Any Americans??

No Americans in Doha!. Africans only. I'm the king of Africans here

I am an american living in doha now originally grew up in the midwest and this place sucks. People can not drive to save their lives here it is the most annoying thing in the world. Most of the population is dirty lil brown people who smell terrible, don't get me wrong almost all the ones i have interacted with have been nice and pleasant just smell like skanky B.O. and rotten onions, medical treatment is a joke my son has been in the hospital for over two months now being cared for by nurses who wouldn't even be smart enough to be cleaning ladies in a hospital back home, as I write this if I sound a little pissed it because i have been sitting here at the hospital since 7 am and its now 330pm and my son has yet to have his procedure, maybe its just me and no offense is intended with this to anyone but these Qatari's all have an uppity smug lil attitude towards to them that makes me feel like they think they are better than everyone cuz this is their country i guess maybe i'm wrong but thats what it seems like to me. Again not saying anything bad in particular i just don't like it and seriously the driving here is horrible i was in the army and stationed allover the world and drove in almost every state in the us and i have never seen anything this bad the traffic police just direct traffic there is absolute anarchy in the roads just don't let the camera catch you running through a light and you can do whatever the hell you want. I have honestly given it a try now for 3 months and I can happily say i will be returning to the midwest next month. Sorry for the rant hope it helps make your decision

I

well it appears my math was way off, and he does earn now what he was earning here, but this is with the housing allowance. he is earning 2/3 without that. But the cost of living is so much lower here, there is no way I would expect him to earn 50,000 QR monthly unless he is a medical professional or something. at the height of his career living in California, one of the highest paid and most expensive areas, he wasnt even earning that.

You should also keep in mind that if either of you are American citizens, you are liable for taxes.

hey hey, egy, i never said, it's a boring country with hey bad weather.. i am not bored here and I love heat :)

What I said was one must be ready to adopt totally new life style, new habits, new culture, new traditions.. one who is ready for it, and who on top of it is paid well, has no reason to complain..

Amal, to come to qatar for "half salary" is ridiculous.. To maintain up-avarage lifestyle in qatar, for the family of 4 you need at least QAR25,000 as a very basic, before entertainment, travelling and saving. Meaning 3 bedroom apartment in the avarage area (not a villa), 2 not too expensive cars, grocery, household stuff, schooling, same very basic clothes... Outings aren't cheap here.. neither are travellings, as airfares for some reason are quite high...do not forget, everyone here for saving! Not to be able to save makes the whole adventure useless...

Iam not an American....but if I have an option I will never live in Qatar....although it is a clean country but it is very small, very boring and very very bad weather so most of expats are here for money

Positives--for expat professionals and nationals it is a relatively safe place to live. Little theft and other crimes, but a great deal of traffic deaths and injuries.

The winters are pleasant if you hate snow.

The location is good for visiting Asia, Europe and Africa.

The expat community is generally friendly.

Some of the schools are excellent and afford American children the change to study in a multi-cultural, international environment.

The society is child-friendly in that children are generally treasured and catered to--much more so than in Europe.

Compound living can be pleasant, depending on the compound.

If one is Muslim and used to living as as minority in a Western country, it affords the opportunity to be part of the religious majority. This can go both ways, as I have know many Western Muslims to be greatly pleased with this part of their experience, and plenty who turned out not to like it. I'm not Muslim, so perhaps someone with personal experience can speak more directly to that.

But again, most of these benefits require a significant level of economic comfort.

Qatar is small and pretty diverse in terms of nationalities of people..safe & secure..a lot of activities and exhibitions but it depends on you too..if you are very active, you maybe board after somtime..but if you spend most of your time at home looking after kids and house logistics, then it may be nice as you will have a stable routine..

his is a different situation regarding the salary, I did not mention, they shut the operation down in the US when it was the bad recession so they only offered him nothing, just a small severance pay, or Qatar. thats why he took the paycut, he was going crazy sitting around here. He's been in Doha maybe two years now. his salary now will never afford 15,000 even with housing allowance.

I think this is a simple decision for me, even outside of the monetary situation.

So for my question out of curiousity what are some great things about Qatar? What do you like about living in Qatar? Sure, here has negatives too but lots of positives.

I agree with much of what is posted above. Even if the primary reason for coming to Qatar is for family reasons, you still need a sustainable lifestyle.

Modest, comparable housing to the Midwest would require at least 15,000 a month--no yard to speak of but a good villa in a safe compound with pool, playground, clubhouse and room for riding bikes. Compounds aren't just for non-Muslims. Mine has plenty of Muslim families, but they are all professionals working for Western companies and universities and they choose to life in the compound because it offers a degree of a Western lifestyle (i.e. substantial personal freedoms).

Family vehicle (anything less than a large SUV is crazy here in my few--traffic deaths are the leading cause of death here) will cost a little bit more than in the US. Kids' school fees will run about 50,000 a year per kid at the American School of Doha, which is amongst the most expensive. Healthcare, too, is a concern. The free system here is nothing on a par with good-quality care in the US (for the insured who have it). Most American expats, therefore, receive supplemental private insurance for access to the private hospitals, which are fairly good.

In terms of salary most offers are at 1.25% or more.

Nothing wrong with taking a slight hit in salary for personal reasons, but seriously consider the non-salary benefits and look carefully at what you think you will need for your family to maintain your lifestyle.

Half the salary??? With a small housing allowance??? Oh, no, no, no! Most packages are for 25% more salary and all housing and expenses paid for.

Mandi

Thank you all so much, this is very helpful. It is like I told him, we dont live bad here, why I would come 10,000 miles to live bad??? It totally makes sense now, I see what you all are saying- there should be enough incentive. No one even offered to pay for us to come. I think he did not negotiate a good contract, but that really isn't my say. This would just be creating more, huge problems for me in my opinion, true enough, money problems would be just the beginning.

If he is taking a cut in salary and your business will be stopped (no income there) - you are better off in the US. Qatar is expensive. Full stop. Better packages include housing or a reasonable housing allowance, tickets for the family every year, medical, reasonable education allowance (private schools are not cheap - even if you are homeschooling, good packages include this) and in most cases a transportation allowance. If the package doesn't make sense economically - don't come. The rest is immaterial if the $$ doesn't make sense.

Expats come here because of the $$, and for no other reason (unless you are in the US military).

it depends on the package as a whole..if your accomodation, kids education, annual tickets is included then it may not be bad..but if 50,000 is all het gets and he still needs to pay accomodation and stuff then it may not be good enough..you can also compare how much u make here versus what you make at home..

Then it's not worth it Amal22.....reconsider I say

is 50,000 QR amount average??? He doesnt make near that much!

it depends on you after all..I do not think you will have safety or security issues as long as you abide by the applicable laws. plenty of foreigners in Qatar and a lot of activities. assuming you live in canada, it is a bit of challenge to travel back and forth because it is a long flight..but this depends on how frequent you plan to go back home..

Dress code should be moderate..good luck as those decisions are not easy..

you must be adherent to the rules & laws of the country where you gonna live in. This is a tax-free zone, keep control on your expenses, you will feel a bit better peaceful life over here :)

I agree with qatarisun.... you will be shocked, I won't say it's different ...nope not at all. It's just simple another world... another culture... you won't survive... unless the pay is at least 50,000 QAR then ONLY then...you might consider it....

Good luck

ask yourself ..... are you psychologically ready or not?

Oh and I have visited his native country, and no offense intended but I would never live there. he told me Qatar was much different better so thats why I was considering it.

Yes, Frenchieman, you got it- he does, and yes, he is Arab but not Qatari. He does, however, work under a Canadian passport. The expense thing was just the tip of the iceberg for me. or maybe the last straw. I may be wrong, but I am under the impression that everyone pays at least 50% of their income towards rent, and he gets a small allowance for housing, but it is very small, and from reading here, it seems like his salary is small as well. It is almost half of what he was getting here.

not to continue with just about the money, but I have had my own business for 8 years which generates enough income to support us, although not substantial, but it has survived all the economic upsets so far. we dont live a lavish lifestyle, we are by all means middle class here, probably on the low end, but I am not the type of person motivated purely by money. At the same time I dont want to be forced into a position living in the slums or having to buy used shoes for the children. By leaving here I would have to also leave my personal income and freedoms that it provides.

on a side note, I feel I have no reason to move other than to be by his side, and I feel whats the point if it seems like we are all going to suffer. suffer, this is a sinking feeling I have...

I am sorry if I come off as a jerk or coldhearted, but I am just trying to be realistic.

thank you so much for all the replies, I really appreciate it, and I am glad to find the forum even still. Maybe I can find a forum to convince him to come back here lol.

It depends on what you mean by 'because of family.' Is your husband Qatari or does he have extended family who are long-term residents in the area? If so that would likely mean an enormous lifestyle change from the American midwest for you.

Regardless, I would make two points (as a fellow European who lived in the US for a while, too). First, QL is hardly representative of life in Qatar. The forum is mostly professional expats and spouses venting, so ignore people like rizzo (they are fictional characters). We can be rude in confrontational because of the anonymity of the it all. People are generally exceedingly friendly in the expat community and very ready make friends. Second, you should come and visit if you are considering a long-term stay. Get a feel for the place and your potential surroundings before committing.

Having said that, my family and I enjoy living here. It's expat compound living for us, which feel akin to village life--good and bad. We are fortunate enough to have an excellent salary and benefits, so we are enjoying the best that the country has to offer in terms of living, schools, etc. Even so, I would not want to make Qatar a long-term home. It's been an interesting experience but I wouldn't want it to become permanent. But that is my own take.

One bonus is that it is a shorter flight to Germany from Doha that from the US! Good luck with your decision.

there are plenty of americans, canadians, brits, germans here.. some french, spanish, and other europeans and north/south americans..

$500 3 bedroom.. forget about it. here 3 bedroom will be $5000.. ok, at least $3000... forget about "kids can play outside or ride bikes" and about "Free to wear whatever we want".. i can guarantee "no fear of safety at all" though..

in general, get ready for cultural shock, for revising your entire concept of world and life vision, for shifting/amending your points of view, for changing of your entire life style.. if you are open to all these changes, go ahead.. otherwise you will find yourself suffering for sake of earning extra few bucks..

Put it this way - what happens when your country officially declares bankruptcy and cuts all social spending? What will be your cost of living be then???. You are in a better position than at least 40 million other Americans in that you are debt free but the pain is going to be felt world wide in the next financial contraction .