Possible relocation to Singapore- Questions

[Katiesimmo]

Hi

We are possibly relocating to Singapore and we are wondering about a few things.

We have a 3 year old and a newborn so what would be the best family orientated areas with a really good kindergarten/ daycare nearby, toddler classes and activities for kids. It would also need to be an area close to a MRT station for my husband to commute easily.

We will lease a car for me and the kids but is it difficult to get around to shopping centres, classes and such

We also have a small dog, do the landlords/ agents not take kindly to renting a property out if there will be a dog residing there.

Overall what is the cost of living like for a family of our size and how easy is it to meet other expats?

Thanks so much, it is a huge help to get any info from people who know a place rather than jumping in blindly.

[nutnut]

I am sure you have read other posts and sure you understand that giving us little or no information means that some questions simply cannot be answered properly. Please give us as much information about your expectations and current situation in order for us to help further, I made a stab at the questions below.

Hi

We are possibly relocating to Singapore and we are wondering about a few things.

We have a 3 year old and a newborn so what would be the best family orientated areas with a really good kindergarten/ daycare nearby, toddler classes and activities for kids. It would also need to be an area close to a MRT station for my husband to commute easily. - Impossible to tell, anywhere around the southern half of Singapore is good if your hubby works in CBD, otherwise, it's a guessing game! I like East Coast, some like Holland Village, some like central.

We will lease a car for me and the kids but is it difficult to get around to shopping centres, classes and such - not if you have a car, parking can be a nightmare though

We also have a small dog, do the landlords/ agents not take kindly to renting a property out if there will be a dog residing there. - Depends on the landlords, Muslim owners will not like it and some owners see it as a way of making more money from you

Overall what is the cost of living like for a family of our size and how easy is it to meet other expats? - How long is a piece of string, we know nothing about your expectations or current living conditions. I'd say somewhere between $8K a month and $100K a month

Thanks so much, it is a huge help to get any info from people who know a place rather than jumping in blindly.

[Hannieroo]

We've had no problems finding dog friendly.

Rent in Holland Village area - $6k for a decent sized 3 bed. Older or smaller will be less, by an mrt is premium prices.
Car lease, small car - 1.2k. Driving here is easy.
Utilities including petrol and mobile phones, Internet etc - 1k
International school for oldest child (next year or year after) - 1k

So, you're looking at 10k a month before you get to food, clothes or entertainment.

[Tanuki]

Hi

We are possibly relocating to Singapore and we are wondering about a few things.

We have a 3 year old and a newborn so what would be the best family orientated areas with a really good kindergarten/ daycare nearby, toddler classes and activities for kids. It would also need to be an area close to a MRT station for my husband to commute easily.

We will lease a car for me and the kids but is it difficult to get around to shopping centres, classes and such

We also have a small dog, do the landlords/ agents not take kindly to renting a property out if there will be a dog residing there.

Overall what is the cost of living like for a family of our size and how easy is it to meet other expats?

Thanks so much, it is a huge help to get any info from people who know a place rather than jumping in blindly.

I certainly hope you have started the pet import process, as it takes several months to prepare to bring it in here.
I wouldn't be so concerned with proximity to the MRT. That drives up the price and bus services are very good here. We hardly touch the MRT even though it's only 10 minutes away. I'm in the central area and have nearly door-to-door bus service to 2 of my primary offices for 73 cents one way.

Lots of info is available in the forum, so please check that out.

[Hannieroo]

It's only 30 days to bring a dog in. Most of it can't be done until the last week anyway.

[Tanuki]

It's only 30 days to bring a dog in. Most of it can't be done until the last week anyway.

From the US? Much longer process. You apply for the license 30 days before you get here, but the vaccination, blood test and all that starts more than 4 months ahead. Or you can skip the blood test and pay more for the quarantine if you can get the space. Not a fun process either way, as I had really bad results trying to get AVA to answer phones/emails last summer...

[Hannieroo]

Really, they make you do pet passport from the States? Titre and everything?

[Tanuki]

Really, they make you do pet passport from the States? Titre and everything?

Yea, it's a real PITA. And of course it's not exactly cheap. I'm still drinking to forget that, 6 months later...

[Hannieroo]

You're lucky. We did that for UK entry for 4 dogs, went to Eastern Europe instead then had to pay for 6 months quarantine at home. We couldn't afford to drink for about 4 years!

[Tanuki]

You're lucky. We did that for UK entry for 4 dogs, went to Eastern Europe instead then had to pay for 6 months quarantine at home. We couldn't afford to drink for about 4 years!

Yowza! That's really brutal. Glad you got it to work though. For us, now that the kids are out on their own, the pets were a crucial part of our relocation! So the pain was worth it.

[Dert42]

The pet import process was such a PITA for my cat I gave up and left my cat with my parents.
I'm not a dog person, butI would say dogs need space outside to run around and be dogs. So unless you can afford a landed property, I would reconsider bringing the dog. And even if you could, getting a landed property just for the dog is silly. Again, not a dog person though. Also it's crazy hot here all the time. If the dog is long hair breed, it would be daily torture for them.

I'm digging the east coast for our little family with 2 young children.

We actually enjoy not having to deal with a car. The MRT is awesome, clean, easy, convienent and cheap. The buses less convienent, but also cheap and easy. We rarely take taxis, but when we do they are easy and affordable. Although they are terrible terrible drivers.

You want to meet other expat families? Live in a condo complex. Join a mom's club play group. Put your kids in a music/dance/swim class or something.

Rough budget per month in SGD:
Rent: $4-$6k (3 bed near green line MRT in east)
Food: $1k
Utilities: $300-$400 (aircon generally off at day and on for sleeping at night. Our condo is by a busy road which we find too noisy to sleep with windows open)
Cable/Internet: $100
5days a week full daycare: $1,500 per kid. Goes up a lot for private school Kindergarten.

Don't forget to save money for taxes, retirment, traveling, etc.
Also be prepared to throw away money like confetti when moving in for varies deposits and fees.

8 months in we're enjoying it here and glad we made the move. Hope that helps!

[Hannieroo]

I don't think there's anything silly about choosing and paying for a home that can accommodate your entire family. Or deciding not to move if you can't accommodate that family member. That's like leaving your children behind because the school fees are beyond you or can't be bothered with the paperwork.

Lots of dogs live in condos. They do just fine. Long haired dogs get clipped and they acclimatise much the way we do. My old boy preferred Texas and here over Scotland and Azerbaijan.

[Dert42]

I will respectfully disagree.
I think it silly to spend potentially thousands of dollars extra a month to accomodiate a pet. That money is better spend/invested on the actual human members of the household.
It's nothing like leaving a child behind because you can't afford them, because it's an animal, not a human.

And just because you can live in a condo with a dog, doesn't mean you should.

My cat meant a lot to me, but I realized the move and quarantine would be incredibly stressful on her, and uncessarily expensive.

[Tanuki]

I will respectfully disagree.
I think it silly to spend potentially thousands of dollars extra a month to accomodiate a pet. That money is better spend/invested on the actual human members of the household.
It's nothing like leaving a child behind because you can't afford them, because it's an animal, not a human.

And just because you can live in a condo with a dog, doesn't mean you should.

My cat meant a lot to me, but I realized the move and quarantine would be incredibly stressful on her, and uncessarily expensive.

We brought our cat and dog, but we aren't spending any extra rent money because of them. Granted, we skipped the HDB search due to the cat, but we prefer renting a condo anyhow for a number of reasons. The Pom gets as much exercise here as she did in the states, so that's not an issue at all.

Our daughters are all on there own now, so the 4-legged "kids" are the only family with us here. They've been with us for years now, and they're just as much a part of the family as the others. Leaving them behind was not an option to us. They actually breezed through the plane trip and quarantine (the AVA staff are quite friendly with the pets they take care of). It was a lot more stressful for us!

[Hannieroo]

There is nothing respectful about calling other people's choices silly.

I'm of the belief that when you make a commitment you stick to it and if cost or practicalities forbade my pets then they would prevent my move too. Loyalty, if you will. Although to be fair every pet I ever had was the result of somebody not following through.