# Help understanding the actual costs involved in renting an apartment



## Sootydaz (Dec 29, 2014)

Hi Chaps/or Chapettes

I am moving to Dubai in April into a company serviced apartment for a month and then i have to find my own place. I have a budget from the company (a contribution) of 80k a year plus what ever i wish to spend extra. I have been checking out dubizzle as recommended and i am quite comfortable with the idea of living in a larger studio or a 1 bed but i can't find any solid info on other cost such as Dewa? Chiller? or WIFI? based on the maximum of 80K rent.

Q. Any approximate guesses as to the cost of these on a monthly basis?

Q. Are the bills likely to be more than 10-15k a year (for a single person)

Q. I am able to rent a Marriott suite in the Marina for 95k all inclusive a year is that a better deal than having my own apartment?:juggle:

many thanks


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

DEWA (just water + electricity) - depending on usage, probably 150 Dhs on average
Housing fee: 5% of your monthly rent paid monthly
AC/Chiller - in some communities it is paid by the tenant, and in some cases by the landlord. You will need to check
Internet: Probably 150-450 depending on the speed
TV: Extra - depending on the package

You will need to buy furniture, and most likely the white goods as well. Also, a TV, wifi router etc. Building may or may not come with parking.


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## Mr Rossi (May 16, 2009)

Sootydaz said:


> Q. I am able to rent a Marriott suite in the Marina for 95k all inclusive a year is that a better deal than having my own apartment?:juggle:


I would certainly recommend this until you pass your probation period. That way you're not tied into too much, should you not be kept on and by then you'll have a lot better idea of the city, areas to live, costs etc.


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## TT365 (Oct 14, 2014)

The Marriott is nice and would provide you with a decent base for a few months, the wifi is decent and the tv package is good as well. If you are going to stay a while then it's worth getting your own place and investing in white goods, furniture etc.


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

If you rented a flat for 80K in a community with no cooling charges (which is most of Dubai but be careful) then your expenses are:

80k rent
4K for 5% agent's fee
4K for 5% deposit
4K for 5% housing tax

Total = 92K

Dewa for 1-bed, approx 150 a month = 1800 AED
Dewa connection charge: 1K
Total = 93.8K

Good Internet/TV package: 500 a month = 6,000 for the year

Total= 99.8K for the year.

Then you have to furnish the place with everything from furniture to beddings to cooking supplies and quite often the cooker/fridge too.

In your subsequent year you don't have to pay 8K in agent's fee and deposit but as you can see the Marriott Suite is remarkably good value assuming it's a proper 1-bedroom suite rather than a studio.


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## GloballyRelaxed (Nov 5, 2014)

DEWA now asking 2k for apartments and 4k for villas on the connection nowadays.


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## EnglishRose25 (Mar 19, 2015)

Where did you find that price for the Marriott Suites? Would be interested to find out more info if possible. 

Thanks


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## Skip_ZA (Jan 28, 2015)

TallyHo said:


> If you rented a flat for 80K in a community with no cooling charges (which is most of Dubai but be careful) then your expenses are:
> 
> 80k rent
> 4K for 5% agent's fee
> ...


So let me get this straight. You have to Pay an extra 12k in the first month???
and a connection charge of 2k for Dewa?

So the first month alone will be 14k, and then you havent even stayed there yet.

Then a serviced apartment make more sense to me for the first year....
do you know any decent ones close to MOE?


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## Stevesolar (Dec 21, 2012)

Skip_ZA said:


> So let me get this straight. You have to Pay an extra 12k in the first month???
> and a connection charge of 2k for Dewa?
> 
> So the first month alone will be 14k, and then you havent even stayed there yet.
> ...


Hi,
We spent a fortune getting "setup" in Dubai - i think we spent around 40,000 AED in the first few weeks of arrival for car hire, school fees, Emirates ID fees, phone sim cards, furniture, living expenses etc. etc . - all before the first salary arrived in the account!
Cheers
Steve


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

Skip_ZA said:


> So let me get this straight. You have to Pay an extra 12k in the first month???
> and a connection charge of 2k for Dewa?
> 
> So the first month alone will be 14k, and then you havent even stayed there yet.
> ...


There seem to be a few in Al Barsha just behind mall of emirates. Search on booking.com for names, then look at their own websites for details on long term rentals.


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## Skip_ZA (Jan 28, 2015)

Stevesolar said:


> Hi,
> We spent a fortune getting "setup" in Dubai - i think we spent around 40,000 AED in the first few weeks of arrival for car hire, school fees, Emirates ID fees, phone sim cards, furniture, living expenses etc. etc . - all before the first salary arrived in the account!
> Cheers
> Steve


Wow 40k, thats crazy money for just a setup.

Didnt your work cover some of that cost. I would think if you work for a large multinational corp that they would help with some of the costs?

I dont have to worry about school fees though 

@rsinner Thanks, its just difficult to make sense which ones are decent and which to avoid


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

Skip_ZA said:


> @rsinner Thanks, its just difficult to make sense which ones are decent and which to avoid


Booking.com has reviews as well. Tripadvisor.com would also have some names and reviews.

Searching for "serviced apartments dubai" throws up a lot of names (not necessarily in Al Barsha) which are recognisable and also have been mentioned on the forum.

If your work place is MOE (or close) stay in Al Barsha or anywhere close to the metro line. I used to stay in AL Barsha in the first year I came to Dubai in, and its super convenient. Downside is that at rush hours traffic in and out is a bit frustrating (but much better than discovery gardens).


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## QOFE (Apr 28, 2013)

Skip_ZA said:


> Wow 40k, thats crazy money for just a setup.
> 
> Didnt your work cover some of that cost. I would think if you work for a large multinational corp that they would help with some of the costs?
> 
> ...


It all quickly adds up. Deposits left, right and centre. Even if you stay in a serviced apartment (which also requires a deposit as well as tourist tax) you'll end up having to buy some stuff. If you ship over your belongings it takes time for them to arrive so you'll need to buy some things before the arrival. 
It's only a tiny amount of people that would get full financial assistance with ALL relocation costs. 
There are also restriction on what can be shipped so you'll need to re-stock on certain things.
A lot of things in Dubai are very expensive. 

If I would've known how much this "adventure" was going to cost us I don't think we would've moved all the way over here. 
All I can say, one can never do too much research and even when you think you've done it all there will still be unpleasant surprises popping up.


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## Skip_ZA (Jan 28, 2015)

QOFE said:


> It all quickly adds up. Deposits left, right and centre. Even if you stay in a serviced apartment (which also requires a deposit as well as tourist tax) you'll end up having to buy some stuff. If you ship over your belongings it takes time for them to arrive so you'll need to buy some things before the arrival.
> It's only a tiny amount of people that would get full financial assistance with ALL relocation costs.
> There are also restriction on what can be shipped so you'll need to re-stock on certain things.
> A lot of things in Dubai are very expensive.
> ...


If and when I am to come over to Dubai i have no shipping items. Just my Luggage on the plane.

This is most concerning about all these deposits, and even if you stay in a serviced apartment. What would the deposit normally be and why a tourist tax if i am on a working visa?

Yes one company stated a large settling in fee whereas the other had none. 

What are some of those expenses if I might ask.


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## Stevesolar (Dec 21, 2012)

Skip_ZA said:


> If and when I am to come over to Dubai i have no shipping items. Just my Luggage on the plane.
> 
> This is most concerning about all these deposits, and even if you stay in a serviced apartment. What would the deposit normally be and why a tourist tax if i am on a working visa?
> 
> ...


Hi,
We came with just four suitcases and did not really start to save money and send it home until after the first 12 months.
The startup costs were much higher than we originally budgeted for and the first three months were quite a struggle - both financially and mentally (with getting all the work visas, ID cards, driving licences, accomodation, adjusting to climate, cultural differences, cars, mad driving and finally the bureaucracy!!)
Best of luck
Steve


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## Skip_ZA (Jan 28, 2015)

Stevesolar said:


> Hi,
> We came with just four suitcases and did not really start to save money and send it home until after the first 12 months.
> The startup costs were much higher than we originally budgeted for and the first three months were quite a struggle - both financially and mentally (with getting all the work visas, ID cards, driving licences, accomodation, adjusting to climate, cultural differences, cars, mad driving and finally the bureaucracy!!)
> Best of luck
> Steve


Wow, im having serious doubts now if Dubai is even viable anymore.... 

I need to send home about 9k for the first 6 months on a 26-29k salary (still negotiating).

The work would get my visa inorder, and accomodation for the first couple of week or so will be at company apartment. Would also hope ID card would be sorted by company but unsure.

I reckoned to use taxis for the first bit and Metro. and try to find close by accomodation. 

But these hidden costs have me worried now.


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## Bau (Mar 24, 2015)

Stevesolar said:


> (...) The startup costs were much higher than we originally budgeted for and the first three months were quite a struggle - both financially and mentally (with getting all the work visas, ID cards, driving licences, accomodation, adjusting to climate, cultural differences, cars, mad driving and finally the bureaucracy!!)(...)





TallyHo said:


> If you rented a flat for 80K in a community with no cooling charges (which is most of Dubai but be careful) then your expenses are: (...) Total= 99.8K for the year.


I would just like to chip in and thank both of you for sharing your experiences.


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## LesFroggitts (Dec 30, 2013)

Skip_ZA said:


> If and when I am to come over to Dubai i have no shipping items. Just my Luggage on the plane.
> 
> This is most concerning about all these deposits, and even if you stay in a serviced apartment. What would the deposit normally be and why a tourist tax if i am on a working visa?
> 
> ...


Tourist Tax is levied on Hotels/Hotel Apartment type accommodation and is variable depending upon the * rating of the hotel irrespective of whether you are a resident or not.


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## Skip_ZA (Jan 28, 2015)

rsinner said:


> Booking.com has reviews as well. Tripadvisor.com would also have some names and reviews.
> 
> Searching for "serviced apartments dubai" throws up a lot of names (not necessarily in Al Barsha) which are recognisable and also have been mentioned on the forum.
> 
> If your work place is MOE (or close) stay in Al Barsha or anywhere close to the metro line. I used to stay in AL Barsha in the first year I came to Dubai in, and its super convenient. Downside is that at rush hours traffic in and out is a bit frustrating (but much better than discovery gardens).



I see daily rates but sureley the monthly rates should be less??

What would a typical serviced apartment go for in Al Barsha? 7500AED a month?


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## cowelly77 (Mar 22, 2015)

Still trying to find where you found a annual price for the marriott? I've had a quote for a one bed at 200,000 from radisson blu. would appreciate some info please as 95000 seems a steal! 

Thanks


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## IzzyBella (Mar 11, 2013)

Is the housing allowance from your work a "you have to use it all and don't see a penny" or is it more of a "we just want to give you a low base, so we give you a higher 'housing allowance' than you need but it goes into your bank in either yearly, biannual or monthly amounts"? 

If it's the latter and you really want to save, you can lease/buy a car for cheap and live in a cheaper area. JVC can still get studios for less than 50k and thus all your bills + car could be covered by the housing allowance if you're smart.


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## The Rascal (Aug 6, 2014)

IzzyBella said:


> Is the housing allowance from your work a "you have to use it all and don't see a penny" or is it more of a "we just want to give you a low base, so we give you a higher 'housing allowance' than you need but it goes into your bank in either yearly, biannual or monthly amounts"?
> 
> If it's the latter and you really want to save, you can lease/buy a car for cheap and live in a cheaper area. JVC can still get studios for less than 50k and thus all your bills + car could be covered by the housing allowance if you're smart.


When I worked for a company that paid it (as opposed to owning a company that doesn't), the housing allowance was paid in full at whatever the amount was on a 6 month basis, ie, you have a 100k allowance, you get a payment of 50,000 every 6 months.

We don't do that, we prefer to pay a living wage - and the valued employee gets more in terms of end of service too.

We can afford it, no worries, prefer happy employees than job switches.


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## IzzyBella (Mar 11, 2013)

Well, I was asking specifically about this person's situation. I'm well aware of the different types of housing allowance pay outs. 

When we moved we got a whole year housing allowance + moving allowance in one go. Then we got to opt in for biannual or monthly payments of the housing allowance.

However, I know that _some_ people do their rental via their company and thus they only get what they rent out. So in the AED80k allowance, even if they opted for a AED50k place, they wouldn't get the difference.


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## Sootydaz (Dec 29, 2014)

cowelly77 said:


> Still trying to find where you found a annual price for the marriott? I've had a quote for a one bed at 200,000 from radisson blu. would appreciate some info please as 95000 seems a steal!
> 
> Thanks


I got special platinum for life rate and i agreed a 3 year let and would have to pay in advance


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## Sootydaz (Dec 29, 2014)

cowelly77 said:


> Still trying to find where you found a annual price for the marriott? I've had a quote for a one bed at 200,000 from radisson blu. would appreciate some info please as 95000 seems a steal!
> 
> Thanks


Marriott will do a 1 bed apartment for 120,000 a year if you ask to speak to the sales manager depending if you a platinum member though!


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