Living expenses in Bavaria?

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Erica

I actually moved to the the Bamberg city center in September. My four-bedroom apartment in a 20-year-old building in a small pedestrian zone is about 1000â‚¬ per month including utilities, but be aware that unfurnished apartments really do mean unfurnished - no sink, no nothing, so be prepared to shell out extra cash for that.

I don't have base privileges in Bamberg but whenever I've been on base in other areas with friends, commissary groceries and PX gas have cost about the same as in the US. Off-base, I have never paid more than 50-60â‚¬ for an entire month's worth of groceries for myself, which includes alcohol and ingredients for at least one casual dinner party with friends. There are a few discount grocery stores in town as well as around the base (Norma in the downtown area, Real, Lidl, Plus near the university's Feldkirchenstr. campus) and a great Asian market near the train station. It may actually be cheaper to look for groceries there than at the commissary; when I go shopping, I get a huge backpack's worth of food for 7-12â‚¬. 1 liter of 1.8% milk costs about 60 cents, 550g (about 1.25 lb) of boneless, skinless chicken breasts costs about 3,50â‚¬, 500 g (a little more than a pound) of bread costs between 80 cents and 1,20â‚¬, depending on what kind of you get, 500g of pasta is about 40 cents, 250g of butter about 70 cents, 250g of ok sliced cheese for 1,30â‚¬. For fresh fruits and vegetables, there is a permanent green market (Gruener Markt) in the city center, and on Saturday mornings there's an extra market near the bus station (ZOB) with meat, jams, schnapps...

The base in town does have contracts with the two rental car agencies in town (http://www.europcar.de/ is one of them, and there's one office in the train station and another not too far from the base; http://www.budget.de/budget2005/ is the other) so that you can get special rates. I don't have the codes that are needed for special rates, but maybe someone on the base web site (http://www.bamberg.army.mil/sites/local/) can help? I don't know if rental car prices with military rates vary from town to town, but a friend who works on base near Ulm generally pays around 20â‚¬ a day for a sedan. Even without the discount, a small car (Focus) should run between 27-35â‚¬.

If you are just trying to get from the base to the city center on a regular basis, the #1 bus goes back and forth between the base and ZOB every fifteen minutes during the day (Lagarde Kaserne is the stop right in front of the base), and there are additional bus stops within five minutes' walking distance of the base. A one-way ticket is 1,30â‚¬ and bus schedules are available here: http://www.verkehrsbetriebe.de/page.php?page=/bamberg/opnv/fahrplanauskunft/fahrplanheft/fahrplanheft.html The bus trip takes about 10 minutes, 15 minutes by bike (there are good bike lanes throughout the city), or 40 minutes by foot. There are also tax-free car sales lots for military employees adjacent to the base, as well as a DVD rental place with Region 1 DVDs.

Alwin also pointed out the cost of state health care, etc. That is actually incorrect. As a US citizen working with the military, NO money will be taken out of your pay check for state health care, as you are covered under military benefits. Under US-German tax treaties, Americans can also work for German companies for up to five years and not have to pay any German income tax.

Alwin E

> rental car cost?

Why not buy one? A friend of mine bought an old Opel recently that will sure last two more years for 600 euros, and I'm currently looking for something similar. If you have gas from base and know a private mechanic, that'll be the best choice ever, because you can sell the car afterwards for the same price you bought it. Don't be silly and rent one!

Groceries, well: I must admit I'm a single person and I'm living in luxury (sort of) and I spend around 500 euros a month for groceries, not including tobacco, alcohol, and the like. But I think that's really luxury, because with 500 euros, it would almost be possible to feed a family. But let's be honest: It will never be enough. WIth a kid, you'll easily spend a thousand or more.Reasonably, for a family with one kid and a car, I'd say, realistic income starts at 1300 or 1400 at a very low level, and 2400 or more would be alright.

edit:
I forgot to say that the figures are per month, not per year, and state health insurance provided. One other thing you'll have to get used to: Our cars don't have a "mileage", their fuel consumption is stated as "liters per 100 km". Something around 7 or 8 is a reasonable family car. 10 may be okay, but everything above is a no-buy.

julia L.

well for a 3 bedroom i would say about 900-1200 euro
it deepens in wat for a neighborhood your living in.
the gas in germany is crazy so make sure you take a car what is really good in gas.
but your Electric bill will be cheaper than in the us.

m k

http://www.immobilienscout24.de/findNew.national/resultDialog.go;jsessionid=6B51B2A963528058651855B48AB38551.worker1?iac=1&style=is24&is24EC=IS24&criteriasGroup.nrRoomsControl.min=&criteriasGroup.nrRoomsControl.max=&criteriasGroup.netAreaControl.min=70&criteriasGroup.netAreaControl.max=120&criteriasGroup.netRentControl.min=&criteriasGroup.netRentControl.max=1.200%2C00&event%3AdoSubmit=Suchen&wt_form=1&_s_peprm=simbaFormfindnew_result%3Aisiccccccew
some examples of Rooms,
try www.immobilienscout24.de for get an idea

fliege52000

I you are not living on base, than you are having some another place by Germans. So the Gov. paying for the rent and utilities, and they calculate this with your husbands Rank.
If you renting car, until your car comes from the US to Germany, this can be expensive. Some small car daily 50-60 Euro.
You can shop at the commissary/PX and the gas stations are also available in the base. With the gasoline cards (new rules) you can also visit german gas stations.
I hope I can help you little bit with my answer.
Army spouse Germany...

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