ER2015 wrote:Hello all, my company offered me a position in our Singapore office. Although I'm excited about the opportunity, I'd like to do a reality check before accepting the offer. Some facts are:
I'm single female in early 30's. No kids/spouse to support but would like to bring my 5-yr old dog
US citizen (will need to pay some US taxes)
Salary offered: $120,000 (us$)
One time relocation allowance: $10,000 (us$)
NO other allowance. Standard company policy, will be hard to negotiate
My questions are:
1. With this amount $, will I be able to rent a decent size apartment (>= 800sft) within 20 min (by public transportation) of work (near Great World in central area)?
2. Will I be able to have a "comfortable" lifestyle? I don't drink or party a lot but do enjoy eating out once in a while, and some regional travel
3. How easy is it to bring and live with a dog (medium to large size) in Singapore? Easy to rent a pet friendly apt? Is it easy to find dog walkers/sitters? Are there areas/parks that allow dogs to roam around off leash?
I'm currently living & working in NYC, which cost of living is considered comparable to Singapore. But I've also heard Singapore can be more expensive in a lot of ways. Therefore I'd like to make sure if I relocate to Singapore to work a few years, at least I'm not lowering my current standard of living. Any insights/suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!
E.R.
First, just to structure things, go with this template:
http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/viewtopic.php?t=101985 You've already answered some questions but maybe looking at it will help identify those that you haven't.
Just a ballpark guesstimate, you should be able to live a comfortable lifestyle. It seems that you'll be better off than most (being single and all) but YMMV of course; other posters would elaborate on that.
For places to rent, you can try looking at properties online (this forum is sponsored by a real estate agency). That way, you can survey the general prices and how properties are described/posted. You can then use Google Maps/Gothere.sg/use your favorite search engine to find other Singapore-based mapping websites to get travel directions to and from work.
Eating/drinking out every once in a while is definitely possible but that also depends on how much you will spend. You can use
http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/co ... York%2C+NY as a rough guide.
Regional travel is also in the cards; people making less than half of what you will can do it often enough; though, through budget airlines.
Dogs would be a bit of a problem, especially bigger ones. Some lease
property don't allow them, locals can be easily spooked by large-ish dogs and Muslims consider them haram (unclean). Your specifics, however make or break bringing a dog with you so use the search function to look for the previous discussions about dogs. For example, here's just an example with a cursory search:
http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/viewto ... inging+dog Other issues are identified in those threads already as well.
Not sure about lowering your standard of living but you definitely will need to change it. For example, expect no dishwashers. Learn to eat/cook local produce. "Everyone speaks English" isn't as straightforward as you've been told. That sort of stuff.
Other issues include:
* are you in it for professional mobility, adventure, cultural/professional experience or change of scenery?
* how long do you think you'd want to do this gig if you will accept it?
* do you plan to settle down soon?
* how much of the local culture would you be immersing yourself in? This includes general socializing and how corporate culture will entail you to adjust your usual approach in your job.
