Let’s say you’re sick of the high cost of living in the U.S. and want to move abroad. Where are you likely to look? Costa Rica? Thailand? Maybe Panama? Sure, that’s normal. But, it wasn’t normal for Kyle from Not Your Parents’ Financial Guy. He moved to one of the world’s most expensive cities.
Today, he tells us why.

Taking a leap of faith and making a big change in your life can be a scary time. However, typically what’s scarier is the thought of staying in a situation that is draining on your life, whether it be emotional, financial or otherwise. This was my thought process back in September 2015 when I made the decision to leave my comfortable life in Chicago to move to the other side of the world to live in one of the world’s most expensive cities.
That city? Sydney, Australia.
Moving to Sydney turned out to be an unlikely but great financial move that allowed me to save $30,000 my first year living there. But first, some backstory:
I decided to leave Chicago for a few different reasons.
- I was laid off from my job and instead of wallowing in self-pity, I decided it was a sign that I should make a big move.
- My life was in a bit of rut. Same job, same routine, hanging out at the same bars on the weekends. Throughout my entire life, I have never been able to tolerate monotony very well.
- Chicago had just gone through one of the worst winters in history. Temperatures reaching 40 below and record snowfalls. I was ready to live somewhere warm.
In September 2015, my girlfriend Lauren and I left for Sydney armed with one-way tickets and only a few suitcases of clothes. I had rented out my condo and left most of my furniture and possessions with the tenant or just got rid of stuff.
Lauren had managed to line up a job as a marketing manager with her current company in the Sydney office by simply asking for it, and I managed to find a job as a Sydney sales manager by reaching out to a previous employer whom I worked with straight out of college. It was a lesson reinforced that if you want something in life, you better just ask for it and see what happens.
[Note from Steve: Asking for things is critical to getting what you want]

The transition to life in the land down under was not an easy one. New country, no friends, no idea where to live or find housing, but hey, at least we spoke the language. I had asked around to some friends who had lived in Sydney about how to set up a life there so we had some help, but it was still a rough transition. And what we found out very quickly was that all of the global rankings were correct……
Sydney is VERY expensive!

You can check out this post with the specifics about why Sydney is so expensive, but I’ll summarize a few of the biggest costs:
- Housing. Sydney has one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world. We live in an unrenovated, one bedroom apartment and pay $1,900/month, which is pretty cheap compared to many of our friends.
- Food/Alcohol. Sydney has a high minimum wage, taxes on alcohol and expensive real estate, so going out to eat or having a drink a bar is an expensive habit. Think $15 for a cheeseburger.
- Taxes. Australia has great government benefits and programs, but it comes at the cost of high taxes.
- Transportation. Cars, fuel, tolls and taxes on all of these items. Having a car was not on our agenda when we first arrived.
So How Did It Work Out?
As the months went by things got easier, and we started to settle into our new lives. We made plenty of friends, adjusted to our jobs and ended up living by one of the best beaches in the world. But, let’s get to the money.
After the initial sticker shock of moving to one of the most expensive cities, how did it end up working out financially, you ask?
- Better paying job. My new employer accounted for the higher cost of living in Sydney and adjusted my pay. This is the norm for almost all work in Australia. It’s common for retail and hospitality employees to make $20-$30 per hour.
- Making money from renting out my condo. I am only netting a few hundred dollars a month, but hey, it’s better than nothing!
- Changed our living style and expectations. Our apartment isn’t as nice and modern as where we lived in Chicago, but we live right by the beach, we spend more time outside and cut back on eating out and drinking.
- CHEAP HEALTHCARE. I pay $100/month for private health insurance which has no deductible. Australian citizens all have a single-payer system called Medicare, which essentially prevents drug and insurance companies from lining their pockets and also regulates costs so you don’t pay $200 for ibuprofen at the hospital or other outrageous costs. Lauren had some medical expenses (blood work, numerous specialist doctors, minor procedure) that would have been $5,000+ in the U.S. and ended up only costing less than $1,000 in Australia. It is one of the biggest reasons why I fear moving back.
- Retirement assistance that favors employees. Full-time employees receive 9.5% of their salary paid into a retirement account each year by their employer. Nothing is taken out of our paycheck. That’s the law.
Living in another country has really opened our eyes to the differences in lifestyle that people experience in other parts of the world. Many people associate lower costs of living outside the U.S. as a move to countries like Thailand or Costa Rica. However, even a city like Sydney offered up some great opportunities for savings (healthcare, better pay, retirement savings) as long as you are willing to make concessions elsewhere (housing, restaurants/nightlife, entertainment).
The benefits are great for essential items of life. And, a few cutbacks in discretionary spending makes Sydney a perfectly affordable – and super beautiful – place to call home.
At times, the U.S. feels like the opposite. We have cheap food, alcohol, and entertainment, but you can go bankrupt from healthcare costs. Not having healthcare because you can’t afford it is something that is unfathomable to people in Australia.
How I Saved $30k My First Year
Here’s my breakdown for how I ended up saving $30,000 my first year living in one of the world’s most expensive cities. These savings are just from my income, as Lauren and I currently keep our finances separate:
- I used a simple budget strategy to set a budget that focused on saving 30% of my salary. $14,000
- Saved all of my incentive pay from working in sales. Another 15% of my income. $8,000
- Saved my fairly large tax return (since I’m not a Australian citizen and don’t receive government benefits). $3000
- My employer saved 9.5% of my salary into a retirement account. $6,000
Our apartment was by far our most expensive cost at $1,900/month, but we made up savings elsewhere by cooking at home, spending our free time hiking or at the beach, and being careful about not accumulating too
much stuff in our small living space.

Could You Benefit From a Drastic Change?
It’s easy to become so settled in your life and day-to-day routine that you don’t even realize that other ways of life are out there. The United States is my home and where I’m from, but in opening up my eyes to other ways of life (single-payer healthcare, a minimum wage that you can actually live on), I can see that the great country I’m from could stand to make some improvements.
Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and experience something new. Next time you hear of something that seems crazy, such as people quitting their jobs to travel, starting an obscure online business or moving to Greenland with their children to study Arctic sea ice, just take a moment to consider the possibility that there might be a great opportunity in that wild decision. It doesn’t hurt to take a review of your life (I do this on a yearly basis) and see if there are any areas in which you could make a drastic change that could lead to a great opportunity.
Are there areas in your life that feel stagnant and could use a change? How could that change spark new opportunities for your finances or happiness?
P.S.: Funny note – Australians are known for their “Aussie slang” and shortening many common words. A quote from someone at work: “My diary is chockablock this arvo but see if you can squeeze in afternoon tea if you’re keen.”
This translates to “My calendar is pretty booked up this afternoon but let’s see if we can squeeze in a coffee meeting if you’re interested.”
Kyle at Not Your Parents’ Financial Guy is all about following the less-traveled path in life and using nontraditional financial advice to get there. Whether you want to quit your job, travel the world or spend more time with your family, he wants to help enable people to live their dreams.
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Love the story and the pictures and how you were able to save so much in such expensive city.
And I’m impressed by the mandatory 9.5% contribution to retirement by employers!!!
I have a friend who just moved to Australia. She had been there before/did her studies over there. But she now just left to go back and plans to stay there permanently. She really loves and enjoys the place despite how expensive it is.
I really like that you took the plunge and went out on a limb by asking employers (or former employers) for jobs. My husband and I were able to make a cross country move when he got a new job because I asked my employer for a work remote set up (and they said yes). It is always worth asking!
I read your post about the remote work agreement and really liked it! Will definitely be using those tactics in the future.
I thought Australia had strict emigration policies? How did you overcome becoming a resident, VISA, , etc to work and live in Australia?
Hey Edward
It’s true that Australia does have strict immigration policies, but there are a few ways to get approved very easily.
If you are under the age of 33 and from a list of approved countries, you can get a 1-year working holiday visa. This is what most people do to get in the country and start working. At which point you need to find an employer who will sponsor you to stay in the country long.
The second option is employer sponsorship. This allows you to stay in the country for up to 4 years as long as you are with your employer. There are many skill shortages in Australia so if you have the right skills it can be quite easy to find sponsorship once you’re in the country.
We started with working holiday visas while we were on a “probation” period with our employers and then my employer sponsored Lauren and myself.
Hope this was helpful!
Nice! I immigrated from India to the Silicon Valley when I was 30 years old, so I am very familiar with starting afresh in a brand new very expensive place. Like you, the move has been fantastic for me financially, even though where I currently live is so much more expensive than where I came from.
I plan to retire at the end of 2018/early 2019, and in retirement we plan to move to another expensive place – Amsterdam. We will be subject to their wealth tax, but their healthcare will help me sleep at night.
Very cool. I’d love to travel around Australia for a while. My aunt lives in Melbourne and she did very well with her real estate investments. Those are two very expensive cities.
Great story, Kyle, thanks for sharing! I’d love to visit Australia. Question, what happens to that retirement account if you return to the States soon?
Hey Amy
I still need to do a bit more research on this. I know I can leave it with an Australian retirement account manager (like a Fidelity or Merrill Lynch) and access the money tax free at 55, but I would like to see if I can move it to a rollover IRA in the U.S. My other option is to withdraw the money and transfer it back to my U.S. bank account, but this would require paying 45% in taxes.
If I can’t move the money into a rollover IRA I will likely pay the 45% in taxes and use it to max out my Roth IRA. I would like to have more control over the money rather than being at the mercy of some company’s fees across the world and also the exchange rate.
Thanks for the question!
I hope it works they way you’d like it too, either way it’s free money. Great job earning it!
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Great Post! Back before we had kids, we spent some time in Australia — I can absolutely agree on the high cost of housing and food. OMG yes!
Other things, like sunshine and a nice beach were absolutely free. If you’re the kind of person that likes the outdoors, Sydney is incredible! So many great beaches amongst its neighborhoods!
So many other countries are like this — We just got back from a month in Japan and if it weren’t for the higher capital gains and dividend taxates we could totally live there cheaper than we do in the States.
Unfortunately you will be looking at a tax rate of 65% if your departing australia super payment includes ANY contributions made during the period you held a working holiday visa. That rate applies to the entire super amount including contributions made while holding the other visas.
Bit of a rip off really. You’d be better off transferring to a low cost fund (for example Hostplus Indexed Balanced fund has 0.02% management fee plus $78 admin fee per year) and getting it out tax free when you turn 60.
Hope you have a great stay down under.
I remember when my employer started explaining my superannuation retirement account to me and I was shocked by it! 9.5% they pay into it and none of your paycheck is put into it. It’s crazy awesome. I came to Sydney on a work holiday visa and several of the hospitality jobs paid $21-23/hour AUD. I lived in a hostel, paying $200 AUD/week (800 AUD month).
Like you mentioned, food was so expensive so I basically never ate out, haha. Except for when it was food trucks and such sometimes.
When I took a job in the outback, I was making $25/hour AUD and getting free accommodation!
Did a similar deal of relocating ….. and airdropped into Asia … invested in the local stock market and real estate just before prices skyrocket and I am totally FI now …. though I still teach here in Asia … because it is fun …. then occasionally travel around Asia, Europe and North America … you can click on the above Michael CPO link to see more … it is Christian FIRE and Lifestyle blog for overseas global expats … P.S. .. half my coworkers are from Australia / New Zealand and they are great … CPO, From the Far Side of the Planet 🙂
Hey would you like to join our cause? We’re building the biggest financial community that anyone has ever tried. And we’d like you to be apart of that. Let us know what you think!
sorry I forgot to post the link lol
http://www.fyinance.com
check it out hope you join the community!
I’ve only been to Sydney once and yes, it’s pretty darn expensive! I was there on business travel and the problem that I saw more than others is that every time I went out I had locals buying me beers and wanting to drink with me since they loved us Yanks. An man, those Aussies can drink!
Looks like you two have made a nice move, and I love the way you did it so deliberately and decisively. I only wish I could be so sure in my convictions!
Great story! That’s awesome that you were able to line up a job by reaching out to an old employer. This goes to show that it’s important not to burn any bridges. I’ve never been to Australia, but hope to visit a friend there soon.
Great story. One door closes and another one open. That was a major move. I really enjoy reading posts about people who take big chances in life and come out ahead. I have a friend who moved to Australia 20 years ago and never came back to the states.
Thanks, Dave! You wouldn’t believe how many Americans I’ve met here who came for a few months and are still here 5/10/20 years later.
$1900 AUD is less than $1500 USD. “Near the beach” that seems cheap to me. I don’t even know if that’s possible in Socal.
Hey J
All of the dollar figures I listed are in USD. Our apartment is $590/week or $2,556/month in AUD. From my friends that live in Socal, they say the price is pretty comparable.
Hope that helps.
Thanks for sharing your experiences! This is really cool. I’ve definitely considered geoarbitrage in the future. I do consider my current home paradise though…
Functioning brain + sense of adventure = wonderful life. Nice job, Kyle. I suspect that many more Americans will be following a similar path.