Mark
Working in Rayong
Monthly Earnings 124,000 Baht
Q1. How is that income broken down? (full-time salary, private students, on-line teaching, extra work, etc)
I work as a head of department in a mid-range international school that pays 124,000 per month before tax. They also pay a one month bonus at the end of each academic year. I occasionally do freelance writing but that's more for love than money.
Q2. How much money can you save each month?
I average 60K a month. There isn't very much to spend money on in Rayong.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
I have a one-bedroom bungalow next to the sea (the ocean is 5 metres from the back door at high tide). It's basic but beautiful, and at 10K a month I'm not moving anytime soon.
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
I drive to work and back daily in a car I bought years back. Petrol for which is about 2K a month.
Utility bills
Very little. Water and electricity are often less than a thousand baht combined.
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
A lot, probably 20-30K. I see food as important and prepare good meals at home most nights. Quality cuts of meat can be expensive in Thailand.
Nightlife and drinking
Very little. After turning 40 I made an effort to stop wasting money and my health in the bars (there are a lot in this part of Rayong). I have a girlfriend now and more often than not we spend evenings in the garden just watching the sea change colour.
Books, computers
I own a computer but spend nothing on it. I usually buy books in bulk when I travel home so it's hard to decide on a monthly figure.
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
Right now life is great. Teaching might not be stress-free but international students in Thailand are a delight to work with. Then I go home and can literally leap from the garden into the ocean.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
Despite the strengthening Baht, petrol, electricity and water are still a fraction of what you'd pay in Europe.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
Assuming you don't need to save for a pension, 60K a month is enough for a comfortable life. For everyone else, 100K would mean you can grow old worry free. Professionally qualified teachers should find such salaries easy to come by. Life must be very different for those (presumably unqualified?) teachers working for 30 - 40K a month.
Phil's analysis and comment
Thank you Mark. You've clearly made a very nice life for yourself (and your partner) down in Rayong. Sitting in the garden and watching the ocean change colour certainly sounds idyllic to this fifty-something. And there's nothing wrong with eating well if you've got the money to do so.
Submit your own Cost of Living survey
