A mate of mine goes over to the USA every couple of years to go hunting and catch up with some friends of his in Oregon , he reckons that he finds Americans very much like us except they miss-trust their government even more than we do and for some other little differences but doesn't know if those differences are nation wide or just in the areas where he visits , for instance certain foods are hard to find , he reckons that when he first went to Oregon about 15 years ago buying lamb or mutton was imposable but it's now getting easier to find ,
Sausages , he reckons that all the sausages tend to be of the preserved sort like Knockwurst's and such and the sort of fresh sausages we are used to just don't seem to exist
Butcher shops , he reckons that the small butcher shops we are used to just don't exist and people buy meat from the meat section of the supermarket or delicatessen , here buying meat from the supermarket is a last resort
Now don't get me wrong the mate loves his visits to the USA but he can't get over what seems to him a major fascination with junk or fast food , mate has lived his whole life on a cattle property where buying fast food meant a three hour round trip , he doesn't realise that many city people are addicted to junk food here too
Mate couldn't understand how the quality of meat could be so bad right in the middle of a cattle raising area and why the people put up with it
He also thought that much of the food was very bland even though there was a lot of it , I suggested he go visit Louisiana next trip to the USA
But all in all he loves visiting the USA but in all the trips there he has only ever seen Oregon and the road from LA to there and most of that was by night and he slept most of the way but it all got me thinking
I keep hearing that it's cheaper to live in the USA than Australia but how do things stack up ,
What are house and land prices like in the different areas of the USA compared to here ? I don't know what it's like in a major city like Brisbane but here where I live on a small acreage [ 5 acres ] about 5 minutes out of a very small town , population doubles every time a tour bus pulls up for fuel , but it's only 60 km down the road from Gladstone , a harbour city with lots of industry so most people do their shopping in Gladstone and most work there , we have no crime and most people have never locked their doors even when they go away for holidays
Now the down turn in the economy has effected land prices and blocks near me then sold for $190,000 a few years back would now sell for $160,000 , the house and land across the road is for sale for $399,000 but the house is a small box and really they couldn't expect to see more than $350,000 for it [ woman who owned it took a job interstate ] , the house beside me is for sale for $460,000 and it's over priced too ,
Materials are expensive here and in this area most houses cost around $1300 per sq metre
Council rates cost us about $800 a year but we don't have town water and our rates are cheap , my sister down Brisbane way pays around $2000 for her rates on a house block too small to swing a cat
Insurance , since the flooding earlier this year our insurance has gone up , even though we were no where near any flooding we now pay about $800 or near as per year as they reckon that to replace out house would cost $580,000 , I find this a bit of a con as a mate down where I used to live only pays the same and his place is 6 acres 80 metres from the beach with a view over the ocean , he also has 5 bedrooms , three bathrooms , large lounge , dining and kitchen , formal lounge , family room , office , reloading room , gym , spar and pool , 10 ft veranda on three sides , 3 car accommodation plus a 12 metre x 12 metre workshop and the place is valued at $1,800,000 , some thing wrong some where
Fuel costs about $1.50 per litre last I checked , no telling what it is today
A base model Jeep Wrangler costs about $32,000
The registration per year on my twin cab utility cost about $830 per year with compulsory third party insurance
A drivers license costs $75 for 5 years
A firearms license costs about $150 every 5 years
So guys how do things stack up , what are prices like in your areas ? , can you get a decent hamburger ?
David
Sausages , he reckons that all the sausages tend to be of the preserved sort like Knockwurst's and such and the sort of fresh sausages we are used to just don't seem to exist
Butcher shops , he reckons that the small butcher shops we are used to just don't exist and people buy meat from the meat section of the supermarket or delicatessen , here buying meat from the supermarket is a last resort
Now don't get me wrong the mate loves his visits to the USA but he can't get over what seems to him a major fascination with junk or fast food , mate has lived his whole life on a cattle property where buying fast food meant a three hour round trip , he doesn't realise that many city people are addicted to junk food here too
Mate couldn't understand how the quality of meat could be so bad right in the middle of a cattle raising area and why the people put up with it
He also thought that much of the food was very bland even though there was a lot of it , I suggested he go visit Louisiana next trip to the USA
But all in all he loves visiting the USA but in all the trips there he has only ever seen Oregon and the road from LA to there and most of that was by night and he slept most of the way but it all got me thinking
I keep hearing that it's cheaper to live in the USA than Australia but how do things stack up ,
What are house and land prices like in the different areas of the USA compared to here ? I don't know what it's like in a major city like Brisbane but here where I live on a small acreage [ 5 acres ] about 5 minutes out of a very small town , population doubles every time a tour bus pulls up for fuel , but it's only 60 km down the road from Gladstone , a harbour city with lots of industry so most people do their shopping in Gladstone and most work there , we have no crime and most people have never locked their doors even when they go away for holidays
Now the down turn in the economy has effected land prices and blocks near me then sold for $190,000 a few years back would now sell for $160,000 , the house and land across the road is for sale for $399,000 but the house is a small box and really they couldn't expect to see more than $350,000 for it [ woman who owned it took a job interstate ] , the house beside me is for sale for $460,000 and it's over priced too ,
Materials are expensive here and in this area most houses cost around $1300 per sq metre
Council rates cost us about $800 a year but we don't have town water and our rates are cheap , my sister down Brisbane way pays around $2000 for her rates on a house block too small to swing a cat
Insurance , since the flooding earlier this year our insurance has gone up , even though we were no where near any flooding we now pay about $800 or near as per year as they reckon that to replace out house would cost $580,000 , I find this a bit of a con as a mate down where I used to live only pays the same and his place is 6 acres 80 metres from the beach with a view over the ocean , he also has 5 bedrooms , three bathrooms , large lounge , dining and kitchen , formal lounge , family room , office , reloading room , gym , spar and pool , 10 ft veranda on three sides , 3 car accommodation plus a 12 metre x 12 metre workshop and the place is valued at $1,800,000 , some thing wrong some where
Fuel costs about $1.50 per litre last I checked , no telling what it is today
A base model Jeep Wrangler costs about $32,000
The registration per year on my twin cab utility cost about $830 per year with compulsory third party insurance
A drivers license costs $75 for 5 years
A firearms license costs about $150 every 5 years
So guys how do things stack up , what are prices like in your areas ? , can you get a decent hamburger ?
David
