Suggested monthly income for family of 4

[Marcjandrell]

Hi there, I'm hoping someone here can give me some advice. My wife and I have been given the possibility of moving to Singapore but we have no idea of how much we need to be earning to live relatively comfortably. We have 2 kids (age 4 & 6) which we'd like to send to International School and we'd prefer the space of a house vs a condo. We do go out from time to time to restaurantsand enjoy a holiday a couple of times a year.

Please could someone give us an idea of how much we'd need to be earning to not take a hit in terms of std of living.

Thanks in advance

[Barnsley]

Hi there, I'm hoping someone here can give me some advice. My wife and I have been given the possibility of moving to Singapore but we have no idea of how much we need to be earning to live relatively comfortably. We have 2 kids (age 4 & 6) which we'd like to send to International School and we'd prefer the space of a house vs a condo. We do go out from time to time to restaurantsand enjoy a holiday a couple of times a year.

Please could someone give us an idea of how much we'd need to be earning to not take a hit in terms of std of living.

Thanks in advance

What is your current standard of living?

[Marcjandrell]

We currently live outside London. We have 2 cars and I have a motorbike (Harley davidson) We go out to restaurants fairly regularly 2/3 times a month. We have a 3 bed house with a big garden and d say we live very comfortably. If we want something we get something (within reason). We do t wear lots of designer labels bit dress fairly well. Think we'd be classed as "upper middle class". We go on one big holiday and several shorter long weekends every year.
Does that answer your question?

[x9200]

Your main expenses will be the rental of a landed property, probably 15-30k or more monthly, and Int. schools ca 60-100k annually. 2 cars and a motorbike, 2-10k monthly depending on your aspirations. Medical insurance, 10-30k annually and ca 10k monthly for anything else. mentioned or assumed. If you want a big garden, then my guess would be closer to 100k for the rental. Landed properties (i.e. semi-D or terrace houses) starts with something around 5k what has nothing that can be called a garden. Finding something reasonable (a garden that may accommodate a small "portable" swimming pool) within 10-15k may be possible but not sure how likely to happen.

From a different angle: living in Singapore is not expensive unless you have some extravagant habits, so if you would be willing to compromise on rental you can pretty much figure out the rest by yourself. Or yet differently, just factoring in some standard expanses (media, utilities, groceries, clothing etc etc), a standard upper-middle class family of 4 can easily and comfortably live on a 5-8k budget. Going out 2-3x a month to a more fancy, high end restaurant should cost you $300-700 a trip for 2 adults. This is more like an upper range. Car lease is ca 2-3k a month for some standard class, small-middle sized car.
All the rest you may figure out by yourself - use for example this site, for estimation of the rental prices. Chose the int. school and check their fees. Consider holiday destination and use some popular travel sites to estimate the costs. There are also some medical brokers sites to give you a good ideas on medical insurance. A minimum for a full coverage (almost) may start at 5k per year per person depending on the age.

[brian_singapore]

Also be aware living in Singapore is a bit different from living in the Uk (I've lived in both); for instance public transit is extensive and convenient and childcare is dirt cheap. Cars, property and school fees (if you don't want to send your kids to local schools) are very expensive. So is alcohol.

If you try to replicate your current situation in the UK in Singapore, you'll never get by on an upper-middle class salary. If you adjust for the differences of living in Singapore, you can have a very comfortable, upper-middle class life in Singapore. I owned a car in the UK but haven't bothered to buy one here and I don't think I will... public transit gets me most places most of the time and if I need a car for something (such as bringing home groceries) I use a taxi which is very cheap. My taxi costs are about 1/3rd of what I'd pay for a car.

Also be aware the tax rates in Singapore are a lot lower then the UK. I'm fond of telling my friends back home that everything I save in taxes (I pay about 1/5 of what I would pay back home) I spend on school fees and rent. So these help offset the higher costs in other areas to a large degree.

I would also recommend taking a trip out to Singapore for a couple of weeks to get a feel for the place. The property websites (including this one) can provide a ton of useful information on rentals and other standard relocation questions and concerns.

[zzm9980]

Don't assume you'll get your kids into a local school, so be sure to budget for an International School. Acceptance rates for foreigners seems to hover around 50-60% with little rhyme or reason as to 'why'.

[ButtheadE]

I would say $40K+ in a condo is comfortable.

[singaporeflyer]

I would say $40K+ in a condo is comfortable.

Why did you reply to a 3 years old thread?

[Strong Eagle]

I would say $40K+ in a condo is comfortable.

Why did you reply to a 3 years old thread?

With a completely erroneous conclusion... unless he was referring to $40K per month.

[tiktok]

So a condo costs maybe 5k. What the hell are you going to spend 35k a month on?