We picked London for our city comparison because the greater London area is where the largest number of Busy Bees customers come from. Like all world-class cities, London is expensive so as you would expect Kyrenia is 53% cheaper.
We choose Kyrenia because that is where the largest single group of British ex pats are located. Kyrenia also has some of the highest property values in North Cyprus.
These numbers came from Expatistan
Here are the numbers:
Of course we wanted something a bit more fair to give you a better feel for the actual cost of living in North Cyprus. We picked Northampton because it's a smaller town and right on the coast. This should be a more accurate comparison to Kyrenia. The top number: Cost of living in Kyrenia is 21% cheaper than in Northampton.
There are two number which stand out on this comparison: The cost of clothes and transportation. Both are about the same price in both countries.
If you look at the list, these are the two categories that are imported. Because North Cyprus is economically isolated, these items must go through middle-men during the import process. It’s at this point that clothing gets marked-up.
The cost of cars is high here for a related reason. But there is more: taxes. Here is the bad news as delivered by Essential Cyprus. "Vehicles which are arriving from Europe will be liable to 40.4% tax on the value of the car. Those which are arriving from non-European countries are liable to 65.12% tax on the value. On all cars being brought into the country there are one off charges involved and these are different depending on the engine capacity."
You will find that almost all ex pats drive small cars that were purchased used. These little cars cost far less to purchase and operate. Many locals go to the other extreme and buy big German sedans. These cars last for many years and have a bit of status as a side benefit.
A home purchase is almost always the biggest investment and this is where North Cyprus shines. Depending of where you are from, you can expect to pay about ½ the amount you would have paid for the same house back home. There is money left to pay cash for a car and that’s what most do.
