How much to live "moderately comfortably" in Colombia?

wannabe says on Jul 2, 2008, 09:42:

Oh, man! Pressed wrong button. Ignore.

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mimimimimi says on Jul 3, 2008, 01:41:

mmm peso going down ahha is the currency who regain price the most in latinamerica after the dollar declining, converting dollar to pesos got more expensive for you actually, and to euros and to most currencies in the world! good for me coz i like buying stuff on ebay and gets cheaper and cheaper and cheaper for me! paying in crowns yep!!!

cheers for your economy!!!

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20080616\ACQRTT... dollar declines against most Latin American currencies

wish i could say something about the prices in colombia but i have not been living there for the past 3 years and counting soo i have no clue, all i know is prices changes haha and at times it gets expensive...

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aztec says on Jul 3, 2008, 07:28:

Rubito you are very wise to continue a plan with IRS. My brother failed (stupidly) to even file a return for a couple years. He was eventually audited and fines were tripled. Back taxes plus penalties and interest Bankrupted him and took him many years to recover.

So unnecessary, stay in communication with them and you will not be charged with fraud. That is a killer!

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Gator says on Jul 3, 2008, 07:39:

Quite frankly much depends on how much you are will to put a "gringo" life style to one side and do as Colombians do. Look at it this way $2.000.000 is about 4.5 times the Colombian minimum wage.

In the USA, effective the end of this month, the USA minimum wage goes to $13, 624 yearly. So, to do a probably meaningless comparison, 4.5 times $13,624, extrapolates to earning $61,308 a year in the USA.

"Brevior Sltare Cum Deformibus Mulieribus Est Vita!" .

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rhydewithdis says on Jul 3, 2008, 11:27:

OP, you can do it quite easily if you are willing to live frugally.

$2kUSD gets you about 3,600,000 pesos/mth (at 1800/$).

For example, you can live in a nice section of Medellin (let's say Laureles, which is estrata 5, considered a very good nabe) and get a decent size two bedroom apartment with security for about 700,000/mth unfurnished. With all your utils and cable Internet, you are going to be looking at 950k/mth. Furniture is a one-time shot, but you can probably furnish your entire place with second-hand furniture for less than $8kUSD.

That still leaves you with 2,650k. Even if you eat out three meals a day, at very pricey places (15k for breakfast, 15k for lunch, 25k for dinner, you are looking at 1,650. That leaves you with 1,000 pesos a month. Health insurance will probably run you about 300k pesos a month. Taxis, another 300k pesos a month. Cell phone would be another 100k a month.

This is living much better than most Colombians live. If you are willing to downgrade your accomodations a bit, and willing to eat more like the locals, you could easily make it and have money left over each month.

Go for it!

They said I couldn't play football I was too small / They say I couldn't play basketball I wasn't tall / They say I couldn't play baseball at all / And now everyday of my life I ball.

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MaFe says on Jul 3, 2008, 19:13:

I know many people who live comfortably on that amount....as long as you aren't trying to live like the king of the city you are in...you will be fine!

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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eywed says on Jul 4, 2008, 06:09:

Damn Rubito is it true then you owe back taxes? Tell me it aint so.

Ay Hombe!!!!!

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LDW says on Jul 4, 2008, 10:24:

Costs can vary quite dramatically within Colombia. Bogota, for example, is probably about as expensive as it gets there.

If you are prepared to live in rural Colombia, you can find some very liveable places for $1000 per month. Any excess income you have can be put aside for travel.

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MaFe says on Jul 4, 2008, 11:45:

Rural areas? Come on, there are people all over big cities who only aveage about $500 a month- and this is to care for a wife and kid!

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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LDW says on Jul 4, 2008, 16:23:

Yes...MaFe....I know.............so you agree that $1000 for a basic living would be pretty comfortable in a lot of those little towns.

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rocinante says on Jul 5, 2008, 06:57:

How much doyou need? On average I'd say anywhere between 5 and 10 million pesos a month depending on if you own your own place, dependants and what your lifestyle needs to be.

When you start talking USD or other currencies you are setting yourself up for a fall. People get burned all the time thinking this way. Currencies fluctuate.

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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gringoloid says on Jul 5, 2008, 07:06:

good point, roci, as what's happening now with the exchange rates now may not hold for the future. i know people that have been in colombia for many years and this year has been devastating for them.

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MaFe says on Jul 5, 2008, 08:40:

LDW says on Jul 4, 2008, 16:23: flag

Yes...MaFe....I know.............so you agree that $1000 for a basic living would be pretty comfortable in a lot of those little towns.

===
Yes...even less!

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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