Has moving to Oz been worth it?

@possums

You're from Victoria and you had to heat your house all year round?!!! You should have lived in Vancouver

Actually I find my electricity bill at least 50% higher in Sydney than Vancouver for the same amount of usage.

BC Hydro charges $0.0598/kWh up to 1,350kWh per 2 months, above 1,350 it rises to $0.0721/kWh. Basic charge of $0.12380/day. Add on rate rider @ 0.5%, clean energy fund levy @ 0.4%, regional transit levy @ $0.06240/day, finally GST.

Energy Australia charges (incl GST) $0.1397/kWh up to 1,750 kWh PER QUARTER, above 1,750 it rises to $.20845/kWh. Basic charge of $0.34/day/connection point.

I actually prefer restaurant staff grovel over tips - at least you know there's incentive for them to serve you quicker. The spotty service in Australia is directly attributable to the lack of financial incentives.

Don't forget that practically everything is more expensive in Australia than in Canada. This explains why the salaries are higher. I think shopping in Canada would be a lot more expensive if we didn't have the U.S. next door. Growing your own food is a labour of love - I'm quite happy to let the Mexicans grow it for us

Once you've moved and are earning local income you just get used to the cost of living differences.

This is true, it's all relative once you are living and earning the local income. For some reason we are far better off in Australia though, hmm.