Remuneration package - advise please!

[Anamika]

Hello all!

My husband has just been offered a senior level role with an IT major in Singapore. His remuneration package is 250,000 plus SGD per year with a major chunk of the package given as variable pay. Would 14k sgd per month be sufficient to live a comfortable lifestyle in Singapore?

We are a family of four from India and both our children would be attending Indian schools in Singapore. The company would not be taking care of the children's education expenses. We are planning to stay in the east considering the proximity to our children's school. I tried looking at other threads in the forum discussing salary packages but didn't find them very helpful, hence the post. Appreciate any advice, suggestions on the topic.

Thanks so much!

[sundaymorningstaple]

If you didn't find the dearth of threads discussing this topic helpful, then frankly, there isn't anything anybody could say here that would matter, other than just blowing smoke........

[Anamika]

Well, I didn't mean to say that the string of discussions in the forum were not entirely helpful, but in our case, the variable pay looks more impressive than the monthly take home. With two children, their education expenses and the rest to take care of, would 14k sgd per month be good enough? I am not sure how much the monthly pay will be after the tax deductions.As already said, the bonus looks very good though. We are not able to decide if this is the offer we should go for.

[BillyB]

Hello all!

My husband has just been offered a senior level role with an IT major in Singapore. His remuneration package is 250,000 plus SGD per year with a major chunk of the package given as variable pay. Would 14k sgd per month be sufficient to live a comfortable lifestyle in Singapore?

We are a family of four from India and both our children would be attending Indian schools in Singapore. The company would not be taking care of the children's education expenses. We are planning to stay in the east considering the proximity to our children's school. I tried looking at other threads in the forum discussing salary packages but didn't find them very helpful, hence the post. Appreciate any advice, suggestions on the topic.

Thanks so much!

There is an absolute ton of information on similar topics in this forum. Plucking a number out of mid air doesn't help anyone give you relevant answers.

What's your lifestyle? Comfortable to me is probably very different to you. Do you need a maid? Do you need a car? How much are school fee's? Do you drink? Do you dine out much? Do you have expensive taste? Do you need furniture? Does the company provide health insurance? Does the company pay for accommodation? Do you have financial commitments in India?

It's like asking how long is a piece of string......

[Anamika]

Thank you BillyB, Sundaymorningstaple for writing in. I understand, we would go through the discussions here in this forum over and again and arrive at a decision. Meanwhile, just got to know that the company is in the process of revising the offer which would help us get a more clearer picture on this.

Thanks again for your replies!

[Girl_Next_Door]

If you are from India and is staying in India now, your lifestyle will be significantly different in Singapore compared to India.

You will not have 3 maids and 2 drivers, while living on a 1 hectare land in Singapore. Nonetheless, many Indians still choose to come to Singapore to work, for many different reasons.

The most significant cost you faced would be
- Rent: This vary from $3K - $20K, depending on what sort of accommodation you are looking for.
- Car if you do decide to get one. Public transport is cheap and efficient.
- Education: I am sure you can find out the school fees by surfing around or giving the school a call.

You would have a reasonably comfortable lifestyle in Singapore but you will also read on the forum that there are people who earn $25,000 a month and they are struggling. A lot depends on yourself and how your family's lifestyle. A trip to Singapore will solve alot of answers.

[Anamika]

Thanks so much for your inputs, girl_next_door. After going through lots of discussion threads, we have got an idea about the expected monthly expenses and that would roughly add up to 9000 SGD, keeping in mind the high house rent and school fees for two children. The company is giving some housing allowance, not the entire rent though.Medical insurance for the entire family is covered by the company. We are expecting the revised offer in few days and are hopeful about the SG move.

Thanks again for your reply!

-Anamika

[sundaymorningstaple]

To wrap it up in a nutshell, the average Singaporean family unit has a household income of $5,200/mo. Of this they only get about $4,200/mo after deduction for CPF. Yes they have subsidized housing from the HDB but still at 350K up it still mean stiff payments even though a large portion of it comes out of their CPF account. But the average 3 bedroom HDB flat can be rented for around 2,800/mo so given that, it means the average household income would effectively be around 7K/mo. (4200 + 2800) And a high portion of them own at least one car. You would be surprised at the number of Beemer, Merc, & Lexus cars in HDB parking lots.

Granted they don't have to pay the high rates required for schooling so you would have to add that into the equation as well. The rest depends purely on your lifestyle.

[raja123]

Hi,

Could you post your husband's remuneration in his previous job in India? That could be helpful to see if he is going in for an equivalent remuneration or below-par.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Just use XE.com to convert. Or do you have a masters? If he goes for the same remuneration as he got in India, he couldn't survive in Singapore as the CoL here is much higher.

[Anamika]

Thank you so much everyone for your inputs. Things look very good now and we have decided on the move to SG early next year. This forum had been quite helpful in making us get a clear picture and understanding of the remuneration package needed for a Director level position. Thanks again!

- Anamika