How do expats feel about living in Singapore?

[Lisafuller]

smoulder, excellent question. I'm guessing they would have to be on an employment pass of one sort or another. If it's been exchanged for PR I don't think they qualify technically, although mentally I'm sure they want to be considered 'expat' for face, perchance. I've been a PR for over 27 years and been on the Little Red Dot for over 40 years now. I have more blood relatives here than I do in the US now. I've been on the fence for over 20 years now. Still don't know what I am, but I doubt it is Expat at this juncture.

Perhaps you were an expert at the start, but when you've been here for half your life, you're basically a Singaporean.

[Lisafuller]

I like it and am now officially back. However, if I were planning on having kids with my partner, I would be looking elsewhere. I also think rental costs make having a partner nicer too because it helps for rental costs.

It seems that it has become a very challenging climate potentially for expats with families or who intend to have families. It also seems less attractive as a single person unless said person is on a very high wage. This could be seen as a bit of a snapshot in time regarding some of these points I suppose.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Where did you live before SG?

[Lisafuller]

Singapore is not a melting pot - it is more like a quilt where each distinct piece of cloth joins together to form the whole quilt design.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Beautiful example, so true. But there are instances where different cultures meld together, so perhaps some of the thread is borrowed from square to square.

[Lisafuller]

To me, even after being here for 13+ years, the main thing that matters is how much I am saving each year. Thats all. So far including this year the trend has been rising. Here is my annual savings over the years in '000 SGD and my networth.



This year has been my highest savigns so far, the increased rentals havent hit me yet, my renewal is only in Sept next year. I have saved a total of 870k since 2009 and my networth has grown to 1257k. This year markets were bad, so networth is down.

I take things on a yearly basis and as long as I am saving like 70k+ a year, I think I will be happy.

Wow, you do a great job keeping track of your accounts. Are your savings invested? Or in a bank?

[Lisafuller]

Wd40, I suspect your daughter might be somewhere in the middle of being able to fit right in if she moves to India and being able to socialize well with "true blue" Singaporean kids. Just watching TV and exposure through that is not sufficient.

Agree, there is some thing about actually living and being immersed in the culture overseas that cannot be replaced with anything else.

[Lisafuller]

Wd40, I suspect your daughter might be somewhere in the middle of being able to fit right in if she moves to India and being able to socialize well with "true blue" Singaporean kids. Just watching TV and exposure through that is not sufficient.

TV is one part, food is another, culture, festivals it is everything. All these you acquire while you grow up and the settings you are in. I dont think 1st generation migrants would ever be able to integrate. You can make local friends and all that but it is all superficial at the end of the day. I would say my daughter would fit 80% perfectly in Indian settings and less than 20% in Singapore settings.

Singapore is a bit like Dubai in my opinion. Kids of foreigners can live here all their life but they will perfectly fit in when they go back to their home country, even if they never lived there. While in Singapore they will always remain foreigners, even if they live here all their lives.

I see your point, but I slightly disagree. My daughter has said that she feels too white to be Singaporean which makes it hard for her to fit in here, but when she goes back to the US, she is seen by some as foreign, which makes it hard for her to fit in there. She sounds American, looks American, and we've taken long, regular trips back to Miami every year, with the exception of Covid so there is no lack of immersion. Still, something is missing, but I think she'll find it when she moves back for college.

[jwoods1864]

I like it and am now officially back. However, if I were planning on having kids with my partner, I would be looking elsewhere. I also think rental costs make having a partner nicer too because it helps for rental costs.

It seems that it has become a very challenging climate potentially for expats with families or who intend to have families. It also seems less attractive as a single person unless said person is on a very high wage. This could be seen as a bit of a snapshot in time regarding some of these points I suppose.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Where did you live before SG?

I was in Australia and Peru before Singapore. I was in Singapore from 2017/2021 and returned to Northern Ireland for a year or so and now I am back. I really missed the food and the weather! I am glad that the covid rules are not as restrictive because I was pretty glad to leave in 2021.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Lisafuller]

I like it and am now officially back. However, if I were planning on having kids with my partner, I would be looking elsewhere. I also think rental costs make having a partner nicer too because it helps for rental costs.

It seems that it has become a very challenging climate potentially for expats with families or who intend to have families. It also seems less attractive as a single person unless said person is on a very high wage. This could be seen as a bit of a snapshot in time regarding some of these points I suppose.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Where did you live before SG?

I was in Australia and Peru before Singapore. I was in Singapore from 2017/2021 and returned to Northern Ireland for a year or so and now I am back. I really missed the food and the weather! I am glad that the covid rules are not as restrictive because I was pretty glad to leave in 2021.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

2019-21 was hell! Such a relief to be living the way we are now.