Living costs in China

[kjmillig]

I'm researching returning to Taiwan or moving to the Mainland. I'm wondering what actual costs I'd be looking at in PRC as far as monthly living costs, i.e. housing (3 bedroom rent, deposits, gaunli fee, etc), gas, electricity, phone, internet, cable, scooter and gasoline, groceries, and such. This is for me, wife, and 2 teenage daughters. Girls would be homeschool or public school, so outragious private school fees don't apply.

I'm aslo a USA certified and experienced ESL/ Social Studies secondary teacher with BA-Secondary Education, so what salary range could I expect in different areas?

[derekws]

this is really going to depend on location. do you have any cities in mind?

[kdavid]

Depending on how much experience you have you may be able to qualify for a position at an International University. Though I don't know much about these types of positions, I do know that the cirriculum is (I think) entirely taught in English to students from all over Asia, and the monthly salary is around the 25 - 30,000 yuan range (or so I've heard). This is about 10 times as much as the averageish Chinese makes and therefore more than enough to support a family of four without any other supplemental income regardless of location.

Also, since you're moving your entire family over here I assume you're all fluent in Chinese, so finding a job at a regular secondary school would not be a problem for you, though the salary deferential from the aforementioned position would be considerable (I'd be surprised if public school teachers here in Harbin made over 1000 RMB a month).

Cost of living varies greatly from place to place. The cost of living in Harbin is less than 20 kuai a day. There are weeks were I'll put a 100 RMB note in my wallet on Monday and still have plenty of change left over Sunday night. Single-bedroom housing for a couple is around 400 - 500 kuai (not sure on a 3-bedroom).

If you and your family are not fluent this might be more of a challenging move. Since I'm not acquainted with your family background, I can't comment on much more, but you should definitely take into consideration the pressure that would be placed upon your daughters in a public school here. Children and teenagers in China have virtually no social life and are light years ahead of their western counterparts academically. My 15 and 16-year-old students are currently studying subjects that one back home wouldn't take until their junior or senior year of university; and even then they would have to elect to take those courses (advanced calculus, physics, biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, etc.).

[zozzen]

if you're not talking about Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing, the cost of living is still very low.

My friends live in Kunming, Yunnan province. The decent apartment (around 100 m3) is RMB 2000 per month. For around RMB4000-5000, they can have a very middle-class lifestyle. But international school can be as expensive as Hong Kong's, which can charge over RMB100,000 annually .

[kjmillig]

For more clarification, I speak Mandarin, my family does not. Public school sounds just like Taiwan, so I wouldn't put my daughters there. I've been teaching in public schools over 5 years in ESL and high school social studies (geography, history, government), though I'm certified to also teach economics and technology applications.

My thoughts are to not work in Beijing, but I'm open since I've never been to PRC. I've been looking at universities in Harbin and Jilin.

[kdavid]

I think it takes a very... well, "special" type of person to like Harbin. While it's definitely more "Chinese" than some of the bigger (really, western) cities like Beijing and Shanghai, there's not much here.

It's always cold--I arrived here towards the end of August. I went without a jacket for about 2 weeks. It began snowing on the first day of November. Just the other day (April 1st) it was still snowing (albiet not continuously, but cold enough to, precipitation allowing). So, basically I've been cold for 7 months. Really, really cold.

Also, there are practically none of the comforts you'll find back home. No western TV (a good thing in my book), no foreign books stores (that I've yet to find with a good selection), no restaurants outside of McDonalds and KFC, and no one speaks English outside of the universities and private language schools.

So, why do I like it? Well, I came here to study Mandarin and work. I have two jobs and study full-time, so I'm really too busy to complain about there not being much here to do. I would, however, suggest a lot of "on the ground" research before moving your family over here. Perhaps do a short 6-month contract as an ESL teacher and see what you think. China, or any other foreign country for that matter, can be a very lonely place if you a) don't speak the language, B) don't make friends with the locals, c) have a strong support group of friends / family. Not to mention, if you came over early and made some connections you'd be more likely to find a good job before making the full transition.

If you have any particular questions about Harbin in general let me know. I'd be glad to help.

[badr]

As other posters have mentioned, it depends!

I used to teach English out in a small city and 4000RMB/month was enough to live like a king.. eating out everyday, trips to beijing every other weekend, etc...

In Beijing, some people pay a heck of a lot more than that in rent.

You mentioned having a family so kids need to go to school.. then we're talking private schools or at least semi-private schools so you can't choose to go to the boonies!

Somewhere like Xi-an, Qingdao, or Chengdu might be more appropriate with plenty of employment opportunities, somwhat low cost of life as well as international schools.

I wouldn't recommend Beijing in your situation unless you have an expat job already lined up that will pay you a decent salaray and cover accommodation so that you can afford international schools.

[Rincewind]

I have no recommendation as to where you go, but here are some prices of goods and services where I live (Anshan City, Liaoning.)

A teacher earns between 1000 and 5000 RMB depending on skill level and experience.

Electricity costs me about 100 RMB per month.

I'm about 10 RMB for water.

A 2km taxi ride is 6 RMB

Buses are 1 or 2 RMB.

A MacDonald's or KFC will cost you about 18 to 25 RMB for the meal each.

A typical canteen lunch would be 5 RMB.

A good evening restaurant might be around 20 RMB per head.

Rice is 1.8 to 2.6 RMB per kg.

Rent for a 1 bedroom, living room plus kitchen is 400 RMB per month.

A friends 3 bedroom flat is 1600 RMB per month.

A hair cut will be form 4 to 10 for men - don't know about the girls.

An evening watching a national level basketball game is about 120 RMB each person.

[Prodigal Son]

A teacher earns between 1000 and 5000 RMB depending on skill level and experience.

Electricity costs me about 100 RMB per month.

I'm about 10 RMB for water.

A 2km taxi ride is 6 RMB

Buses are 1 or 2 RMB.

A MacDonald's or KFC will cost you about 18 to 25 RMB for the meal each.

A typical canteen lunch would be 5 RMB.

A good evening restaurant might be around 20 RMB per head.

Rice is 1.8 to 2.6 RMB per kg.

Rent for a 1 bedroom, living room plus kitchen is 400 RMB per month.

A friends 3 bedroom flat is 1600 RMB per month.

A hair cut will be form 4 to 10 for men - don't know about the girls.

An evening watching a national level basketball game is about 120 RMB each person.

Let me contrast that with what things cost me in Chengdu:

A teacher earns between 4000-8000 RMB

Electricity costs me about 250 RMB per month.

A 2km taxi ride is 8 RMB

Buses are 1 or 2 RMB.

A good evening restaurant might be between 30-70 RMB per head.

Rent for a 1 bedroom, living room plus kitchen is 600-1200 RMB per month depending on location/amenities

My rent is 1300 RMB a month for 2br about 75 sq meters. my last apartment was 1800/month for 2br 100 sq meters with big balcony in the best part of town

A friends 3 bedroom flat is 2500 RMB per month.

A hair cut will be between 20-80 RMB. my last haircut was 50

[djwebb2004]

A hair cut will be between 20-80 RMB. my last haircut was 50

??? My last haircut was 5 yuan. I go down the oldstyle markets and get it done in what is basically a lean-to shack. I would never consider paying 50 yuan for a haircut in China!

[Prodigal Son]

??? My last haircut was 5 yuan. I go down the oldstyle markets and get it done in what is basically a lean-to shack. I would never consider paying 50 yuan for a haircut in China!

5 yuan, damn, I assume you don't have much hair or concern for the quality of the cut. In south Chengdu you couldn't even find anything that cheap that isn't a bucktoothed peasant wearing pajamas holding scissors in the street.

You can pay up to 200 yuan for a haircut (depending on the stylist) at the salon just outside of my house.

[venture160]

I think you should be able to find a teaching position at an International School, obviously Beijing and Shanghai have a number of these, but other cities such as Dailian, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing etc also have International Schools. At these schools you could easily make salaries of 20,000+ rmb with your qualifacations. You may not land a job with one of these schools right away, but I think within 2-3 months it would be possible. Good luck!

[Rachel_S]

A really great place to research living costs - at least for apartment, etc. - is http://www.Zhantai.com. It is a site that is basically the Chinese version of Craigslist. There you can get an idea based on where you want to live, because each area and district is different. It's also a good place to actually FIND a place, once you decide to do so. Try to stay away from any posting with 中价 involved, as things can get very pricy from there.

[n00dles]

A really great place to research living costs - at least for apartment, etc. - is http://www.Zhantai.com.

I can't read Chinese, so any other tips for resources for researching living costs in China?? I'm not having much luck at the moment.

I am hoping to save enough to live on for 6 months while studying Chinese. Won't be based in one of the major, east coast cities.