Living in London

[m0wax]

I have offered a graduate position with a company in london and the starting salary is 21k.....which is the average starting salary for other parts of the country but londons is normally higher.

How far will 21k a year get me in london? Will I be having to economise on everything with that kind of wage in this location of the country?

Thanks

[Lil H]

Hi there, first of all congrats on the new job! I think how far your �21,000 will stretch depends on your expected standard of living. I think your take home pay will be around �1,300 per month (do you have a student loan? this will be about �45/ month). If you want to live in a rented shared house, depending on location, this would cost about �500- �600 pm including bills but you would have to look into this. Then there is travel, oyster cards are the way forward as they are cheaper than cash fares, but you would have to factor this in when chosing your location. I would guess that from zone 2 you will be paying about �80 pm. All you would have left would be food and entertainment! London is a great place to find cheap/ free things to do if you look hard enough, but is also a very good place to spend lots of ���! You will just have to budget and be strict with yourself.

Also, �21,000 may not seem like a lot now but your pay will increase quite rapidly, I started on �17,0000 in 2002 and now I am on �37,000 + 30% bonus. It will be a big decision to make but if the job looks good and presents lots of opportunities for progression then go for it!