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Guangzhou cost of living
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kevincollege



Joined: 09 Dec 2015
Posts: 9
Location: Las Vegas, NV

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 2:29 am    Post subject: Guangzhou cost of living Reply with quote

I just recently recieve a contract for march 1 to start in 2016.

But the salary is only 12k rmb a month with no housing allowance. Is this enough to live on? I am an American with a master in education with three years of teaching in the USA.
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hdeth



Joined: 20 Jan 2015
Posts: 583

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 3:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What kind of job? Many are lower hours but higher pay. 12k should be enough to live on but with no housing you probably won't save a ton. Is part of the 12k at least a non-taxable housing allowance? Hopefully this is a low hour university gig or some such?
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In the heat of the moment



Joined: 22 May 2015
Posts: 393
Location: Italy

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 4:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

12k is enough to survive on in Guangzhou but I would be aiming for at least that plus free accommodation, with a Master's and previous experience.

Also it isn't a good deal for Guangzhou, which has many wealthy expats and locals catered for in high-end bars and restaurants. This wealth drives up the price of almost everything and your Yuan won't go as far as it would in a third tier city. If you're thinking you can supplement your income with privates then good luck; Guangzhou is already host to tens of thousands of native speakers who are available to do the same.
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Jmbf



Joined: 29 Jun 2014
Posts: 663

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 5:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

In the heat of the moment wrote:
If you're thinking you can supplement your income with privates then good luck; Guangzhou is already host to tens of thousands of native speakers who are available to do the same.


Do you have any evidence to back that up? Plenty of native speakers in one location is one thing, but surely that's just a drop in the ocean compared to the millions of Chinese looking to learn / improve their English in the same area.
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kevincollege



Joined: 09 Dec 2015
Posts: 9
Location: Las Vegas, NV

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 7:48 am    Post subject: thanks Reply with quote

Thanks guy for the advice,

Did you guys enjoy living in Guangzhou?
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JB140767



Joined: 09 Aug 2015
Posts: 135

PostPosted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 11:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jmbf wrote:
In the heat of the moment wrote:
If you're thinking you can supplement your income with privates then good luck; Guangzhou is already host to tens of thousands of native speakers who are available to do the same.


Do you have any evidence to back that up? Plenty of native speakers in one location is one thing, but surely that's just a drop in the ocean compared to the millions of Chinese looking to learn / improve their English in the same area.



yeah, that is a little confusing.

The implication from INTHOTM seems to be PT gigs are hard to come by inGZ, for six years I was unable to keep up with the demand, turning down privates left right and centre
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mrenglish2nd



Joined: 07 Mar 2016
Posts: 45

PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 3:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I lived in Guangzhou for over five years, 2009 to 2014, mostly worked solo with my own private tutoring business though also did some side jobs with employers. There is good demand for private tutors. 12,000 is skinny unless you are getting free housing and some other benefits along with it.
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Non Sequitur



Joined: 23 May 2010
Posts: 4724
Location: China

PostPosted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 11:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mrenglish2nd wrote:
I lived in Guangzhou for over five years, 2009 to 2014, mostly worked solo with my own private tutoring business though also did some side jobs with employers. There is good demand for private tutors. 12,000 is skinny unless you are getting free housing and some other benefits along with it.


How did you get on visa-wise?
I'd like to go back but am over the Z-visa age.
PM if you don't want to respond publicly.
My first pref is actually Wuhan, 2nd GZhou.
Best
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RiverMystic



Joined: 13 Jan 2009
Posts: 1986

PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 12:06 am    Post subject: Re: thanks Reply with quote

kevincollege wrote:
Thanks guy for the advice,

Did you guys enjoy living in Guangzhou?


Assuming you are fully qualified as a teacher (that means dip. Ed. or Bachelor of Ed or equivalent) you are massively underselling yourself. I had two jobs in GZ last year. The lowest I earned was 22000 a month. I would think anything less than 15 0000 and you are seriously undervaluing yourself. If you have China experience your value goes up. Are you working for a university? They have the lowest wages, generally speaking.

Guangzhou itself? I never warmed to the place at all. I ended up spending most of my weekends in Shenzhen, which I liked much more. Guangzhou is old, dark, overcrowded, not friendly, with few social options, at least for someone with my interests. I will never return.

I'm not really into middle eastern or black, hip-hop culture. I'm just too lazy to put my hands in da air like I jes don' care. And what's the point? I'm already tall, and I don't need to attract attention to myself while standing around. And I could never figure out which fingers I am supposed to bend back when doing that salute. One wrong finger placement and they socially ostracise you. But hey, I'm obviously old.

About the only thing that was positive about GZ was the fast train out of there. Oh, and the air pollution isn't as terrible as places like Beijing. But that is like saying being molested is better than being raped.

But some people like Guangzhou. Better ask them why.
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Non Sequitur



Joined: 23 May 2010
Posts: 4724
Location: China

PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 1:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Seems to be an emerging need to include in 'what do you think of XY or Z city/employer?' posts a comment about quals.
The salary expectations across (a) standard FT jobs for people with a bachelors in something, through (b) home-country hires for joint-venture schools and finally (c) international schools requiring home country registration and likely classroom experience, are very wide.
Could be 20k pm difference, but with the same accomm, travel perks.
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kungfu



Joined: 06 Mar 2016
Posts: 21

PostPosted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 10:42 am    Post subject: china Reply with quote

I just have a bachelors and celta and there are jobs going for 15000 AND free apartment. The OP must be mad to take on such a low offer without housing with a masters. Why do you want to move to China for a lower wage than you are probably earning in the US?
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ghost



Joined: 30 Jan 2003
Posts: 1693
Location: Saudi Arabia

PostPosted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 12:34 pm    Post subject: apartments Reply with quote

Spent 6 weeks in Guangzhou last summer, in the Tianhe area, not far from the famous football stadium and team - Guangzhou Evergrande (Asian club champions).

Cheapest rents, for foreigners, are around 4000 yuan per month, and those places are not very luxurious - just a basic studio. On top of that you would have to find furnishings and pay bills. 4000 yuan is around $616 at today's exchange rate.

Guangzhou is a nice city, but it is one of the more expensive major cities in China. You can get cheaper rents way out in the suburbs, but you will be far away from everything, and have to use a combination of bus and subway to get to the center of town.

Ghost in China
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mrenglish2nd



Joined: 07 Mar 2016
Posts: 45

PostPosted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 5:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had business visas the entire time, made runs to Hong Kong as necessary. There are now 10-year business visas available if you are American. In any event, no hassles at all working on business visas. Not at the border and not at PSB.
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mrenglish2nd



Joined: 07 Mar 2016
Posts: 45

PostPosted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 5:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And this:
Guangzhou is old, dark, overcrowded, not friendly, with few social options, at least for someone with my interests

Don't know what this writer is talking about. Yes, Guangzhou is old, the central city part, which is a small part indeed of the city. Dark? What does this mean? Overcrowded? Shenzhen is better? Is any major Chinese city not crowded? Few social options? Anything you want to find is in Guangzhou.
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mrenglish2nd



Joined: 07 Mar 2016
Posts: 45

PostPosted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 5:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had business visas the entire time, made runs to Hong Kong as necessary. There are now 10-year business visas available if you are American. In any event, no hassles at all working on business visas. Not at the border and not at PSB.
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