What are the pluses of living in the UK vs. the US?

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giucy

hi there personally i would stay in the US
I am from UK and its far tooooo expensive here and you dont get paid well in jobs to live comfortably unless ur a rich person or in a very well paid job.
House prices are rediculous, gas prices are too high and the cost of things in general are way over priced.
The plus side is that we do have free health care (KIND OF) and that the crime rate is a little lower than that of the states.
But if I had a choice of UK or USA I would pick the USA
alot cheaper to live, good weather, bigger houses for your money.
But its like everything in life dont knock it till you have tried it, you may well like it here , give us a try if u dont like it u know u can go back.
good luck

Curtis Stafford

I recently traveled to the UK to visit my girlfriend whom I met online a year ago. I found the UK to be very similar to the United States however, there are several noticeable differences. The cost of living there is outrageous. I live in Washington, DC which is known for one of the highest cost of livings in the US but it is nothing compared to the UK. Everything there costs about the same number of pounds as we pay for dollars over here but a pound is worth about $2 so basically the cost of living is double what it is here while at the same time, the wages are not double over there so it is difficult to attain a high standard of living.

Secondly, the taxes in the UK are also very high and unreasonable. This is to allow for the National Health Care System as well as to provide for those who will not work to live off of those who will work. We also have many entitlement programs in the US but to qualify it seems to be very strict while in the UK they allow way too many abled bodied persons to live on the backs of the tax payers. I saw an article while over there in which an area of London known as Little Paki (Named this because it is almost entirely inhabited by Muslims from Pakistan) was being non-officially governed by a Muslim Cleric and in the article, he was telling Jack Straw he was not allowed to step foot in that section of London. This Muslim Cleric who was telling an official of the UK government he could not step foot in a section of EnglandвЂ™s capitol city was also an able bodied, Licensed Electrician who simply refused to work and was there for provided with 800 Pounds a month to live on. This is utterly ridiculous. This guy should be run out of the country.

Another example of high taxes and government control was as we walked through London, I was told the people who drove their cars through London had to pay a tax just to access that section of the country. It was amazing that you could not just drive anywhere you wanted but were taxed just to drive in certain sections.

Also, don't even think about trying to drive over there, it seems you must use public transportation, or walk, with gas (petrol) at the equivalent of $7.80 per gallon. It is because of this and the fact that their national health care system is ruining the capacity to provide quality health care and that the government is out of control trying to welcome every immigrant in Europe or the Middle East to come into the country and not pull their own weight that I would not live there.

Stick with the US, I love the English people but I would not want to live in the country. As another poster said, you have 50 states to choose from here in the US, that would be a better choice.....

Awoken

I think you would do well to stay in the US. I am not saying that you wouldn't be welcome, but rather that the US is very similar to the UK these days, and in many ways better.

You will notice some people saying that the UK has a lower crime rate, but I'm afraid that it isn't the case. They are the same people who have no idea what they are talking about, but prefer to just open their mouth and say what they think is happening.

The US may have a higher rate of murder, but that is almost certainly down to methods of recording statistics. In the US, as soon as a person is killed by another it is recorded as murder even if it never goes to court. In the UK, only people convicted specifically of murder (not manslaughter or anything else like that) are recorded in the murder rate. The violent crime rate of the UK is higher than the US, so don't base a move to the UK on a perceived lack of crime.

Whatever your stance on gun ownership is, you should know that we have very strict gun controls here, which aren't working well. In my opinion, even if you do not wish to own a gun, you would be better off in the US since you will benefit from other people's gun ownership as a crime deterrent factor and a preservation of your liberty. That feeling has become forgotten to many Britons.

Social problems are rife throughout Britain, with a great perceived prejudice against those who work for a living and a government who is using an entirely inappropriate set of policies. If you consider yourself a lover of liberty, do not come to the UK for anything other than a short holiday. I know that even the US is no beacon of freedom in this age of 'terror', but the UK is again worse off.

Economic issues will undoubtedly affect your choice, especially since the sub-prime loan fiasco in the US, the warnings of a recession and now oil hitting $100 per barrel. The American economy is so involved with the UK and Europe that you can undoubtedly expect to see a mirrored series of events here too. 'When America sneezes, Europe catches a cold'.

The property market is still unfavourable in the UK at the moment, especially for first time buyers. You will undoubtedly be shocked by the cost of living in the UK compared to the US too. Generally speaking, what costs you $5 in the States will cost you ВЈ5 in the UK. At current rates, that equates to about a doubling of living costs. Our petrol prices will undoubtedly make you weep too (they make me get a teary still!).

If you are still set on coming to the UK for good, I would strongly recommend that you come over here for a good few months to really have a chance to live the UK lifestyle and get a feel for it. It is the only way to really work out how it fits you personally. If I may suggest an alternative, have you considered moving to a different state in the US? With your state system, you have a far greater choice of finding a climate, community and set of laws that suit you better than your current state.

Best of luck!

EDIT-

Just to clarify, since some people have said you can get free health care here, I would not consider anything to be free if you have to pay an extortionate amount of tax to support it. Furthermore, the quality of service that the NHS supplies is appalling, especially for its cost. It is a prime example of how badly this country is being run.

Equally, the education system is dire. I know that the US education system gets a lot of bad press, but I would wager that ours is worse. If you have children, I would seriously consider this issue since a state education here will provide you with endless problems for you for the duration of their schooling and for the children, the rest of their lives.

I would recommend you take on board Curtis' advice too, since he is also from the US and will be more familiar with the other differences.

Hope that helps!

abitmishmash

Plus points of living in the UK.........?

No.1, Not many Americans here
No.2, Refer to point No.1

olivo

Stay where you are!! The US is a huge magnificent mix of people, and it has different styles in different states..........the UK is in a mess!! High crime rates, lowlife people living on the state, and a marching army arriving daily from Eastern Europe to claim everything they can without working, lots of illegalls -which leads to drugs, prostitution etc. Yes the US has a lot of that too -but your country is sooooo big, it all evens out, the UK is a small island, and is becoming overtaken...in fact the most popular TV programmes are ones where people are leaving to find a better life in other countries!! They can't all be wrong! Stay home!

ol'blue eyes

If you value your quality of life please don't take this retrograde
step, the English people are being systemically robbed of
what they considered to be the finest nation on earth with
its system of fair play, open policing, justice in law, health
service, education, all dumbed down to the lowest denominator. Socialist ideas over a long period of time have
destroyed all aspiration among the people to better themselves, we are a nation of drunken, sexually rampant scum, violence is endemic within all levels of society and I truly believe we are now beyond hope, even our democratic
choice is being eroded with fixed elections. So don't come
you will despair, try Australia, or New Zealand if you want a taste of true British life!
Edit: some of the posters are mentioning the "free" health service! don't listen, it is more likely to kill you than cure you!
also "lower crime" RUBBISH!

LJP

I am an American living in London, have been here for 19 months now. I really like it here and am very glad we took the opportunity to move here. One of the main reasons we did move was the chance to travel, we have been so many places that we never would have gone having to travel from Texas to get to Europe. The education system here is the same as the US in that it all depends on the school. Overall I have heard that the British system us much better for primary school, by secondary most of my friends either want to be back in the US or send their kids to the American School in London. My almost 5 yr old is doing things in school that my friend's Kindergartners are not doing yet in the US.

I had it to do over I would move here in a heartbeat, it has been a great experience so far for our family.

cookie

dont move to the uk this used to be a lovely place to live but now we are governed by the eu it used to be like usa freedom to speak and now we can say nothing to save this great country we are governed by every half wit with an idea GOOD LUCK MY FRIEND!

Michael M

I visit the states alot, New York State and I really enjoy it.

But us Brits dont really know how spoilt we really are.

Without a doubt move to the UK, don't be discouraged by the other posts, but with most countries the 1st 3 months is the toughest after that it gets easier.

1. Free health care.
2. EU citizenship, you can live and work wherever you please in European Union states.
3. Mind blowing history.
4.Pubs
5.Earn British pounds buy a big house in the USA
6. Travel is the best education you will ever get.
7. Best funniest people on the planet.
8.We speak the same language.
9. Only 7 hours away from NYC
10.There are more Americans living in the UK than any other nation.

I could go on and on.

Enjoy!

many people say the uk is better, but with our goverment its not that good, our goverment now has messed us up as a country ~TONY FKIN BLAIR :@.
we are also the most popular for illegal immagrants, the goverment seems to be giving them jobs, homes, visas more than us!
but overall it is a good country, we are cheaper than the usa.

Emma S

I am from the UK, so I may be a LITTLE bit biased but...

Reasons for living in the UK rather than the US:

NHS aka free health service
Lower crime rate
Extremely friendly people
Very few Americans! lol

im an er

we are all thin in uk,fit and healthy,need i say more

KEVIN G

the people the crime is lower UK is the best place on earth

Lex

the UK has fit men and sexy accents

HAY GURL HAY

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