Thread: The Budgeting Experiment - Korea

Following in the footsteps of a fellow user, Hollow, I intend to document my spending here in the Republic of Korea for the following month. Hollow’s thread dealt with what a person living in Bangkok could expect given a budget of 30,000 THB per month. Original Thread: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/practic...-out-here.html (What does 30k in BKK actually get you? Find out here!)

WHERE I AM

I currently live and work in Ulsan, South Korea. Ulsan is the 4th largest city in Korea. It is on the southeast side of the peninsula approximately 45 minutes north of Busan by train or bus. Ulsan is a large city, but it is relatively unknown in the grand scheme of things. The most famous thing around here is Hyundai Heavy Industries which is one of the largest ship building outfits in the world.

THE EXCHANGE RATE

For simplicity, all costs will be reported in Korean Won (KRW). For the sake of simplicity, we will assume a constant exchange rate. At the time of writing, the exchange rate from KEB in South Korea for a wire transfer is 1266.20 KRW / USD and 37.24 KRW / THB. We will revisit this at the end of the month, but there is no need to worry about the exchange rate over the course of the month. It makes more sense from a practical standpoint to consider the wire transfer rate.

THE DETAILS

Hollow was pretty detailed in what he spent and what he got for his money. I smoke a lot, I drink a lot, and I eat a lot of crap. This isn’t the concern here. Your comments regarding those aspects of my life are not needed. In fact, I will likely be drinking a ton of beer over the month given the rather unfortunate, personal circumstances in my life.

THE TIMEFRAME

I get paid on the 15th of every month. This means that I will get paid on Monday. I will begin this experiment on that day. It will end on Tuesday, July 14th at whatever time I retire that night.

THE DIFFERENCE

I am not going to bind myself to a specific budget. I will spend whatever I see fit. I will document my pay when it comes out on Monday. I will then keep a running total of the amount remaining from that amount. I intend to show that savings in Korea are easy to obtain. I think I can reach Hallow’s goal here in the ROK. I think I can show that I can save his goal at the same time.

THE DISCLAIMER

I am going through a rough period right now, and going out frequently doesn’t appeal to me. I have been in Korea for about nine and a half months. I am nearing the end of my contract. I have an upcoming trip to the United States planned for the first week in August which has already been paid for. I also have already booked my one-way ticket to Thailand for September 1. I have a small dog who will be going to the states with me, but the fees for his travel and vet visit will be taken care of tomorrow prior to the beginning of this.

"OVERTIME"

I will add any additional income that is derived from ‘extra work’ under the category of overtime.

EXISTING THINGS

Of course, I have many things here that will carry over into the new month. I will document them as well as I can. I must admit that the fridge is a little bare at the moment!

QUESTIONS

Does anyone have any suggestions about this? Are there any details that I have forgotten?

Originally Posted by lemmax

I'm guessing that you are single. Would having a Korean girlfriend make much difference to your budget? More or less expensive?

Looking forward to everyone ripping this apart.

I am separated at the moment. I am married to a Thai, but she is gone and will be for the month.

Originally Posted by Blake

Sounds interesting as South Korea has a reputation of paying better than Thailand. How about some context such as how you ended up there and with a Thai wife? Why are you moving to Thailand in September?

Alright. I met my wife about 4 years ago while traveling in Thailand. In my university days, I used to spend every break in Thailand which amounted to about 5 months per year. We have been together ever since, and we have been married for about a year and a half. After graduating, I moved to Bangkok. However, I needed to pay off some debts, so I came to Korea when an opportunity presented itself. After all, the money looked good. This was before the won fell out from under me. I brought my wife here with me.

I am going to Thailand because I love the country. It is as plain and simple as that. It would also appear that I have some paperwork to sign down at the amphur!

Originally Posted by Blake

So, you are moving back to find a new wife?

Nah, I think I will stick it out solo for a while.

Originally Posted by Blake

I am with you! I will be following this as South Korea is somewhere I may want to live one day myself. I am wishing you the best of luck! Where in the states are you from?

I am a military brat, so I have been drifting for most of my life! However, I think of the DC area as home. To be more specific, Bethesda, Maryland is what I consider home.

Originally Posted by Blake

I live in NoVa and planning my move to Thailand this fall!

Yeah, I graduated from AU. You are just down the road. I will be home from Aug. 1 - Aug. 8, and I am damn excited for the grill!

Will be following this with interest, Korea has always been a place on my radar but I've only always heard bad things about the good things in life, beer, sex, etc.

I have friends who were saving upwards of 10,000 US per month here in Korea!....now 7-8...

They're truly in another league, but I wish the best to you.

Originally Posted by lemmax

I'm guessing that you are single. Would having a Korean girlfriend make much difference to your budget? More or less expensive?

Looking forward to everyone ripping this apart.

'


My Korean wife (used to be g/f) supports herself. Engineer. My friend's g/f (soon to be wife) is still a student, therefore plays a part in his budget.

Thai wives/g/fs can also affect your Korean income, as it's quite difficult for them to find decent work here. Sometimes (unmarried) they need to become students in order to stay long term, and that will cost ya!

Originally Posted by jimbo

I have friends who were saving upwards of 10,000 US per month here in Korea!....now 7-8...

They're truly in another league, but I wish the best to you.

Yes, I think it is possible to save large sums of money if you are on an F-2 visa. However, being on an E-2 makes privates illegal. They are your bread and butter here. However, doing so many privates to make that kind of money would be suicide if you are working at a hagwon. Nonetheless, I have 4 classes tomorrow ....