more complete here than in most areas of the US. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Fun. We could still live in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham - which is where we lived before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 I think it would assume a small garden/yard to go with those houses. Farming land costs between 7,000 and 8,000 pounds per acre. I don't know how that compares. That is for land without permission to build - a plot with planning permission around here would be 80,000 to 150,000 pounds. L Where we lived before in Iowa an acre of farmland was going for 16,000-20,000 dollars per acre. That is expensive for the US. I'm surprised you could get an acre for 8000 pounds. I would have expected it to be much higher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 My Spanish host mother bought her home - the equivalent of a condominium - in the late 1900's for over $500,000. At the time I was there, the oldest son had been engaged for several years. He was a successful businessman in his mid-twenties. He was still living at home, though. He and his finance were waiting to get married until they could find a home to buy. Housing was very tight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 I suspect we would get by, but with smaller rooms, since we live in a ridiculously HCOL area. However, DD just got back from a tour of London/Stratford/Stonehenge/Bath and she was struck by how inaccessible everything was. That would never work with my son's wheelchair. Granted, they were purposely looking for old sites and cobbled streets, but not being able to navigate a major city would be a deal breaker for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Where we lived before in Iowa an acre of farmland was going for 16,000-20,000 dollars per acre. That is expensive for the US. I'm surprised you could get an acre for 8000 pounds. I would have expected it to be much higher. Right now the exchange rate isn't good. It's $1= 0.60 You may as well double your US dollars when you calculate and that puts an acre close to 16,000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Wonder if I can get a mobile home there because it sure would not be a house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Laura, do you see any correlation between housing costs and delayed marriage due to needing flatmates to share rent? I was wondering if the high cost of housing would affect that. In terms of leases, do all of the roommates share the lease or is one person legally responsible and the others pay rent directly to their flatmate? Is there housing assistance for low income families? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Right now the exchange rate isn't good. It's $1= 0.60 You may as well double your US dollars when you calculate and that puts an acre close to 16,000. Yes, I know, but I would have thought that land in the UK would be many times higher than the US. That land in Iowa is very expensive for the Midwest and the land Laura referenced might be the cheapest in the UK. I just wouldn't have been surprised if she had said that land in the UK was 15,000-20,000 pounds. Eight thousand seems cheap for such a densely populated country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 I could live in Shepway District, whatever that means, in a 4 or more bedroom house. But we spend a higher percentage on housing than most people do. If I lived in the UK, I couldn't get beef from my Dad. I wouldn't get huge boxes of clothes for the kids from my aunt. If I paid significantly more for food and clothes, I don't know that we could swing as much house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Yes, I know, but I would have thought that land in the UK would be many times higher than the US. That land in Iowa is very expensive for the Midwest and the land Laura referenced might be the cheapest in the UK. I just wouldn't have been surprised if she had said that land in the UK was 15,000-20,000 pounds. Eight thousand seems cheap for such a densely populated country. I think they very tightly control what you can do with the land which may be the reason why the rice is not higher than that. Here, if the zoning is really, really tight so your options are limited, the price of a particular piece of acreage drops significantly. If you can pretty much do what you want, people will get in a bid war over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Oops, duplicate post...dumb tablet, I'm positive I only hit post once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 I suspect we would get by, but with smaller rooms, since we live in a ridiculously HCOL area. However, DD just got back from a tour of London/Stratford/Stonehenge/Bath and she was struck by how inaccessible everything was. That would never work with my son's wheelchair. Granted, they were purposely looking for old sites and cobbled streets, but not being able to navigate a major city would be a deal breaker for us. Yes - it can't be easy. The housing stock is old and single-storey houses are unusual. Even the bungalow that I linked earlier is up a steep flight of stairs. On the other hand, this site paints a more positive picture. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 I think they very tightly control what you can do with the land which may be the reason why the rice is not higher than that. Here, if the zoning is really, really tight so your options are limited, the price of a particular piece of acreage drops significantly. If you can pretty much do what you want, people will get in a bid war over it. Yes - that's it. The farmland price that I mentioned is for farming only - that is land that can never be built on, due to planning regulations. That means that the high population density had not effect on the price of farmland. This website puts 'bare land' at 7,000 pounds an acre and 'equipped farms' at 10,000 pounds an acre. Just to give you an idea: we own three acres. We have absolutely no right to build a second house. The only way we could build a house is to replace an existing building (or the extant foundations of a building) or if the village's boundaries were extended to include us. Until that happens, we are on 'green belt' land that cannot be built on. Strict regulations are necessary in a country of 60 million people but with a land area the size of Oregon. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Yes - it can't be easy. The housing stock is old and single-storey houses are unusual. Even the bungalow that I linked earlier is up a steep flight of stairs. On the other hand, this site paints a more positive picture. L It's interesting, but they only compare London with other places that are even less accessible. Our suburb, and the two nearby cities are so accessible that we're spoiled. It's rare to find an inaccessible public space and the DC Metro with a wheelchair is still easier than driving into the city. Also, getting inside is only part of the problem. You still need turn-around space and accessible bathrooms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 Laura, do you see any correlation between housing costs and delayed marriage due to needing flatmates to share rent? I was wondering if the high cost of housing would affect that. One would think that it would, but I really don't know. I suspect that most people who marry or move in together move to a smaller rented place, so the cost is the same as having flatmates. In terms of leases, do all of the roommates share the lease or is one person legally responsible and the others pay rent directly to their flatmate? Both ways are possible. Our current arrangement with our flat is that each tenant has an individual lease and is responsible to us for his or her own rent. Is there housing assistance for low income families? Yes - good point. I'm afraid I don't know the income levels where this kicks in. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 It's interesting, but they only compare London with other places that are even less accessible. Our suburb, and the two nearby cities are so accessible that we're spoiled. It's rare to find an inaccessible public space and the DC Metro with a wheelchair is still easier than driving into the city. Also, getting inside is only part of the problem. You still need turn-around space and accessible bathrooms. Accessible bathrooms are very, very common. All public toilets and, for example, supermarket toilets have a separate disabled toilet (accessed directly - not within the gents or ladies). My village hall had to institute a disabled toilet and a removable ramp in order to access future government grants, so there is quite a lot of pressure. Public buildings will be accessible if at all possible, but ancient buildings can't always be retrofitted. I think that new suburbs and specially-designed new towns will be much better, but they are a fairly small proportion of the total housing stock. The DC metro is forty years old, whereas the London Underground is over 150 years old. There are bound to be differences. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Yes - that's it. The farmland price that I mentioned is for farming only - that is land that can never be built on, due to planning regulations. That means that the high population density had not effect on the price of farmland. This website puts 'bare land' at 7,000 pounds an acre and 'equipped farms' at 10,000 pounds an acre. Just to give you an idea: we own three acres. We have absolutely no right to build a second house. The only way we could build a house is to replace an existing building (or the extant foundations of a building) or if the village's boundaries were extended to include us. Until that happens, we are on 'green belt' land that cannot be built on. Strict regulations are necessary in a country of 60 million people but with a land area the size of Oregon. L I was comparing it to farmland. My husband works in the farm industry, so he knows the purchasers. They are planning on using it just for farmland. Of course, they do have the option to change their mind in the distant future. It could be developed in the future, but it wasn't bought with development in mind, so I'm not sure how much that would have affected the price. Now, near my hometown you can buy farmland for 2,000 - 3,000 dollars per acre, but it isn't great farmland. And, really, cheap land is about the only reason to move there. Around my current city, acerages of about 5 acres are more expensive than they out to be due to zoning laws. Nothing can be subdivided under 10 acres anymore. Anyone wanting a few acres is willing to pay a lot of money for the privilege even when the house on the land isn't very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 I was comparing it to farmland. My husband works in the farm industry, so he knows the purchasers. They are planning on using it just for farmland. Of course, they do have the option to change their mind in the distant future. It could be developed in the future, but it wasn't bought with development in mind, so I'm not sure how much that would have affected the price. Now, near my hometown you can buy farmland for 2,000 - 3,000 dollars per acre, but it isn't great farmland. And, really, cheap land is about the only reason to move there. Around my current city, acerages of about 5 acres are more expensive than they out to be due to zoning laws. Nothing can be subdivided under 10 acres anymore. Anyone wanting a few acres is willing to pay a lot of money for the privilege even when the house on the land isn't very nice. The future development potential will be built into the price - even if that's not the intention of the current buyer. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Do the smaller, more reasonably priced rental homes in the UK come with appliances? Are any utilities or community services such as garbage pick up included? Just curious. I'd love to spend a couple of years in Scotland IF dh could ever get his company to send him there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 26, 2014 Author Share Posted April 26, 2014 Do the smaller, more reasonably priced rental homes in the UK come with appliances? Are any utilities or community services such as garbage pick up included? Just curious. I'd love to spend a couple of years in Scotland IF dh could ever get his company to send him there. It depends - we rent out with all major appliances in place - I would expect that to be normal. Some houses are also rented fully-furnished. You pay a local tax called 'council tax' - that would not usually be included in the rental. It normally covers rubbish pickup and (depending on the area) sometimes water supply and sewerage too. Utilities are sometimes included - we include utilities in the rental for the sake of convenience. Here's one in a nice village. It looks as if it comes with appliances but without any utilities or taxes included. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Accessible bathrooms are very, very common. All public toilets and, for example, supermarket toilets have a separate disabled toilet (accessed directly - not within the gents or ladies). My village hall had to institute a disabled toilet and a removable ramp in order to access future government grants, so there is quite a lot of pressure. Public buildings will be accessible if at all possible, but ancient buildings can't always be retrofitted. I think that new suburbs and specially-designed new towns will be much better, but they are a fairly small proportion of the total housing stock. The DC metro is forty years old, whereas the London Underground is over 150 years old. There are bound to be differences. L It's such fun to daydream about moving to Europe, and the dedicated handicapped bathrooms would be nice, but even WITH the socialized medicine and universities, I can't figure out a way for us to come out ahead. Dh has toyed with taking temporary work in England, but it wouldn't be the best move career-wise and it certainly wouldn't be a path to citizenship. All in all, I think our standard of living comes out better here, as boring as that sounds :-/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 Almost all of the UK looks affordable for us based on our monthly rent, London excluded. Sydney is hell. We're in a pretty expensive area in the US and yep, we also could do not everywhere (not London and some other places) but a lot of places in UK were affordable with our budget, though I assume our square footage would probably go down and we'd lose the convenience of being in the middle of a city next to the subway. That almost depresses me more though. It makes me feel like I should move somewhere cheaper in the US. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 Looks like we could save money by living in either the UK or the US! Now, for those pesky work visas....oh, and the jobs to go with them :) You may want to figure in the proportionately lower wage scale those jobs will pay. I don't believe you'd be one bit further ahead, and in the US you'd also being paying a big chunk out for healthcare on top of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 We could buy a house anywhere on that map, but our current residences are in high COL areas, so that's probably why I wasn't shocked at the pricing. I think your property taxes are very high as well, aren't they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 27, 2014 Author Share Posted April 27, 2014 We could buy a house anywhere on that map, but our current residences are in high COL areas, so that's probably why I wasn't shocked at the pricing. I think your property taxes are very high as well, aren't they? If you could afford to live anywhere on the map, then you would probably be buying a house in the top council tax 'banding'. In my county that would be about 3,000 pounds per year but would include water supply, sewerage and rubbish pick up. The big tax difference in the UK is tax on petrol. Petrol costs about 1.50 a litre, so over five pounds for a US gallon. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 If you could afford to live anywhere on the map, then you would probably be buying a house in the top council tax 'banding'. In my county that would be about 3,000 pounds per year but would include water supply, sewerage and rubbish pick up. The big tax difference in the UK is tax on petrol. Petrol costs about 1.50 a litre, so over five pounds for a US gallon. L Thanks! 3,000 pounds a year is far less than I expected -- where we live, the taxes on even a teeny-tiny house on a very small lot would cost at least twice that much. But your gasoline costs are significantly higher, so I guess they get you one way or the other! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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