It's official - Singapore more expensive to live in than New York City

actually i guess i'm really one weird person. though everyone around me is complaining that cost of living is rising. things are getting more expensive and how their pay is never enough. for me i find that my income is getting better and i can afford a lot more things i didn't used to be able to. take our parents generation for example, their cost of living is definitely lower (since it has been increasing). but how come our generation are living in bigger flats, buying bigger tvs, eating out at restaurants more often. and also having a car was considered a rich-man thing but familiies now are measured by how many cars each household has??? to me it's the keeping up with the joneses symptom at work. if we dun compare, think we will be a lot happier with our lives and pay :p compared to 10yrs ago when i first started working, my pay has increased and i find that i can afford a lot more things. when i first started working, i can't even take a short holiday but now i can afford to take at least one long trip a year. as for the increase in prices, what i do is cut back on those that increased beyond my means loh like electricity, do what they advise to reduce electricity consumption :)

Move?...lol...I guess if you have no other choice you either bear with it or just consider other means of tightening your belt.

To look at the survey positively, it is kind of good. If the cost of living here is more expensive, then there must be some perks to it. The survey conducted are for expatriates, who most likely living in condominium, semi detached, terrace house and private apartments around the city busiest place like Orchard. They dont normally take public transport or even shop at the housing estate for the locals. Thus they categories Singapore as expensive. Nevertheless, if the survey be conducted concurrently with local as well, then it will come out with different results. For once, all those expatriates who responsed to the survey somehow had been living at other Asian country like Indonesia, Malaysia or Thailand. Btw, still there are a plenty of expatriates who would like to live here cause of the safetyness. As to your question, if the cost of living keep rises, I would not run away from my homeland, I would rather be more prudent in my spending to my means and not follow others just to show off. Just to add to one of your comments on the response "The lure of the food here is too tempting and it a major factor for the decision of staying put in Singapore". To our beloved Singapore - One People One Nation One Singapore.

The thing is, what can we do? Can we even do anything? Yes we can go make a banner and stand at the Istana and cry, perhaps. Then within 5 min, the cisco there will pack out to changi and we can say good bye to mama sun. But it sounds quite cool, wouldn't you think? We are an expensive place to live in. lol ^^

ha ha... I am not the least bit surprise. The cost of living is not just increasing for expats. It is also increasing for locals as well! The salary that I earn is buying lesser with each passing year! What to do? Don't have enough opportunities to get out of the rut... so adapt loh. Adjust the expenditure accordingly to what we earn and seek ways to make a little more money to cover the additional cost loh

Why am i not surprised? Growing up in Singapore made me see what i did NOT want to be like....and whilst the economy is booming, it's not the type of lifestyle that i wanted!

I live in suburban Minneapolis Minnesota. The cost of living here is not too bad compared to other large cities in the States. So at this time I do not owrry too much about the cost of living. It has risen a bit since I moved here from Detroit in 1975. But it's easy to live here right now even on minimum wages for a lot of people. Rents and all are decently priced too. The only thing that's of a concern to most Minnesotans is the cost of fuel and gas heat for the colder areas. HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~

there is only one answer to this......SAVE.. save like your life depends on it(which it kind of does) plus having investments in fields such as real estate also helps a lot...

it's a global phenomenon. everything is going up. with the meager salary we have, we have no choice but to buy the things we NEED rather than the things we WANT. Don't spend more than what you earned, that's the best rule to follow.