Funny you mention it, Israel is going through some serious protests right now about the ridiculous living costs [1]. This thread is too small to encompass the

Funny you mention it, Israel is going through some serious protests right now about the ridiculous living costs [1]. This thread is too small to encompass the entire debate, but basically taxes, social security, mandatory health insurance and employee participation in 401k equivalents end up chewing away about 40-45% of said salaries. Living in Tel Aviv is roughly 70% the cost of living in NYC (measured by rent prices). And remember that we make much less than NYers. Living in Haifa, for example, is practically impossible if you want to commute to Tel Aviv. Public transportation is horrible in Israel. [1] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_housing_protests_in_Israel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_housing_protests_in_Israel