pratt123

Hey everyone.

We are a family of 4 (kids aged 3 and <1) currently living in the UK. We've always wanted to have a stint in DXB to see what things were like and my wife has just been verbally offered a role there to potentially start in the summer. We are considering how to make it work with two young kids and my job based in the UK. Initial thoughts are to move over for a year or two, with her working from the office there whilst I still continue to work for my UK employer, but from Dubai (WFH). Not ideal but we think it could work for a year or two.

She has just received a verbal offer from someone in her network, nothing formal yet, but initial offer was c 38k-40k, with a relocation package too (not sure how much this is). She was also told there won't be an accommodation allowance.

Couple of questions please.

1) Would 40k be enough for all 4 us over there? The aim is to have my UK salary paid into UK bank account to take care of fixed costs here, with the rest into savings. So we would need all Dubai expenses to be covered with her salary. We really just want the experience, so not too concerned even if we can't save a lot in the next year or two.

2) What else should she negotiate as part of the package please? School allowance, medical cover for the 4 etc?

3) Is it all worth the move I suppose? Appreciate its personal, but any steer on current state of affairs would help.

Many thanks!
Pratt

Millhouse

Can be done but will be tight. To put it in perspective.

rent for a 3 bed rabbit hutch, 120k
rent for 4 bed rabbit hutch: 150k
utilities: 25k per year.
nursery fees per kid: 40k per year.
Live in nanny/housemaid : 50k per year all in.


last point looks like a luxury but with no family network, it soon becomes an essential. The rest is not that expensive, some more some less. Gets expensive when you fly all the kids around, or take them out for entertainment.

flares

Kids are at a great age to go for it. Mine were 18 months and -6 months when we moved over 'for two years'. Ended up staying nine years. YOLO

Millhouse

for sure. Literally the only thing keeping me here right now is two kids under 2. Best place for them at least for the next couple of years.

pratt123

Thanks for the responses both. Any suggestions on what we should try and negotiate as part of the package?

We were thinking a 3 bed flat to begin with in all honesty, as a Villa/town house seems steep. Moreover, we live in a town house now, and kind of wanted to experience a nice-ish flat for a change (don't ask me why!).

The kids' age - that was clearly something we'd considered too as if not now, then it only gets harder when our elder one's started school etc.

Any other tips/considerations would be much appreciated!

Gracias,
Pratt

DXBtoDOH

40k will be livable if you also have UK income coming in. You'll only need nursery fees for the eldest if in the UAE for only 2-3 years.

Flat is a better option. I'd look into the Greens/Views or the Marina. Greens/Views is greener and less busy and more of a family feel. Marina is busier but has more amenities (shops and restaurants) although Greens is only a few minutes away and has a nice small shopping centre with cafes. Rents seem to be extremely reasonable at the moment and I glanced at the property portals and it looks like you can get a 3-bed for 100-125kish. Always attempt to negotiate. Apartments will have vastly cheaper utilities bills than villas. Greens/Views and most Marina towers are "chiller-free" which means your A/C is included as part of the rent and not a separate surcharge, a very important financial differential in the Gulf. Downtown around Dubai Mall is also another option. But always ask your property agent to confirm the building is chiller free or not.

As for having a maid, it's not strictly necessary. Plenty of families survive without one. Cleaners are quite cheap and can come weekly. I still see the advantage of having some kind of help but keep in mind we're talking about a young Filipino girl from a ditchwater fishing village without any quals. Nothing inherently wrong with it, but you're not getting a Norland nanny. And not everyone wants a full time stranger living in their house.

It could be a good adventure. Go for it!

flares

Use of 'Moreover' in sentence structure - you should fit in fine

hnd

Medical/health cover for the family. Being unwell, let alone seriously ill, can be extremely expensive. Don’t forget that there’s no NHS - everything has to be paid for.

Millhouse

If no housemaid, both working and no Filipino nanny, how will the kids get fed etc. They will need a live-in.

Also the set up costs.

pratt123

Thank you v much for the detailed response! Wife s office is likely to be near the Media city, so we ll probably end up looking for something near that (IF we decide to take the plunge of course!)

pratt123

Haha! Is that a good thing or a bad thing?!😅

pratt123

Thank you. Will definitely negotiate medical cover, if not part of the package already.

DXBtoDOH

He is working remotely from home, no?

Nursery for working hours. Cleaners once or twice a week. I imagine that can work.

How do you think people in the UK survive? Not everyone has family nearby.

You're better qualified than I am at calculating the costs of nursery fees versus a live in maid. I can see pros and cons to both approaches. Advantage of a maid is availability and probably does work out more cheaply than two sets of nursery fees. Disadvantage is having a stranger living in your house, maids are trickier in apartments as maid's rooms are not common unless it's a windowless shoebox, not all maids are equal, and you get to the point where you're paying nursery fees on top of having a maid too. But the flexibility in coming up with a childcare arrangement that works for the family is unquestionably easier (and cheaper) in the UAE than the UK.

Johnnyboy11

Don't forget to factor 2x pensions into the mix, and potential UK income tax liability on worldwide income unless confirmed UK non resident (that'll be no sooner than 6th April 2023 unless you leave the UK before Tuesday).

pratt123

Oh, I didn't know she d have to pay tax on income received abroad too in the UAE as it's tax free and she has no other income here currently? Plan is to genuinely relocate for a couple of years.

And re pensions, did you mean she d have to pay in UAE and the UK NI for state pension?

Apologies for clearly basic questions here!