From Manhattan to London 25 yrs (for sale, to rent, insurance)

[andyvi]

Hi I'm a 25 yr old employee of a global management consulting firm living in Manhattan and I've been asked to make an extended transfer London, for about three years. My employer has offered to increase my salary substantially if I make the move, from about 90.000 USD to 80.000 GBP plus an annual bonus of about 5.000 GBP pretax. I studied at Oxford for a year as a visiting student and simply loved going to London during the weekends, but that was in a sheltered environment, where I wasn't paying taxes, working, or using mass transit on a daily basis so I don't know if my perspective is a bit off.
So here are my questions:
I don't cook, my refrigerator is pretty much empty aside from bottles of water, leftovers, and some of the absolute basics, i.e. milk, tortillas, jelly, etc., so is it going to be difficult for me to find moderately priced Italian or Southern American, as in of the Southeast of the US, restauraunts to dine at twice daily?
I'm renting a comfortable 600 sq ft studio for $3000 in NY and would like to stay within the same size range in West London, should I expect an increase and if so about how much?
I'm not a shopaholic but I do shop about every weekend, so would UK taxes discourage me from making too many purchases?
Just what are some examples of some differences between taxes in Britain and in the US, and the government services provided?
Thanks!

[hutch5]

Hi Andyvi,

I have never lived in London nor in Manhattan so I can't answer you in detail but here is a good very good website that will give you an idea of house/flat prices in the UK and in London in particular.

I hope it can help.

Rightmove - UK's number one property website for properties for sale and to rent

As for food, if you have to eat out every day you should consider an average 30pounds per day at least.

[andyvi]

Thank you so much for the link. The housing is nowhere near as expensive as I thought. For some reason I imagined a 2.000.000 pound minimum. Any other information would be much appreciated.

[southdown]

Last time I was in London, and Brighton, there seemed to be no end of places doing 2-course lunches and dinners for £6. You can get great lunches such as fancy sandwiches, fresh soups etc at thousands of places all over the capital for £3-£4 a time. Pubs are always a wise bet for cheap, good food. Here's a good site...

London's best cheap eats - Features - Time Out London

Time Out is very useful for things to do, clubs, music, and has housing/flats/share classifieds too.

Wagamama is a multi-national, should give you a fair idea of middle-ground prices, not the cheapest, but not expensive either. http://www.wagamama.com/asset/gb/files/location/menus/1226592002_4326%20WUK%20Main%20Menu%20UK%20A3%20v1 %20Price%20Change%20(3).pdf

UK sales taxes (VAT) are built in to the price, so no surprise extras at the till!

[collinsl]

Originally Posted by andyvi

Hi I'm a 25 yr old employee of a global management consulting firm living in Manhattan and I've been asked to make an extended transfer London, for about three years. My employer has offered to increase my salary substantially if I make the move, from about 90.000 USD to 80.000 GBP plus an annual bonus of about 5.000 GBP pretax. I studied at Oxford for a year as a visiting student and simply loved going to London during the weekends, but that was in a sheltered environment, where I wasn't paying taxes, working, or using mass transit on a daily basis so I don't know if my perspective is a bit off.
So here are my questions:
I don't cook, my refrigerator is pretty much empty aside from bottles of water, leftovers, and some of the absolute basics, i.e. milk, tortillas, jelly, etc., so is it going to be difficult for me to find moderately priced Italian or Southern American, as in of the Southeast of the US, restauraunts to dine at twice daily?
I'm renting a comfortable 600 sq ft studio for $3000 in NY and would like to stay within the same size range in West London, should I expect an increase and if so about how much?
I'm not a shopaholic but I do shop about every weekend, so would UK taxes discourage me from making too many purchases?
Just what are some examples of some differences between taxes in Britain and in the US, and the government services provided?
Thanks!

Can't answer any of your questions directly, but if you do move here then here are some etiquette and geography tips.

1. Scotland is quite far to the north of England. You will need a full day to visit. Wales is to the east. Sterling is accepted freely in each country.

2. Always call all policemen "Mr. Plod".

3. To get the attention of an elusive waiter, extend two fingers and move them up and down vigorously. You will be regarded as a native.

(2. and 3. are jokes)

Sensible tips:

Value Added Tax (VAT) has just been dropped to 16%, but it is expected to rise sharply in a few years. It is applied to everything, however it is the main tax and there are few taxes on anything else.

Italian food will be easy to find, South American may be more difficult. Prices may be prohibitive in some upmarket restaurants.

Healthcare is free in the UK, but everyone pays National Insurance on their wages, which contributes to the National Health Service (NHS) and to government pensions.

[andyvi]

Thanks everyone for helping. I spoke with my superiors yesterday and it looks like I'll indeed be making the move. I'm going to fly out to London sometime in January to start looking around and planning but I'd like some general information beforehand. The National Health Services sounds great, but does the government in Britain have the same performance quality as the American gov't and screw everything up? Veteran's Affairs here in the US is absolutely deplorable and the Internal Revenue Service is just a mess in general, not to mention Social Security, Medicare, and all other gov't agencies/services. Also how difficult is it to gain dual citizenship? It now looks like I'll be in the UK for quite a while, perhaps six years rather than the original three I had assumed, and since I'll be paying UK taxes I might as well have voting rights and the whole shebang.

[richt71]

Andy,
The national health system in the main works well however it depends on the local health authority. The main problems are free dental care with many dentists opting out and only doing private patients which can mean lack of free dentists or to go on a waiting list. There are many dentists that offer a combination of free and paid services or fully paid services. Insurance can be bought that compared to the US probably is cheap. I have one that I pay £34 a month that pay 75% of my dental care a year (with a cap on more expensive treatments). Hospitals are usually good but can be crowded. Minor treatments can involve a long wait for treatment - physiotherapy I know can take 5 to 6 months to get. However emergency treatment is very good and free!
Again you can take out private healthcare insurance and you can start with your local free doctor then go private if the free treatment involves waiting.

[Raggy dee Ann]

Originally Posted by andyvi

Thanks everyone for helping. I spoke with my superiors yesterday and it looks like I'll indeed be making the move. I'm going to fly out to London sometime in January to start looking around and planning but I'd like some general information beforehand. The National Health Services sounds great, but does the government in Britain have the same performance quality as the American gov't and screw everything up? Veteran's Affairs here in the US is absolutely deplorable and the Internal Revenue Service is just a mess in general, not to mention Social Security, Medicare, and all other gov't agencies/services. Also how difficult is it to gain dual citizenship? It now looks like I'll be in the UK for quite a while, perhaps six years rather than the original three I had assumed, and since I'll be paying UK taxes I might as well have voting rights and the whole shebang.

Wooa boy, slow down a notch. There are hundreds and thousands of foreigners in the UK working who come here do their job, enjoy the experience and then move on, they all pay tax but don't go looking for voting rights. Any way it wasn't that long ago you were a student at Oxford, so you ought to know the drill.

Forget about reasonable priced good restaurants in London. There are only two types; good high priced restaurants or the crap that is the acceptable norm here. As others have stated there are tons of good sandwich/coffee snack shops. When you say South East American food, are wee talking southern cooking maybe cajun?

The NHS is a whole 'nother thread, but it is more than satisfactory. I saw my doctor on Monday and was able to get an appointment at a Hospital today for an xray. Was in and out of the hospital in an hour. Are you a veteran? If not, no need to worry about such matters here. It has no effect on you.

Not sure where in West London you are looking to live, but expect round about the same amount as manhattan but smaller spaces.

[Raggy dee Ann]

One other thing. Be careful of Realty Agents in London...they can be rip offs not to mention the various scams going around.

[Hengist]

www.globrix.com is like rightmove, but lets you search by map.