# The scary but exciting relocation opportunity.....help needed



## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

Hi all,

I know there are 100's of these threads daily but i am really in need of some local help.

I have been made an offer from my current company to move my base to Dubai and cover the middle east.

The issues i have is i dont really have anybody i know currently over in Dubai to bounce the idea off and convincing my 7 month pregnant wife to leave her job and up sticks with our 3 year old to a foreign country with no support network is terrifying her.

We have trawled the internet looking at houses/areas we could move into ( with little joy ), finding how schools and nurserys work is another story all together.

Basically what i am looking for is somebody that may have been in a similar position to us thats made the move, give us some advice around what areas would be good to start looking at etc

I know its a long winded post but any help at this stage would be unbelievable and we would be eternally grateful.

Thank you in advance 

Aldo


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

First and foremost, I would recommend giving the forum an idea of what your package is going to be like out here. Ultimately everything replies upon that one fact, also do know that school fees here are ridiculous, which would be the largest outflow apart from rent, for most expats.


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

Thanks for the advice Saraswot.

The package includes upto 230k aed for a house, 50k aed for schooling. My salary will be seperate from those costs. 

Hope that gives more clarity


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## Eng.Khaled (Feb 8, 2011)

With this housing allowance you can easily get a decent housing (separate villa or flat). You may need to double the schooling allowance... depends on the grade and age of your child. In fact you can get a decent housing with half of your housing allowance if you are willing to live in a flat.


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

^^ What he said ^^, but would like to add a couple more things:

1. The housing allowance is enough for a nice place to live, and like the other member mentioned, you could always use some of that cash towards school fees/other bills. But that would be possible only if your company paid you that money to use, rather than have it dispensed to the landlord/agent/agency of your choice etc. Some employers pay it out as part of the monthly pay amount some do not ... 

2. You mention your wife is 7 months pregnant (congratulations btw), so it is safe to assume that she will not be joining you until after having completed delivery and sufficient recuperation time back in the U.K. If by any chance you are planning to have her come here (not even sure if that is possible, given airline rules regarding third trimester etc..), I would not recommend it unless you have solid medical insurance (not your basic band aid covers) inclusive of family. Maternity costs are pretty significant out here, anywhere from 12K (cheapest) to 25K plus... (so I am told, no personal experience in this matter). 

3. Apart from the maternity issue, you haven't mentioned health insurance, which also should be a concern. Given that you have a young son, recently pregnant wife and will shortly add a new-born, that imho should be towards the top (if not the very top) of your list of things to nail down, if coming out here. Even basic medical checkup's etc aren't exactly cheap...

Finally, you haven't mentioned your wages, but given the housing and school allowance, I think it's safe to assume that they would be adequate for living the kind of life you would want to live out here ( I have yet to come across anyone getting 230K yearly for housing and making 10K monthly in wages...)

Hope that helps, I am certain other members will share their thoughts/experiences also. 

p.s: your post was not winded, this post of mine on the other hand ...


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

Another family heading to the Ranches. Another family at Dubai British School.

Life goes on.

No, seriously, you have a good offer based on your housing and schooling. I'm also assuming that based on the information given your health care and flights will be sufficient. What's left are the fine details of your contract. 

At this point I'll only advise that you save as much of your housing allowance as possible if you have that flexibility. Dubai is a very expensive city and the more you save the better off you are. It sounds like you might be in a position to rack up a lot of savings by being slightly frugal and pragmatic so don't go for the most expensive villa possible but see if you can find something for 150K and save the rest. 




Aldo1985 said:


> Thanks for the advice Saraswot.
> 
> The package includes upto 230k aed for a house, 50k aed for schooling. My salary will be seperate from those costs.
> 
> Hope that gives more clarity


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

Thank you everyone for the information above.

My salary is still under negotiation at the moment, so I am unsure what that final figure will be. I'm thinking somewhere in the region of 20k aed pm on top of housing and education.

As you have all mentioned healthcare I am lead to believe this is full healthcare benefit for the whole family. They also give us 5k gbp to fly home per year. My wife will be having the baby at home and following on in the new year once everything is sorted.

We have not decide which area is best to live yet but from reading post I assume near the schools we choose is the best option.

If anyone had any experience of schools and area i would love to hear it....

Thanks again for your help so far

Aldo


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## telecompro (Apr 4, 2013)

Aldo1985 said:


> Thank you everyone for the information above.
> 
> My salary is still under negotiation at the moment, so I am unsure what that final figure will be. I'm thinking somewhere in the region of 20k aed pm on top of housing and education.
> 
> ...


Salary is quite low comparing it to the housing allowance..are you sure that your salary is around the 20k?


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## BBmover (Jun 15, 2013)

TallyHo said:


> Another family heading to the Ranches. Another family at Dubai British School.
> 
> Life goes on.
> 
> ...




Why Dubai British School? Just out of curiosity? Seems most want there but there are others......


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

I could have put a incorrect salary figure as I'm still working on my aed conversions.

As I mentioned earlier I am still in negotions around this but I believe it to be in the region of 3.6k gbp - 5k gbp per month on top of housing, healthcare, schooling etc.

I am unsure of what is a suitable salary but I was under the impression this was a good deal considering they pay the other things and this is not affected by housing, education so better than uk


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## fcjb1970 (Apr 30, 2010)

I would make sure you are clear how the package works. There are different ways a a housing allowance can be provided.

Does this mean that they will reimburse you up to 230K for housing. In other words, you need to show a lease and they will pay you that amount.

Or does it mean you get 19K/month on top of your salary and they just call it housing allowance in the offer.

This is a HUGE difference. Companies break salary into base salary and 'allowances' because they only have to pay End of Service Gratuity on base salary, so by calling some of your compensation an allowance they are liable for less when you leave.

If your situation is the latter than you are looking at about 40K which is decent enough, not great but if you watch what you spend can save a little. If it is the former, well to me it is not as good.


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

fcjb1970 said:


> I would make sure you are clear how the package works. There are different ways a a housing allowance can be provided.
> 
> Does this mean that they will reimburse you up to 230K for housing. In other words, you need to show a lease and they will pay you that amount.
> 
> ...


This is excellent advice, thank you so much. 

The honest answer is I do not know this, I am due to fly over in next couple of weeks to finalise so this will be the question at the top of my list.


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## Mclovin oo7 (Sep 25, 2012)

fcjb1970 said:


> I would make sure you are clear how the package works. There are different ways a a housing allowance can be provided.
> 
> Does this mean that they will reimburse you up to 230K for housing. In other words, you need to show a lease and they will pay you that amount.
> 
> ...


Considering that the Dubai real state market, it can go either ways. 

I have friends who were saving a lot in Abu Dhabi when properties were cheap and now, finding it hard to manage. 

If you employer is paying against a lease contract, you are basically spending your accommodation or housing allowance on housing and there is nothing to save from it. However, it provides you some peace of mind against the unstable market.

Don't forget to have everything small included in your contract i.e. Utilities, Cable, home phone etc and the moving allowance.


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## fcjb1970 (Apr 30, 2010)

Mclovin oo7 said:


> However, it provides you some peace of mind against the unstable market.


Please explain


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

fcjb1970 said:


> Please explain


I think he is confused with a company provided villa/apartment and what you are actually talking about.


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

I pulled the name out of thin air and that the school fees will cover the tuition at DBS. Otherwise it's fairly unremarkable as schools go and there are certainly better schools out there.



BBmover said:


> Why Dubai British School? Just out of curiosity? Seems most want there but there are others......


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## BBmover (Jun 15, 2013)

TallyHo said:


> I pulled the name out of thin air and that the school fees will cover the tuition at DBS. Otherwise it's fairly unremarkable as schools go and there are certainly better schools out there.



Thanks, just I've seen the same old schools mentioned on various forums and wondered if they were super schools! Oversubscribed and extortionate most of them and possibly not as diverse as others that are just as good......


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## vantage (May 10, 2012)

Aldo1985 said:


> This is excellent advice, thank you so much.
> 
> The honest answer is I do not know this, I am due to fly over in next couple of weeks to finalise so this will be the question at the top of my list.


make sure they spell out, in detail, every single itmeised element of your total package, and how it weill be administered.


salary 
housing allowance (do they give you 230K in monthly chunks / do they give you 230K in one lump / do they pay for any accommodation you choose up to 230K? - the middle option is what you want!
education allowance (total, or per child? - the pre-child will need schooling one day - get it written in now!)
health insurance - (policiy details and full family?)
flights home (do they book them for you, or give you the cash? you can save here if they give you business class sums, and you choose to fly steerage, or a cheaper route)
transprot allowance (is there one?)


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## Mclovin oo7 (Sep 25, 2012)

fcjb1970 said:


> Please explain


Let's say you are getting an allowance of 150K for hosing / accommodation. You can spend whatever you want on the housing, but your employer will cover you only for 150K. You can save if you spend less than 150 on the housing. You also have the risk of paying more or downgrading if the market heats up.

On the other hand, if your contract says you will be provided with a three bed room villa, irrespective of the real state market, your employer will have to provide you a villa with three bed room.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

But that villa could be in a crap area, run down and with tiling that hurts your eyes...


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

What I can't seem to wrap my head around is the notion that 20K per month is not enough to live comfortably, given the fact that housing, school fees, insurance and annual flights home for the family are taken care of. Granted school fees might be more than 50K a year depending, so lets factor 1K a month extra towards them. Leaves 19K on tbe table for everything else. Is that really the case ?. What kind of expense are we factoring in here for it not to be enough .... the math doesn't make sense to me.


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

saraswat said:


> What I can't seem to wrap my head around is the notion that 20K per month is not enough to live comfortably, given the fact that housing, school fees, insurance and annual flights home for the family. Is that really the case ?. What kind of expense are we factoring in here for it not to be enough .... the math doesn't make sense to me.


I can't really comment on if its is enough or not as I have no concept of standard costs of living etc apart from what's on the forum.

What I would like to know is where the areas that I should be looking to live and where I should be avoiding?


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## Mclovin oo7 (Sep 25, 2012)

m1key said:


> But that villa could be in a crap area, run down and with tiling that hurts your eyes...


Here is another scenario:

Dubai wins EXPO 2020, there is another war in the Middle East some where and more people see Dubai as safe heaven. Property prices double in three years.

As I said, there is no certain answer to this.


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## saraswat (Apr 28, 2012)

Aldo1985 said:


> What I would like to know is where the areas that I should be looking to live and where I should be avoiding?


Read through this thread:

http://www.expatforum.com/expats/du...4-ultimate-guide-renting-apartment-dubai.html

The later pages for more relevant stats, it says apartments, but covers everything really. Good info there.


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## m1key (Jun 29, 2011)

Mclovin oo7 said:


> Here is another scenario:
> 
> Dubai wins EXPO 2020, there is another war in the Middle East some where and more people see Dubai as safe heaven. Property prices double in three years.
> 
> As I said, there is no certain answer to this.


...and the company can no longer afford the 3 bed villa in Jumeirah. You are moved to a 3 bed villa, in Karama. Next door the villa is shared by 20 labourers on a shift basis. Once their 8 hours is up they hang around outside waiting for work to begin. 

Could happen very easily. Personally I choose where to live and not some bean counter that doesn't give a toss if you like it or not.


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## Mclovin oo7 (Sep 25, 2012)

m1key said:


> ...and the company can no longer afford the 3 bed villa in Jumeirah. You are moved to a 3 bed villa, in Karama. Next door the villa is shared by 20 labourers on a shift basis. Once their 8 hours is up they hang around outside waiting for work to begin.
> 
> Could happen very easily. Personally I choose where to live and not some bean counter that doesn't give a toss if you like it or not.


We can keep doing it till the cows come home....


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## BedouGirl (Sep 15, 2011)

Two other points - if any of your family have had surgery recently or have pre-existing conditions, they may not be covered by the medical insurance for a period of time or at all. Definitely find out all the ins and outs of the policy. And, to reiterate the utilities payments. if your villa costs you AED 230K pa, chances are you are going to have huge DEWA and possibly even cooling bills. Also, if your garden in your large villa is also large and grassed and you have to water from the mains, that will also add to your monthly expenses.


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## sheilajones (Oct 4, 2011)

What can be a challenge in giving you advice is knowing what your expectations may be. If you are coming from California you might want to find a house, Belgians may really care about recycling etc. Stupid examples I know but...

Schooling will be the biggest issue. You should find the schooling before finding a house. Housing, I think, in Dubai can be good. Apartments are easier. Life is very good in Dubai and in most ways much easier. There are many expats with families. 

Try a smaller question say about schooling and this will allow those with kiddies to give you more focused advice. You can get a sense of the other matters from that.

Good Luck


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## volleygurl (Jul 16, 2013)

This happened to me when I was pregnant 10 years ago. I would have the baby where you are then move. Too much stress. We found out we had to move in January, baby was due in April and we moved to Europe in August.

Good luck.


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## Aldo1985 (Jul 16, 2013)

Thanks everyone for your advice on this


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