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nonsmoker
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 352
Location: Exactly here and now.
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 Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 8:20 pm Post subject: Money matters |
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| Realistically, how much money should someone bring with them to survive until their first paycheck in Japan. I'm talking someone who gets a visa sponsorship and doesn't hit the pavement. I heard that It usually takes up to 6 weeks for the first pay to arrive. So, minus the plane ticket, how much money does a teacher need from the moment he gets the job until the moment he gets the first pay? |
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canuck
Joined: 11 May 2003
Posts: 1921
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 9:08 pm Post subject: Re: Money matters |
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| nonsmoker wrote: |
| Realistically, how much money should someone bring with them to survive until their first paycheck in Japan. I'm talking someone who gets a visa sponsorship and doesn't hit the pavement. I heard that It usually takes up to 6 weeks for the first pay to arrive. So, minus the plane ticket, how much money does a teacher need from the moment he gets the job until the moment he gets the first pay? |
As much as you can. To be specific, $3438.47. |
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nonsmoker
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 352
Location: Exactly here and now.
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| Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 11:53 pm Post subject: Re: Money matters |
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| canuck wrote: |
As much as you can. To be specific, $3438.47. |
Are you serious or are you pulling my leg? If you are serious, can u please share with me how you came up with that figure? |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 1:33 am Post subject: |
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Well in his own unique style canuck has a point, how much you'll need is going to fluctuate wildly from person to person. Your biggest expense will be accomodation so find out from your employer how much of that burden you will bear. After that take the average salary 250K (do your own conversion) and bring the equivalent, if you can't live on your salary then you better reconsider staying in Japan.
On actually bringing money, don't bring cash or travellers cheques. The most efficent method is using your home bank ATM card or a credit card to transfer the money over. Find out which system your bank uses and see if it is the same as the Japanese Post Office one. |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 4:57 am Post subject: |
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I would suggest the travler's checks instead. I t can take some time to pin down banks that will allow that kind of transfer, and those kinds of transfers take time. You don't want to be stuck without money while you're waiting for your bank to transfer money to the post office or other account. many of the post offices are not on that many systems, and even their ATM access is not the best. A Citibank account would probably be your best bet.
And my next question would be Canuck, did you do it? I would say it takes a bit of money to pull it off, especially if you arrive with no job in hand. You should also try to get out to get some info, but tht costs a bit too, the costs of getting info. if you're lucky and land a job quickly, you could get by with a couple of grand (American). But don't count on it, luck that is. |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 8:19 am Post subject: |
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| gaijinalways wrote: |
| I would suggest the travler's checks instead. I t can take some time to pin down banks that will allow that kind of transfer, and those kinds of transfers take time. You don't want to be stuck without money while you're waiting for your bank to transfer money to the post office or other account. many of the post offices are not on that many systems, and even their ATM access is not the best. A Citibank account would probably be your best bet. |
That is patently bad advice. Why? 1. travellers cheks cost money and you get the worst rate of exchange. 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. 3. An ATM transfer is virtually instantaneous since it is linked to your home bank. 4. The Post Office ATMs is linked to the main international transfer systems namely Cirrus and Maestro. 5. What advantages exactly would opening a Citibank account offer if the OP's home bank is linked to the systems offered by the Post Office (which by the way are present in throughout Japan in most towns try finding a Citibank in outide a major city)
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=46468&highlight=travellers+checks
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=36900&highlight=travellers+cheques
| Quote: |
| And my next question would be Canuck, did you do it? I would say it takes a bit of money to pull it off, especially if you arrive with no job in hand. You should also try to get out to get some info, but tht costs a bit too, the costs of getting info. if you're lucky and land a job quickly, you could get by with a couple of grand (American). But don't count on it, luck that is. |
I don't know aboout canuck but my wife and I survived on under 100K yen when we first arrived so canucks figure seemed excessive. If you read the OP carefully you wil notice that he is assuming already having visa sponsorship and thus a job and a potential salary in roughly 6 weeks. The major variant is going to be how much he needs/wants to spend on accomodation (I walked into a fully furnished apartment provided by the school so I didn't need much at all). |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 8:57 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| 1. travellers cheks cost money and you get the worst rate of exchange. |
Of course they cost money, but the rate of exchange depends on when you buy them. Get a good deal, and once you're here, there is no further problems with exchange rate. Get them in yen, and you can actually exchange more than if they were in your country's currency.
| Quote: |
| 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. |
Totally unfounded statement. |
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Shimmeringstar
Joined: 18 Mar 2007
Posts: 34
Location: Kagoshima, Japan
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 10:02 am Post subject: |
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| How much money you need to bring really depends on where in Japan you're going to be. The cost of living is considerably higher in some parts than others. You will need much more in the Tokyo area than, say, Kagoshima. |
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chirp
Joined: 03 Dec 2005
Posts: 148
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 10:48 am Post subject: travelers cheques |
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| Quote: |
| 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. |
Glenski wrote: Totally unfounded statement.
Actually, in my experience, this can be true. I had no problem exchanging TCs in Tokyo, but once I moved to my smallish town in the country, no bank would touch them. I had to go to the closest big city and I was told that only one bank there would exchange them.
Strangely, Japan is the only country I have ever been to where banks do not widely accept TCs. Then again, maybe "strange" isn't the word I am thinking of...  |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 4:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
| Of course they cost money, but the rate of exchange depends on when you buy them. Get a good deal, and once you're here, there is no further problems with exchange rate. Get them in yen, and you can actually exchange more than if they were in your country's currency. |
'ski what you are saying doesn't make much sense. I am talking about the difference between the cost and convienence of travellers cheques and International ATM's. Travellers cheques will cost you more money because the bank charges you more. They charge you because you have to actually go to a teller and physically write them out and process them, the teller has to get paid so that cost is passed onto you the consumer. The exchange rate for TCs are different to the Bank to Bank rate (which is used at the ATM) and is always lower. Why? well you hinted at that, If someone buys TC at a rate of say 1:1.5 and then sells them at 1:2 the bank loses that .5, so to cover themselves they factor that into the rates offered for TCs. Basically buying TCs is participating in currency speculation, the value of the currency can as you suggest go up or it can go down. Anyhow you can still do that (speculate) with the ATM but at the better BtoB rate. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 9:40 pm Post subject: |
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| If someone buys TC at a rate of say 1:1.5 and then sells them at 1:2 the bank loses that .5 |
And, I wrote that if you get them in yen, you don't have this problem.
Moreover, banks are not the only place you can exchange TCs. Hotels and some department stores also do this, so you don't have to deal with the 4 or 5pm deadline from banks, Monday through Friday.
As for small town banks not cashing them, sure you'll find that problem anywhere in the world. It's not a big hassle (to me anyway) to plan ahead and have them cashed in advance in a bigger city. I can see the point, however, if one is posted in a small town. |
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Quibby84
Joined: 10 Aug 2006
Posts: 643
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 11:59 pm Post subject: |
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cash them at the airport....no one will steal the money after you get into Japan.
But if we had it to do over we would just bring straight up yen. We brought some yen and some TC, but it was a pain to go to the bank and cash them (we cashed some at the airport). Banks in Japan are a pain to me. We got the yen at our bank...next time we will bring all yen and just be extra careful and carry it on our bodies. |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 8:35 am Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
| Quote: |
| If someone buys TC at a rate of say 1:1.5 and then sells them at 1:2 the bank loses that .5 |
And, I wrote that if you get them in yen, you don't have this problem. |
Um 'ski are you trying to say that the value of the yen never changes? We have a 11 page thread on how the value of the yen is dropping. So if the OP buys TCs today at a rate of say 120yen to the dollar in a few weeks when he cashes them he still gets 120:1 when he could get say 125:1 (or 115:1 to be fair) which is a 5% loss in real terms on top of the fixed cost of the TC, for little or no added convienence.
For the OP (if he hasn't fallen asleep) http://international.missouri.edu/studyabroad/predepart/money.shtml |
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Topo Gigo
Joined: 01 Jun 2006
Posts: 57
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 1:15 pm Post subject: |
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Hedge your bets and take all three
Yen for a week or two's settling in, and ATM card/travellers cheques incase you have trouble finding a post office/bank you can use, or you get mugged. Although this being Japan, that is unlikely - I just bought a small wad of cash and my ATM card. no probs 
How much depends on you - in my first few weeks I wanted to do everything, and meet people, so I wasn't about to turn down social invitations. My first month was my most expensive yet. But if you are good and have will power you can get by on very little. It's up to you... |
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