Where are you on the global pay scale?

[Devourment]

When you start looking at housing prices and realize that so many are still getting sold it will make you question your views on how much people make on average. Besides, banks and the real estate market would not be able to stay in business and keep prices high if people weren't affording it. And we know that people aren't giving up housing for cars because both are being sold with continuously increasing prices locally.
There must be some other reason for trinidad not being on that list because we have to be over the $227USD/mth at the bottom of that list. Hence the reason I'm really curious to know what it actually is here.

Kinda true...i'd say alteast 10% of the populace has a joint income of over 25k.

Hell my wife and I have a joint income of over 30k, yet we are far from rich....after taxes, insurances, loans, mortgage, bills credit card debit, groceries we can barely make ends meet.

This is our monthly balance sheet.

Income 30.8K

Expenditures
Mortgage - 7k (this is for a ordinary 3 bedroom townhouse in Maracas Valley)
Car Loans - 4k (two ordinary cars, one mid size one small, both foreign used)
Bills - 2k (T&TEC - 500, WASA - 200, Direct TV - 350, Internet - 350, Celphone - 300)
Insurances (averaged out) - 1k
Pension - 2k (should count as a savings, but it's considered an expenditure here)
PAYE+NIS+Health Surcharge - 6k
Groceries - 3k
Credit Card - 1k
Gas - 1k

After all that we have about 4 to 5k which goes toward fixing up the house, liming etc. So essentially we don't have a savings anymore.

I honestly don't know how the average married couple survives in T&T. I have another friend who's recently married and living at their parents home. He and his wife have a combined income of 16k. After car loans etc They scrape to save 4k....

Both have degrees and are working in specialist jobs (Teacher & IT). Both close to 30. And i'm pretty sure they are average young married couple.

In the 1980s my mom and dad on regular jobs were able to buy land in a nice area and build a big house ......not possible today.

[S_2NR]

Ohhhgoodddd, do my eyes deceive me?...men putting their financials on a public forum in trinidad..

[MG Man]

how de frick man and wife could consume 3k in groceries??????????
this car loan thing............good grief
that 7k mortgage scares me
I can work cepep and pay mine if neither of us have a job

[Stephon.]

Things hard boy! I won't consider 7k on mortgage bad, at least it's not 7k on rent and your children would have a place to call their own when you move on.

[Stephon.]

how de frick man and wife could consume 3k in groceries??????????
this car loan thing............good grief
that 7k mortgage scares me
I can work cepep and pay mine if neither of us have a job

Just last week I spent around 500 in groceries on myself alone!
Milk, cereal, pancakes, waffles, snacks, juice, pizza etc. and that's going to last until the middle of the month. So I could imagine for two people that has to also maintain a house. I expected it to be higher.

[Habit7]

I agree with acesinghit & Devourment (except for the 3k grocery bill, Grey Poupon and french bread probably).
A 20k+ combined income is nothing these days. The problem is that the more you earn, the more you spend. And if you disagree with me, sell your car(s) (showroom or RORO) and travel, won't you save more money?

[Bizzare]

pFFFTTTT.... Y'all ah buncha broke losers.

[Bizzare]

Men up in here married and still budgeting. ha.

[Stephon.]

pFFFTTTT.... Y'all ah buncha broke losers.

Can't wait to afford a 800 dollar grocery bill, I'm tired of having to take back things at the express lane when I cross my budget

[whyteliver]

http://thecaribbeanrealtor.com/realtor_property_detail.php?pid=MjE0NzUxMjczNg==&rid=&id=&uid=MzU=&type=s&img=1&t=9#pos

Couver.

for men from Fyzabad and Siparia, Couva might be the bee's knees, but for men from the East West Corridor living Couva might be as good as sending them to live Grenada

from someone living on d corridor ......you speak da truth.

[whyteliver]

was not aware 1mil house was the avg.
Is that the "standard"?

like u eh know orr? Most people nowadays too ashamed to buy cheap land and take their time and build.........nah.......run down big mortgage, or cry that they cannot afford a house
Their are affordable ways to own a house but we want the lifestyle NOW

i argree wit u to a certin extent,tho i think some ppl want to provide a higher standard of living for their families from which they came from.

[Bizzare]

ok ok ..... I'm broke too but...

PPL THESE DAYS ARE TOO CHOOPID
They put the cart before the horse, and too blind to realize that's what society encourages.
This thread is evidence of that.

[MG Man]

was not aware 1mil house was the avg.
Is that the "standard"?

like u eh know orr? Most people nowadays too ashamed to buy cheap land and take their time and build.........nah.......run down big mortgage, or cry that they cannot afford a house
Their are affordable ways to own a house but we want the lifestyle NOW

i argree wit u to a certin extent,tho i think some ppl want to provide a higher standard of living for their families from which they came from.

ok consider this:
I still have a 20" crt television....most ppl who say things hard have flat screen TVs
When I bought my first couch set, it was from a courts warehouse sale, cheap because it was missing a cushion....bought the foam and closely matching fabric in chaguanas....nobody has ever noticed.....saved about 1200....we still have that couch set
Bought our coffee table set from another sale, minus glass tops.....bought the glass from caribbean glass...saved about 800.........still use it
Our stove was given to us by the inlaws....about 22 years old........works fine, still ahve it.........
Still have our first cheap DVD player.......no bluray, no game console etc
Bought a recon laptop from a tuner, saved a couple grand there....just had it repaired for $600...........both of us have prepaid cellphones, neither of which exceeds $100 a month.........no need for data plans (if needed for work, employer should cover that)
Wife still has the nokia I bought her 7 years ago........
Every weekend, we work on finishing the house that has been under construction for the last 4 years (while paying rent).......no mortgage to pay........we will move into an unfinished house
All comes down to choices
It all comes down to choice

[whyteliver]

was not aware 1mil house was the avg.
Is that the "standard"?

like u eh know orr? Most people nowadays too ashamed to buy cheap land and take their time and build.........nah.......run down big mortgage, or cry that they cannot afford a house
Their are affordable ways to own a house but we want the lifestyle NOW

i argree wit u to a certin extent,tho i think some ppl want to provide a higher standard of living for their families from which they came from.

ok consider this:
I still have a 20" crt television....most ppl who say things hard have flat screen TVs
When I bought my first couch set, it was from a courts warehouse sale, cheap because it was missing a cushion....bought the foam and closely matching fabric in chaguanas....nobody has ever noticed.....saved about 1200....we still have that couch set
Bought our coffee table set from another sale, minus glass tops.....bought the glass from caribbean glass...saved about 800.........still use it
Our stove was given to us by the inlaws....about 22 years old........works fine, still ahve it.........
Still have our first cheap DVD player.......no bluray, no game console etc
Bought a recon laptop from a tuner, saved a couple grand there....just had it repaired for $600...........both of us have prepaid cellphones, neither of which exceeds $100 a month.........no need for data plans (if needed for work, employer should cover that)
Wife still has the nokia I bought her 7 years ago........
Every weekend, we work on finishing the house that has been under construction for the last 4 years (while paying rent).......no mortgage to pay........we will move into an unfinished house
All comes down to choices
It all comes down to choice

i argree wit u 1000% am 35 and jus had my first flat screen less than a year,my bed i got from my parents who got it as a wedding present,couch set....wat is that??? Had love seat and two chairs.
This was all fine for the wifey an i,but when my son came along jus needed a different enviorment which is the same thing my parents did when we were born.
Cost me a sh*t load of cash but it gives me a piece
of mind to know d family somewhat secure.
So as u say it comes down to the choices you make,is either yuh flex in showroom car or yuh buy land....lol

[acesinghit]

When you start looking at housing prices and realize that so many are still getting sold it will make you question your views on how much people make on average. Besides, banks and the real estate market would not be able to stay in business and keep prices high if people weren't affording it. And we know that people aren't giving up housing for cars because both are being sold with continuously increasing prices locally.
There must be some other reason for trinidad not being on that list because we have to be over the $227USD/mth at the bottom of that list. Hence the reason I'm really curious to know what it actually is here.

Kinda true...i'd say alteast 10% of the populace has a joint income of over 25k.

Hell my wife and I have a joint income of over 30k, yet we are far from rich....after taxes, insurances, loans, mortgage, bills credit card debit, groceries we can barely make ends meet.

This is our monthly balance sheet.

Income 30.8K

Expenditures
Mortgage - 7k (this is for a ordinary 3 bedroom townhouse in Maracas Valley)
Car Loans - 4k (two ordinary cars, one mid size one small, both foreign used)
Bills - 2k (T&TEC - 500, WASA - 200, Direct TV - 350, Internet - 350, Celphone - 300)
Insurances (averaged out) - 1k
Pension - 2k (should count as a savings, but it's considered an expenditure here)
PAYE+NIS+Health Surcharge - 6k
Groceries - 3k
Credit Card - 1k
Gas - 1k

After all that we have about 4 to 5k which goes toward fixing up the house, liming etc. So essentially we don't have a savings anymore.

I honestly don't know how the average married couple survives in T&T. I have another friend who's recently married and living at their parents home. He and his wife have a combined income of 16k. After car loans etc They scrape to save 4k....

Both have degrees and are working in specialist jobs (Teacher & IT). Both close to 30. And i'm pretty sure they are average young married couple.

In the 1980s my mom and dad on regular jobs were able to buy land in a nice area and build a big house ......not possible today.

was not aware 1mil house was the avg.
Is that the "standard"?

like u eh know orr? Most people nowadays too ashamed to buy cheap land and take their time and build.........nah.......run down big mortgage, or cry that they cannot afford a house
Their are affordable ways to own a house but we want the lifestyle NOW

i argree wit u to a certin extent,tho i think some ppl want to provide a higher standard of living for their families from which they came from.

ok consider this:
I still have a 20" crt television....most ppl who say things hard have flat screen TVs
When I bought my first couch set, it was from a courts warehouse sale, cheap because it was missing a cushion....bought the foam and closely matching fabric in chaguanas....nobody has ever noticed.....saved about 1200....we still have that couch set
Bought our coffee table set from another sale, minus glass tops.....bought the glass from caribbean glass...saved about 800.........still use it
Our stove was given to us by the inlaws....about 22 years old........works fine, still ahve it.........
Still have our first cheap DVD player.......no bluray, no game console etc
Bought a recon laptop from a tuner, saved a couple grand there....just had it repaired for $600...........both of us have prepaid cellphones, neither of which exceeds $100 a month.........no need for data plans (if needed for work, employer should cover that)
Wife still has the nokia I bought her 7 years ago........
Every weekend, we work on finishing the house that has been under construction for the last 4 years (while paying rent).......no mortgage to pay........we will move into an unfinished house
All comes down to choices
It all comes down to choice

These two posts spoke directly at me. That is my example/situation right there and I am not ashamed.
We did it with God's help....no inheritance and no winnings or corrupt kick-backs. Pure hard work and sacrifice.

[nemesis]

When you start looking at housing prices and realize that so many are still getting sold it will make you question your views on how much people make on average. Besides, banks and the real estate market would not be able to stay in business and keep prices high if people weren't affording it. And we know that people aren't giving up housing for cars because both are being sold with continuously increasing prices locally.
There must be some other reason for trinidad not being on that list because we have to be over the $227USD/mth at the bottom of that list. Hence the reason I'm really curious to know what it actually is here.

How do you know many houses are being sold? Cars we know for sure because of number plates. Are you into conveyancing to know plenty houses being sold?
The commissions on houses means agents don't need to sell that much (maybe one or two a month or so) to make a living.
At the height of the boom I was a Mortgage Officer at one of the local banks and even back then the number of homeowner mortgages was not that great.

Realtor friends, banker people. It also seems true to me since within the last year every house or piece of land I've looked at was sold when I thought I'd decided and called back to attempt to acquire it. And that's with quite a long time of looking around. And I don't just mean some, it's actually all with the exception of MAYBE 2. That's like 2 out of many. But you're right, I don't have much by way of actual statistics in Trinidad. So on that basis I should retract that statement.
Of course you have to also consider that many people have family help to afford these things. If you want to do it on your own it does take a lot of hard work and time. Both of which many people are not willing to put out. I personally think going at it alone is better though. Would be more of an accomplishment. Unless of course you really really need a place and have no choice I guess.

[ronsin1]

Things hard boy! I won't consider 7k on mortgage bad, at least it's not 7k on rent and your children would have a place to call their own when you move on.

I pay 6K

[Stephon.]

On a mortgage or in rent?

[16 cycles]

at a point in time, i thought money laundering was supporting the high real estate prices ....

[MG Man]

^^^nope, is dotish young couples who paying too much for properties

[AbstractPoetic]

When you start looking at housing prices and realize that so many are still getting sold it will make you question your views on how much people make on average. Besides, banks and the real estate market would not be able to stay in business and keep prices high if people weren't affording it. And we know that people aren't giving up housing for cars because both are being sold with continuously increasing prices locally.
There must be some other reason for trinidad not being on that list because we have to be over the $227USD/mth at the bottom of that list. Hence the reason I'm really curious to know what it actually is here.

Kinda true...i'd say alteast 10% of the populace has a joint income of over 25k.

Hell my wife and I have a joint income of over 30k, yet we are far from rich....after taxes, insurances, loans, mortgage, bills credit card debit, groceries we can barely make ends meet.

This is our monthly balance sheet.

Income 30.8K

Expenditures
Mortgage - 7k (this is for a ordinary 3 bedroom townhouse in Maracas Valley)
Car Loans - 4k (two ordinary cars, one mid size one small, both foreign used)
Bills - 2k (T&TEC - 500, WASA - 200, Direct TV - 350, Internet - 350, Celphone - 300)
Insurances (averaged out) - 1k
Pension - 2k (should count as a savings, but it's considered an expenditure here)
PAYE+NIS+Health Surcharge - 6k
Groceries - 3k
Credit Card - 1k
Gas - 1k

After all that we have about 4 to 5k which goes toward fixing up the house, liming etc. So essentially we don't have a savings anymore.

I honestly don't know how the average married couple survives in T&T. I have another friend who's recently married and living at their parents home. He and his wife have a combined income of 16k. After car loans etc They scrape to save 4k....

Both have degrees and are working in specialist jobs (Teacher & IT). Both close to 30. And i'm pretty sure they are average young married couple.

In the 1980s my mom and dad on regular jobs were able to buy land in a nice area and build a big house ......not possible today.

There are ways you can save and cut back here. DirecTV is not a necessity. Nowadays you can catch movies and popular channels online. You can even watch local news online. Still, $350 for internet and TV respectively sounds far more expensive than it should be.

3k for groceries for two persons is ridiculous. Are you buying lots of foreign brands and eating steak weekly? You can cut back to 2k but incorporating a more healthy and lean diet and growing your own produce.

As for liming, I understand you may need to unwind with friends and family ever so often but this is also not a necessity. If you do lime, cut back on the amount of alcohol and dinners consumed. Or better yet, stick to an appetizer and one drink. The money you save from this cutback can be thrown into paying off loans and freeing up more money as you cut your liabilities. It may take a year or two of sacrifice but it will be worth it.

[douglaking]

was not aware 1mil house was the avg.
Is that the "standard"?

like u eh know orr? Most people nowadays too ashamed to buy cheap land and take their time and build.........nah.......run down big mortgage, or cry that they cannot afford a house
Their are affordable ways to own a house but we want the lifestyle NOW

i argree wit u to a certin extent,tho i think some ppl want to provide a higher standard of living for their families from which they came from.

ok consider this:
I still have a 20" crt television....most ppl who say things hard have flat screen TVs
When I bought my first couch set, it was from a courts warehouse sale, cheap because it was missing a cushion....bought the foam and closely matching fabric in chaguanas....nobody has ever noticed.....saved about 1200....we still have that couch set
Bought our coffee table set from another sale, minus glass tops.....bought the glass from caribbean glass...saved about 800.........still use it
Our stove was given to us by the inlaws....about 22 years old........works fine, still ahve it.........
Still have our first cheap DVD player.......no bluray, no game console etc
Bought a recon laptop from a tuner, saved a couple grand there....just had it repaired for $600...........both of us have prepaid cellphones, neither of which exceeds $100 a month.........no need for data plans (if needed for work, employer should cover that)
Wife still has the nokia I bought her 7 years ago........
Every weekend, we work on finishing the house that has been under construction for the last 4 years (while paying rent).......no mortgage to pay........we will move into an unfinished house
All comes down to choices
It all comes down to choice

Preach brother

[Stephon.]

I dunno, the technological world we live in today, it's kind of hard to cope with a CRT TV.

[AbstractPoetic]

^^^nope, is dotish young couples who paying too much for properties

Is it really? I was under the impression returning expats are driving the cost up. A 1.5 million dollar home is considered middle-class affordable when converted to Canadian and US dollars. Unfortunately for locals, their earned wages aren't comparable to what expats earn overseas for similar professions. Locals are being raped by their own government.

[Dizzy28]

^^^nope, is dotish young couples who paying too much for properties

I like this explanation more than money laundering or expats returning.

Trinidad always defies Economics though.

[ronsin1]

I dunno, the technological world we live in today, it's kind of hard to cope with a CRT TV.

both my TV's are CRT, one DVD player and no video game consoles.

I have one desktop and two laptops (one of which is company)

I don't really see a reason for upgrading the TV's unless something is wrong with them.

[16 cycles]

^^^nope, is dotish young couples who paying too much for properties

If they pay too much....it seems to only increase in value or for the very least - maintain the asking price.....

[guest1]

......

[Stephon.]

What area is that?

[crazybalhead]

What area is that?

Only in West Moorings, Bayshore, Federation park, or Maraval (Moka).

Those rentals are hyper inflated to take advantage of oilfield expats.