offer finally came through
So i am being offered
18k base
12k housing.
they will pay for 3 kids airfare and schooling (40k max per child) , we might home school so school costs could be different.
So now i am thinking if this is good enough for me to move from USA to Qatar and save some.
Any comments people ?
These are my assumptions, not sure if i captured everything
Rent 12k allowance
Gas 250
water 300
Power 300
Mobile 300
Mobile2 300
Internet 500
Auto Loan 5000
Auto Gas 500
House Maid 2000
Grocery/Lifestyle 3000
Total QAR 12,450.00
Depends which industry/sector you are working for. For oil&gas this should have been negotiated on a higher side. aprox 30000 QR
Hmm so maybe need to scrap this offer and roll back the plans :(
Home schooling is always an option, many US expats do this. The rule of thumb for US expats is 30% more than you are making in the US plus housing and all the extras. I think that 25-30K QR a month is more reasonable. Doha can be a miserable place if you have to scrimp and scrape.
Well, the comments are not very assuring, Mandi what is your say on how much one should have to survive in Qatar, we plan to home school so i dont know if high end schools are an option, our kids already go to Islamic schools in USA so i dont think any school in qatar will compare to what we have here.
Qatar will always surprise you with extra expenses. You only have a little over $1,000/month for those unbudgeted costs. The American school is more than 40,000QR as are the better British schools. Kids always need something you haven't counted on. Qatar health care only covers the basics in-country so if you travel or go back home you have to pay for insurance. You will owe taxes in the US if you are a resident or citizen. You will not accrue social security or retirement. And you will not be terribly marketable back in the US if you don't like the Gulf. Oh, and did anyone mention the NOC and the lack of any job security in Doha?
The offer is a good one. The problem that is many westerners want to live in the clouds and they believe that is the only place for them where they could exist. Any one from the Asian countries with the same qualifications and better experience would take the offer, and be happy with it.
That's pretty cool, get the offer and move in with your family. If you're a luxurious type then i'll recommend to you lay low for a while and understand the region for they always say "Life experience is personal" and let no one tells you about how life here is. looking forward to welcome you in Doha.
Well the offer is for a Senior Position in IT (systems engineer, aka glorified support engineer, nothing fancy) I tried negotiating, my personality is not great for negotiations (it sucks i know but i cant change myself on that anymore) so i lost on it, although they offer 15k base so it moved from 15 to 18. As for the car, I am not living a luxury life here in US, so i cant buy a used car on cash, so loan is the only option, I will get a 60k interest free loan for a car from the company i will come in with. some other smaller benefits are there which i dont know of, once i will come in those will be clear.
That's chicken, QR 40K at the very least.
Here is what I think... the offer is so so (if yo uare American with qualified degree).. but it is ok.. perhaps you can negotiate a bit. Bear in mind that you may be able to save a bit more but you will have to give up on the quality of life. Also you need to look into taxation.. there is no point to move if you would still owe taxes to US Government. There might be some other benefits that the company is able to offer you.
Now regarding your assumptions:
Rent 12k allowance - i think you can ger a decent 2 bdr apt for about 8K or so... but if you want to live in West Bay where most of expats live you will need 16 k.. i dont recommend living in West Bay thoguh... it is not the best value for the money
Gas 250 - yes
water 300 - roughly correct.. may be less
Power 300 - yes
Mobile 300 - depends on you.. but may be
Mobile2 300 - - see above
Internet 500 - no... 220.. but if you want ultrafast then 320
Auto Loan 5000 - better buy a used car than take a loan if you can .. also the ocmpany may offer interest free loan
Auto Gas 500 - more like 300
House Maid 2000 - about 1500
Grocery/Lifestyle 3000 - grocery for 2 adults and 5 kids is about that.... then you need to add lifestyle which really depends on you... bear in mind both rent and food are more expensive in Qatar than US
My advice.. find out more about taxation and do negotiate with the company.. if you are more of on a junior side (less than 10 years experience).. then the offer is fine.
Grocery/ Lifestyle seems way too low. I am single and my bill comes to about QR 3-4K a month. Same goes for Auto loan as that would depend on what kind of car you intend to buy. For me it is about QR 11K per month. Internet may be half of what you have estimated based on the rates a few months back. However, whether the offer is good or not would depend on what are your qualifications, experience and passport.
Abu, That 's quite fair, accept and prepare to move ...... Congrats ... !
Thu, 06.03.2014 , 06.40 hrs ...
by the way, i have 4 kids (2 pre school and 2 elementary)