# Contract Offer



## NJcara (Aug 14, 2008)

Husband just received an offer and we'd appreciate any feedback.

40K monthly + medical ins for self & fly (up to 3 kids up to the age of 18) + 
Annual Economy class air ticket (self + fly for up to 3 kids up to the age of 18) + 
80K annual allowance for accommodation (paid monthly in salary)
Education allowance of aed 25K per child per year, up to age of 18 max + 
a max of AED 10K of relocation expenses to be paid one-off along with first month’s salary (to be reimbursed at actuals to a max of 10K aed)[/B]

The Position will change in January to a more senior one adding about another 170AED or so annually. But not sure how they may break it up in terms of allowances.
We have a 20 yr old in college in the states, an 18 yr old who will be in college in January, and a 16 yr old who will attend school in Dubai.
My husband will be going over shortly and we will join him in December.
The Relo dollars seem really minimal, as does the education allowance. We would be looking for a 3-4 bdrm in one of the Emaar properties if possible. And will ask the company to front the balance of the rent and take it from the salary each month.
Is this all comfortably feasable?


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## sgilli3 (Mar 23, 2008)

Hi and welcome to the forum.

Your base salary offered is decent, plus adding in housing allowance, it brings it up to 46,000 dhs per month.

Which properties are you looking at renting. Emaar have a few.
The housing allowance would barely get you a 1 bed, but the rest of the package is good.

Ideally, you dont want to be using your wage to supplement the housing.
I agree, relocation amount is low..I would have thought double that, and school fee allowance is also low. (though you only have 1 to school here)

Have you looked for schools, or have you secured a place yet?

Is the child joining you a girl or boy? I ask this because once 18, and a boy, you cant sponsor them any more.

Just read on another thread, its your son...


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## NJcara (Aug 14, 2008)

I appreciate the reply, thank you.
The 16 yr old is a boy, but once he graduates HS, he'll be going to college here in the states, so at that point all 3 kids will just be in Dubai on breaks and visits.
We were looking at Arabian Ranches. We assumed we would be paying some portion of our housing along with the allowance. But clearly we need to do some negotiating on the relo and schooling. Also not pleased that no car is offered or an allowance.


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## sgilli3 (Mar 23, 2008)

For a 3 bed in AR, you will be looking at a min of 280,000dhs and for a 4 bed, min 360,000 dhs ($76,000 - $98,000 US) per year , paid 1 year upfront.
This does not include the 5 % agents fees (and other set-up costs)

A 3 bed will set you back almost 1/2 of your salary, not taking into account that HS fees alone will be between 50,000-60,000dhs a year (depending on the school, but US schools are expensive)

Based on 50,000 dhs a year ( and 1/2 paid), it will be another 2,000 dhs a month out of pocket (not including uniforms, bus fees, extra curricular activities etc)


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## hopeful (Jul 29, 2008)

I could be talking rubbish and I suppose it all depends on the lifestyle your used to living back home but that seems like a fairly good offer to me. I know you've got school fee's to pay, but after thats gone you'll be left with 535k per yer, take off your housing say 335k per year for ease and your still left with 200k per year. I'd be jumping for joy if my hubby had been given this offer!


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## Ogri750 (Feb 14, 2008)

Look on Dubizzle

Last night there were two 3 bedroom places (furnished) for 180k in Arabian Ranches

At that price they won't be around long


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## flossie (Jun 9, 2008)

Sgilli is spot on. The 3 bedrooms in Arabian ranches that go for around 230K are teeny. The 180k bedrooms that are advertised on Dubizzle maybe genuine, but Dubizzle are notorious for having ads for cheap places as a bait for you to ring them. It's not uncommon to ring them and 'lo and behold, that place is gone. 280K is a more realistic budget.


Base salary is great. I would be a bit concerned that the housing is so low and that they aren't willing to give it to you upfront. So I would try and negotiate that as well as asking if they could cover all your school fees. Use the fact that you only have one child here as leverage. If it is guaranteed that salary will raise by 170K a year in January, that would make things more comfortable. Oh, and the relocation allowance is dismal. It's not unusualy for it to be equal to one month's rent or for the company to cover the cost of a 20' container for you to move (most) of your stuff over. Villas here come empty so you have to foot for washing machines, dishwasher, curtains, stove/oven etc etc.

It is sometimes hard to comment on packages because it depends on what industry it's in, how you live your life personally etc. How much you need also depends on what committments you have at home. At least with the US pegged to the Dirham (for the forseeable future) you're not at the mercy of interest rates.


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## flossie (Jun 9, 2008)

Sorry, meant to say it's not unusual for relocation allowance to be equal to one month's salary, not rent.


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## flossie (Jun 9, 2008)

hopeful said:


> I could be talking rubbish and I suppose it all depends on the lifestyle your used to living back home but that seems like a fairly good offer to me. I know you've got school fee's to pay, but after thats gone you'll be left with 535k per yer, take off your housing say 335k per year for ease and your still left with 200k per year. I'd be jumping for joy if my hubby had been given this offer!



No, you're not talking rubbish because that's your personal circumstances. We couldn't afford to live our lifestyle plus pay school fees for two kids and cover commitments home out of that, though. Also remember the cost of cars and DEWA, etc.


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## hopeful (Jul 29, 2008)

flossie said:


> No, you're not talking rubbish because that's your personal circumstances. We couldn't afford to live our lifestyle plus pay school fees for two kids and cover commitments home out of that, though. Also remember the cost of cars and DEWA, etc.


I was commenting on NjCara's circumstance, she will only have one child in Dubai, but didn't take into consideration that she is probably paying fees for the two kids back in the US. Which I should think is very expensive also.


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## NJcara (Aug 14, 2008)

Thank you all for your replies. It's all very helpful.
We're still negotiating, but I think it will all work out nicely. 
I am curious though how everyone works out the relo part. My husband will be in interim housing (company supplied) for up to 6 weeks. Which puts it into Mid Oct. We will arrive mid Dec. So he will have to find the home and all that goes along with that process. (Ideally we are hoping to find a furnished villa, but if we aren't that lucky.....) How do you possibly get a place fully furnished including appliances when you have a full time position that involves alot of travel? When we moved to Riyadh, it's all compound living, all fully furrnished from top to bottom. That was an easy move in!

Thanks again for everyones help, I feel well armed having everyones input!


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## pooji (May 20, 2008)

we are planninng to move to riyadh, which compound u were in, and how much is the rent there.thanks


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## NJcara (Aug 14, 2008)

We lived in the Arizona Gold Resort. It's one of the best compounds in KSA. We absolutely loved it. It had EVERYTHING you could want. They have a website, i believe its 
Arizona Golf Resort.

Kingdom City is another great one. They also have a website if you google it. No clue as to the cost as it was paid for by the company. It is one of the most expensive though.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. As restrictive as Riyadh is, it was one of the best times for us. My kids absolutely hated to leave.


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