# Cost of Living in Dubai 2012



## britishexpat

Hi All,

I am British expat with a wife and 2 kids and a maid from phillipines living in Dubai since 2008. I know many people want to the actual cost of living in Dubai. Well I have been keeping log of our house hold expenaditure over last 1.5 years. Figures below are average expenses. 
Notes:

School Fees: My wife is teacher so we get 50% discount of schoo fees. My daugther is 6 and her actual school fees this year will be 38000 AED / year, so we will pay half that. My 2nd daugther doesnt go to school yet. 

Nanny / Maid: I sponsor my own nanny from philipines. Cost shown below is average cost taking into account administrative cost of visas etc. ( i hired her locally rather than going through agency and saved 7000 AED).

Cars: we usually buy 2nd hand cars here, cost below is average cost of owning a car. Yaris is 1800 AED per month to hire from Hertz, Corolla is 2400 AED and Camry is arround 4000 . You can lease Parado 4.0 mid range for 4500 AED per month over 2 yrs.

Healthcare: Its provided by the company

Housing: I rent a 3500 sq ft villa ( town house) in Jumairah Village Circle ( not far from Marina, JBR, Springs or Mall of Emirates) for 70000 AED per year. I pay in 1 cheque

Elec/Gas/Water: DEWA is Elec, Water, Council Tax all in one. Rate below is average. We dont have district cooling, so we pay for elec to use our ACs.

All in All we pay 25000 AED per month in expenses. Between my wife and I, we earn 65000 AED per month. So it leaves us significant amount of disposible income, which we spend and save. 

*Average Typical Expenses *- No Alcohol or Smoking

Food 2295.83
Du 638.03
Skype 78.91
DEWA 938.09
Rent 6096.43
School Fees	964.29
Maid 1984.17
Car1 1127.96
Car2 2294.61
Petrol 805.96
Gardner 166.07
Child 1 1000.00
Child 2 1000.00
Going Out 1274.27
Others 1509.25
Visa (over 24 months)282.50
Travel 2437.50
*Actual Expense	24893.86*


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## de Mexicaan

Thanks, very helpful to get some insights in the typical costs. 
I did not know it was possible to rent avilla for that budget.


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## Tristan2011

Very detailed insight, this has given me food for thought for someone who is thinking of relocating to Dubai. You seem to have managed to get an excellent rental deal with your villa too!


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## de Mexicaan

I will be moving to Dubai in August so I am trying to gather some info. 
I heard that you have to do regular maintenance to the car because of the sand/dust. E.g. Replace filters. Is this true, and how much of your budget above is for depreciation and how much for maintenance, roughly?


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## KONY

Thx for that insight...im a bit confused for cost of owning a second hand car

1) You give the cost of renting a Yaris to give an idea of what you are putting in your used car (purchase price included)...BUT if i take that example of rental cost for a yaris, it makes more than 400 euros a months (500 usd)

Gees isnt it extremely expensive to own a used car in dubai ?

Here in france i bought my year 2000 nissan micra (small but very efficient korean car) 1500 euros (7000 aed) just 2 years ago ! So basically the price of 4 months of cost of a second hand car in dubai according to your chart !

And it works fine with very minimum maintenance

I hope finding a second hand good conditions car in dubai for less than 2000 euros (10 000 Aed) is NOT an impossible mission !

2) On the other hand, your food budget for a family of 4 seems to be very low...more or less it's what i pay myself for a month of food in france. And i'm alone and eat mostly at home !


3) Lastly your car fuel budget looks to be a lot for a country where they say that fuel is 5 times cheaper than in europe


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## KONY

Just a sidenote on my 2)

I do include in what i call «food budget» whatever i buy monthly in my local supermarket (since it's on the same receipt and bank transaction)...so it's mainly food but also occasionally includes all type of house goods (like detergent, napkins, shower gel, tooth paste, déodorant etc...)

Maybe it explains why you seem to have a low «food» budget for your family compared to me alone


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## Felixtoo2

I think 10000dhs for a second hand car is just wishful thinking, check out dubizzle.com and you`ll probably see what i mean.


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## KONY

Felixtoo2 said:


> I think 10000dhs for a second hand car is just wishful thinking, check out dubizzle.com and you`ll probably see what i mean.


And why is that ? 

10 000 aed is already a good budget for a second hand car...What is so special with the automobile market in dubai for cars to be so out of reach for people on a budget ?


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## Felixtoo2

Did you actually check out the dubizzle website? 
10,000dhs/2000euro is not even a decent budget for a second hand car unless you want to buy something over 12 years old with over 100,000km. The last time I bought a car for less than that was in the 1980`s!


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## KONY

I did checked dubizzle/auto some days back...and saw very few cars in that range...

But that is the whole point of my question. France is NO under developped country...yet here there are multiple online markets where thousands of good conditions cars are offered for less than 10 000 aed/2000 €...even if their mileage may be over 80 000 km !

Do u consider than above 80 000 km (or 10 years) a car has no future ? Then never move to the Usa where cars often run well after 200 000 km

I did mention above that my nissan micra which i bought 2 years ago (2000 model) for just 7000 aed/1500 € is running very well and doesnt even look its age...

And thats just one small example...second hand market for cars seems to be super developped everywhere BUT in the UAE

I wonder why

Not everyone is willing to put 10 000 us dollars in a car that will be used for a mere home to office routine and back

Is that so hard to understand ?


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## Jynxgirl

There are junk lots with those type of vehicles. Go to sharjah vehicle area and you will find lots. The conditions here are harsh and vehicles that come over 100,000 start to have issues, but you can find some that are 150k to 200k km on them, and still fine if well taken care of. The catch is that they are not very often. 

Reality is that most western expats move here to have a good life, get paid well, and save. People dont tend to want to drive vehicles that they MAY have an issue with when it is 40C + six months out of the year.


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## KONY

Oki good point jynxgirl

Thanx for the tip...i will surely increase my budget a bit then


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## Garth Vader

britishexpat said:


> Food 2295.83


That doesn't sound like a Spinneys shop to me 

A very informative post that, good on you for taking the time.


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## vantage

awesome, and easy to adapt to suit own situation
higher school fees etc.

I am intrigued by the 70K villa rental fe, albeit in an area i dont think i'll be looking at


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## britishexpat

de Mexicaan said:


> I will be moving to Dubai in August so I am trying to gather some info.
> I heard that you have to do regular maintenance to the car because of the sand/dust. E.g. Replace filters. Is this true, and how much of your budget above is for depreciation and how much for maintenance, roughly?


Hi Mate, If you buy UAE / GCC spec car from local dealer, then you dont have to do any extra maintenance. I have Audi Q7, 4.2 V8 and i service it every 15000 kms from Audi dealer, who charges me 2300 AED for major service and 1500AED for small service. Most cars here now a days require servicing 10000-15000 kms if you use fully syenthetic oil. There is a garage owned by a guy from midlands, who charges 500 AED labour plus parts for major service on any 4x4. Which is reasonable


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## britishexpat

vantage said:


> awesome, and easy to adapt to suit own situation
> higher school fees etc.
> 
> I am intrigued by the 70K villa rental fe, albeit in an area i dont think i'll be looking at


Area is 15 mins from Mall of Emirates and similar distance from Marina and Jumairah Beach. Airport is 30 mins max at rush hour and Dubail Mall is 20 mins. It at the back of Springs / Emirates Living. Location is convinient for schools too. Its close to JES in arabian raunches, Regent International and Emirates International in Speings and 2 American Academy in Al Barsha and GEM World which is 5 mins away. Area is still underconstruction but there is no work in evening and we have lived in the area since 2011 March. Villa was brand new when we moved in, its 3500 sq feet with 3 en suite bedrooms and maid's room with her own bath room.

Also we spent 45000 AED fully furnishing the house incuding appliances and curtains


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## britishexpat

Garth Vader said:


> That doesn't sound like a Spinneys shop to me
> 
> A very informative post that, good on you for taking the time.


We shop at Carrifour at Mall of Emirates. Basic principle we follow is to try to avoid buying imported food which local option is available. Such as juices, butters, bread, vegis, fruit. Exception is meat and cheese.

For those who dont know, Carrifour is French chain, similar to TESCO, where is Spinney's is local chain similar to Waitrose in the UK. I think back home, most of us shop at TESCO, so when we came here, we conitued the trend....


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## britishexpat

Tristan2011 said:


> Very detailed insight, this has given me food for thought for someone who is thinking of relocating to Dubai. You seem to have managed to get an excellent rental deal with your villa too!


Now a days you can get good deal on rental. Typically 1 bed 1000sq feet flat in Jumairah Village is 35000 AED - 40000 AED. 2 bed villa in Springs would be arround 90000 AED and 3 bed would be around 110000 in Springs. But price could vary and if you pay in 1 cheque, you will get better deal.


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## blazeaway

britishexpat said:


> Hi All,
> 
> 
> Housing: I rent a 3500 sq ft villa ( town house) in Jumairah Village Circle ( not far from Marina, JBR, Springs or Mall of Emirates) for 70000 AED per year. I pay in 1 cheque
> 
> 
> Hi,
> 
> What is the Vilage Circle like, drove past whilst over last week but it seemed a bit half finished?


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## blazeaway

britishexpat said:


> Hi Mate, If you buy UAE / GCC spec car from local dealer, then you dont have to do any extra maintenance. I have Audi Q7, 4.2 V8 and i service it every 15000 kms from Audi dealer, who charges me 2300 AED for major service and 1500AED for small service. Most cars here now a days require servicing 10000-15000 kms if you use fully syenthetic oil. There is a garage owned by a guy from midlands, who charges 500 AED labour plus parts for major service on any 4x4. Which is reasonable


Hi,

How much is a Q7 to buy / lease?
Thanks


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## M3red

britishexpat said:


> Now a days you can get good deal on rental. Typically 1 bed 1000sq feet flat in Jumairah Village is 35000 AED - 40000 AED. 2 bed villa in Springs would be arround 90000 AED and 3 bed would be around 110000 in Springs. But price could vary and if you pay in 1 cheque, you will get better deal.


How can anyone afford to pay in one cheque?


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## vantage

You can if it's a housing allowance and your company is well behaved. Not that I know whether mine will be or not!


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## de Mexicaan

britishexpat said:


> Hi Mate, If you buy UAE / GCC spec car from local dealer, then you dont have to do any extra maintenance.


Thanks, appreciate your feedback on this.


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## britishexpat

KONY said:


> Thx for that insight...im a bit confused for cost of owning a second hand car
> 
> 1) You give the cost of renting a Yaris to give an idea of what you are putting in your used car (purchase price included)...BUT if i take that example of rental cost for a yaris, it makes more than 400 euros a months (500 usd)
> 
> Gees isnt it extremely expensive to own a used car in dubai ?
> 
> Here in france i bought my year 2000 nissan micra (small but very efficient korean car) 1500 euros (7000 aed) just 2 years ago ! So basically the price of 4 months of cost of a second hand car in dubai according to your chart !
> 
> And it works fine with very minimum maintenance
> 
> I hope finding a second hand good conditions car in dubai for less than 2000 euros (10 000 Aed) is NOT an impossible mission !
> 
> 2) On the other hand, your food budget for a family of 4 seems to be very low...more or less it's what i pay myself for a month of food in france. And i'm alone and eat mostly at home !
> 
> 
> 3) Lastly your car fuel budget looks to be a lot for a country where they say that fuel is 5 times cheaper than in europe





Cost of Renting Yaris from Hertz = 1800 AED per month
My car costs are average over 14 months, I own 2008 Audi TT and 2008 Audi Q7 4.2 V8 S-Line. It doesnt take into account the initial layout of buying the car. I bought them used. Japanese cars here cheaper than European. Yaris 1.3 is 50000 AED new, Corolla 1.6 is 65000, Land Rover Discovery (LR4) V6 is 235000 AED ( with all options)


Our average food bill for grocery is arround 500 AED per week, thats because its cheap here. Ofcourse if you start buying imported food from france and UK, it will be 25% more expensive than in your home country.

Fuel is 1.75 AED per litre. My Q7 does 19L/100km and TT does 13L/100kms. Fuel here is 92 and 95 Octane, where as fuel in EU is 95 and 98 octane.


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## britishexpat

blazeaway said:


> britishexpat said:
> 
> 
> 
> Hi All,
> 
> 
> Housing: I rent a 3500 sq ft villa ( town house) in Jumairah Village Circle ( not far from Marina, JBR, Springs or Mall of Emirates) for 70000 AED per year. I pay in 1 cheque
> 
> 
> Hi,
> 
> What is the Vilage Circle like, drove past whilst over last week but it seemed a bit half finished?
> 
> 
> 
> Yes, its still under construction, all a bit on a slow speed, so not much noise. But a very good value for money. Location is the key for JVC, as its close to most key areas of Dubai and easy commute to Abu Dhabi as lots of ppl work there now and live in Dubai
Click to expand...


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## KONY

Thank you for the reply british expat 

How much, and where did you buy your used cars ?


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## rsinner

britishexpat said:


> Fuel is 1.75 AED per litre. My Q7 does 19L/100km and TT does 13L/100kms. Fuel here is 92 and 95 Octane, where as fuel in EU is 95 and 98 octane.


Just noticed yesterday - fuel here is 95 and 98 Octane as well. At an ENOC petrol pump at least. 1.83 for the 98 Octane which I always use.


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## britishexpat

KONY said:


> Thank you for the reply british expat
> 
> How much, and where did you buy your used cars ?




How much, depends on your budget, and you can buy online here: Property Real Estate for Sale and Rent. Jobs in the Middle East and North Africa , Free Classifieds in with Dubizzle.com


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## wazza2222

M3red said:


> How can anyone afford to pay in one cheque?


It's only a weeks pay for most of us


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