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zombiedog
Joined: 03 Oct 2011
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 Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 5:29 am Post subject: |
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| Dentistry is cheaper in Korea. But, basic, day-to-day living--including consumer electronics--everything seems to be more expensive in Korea. The only thing saving me money in this country is not having to pay rent. |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 5:41 am Post subject: |
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| zombiedog wrote: |
| Dentistry is cheaper in Korea. But, basic, day-to-day living--including consumer electronics--everything seems to be more expensive in Korea. The only thing saving me money in this country is not having to pay rent. |
I responded earlier to the technology-expense question and feel like a lot of typical consumer expenses are quite high here.
If people expand the discussion I'd have to say transportation is much cheaper in Korea. AAA's got it pegged at almost $9000/year. You've gotta come up with $10,200 (guesstimate) or so to get 9K in take home. That's a major benefit of being in any country with decent public transportation.
I haven't owned a car now in 4-5 years after leaving the States to do ESL in several countries. I dread the thought of returning to the costs and hassles of car ownership. |
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northway
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:26 am Post subject: |
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| Transportation savings are definitely real in Korea, but at the same time, that's representative of city living almost as much as it is Korean living. If you live in the DC, New York, or Boston metropolitan areas, there is fantastic public transportation and you don't really need a car. If you live in jurisdictions that are less willing to invest in public transportation (Atlanta or Houston, for example) you really do. Also, while public transportation is cheap, gasoline is about double the price of what it is in the States and significantly more expensive than it is in Canada; if you do get a car and want to use it, your transportation costs can rocket past North American costs pretty quickly. That said, the costs are great for people who are popping in to Korea for a couple years and want to save and travel. |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 6:56 am Post subject: |
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| northway wrote: |
| Transportation savings are definitely real in Korea, but at the same time, that's representative of city living almost as much as it is Korean living. If you live in the DC, New York, or Boston metropolitan areas, there is fantastic public transportation and you don't really need a car. If you live in jurisdictions that are less willing to invest in public transportation (Atlanta or Houston, for example) you really do. Also, while public transportation is cheap, gasoline is about double the price of what it is in the States and significantly more expensive than it is in Canada; if you do get a car and want to use it, your transportation costs can rocket past North American costs pretty quickly. That said, the costs are great for people who are popping in to Korea for a couple years and want to save and travel. |
Yeah, I was assuming 95% or more of the ESL teachers here are not car owners. The hassles and costs of car ownership in the States look good compared to what I've seen here.
I've lived in four different regions in the US and while you're correct about the cities you mention - generally public transportation sucks in the US. It's far easier to get around most of poor Latin America or poor E. Europe than the US. IMHO, a major failing of the States really. |
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northway
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 7:36 am Post subject: |
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| tideout wrote: |
| northway wrote: |
| Transportation savings are definitely real in Korea, but at the same time, that's representative of city living almost as much as it is Korean living. If you live in the DC, New York, or Boston metropolitan areas, there is fantastic public transportation and you don't really need a car. If you live in jurisdictions that are less willing to invest in public transportation (Atlanta or Houston, for example) you really do. Also, while public transportation is cheap, gasoline is about double the price of what it is in the States and significantly more expensive than it is in Canada; if you do get a car and want to use it, your transportation costs can rocket past North American costs pretty quickly. That said, the costs are great for people who are popping in to Korea for a couple years and want to save and travel. |
Yeah, I was assuming 95% or more of the ESL teachers here are not car owners. The hassles and costs of car ownership in the States look good compared to what I've seen here.
I've lived in four different regions in the US and while you're correct about the cities you mention - generally public transportation sucks in the US. It's far easier to get around most of poor Latin America or poor E. Europe than the US. IMHO, a major failing of the States really. |
I agree, US public transportation is awful, on the whole, with the prices of intercity public transportation usually making driving the more palatable option, even if you don't plan to use your car at all once there. My point, clumsily made, was that Korea's public transportation is great in part because of its population density. The densest places in the States - those that approach Korea's population density - tend to have pretty solid public transportation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population_density#Metropolitan_areas). The mega cities that are most representative of suburban sprawl (Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, etc.) typically have little to no public transportation. In the case of the later group of cities, I'm not even sure how you could formulate a dependable public transportation network, given their size; I feel like the damage has already been done.
Regardless, though, living in a Korean city is probably cheaper than living in most major American cities with similar public transportation networks, so the point still stands. I do think it's worth acknowledging the difference in driving though, as it's far more expensive to drive in Korea than in the States, which is disappointing as driving can get you to a lot of the more interesting places that the Land of Morning Calm has to offer. |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2012 4:24 pm Post subject: |
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| northway wrote: |
| tideout wrote: |
| northway wrote: |
| Transportation savings are definitely real in Korea, but at the same time, that's representative of city living almost as much as it is Korean living. If you live in the DC, New York, or Boston metropolitan areas, there is fantastic public transportation and you don't really need a car. If you live in jurisdictions that are less willing to invest in public transportation (Atlanta or Houston, for example) you really do. Also, while public transportation is cheap, gasoline is about double the price of what it is in the States and significantly more expensive than it is in Canada; if you do get a car and want to use it, your transportation costs can rocket past North American costs pretty quickly. That said, the costs are great for people who are popping in to Korea for a couple years and want to save and travel. |
Yeah, I was assuming 95% or more of the ESL teachers here are not car owners. The hassles and costs of car ownership in the States look good compared to what I've seen here.
I've lived in four different regions in the US and while you're correct about the cities you mention - generally public transportation sucks in the US. It's far easier to get around most of poor Latin America or poor E. Europe than the US. IMHO, a major failing of the States really. |
I agree, US public transportation is awful, on the whole, with the prices of intercity public transportation usually making driving the more palatable option, even if you don't plan to use your car at all once there. My point, clumsily made, was that Korea's public transportation is great in part because of its population density. The densest places in the States - those that approach Korea's population density - tend to have pretty solid public transportation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population_density#Metropolitan_areas). The mega cities that are most representative of suburban sprawl (Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, etc.) typically have little to no public transportation. In the case of the later group of cities, I'm not even sure how you could formulate a dependable public transportation network, given their size; I feel like the damage has already been done.
Regardless, though, living in a Korean city is probably cheaper than living in most major American cities with similar public transportation networks, so the point still stands. I do think it's worth acknowledging the difference in driving though, as it's far more expensive to drive in Korea than in the States, which is disappointing as driving can get you to a lot of the more interesting places that the Land of Morning Calm has to offer. |
Yeah, I totally agree. Especially with your comment on the damage being done. I worked, briefly, in the South West and it was mind blowing how far out some of the bus routes were and how little, in reality, they actually served the public. South Florida was similar. Too much sprawl outside of the sprawl. Your point about density is very, very true.
If there's hope in the US it might be in those mid-sized cities which didn't boom into too much sprawl. When I was in Prague, I couldn't believe how well the 1940's era trolley worked. A lot of cities would be lucky to get up to that efficiency....
Sorry a bit off topic!  |
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Troglodyte
Joined: 06 Dec 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 2:03 am Post subject: |
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I'm fairly pleased with the public transportation system in and around Seoul. I find it efficient and cheap.
I've also found that eating out at simple restaurants (the noodle soup places usually) or even getting it delivered is cheaper here than back home.
I had a student a couple years ago who had graduated from nursing school and was at that time doing an MA in "medical tourism". I don't go to the doctor much, and fortunately I haven't had any emergencies so I'm not too familiar first hand with how much medical care costs here, but I hear about it often enough. Apparently medical care here is so cheap that some clinics/hospitals are now offering sort of "tour packages" for medical care. You stay in a nice single room at a private hospital, eat nice food and undergo whatever procedure is necessary then spend time here recovering before heading back to your home country. From what I'm told, it's popular with Americans and Germans.
I would agree though with the statement that most day-to-day living costs are comparable to what you'd pay in a similar sized city back in the States. i.e. food, utilities. Rent seems to be a bit cheaper, although it's rarely an issue because I almost always take the provided accommodations. And electronics in general are a bit more expensive. |
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rabidcake
Joined: 10 Aug 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 2:20 am Post subject: |
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Well thank you all very much for your comments. The technology being more expensive in Korea is kinda annoying but definitley not too shocking.
I agree with everyone about the sorry state our public transport is in the United States. I am afraid that won't be changing in the near-future. |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 3:26 am Post subject: |
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| rabidcake wrote: |
Well thank you all very much for your comments. The technology being more expensive in Korea is kinda annoying but definitley not too shocking.
I agree with everyone about the sorry state our public transport is in the United States. I am afraid that won't be changing in the near-future. |
Unfortunately, I'm sure you're correct.
It could be a great national public works type project to create jobs. Imagine getting even a 1940's E. European level cable line in the middle of some of the cities that are contracting in the US. Help people get around their city, reduce traffic, re-consolidate the business and living space etc... |
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Wiltern
Joined: 23 Sep 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 4:20 am Post subject: |
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High-Speed Internet.
I recall paying about $50 a month to Time Warner Cable in the US. I pay about $30 dollars a month here for speeds about 5-10 times faster. |
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soomin
Joined: 18 Jun 2009
Location: Daegu
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 4:41 am Post subject: |
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| Going a bit off the subject of technology... Glasses are much cheaper here, as are Lasik and stomach procedures, (other medical procedures might be cheaper, too, but I don't have info on them, personally). I had the same stomach procedure done in the States, and it was thousands of dollars (though insurance will pay a chunk of it), but here, less than $200. If you have stomach problems, Korea is the place to be. Korea is very developed in the field of gastroenterology because it is a big problem in this country... Also, all my Korean friends living abroad come back to Korea to get Lasik because it's so much cheaper here... |
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rabidcake
Joined: 10 Aug 2009
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 5:22 am Post subject: |
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| tideout wrote: |
| rabidcake wrote: |
Well thank you all very much for your comments. The technology being more expensive in Korea is kinda annoying but definitley not too shocking.
I agree with everyone about the sorry state our public transport is in the United States. I am afraid that won't be changing in the near-future. |
Unfortunately, I'm sure you're correct.
It could be a great national public works type project to create jobs. Imagine getting even a 1940's E. European level cable line in the middle of some of the cities that are contracting in the US. Help people get around their city, reduce traffic, re-consolidate the business and living space etc... |
I thought that during the 2008 Economic crisis, a bit stimulus package targeted at reforming American public transportation would have been the easiest solution to fight off the recesion.
I guess I was the only one that thought that would be a good idea. I suppose the majority of my fellow country love their cars too much. Maybe we should all really just focus on how to make the energy useage in cars more and more efficient because I don't think America's car-driven culture will ever change. |
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tideout
Joined: 12 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 5:34 am Post subject: |
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| soomin wrote: |
| Going a bit off the subject of technology... Glasses are much cheaper here, as are Lasik and stomach procedures, (other medical procedures might be cheaper, too, but I don't have info on them, personally). I had the same stomach procedure done in the States, and it was thousands of dollars (though insurance will pay a chunk of it), but here, less than $200. If you have stomach problems, Korea is the place to be. Korea is very developed in the field of gastroenterology because it is a big problem in this country... Also, all my Korean friends living abroad come back to Korea to get Lasik because it's so much cheaper here... |
How much is Lasik surgery out of curiosity? |
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fustiancorduroy
Joined: 12 Jan 2007
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 5:47 am Post subject: |
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| Troglodyte wrote: |
I'm fairly pleased with the public transportation system in and around Seoul. I find it efficient and cheap.
I've also found that eating out at simple restaurants (the noodle soup places usually) or even getting it delivered is cheaper here than back home.
I had a student a couple years ago who had graduated from nursing school and was at that time doing an MA in "medical tourism". I don't go to the doctor much, and fortunately I haven't had any emergencies so I'm not too familiar first hand with how much medical care costs here, but I hear about it often enough. Apparently medical care here is so cheap that some clinics/hospitals are now offering sort of "tour packages" for medical care. You stay in a nice single room at a private hospital, eat nice food and undergo whatever procedure is necessary then spend time here recovering before heading back to your home country. From what I'm told, it's popular with Americans and Germans.
I would agree though with the statement that most day-to-day living costs are comparable to what you'd pay in a similar sized city back in the States. i.e. food, utilities. Rent seems to be a bit cheaper, although it's rarely an issue because I almost always take the provided accommodations. And electronics in general are a bit more expensive. |
Is rent cheaper in Seoul? Maybe compared to mid-town Manhattan, but there are plenty of modest-sized apartments, e.g. much less than 1,000 square feet, for over $2,000 a month in Seoul, and that includes a deposit of tens of thousands of dollars. |
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NYC_Gal 2.0
Joined: 10 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2012 5:56 am Post subject: |
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My rent is cheaper than back home, but back home was one of the most expensive cities in North America. I'm in Incheon now, which I guess I could compare to Brooklyn, with its gritty, industrial vibe. I still pay less than half of what I'd pay for a crappy apartment there, and my apartment isn't crappy, because I shopped around.
Also, my cell phone service is way cheaper. 5 years ago, my unlimited text, NO data, 300 or 500 minutes (I don't remember, because I doubt I ever used more than 100 minutes or so) plan cost me just under $80 a month after taxes and fees. Now, I have 300 texts, 300 minutes, and unlimited data for under 60,000 won a month after those same taxes and fees. It's no contest.
I agree that daily stuff can add up, though. Organic milk costs more. The same goes for fruit, unless I want to buy enough fruit for a family of four. The fact that I like certain import foods on a regular basis also make the grocery bills much larger than if I ate Korean food all the time, but that's a price I'm willing to pay for Post Raisin Bran, stinky cheese, and tomato soup. |
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