Thinking of Living Overseas?

So I had this discussion with my French friend when I used to be working. He came over to Singapore to work on local package, meaning, he is paid the same as any Singaporean in the same role. 

I asked him, "Why did you come to Singapore? Isn't France better? You can stay in a cheaper place slightly further away from the city, you have good benefits, social security, not so crowded, etc etc..."

And I was quite surprised at his reply...
He said... I don't remember exactly. It was something like...
The people aren't hardworking. Take things too slowly. Always looking for social security as their backup. 
Furthermore, if you are planning to stay further from the city in a cheaper place, then it's tantamount to staying in JB and travelling to Singapore to work everyday.

I was quite surprised and taken aback by this. Cos I always thought it was normal for people to stay slightly out of the city and travel to work and many people marvel at how good other countries are. Cheaper this cheaper that, better this better that. 

I talked to my wife about this and she also said... 
She has colleagues from her previous work place, she talked with them and they stay in the UK... They told her that it's pretty normal to have people who travel 1-2 hours per trip. So they wake up early to prepare, spend 2 hours on a train, then work then leave office on time, cos they have to catch a train back home at the end of the day... WOAH!!!

And here I was complaining about 30-40 min MRT rides... 
So I thought a bit and wondered... I think my perception is off by a bit...

I thought about... what's normal in Singapore?
Most people stay with their parents and move out only when married. Low income tax, no rental. Transport is fairly cheap, but likely will get to work within 45-60 mins. They have a relatively high disposable income. 
Cars are super expensive IF you want them, CPF is a 20% personal "tax" and you might get it back at around retirement age. Homes are affordable if you don't overextend yourself. 

Then I thought about the UK or France. 
Most people move out early. High income tax, high rental if you want to stay in the city area. Transport is expensive, so even if you rent cheaply outside of town, you "pay" for it by having an extended travelling time. There's still savings as compared to staying within the town region. They have a relatively low disposable income. 
Cars are cheap. 40% tax rates. Homes are affordable in the outskirts and good for retirement. 

I have a friend who moved to New York for work. 
She's not really established in her career yet. Young so not earning much... she's pretty frugal. Doesn't spend much. She's saying it's pretty tough to save and live in NY. Rental is high, she shares an apartment with a couple of flatmates. Purchased food is expensive, she has to buy stuff and prepare for herself for lunch. It is normal for people to pack their own lunch to work. She says her savings rate has dropped to a terribly low level after tax and rent. 
She's on a local package, so she's getting whatever a NY person would usually get in a similar role. 

So I do think, that every country has it's own plus and minus.
We can only say that living in Malaysia is cheap cos we earn Singapore dollars and convert it to ringgit. 
If we stayed and earn our money in Malaysia, we would likely also feel that money isn't enough. 

But what I think is a plus point that Singapore doesn't have is options. 
So like after I earn a certain amount of money, I would like to move to the outskirts of a country. A quieter area with less people and a more relaxed lifestyle. That... is not available in Singapore. In most bigger countries, there's this option. 

Now, please don't think I'm complaining, I'm not. I'm just thinking about it. Listing out some plus and minus and what I've heard from people whom I've spoken with. 
We all make our choices or live with them. 

I find this all like a game. Some places is good for farming gold, some places is good to get more experience points, other places is better for item drops. So we all pick our battles and choose or just live with whatever situation is presented to us. 
And if I'm not happy with Singapore, then I should find my own way out. But I'm ok for now... so... like that lor. 

Although I do think that it would be fun to live for an extended amount of time at another country. Like 6 months to a year for the experience of it and to see if I like it or not. I think it would be cool, cos I would have to leave everything behind here and move over and set it up again. And I think I won't have so much baggage from my past and I'll just live with less and the best thing is... I probably won't miss all the stuff I have at home... well... at least I THINK I won't miss all my stuff...


Anyway I'll be meeting Daniel from Freegan Singapore later today. I'm really excited to find out more about what and how he's doing what he's doing... Stay tuned. I'd be writing about that soon.


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