| This is correct. Its definitely not a 1 to 1 comparison because of the crazy cost of living here. Theres also the jump in the amount you get taxed (disregarding additional things we have to pay for such as private health care/medicare levy, superannuation, etc), so even if you were earning say 100k a year, you automatically lose a quarter of it before you ever see any of it. Most people I know that live in the city do not have a salary that exceeds 50k a year, so all of this plus the cost of housing is leading to several generations of renters instead of home buyers. I dont actually know a single person in the city that has a mortgage, everybody seems to be renting because few people can afford to have a mortgage in the city. I can only speak from my experiences knowing the people I know, but I know many people from all walks of life, so i doubt my view is that biast. I pay as much in rent for a 1 bedroom apartment in the sydney than I would with a mortgage for a 3 bedroom home well outside of the city. Heres another example of how expensive things are here that always makes my blood boil - a bottle of coke is going to cost you 4-6 dollars at your typical convenience store. When i was last in San Fransisco 4-5 years ago, It cost around a $1.50 including tax. |