I agree with Ian. I made 9,000 a month in Hangzhou (with one year of experience). My apartment rent was 1,500 RNB. I believe Hangzhou is relatively expensive to live in but I managed to save about 5,000 RNB a month. Unfortunately, I had a weekly 40 hour obligation of 25 class and 15 office hours. After 10 months of work I burned out on the situation. If I had had a university job I could have made 4,500 a month with apartment and a much lighter teaching load. In addition, I could have worked part time at a private school and probably made the same about of money with fewer committed hours. My point is, I guess, your overall situation is as important as your salary. And 16,000 a month is too high for a typical job...