Korean Job Discussion Forums

[nate2008]

Hello all -

I was wondering how much you guys spend on average per month on basic living costs. This includes recreational expenses (nights on the town, weekend visits to other cities, etc.)

I'm going to be working with EPIK and I'm assuming I'm going to be earning a basic-level teacher salary for a teacher in a Metropolitan city (Daejeon), so about 1.8mil per month. After taxes, this is around 1.6mil per month. Is it realistic that I will be able to send half of that home each month to pay for student loans and live on the other half? Will I be able to send more home? Less?

Help me out here guys, how much do you newbie teachers like me spend each month?

Thanks in advance

[loose_ends]

[sheba]

1.8??? Hell... thats way below starting rate! Id say ABSOLUTE minimum of 2 mil, and thats still doing your boss a favor. Even new teachers can expect to find a job for 2.2... Tax should be around 3-4% (though a lot o schools take 5%).

spending depends on your lifestyle... I gave myself 1,000,000 a month to spend on expenses and living and I certainly didnt go without. If you want to save a lot of money you can definately get by on a lot less.

My expenses in a month:
Internet 20,000
Gas as low as 5,000 in summer and up to 40,000 in winter (floor heating)
Electricity 30,000 in summer (aircon) and about 12,000 in winter.
Home phone 5,000 plus international/toll calls
Cell phone 15,000 plus international/toll calls
Apartment Maintenance 35,000

I usually allowed myself 200,000 won for bills but the only time I spent that much was when I racked up some international phone calls.

I didnt spend a lot of money during the week but the weekend can cost a lot if eating at western restaurants, drinking at western bars or traveling. I found eating at Korean restaurants cheaper than buying western food and cooking... you can cut on costs by eating at gimpab houses (meals for around 3,000 won), and having a meal at work if its offered. Soju is a nice cheap way to get drunk! about 1,000 won at the supermarket or 3,000 at bars... I mix it with coke... When you travel, stay at cheap yeogwon (20-30,000 won for 2 people) as long as its not too dirty... in the winter, buy a little fan heater rather than using floor heating... there are plenty of ways to save....

That being said, you dont want to miss out on anything either... the experience of living here should be more important than the money because if you dont take the time and effort into getting into the culture then youll probably get culture shock and want to go home anyway... Sometimes you just have to spend money to have a good time!!

[poet13]

Family of three, rural area. We spend about 1.2 a month. We do a fair amount of stuff.

[air76]

I spend 800,000-1,000,000 per month....mind you that I pay 90,000 per month for hapkido classes, so I think that you could get down to 700,000. But I agree that anyone who says they spend less than that isn't really enjoying themselves. You could do 600,000 if you like to eat very cheaply and only go out drinking once a weekend watching that you only go to cheap bars. Any less than 600,000 though and you'll hate it so much that you'll go insane. I think it's worthwhile to spend your entire 1st month's salary setting up your apartment. Buy an XBOX, any appliances you don't have but would like to, etc....if you enjoy your apartment you'll easily make all that money back by not going to the bar Mon-Thu.

[I_Am_The_Kiwi]

1.8 is starting rate for public school these days with zero experience or qualifications.....fukn rude.

as for spending.

Im running on 500,000 a month, manage to get out of town every second weekend and go out every weekend. mind you i just dont buy shit like clothes, electronics etc cos ive got what i need already.

So that money goes on bills, food, groceries, taxis, booze, food and booze.
Also cooking at home 5 nights a week tends to help.

[loose_ends]

[daz1979]

I usually spend around 800k.

This month I am spending about 2mil, but I'm going to Japan and buying a lot of new items. Also, my wage will increase by 1.2 mil because of summer camps, so I can justify my extra spending!

[RyanInKorea]

I have a pretty loose lifestyle when it comes to money. I can easily burn through 150-200K on any given weekend. Throughout the week I don't do much and usually only spend 50-80K. Mind you I never eat at home, I buy supplies from 7-11, as opposed to a cheaper place like Home Ever, and I tend to eat well a couple nights (i.e. 10K+ for dinner).

Thus, I am burning through 1MIL-1.2MIL a month without really trying. I do believe it is completely possible to keep it under 800K, even with bills and other expenses, if you're diligent.

Ryan

[cdninkorea]

I spend 2 million won per month.

500,000 Rent
60,000 Fees and Utilities
500,000 Groceries (mostly meat & fresh fruit)
100,000 Transportation
100,000 Weekly Spending (5,000 per workday)
200,000 Saturday spending (50,000 per Saturday)
100,000 Sunday spending (25,000 per Sunday)
50,000 Miscellaneous
= 1,600,000

I can't think of where the remaining 400,000 goes, but I know I spend around 2 million per month.

[sargx]

I spend around 350-500 a month. I cook my own food, don't drink, don't smoke. All I do is lift and play video games.

The strangest thing is that I have 0 debt and no need to save.

[matthews_world]

For entertainment, luxuries & food included I can range between 70,000-125,000 per week for a single person depending on what comes up. I run between 100,000 to 140,000 or so in winter for utilities - internet/cable (40), gym (35), gas (15-20), electricity (20-50).

I scrimp quite a bit and prefer to live in smaller towns and cities where costs are minimalized. After student loans I was able to save minimum 1.0-1.2 per month which is petty cash I know but in my next job I'll be able to work more overtime keeping the same small town budget.

[zpeanut]

EPIK pay scale isn't so great, not even for individuals with a masters qualification.

I havn't done any teaching in Korea but from what I've gathered from research, I wouldn't accept anything under 2.3 mil. (about AUS$2300 a month, app AUS$550 a week).

Food is cheap in Korea, that is KOREAN food, excluding beef and some types of fruit and veges from the supermarket. If you don't like korean food you'll be spending a lot more. If you shop at street markets you can save quite a bit and of course this means you cook yourself.

alcohol is cheap if you buy it from the corner store but you can still spend heaps on a night out.

you could try surviving on 김밥 (korean sushi roll)... is it still W1000 each? One for each meal!

[sojourner1]

I normally spend 700 to 1000 per month. Food and energy is expensive here. So is a good drink such as Scotch.

[byunhosa]