I've been approached about a job in Riyadh and have been finding this forum very useful to find out the pro's and con's of moving out there.

I spoke to the recruitment consultant again today and asked if the company would be able to help me get on to a compound. He said not many people live on the compounds anymore but there are certain areas where there are lots of ex-pats.

I was mainly concerned that my wife, teenage daughter and baby son would be housebound while we lived in Saudi, he tried to tell me that there would be lots of ex-pats living in these areas and they'd have no problem meeting new people.

From what I've read on here, that doesn't seem to be the case. How difficult would it be to get on to a compound?

Chris- seems to me your recruitment consultant wants his money at all costs - don't listen to him. Most expats want and try to live in compounds - there is a tiny minority of people who live off compounds. Your wife and kids will have no fun at all if they are not in a compound. The thing to get your head around is a compound isn't just simply a place to stay when you're over here - it's much more. It's a social network that will keep your wife and kids happy making friends and having something to do. It's a place where you can totally relax with people the same culture as you. They have lots of facilities - most have gyms, swimming pools, supermarkets, hair salons, restaurants - some even have golf courses and there are a lot of planned trips to keep your wife/ kids/you happy while you're here.

What's the drawback - well 2 drawbacks really:
1. They are normally quite expensive (I'm currently going around getting prices for compounds at the moment which I'll post in the near future ) - but for a good compound like Cordoba you're looking at 260-300k SAR/year - about £43-49K/year - whilst Ranco not one of the best compounds but still okay - you can get a 4 bed villa for 90K SAR /year.
2. The waiting lists in most compounds are very long, some are going into 18-24 months. Of course if you know friends of friends you can maybe get through the back door and it's really the luck of the draw if you're lucky to get on one quickly.

Take the advice of many on this website - make sure the company you are maybe going to work for uses its influence and gets you a place in a compound before you step foot on the plane.

Good luck- give me a shout if you need anything else.

Danajj is correct. I have been in Riyadh for 18 months now and have never met any expats who do not live on a compound. i have a busy and active social life (as do my wife and kids), and it is all compound related. Even the Embassy do's - I have been to the German, australian, USA, british and South african embassy's all through invites from fellow compoundee's. It would be a lonely and depressing existence for your wife and children. Insist on a Compound.

He's talking crap basically. With a teenager you need to live on a compound.

N

Yeap - that's recruitment consultants for you - some will say anything for their 20-25% cut of the first years salary. I knew I went into the wrong profession!

Again, have to agree that compound life will be better for your family. I have a teenage step daughter, and all her 'socialising' is based around either our compound or her going to friends compounds. Similarly, I've not met ANY UK expats, that don't live on a compound.

Hi all,
I'm a 23 yr old Male English teacher, moving to Riyadh in October, I was wondering if anybody had any knowledge of Compounds that are close to King Saud University, (as that is where I will be working). I noticed some prices on the earlier posts with regards to this snippet "about £43-49K/year" does this apply to Cordoba or another compound?

Also what are embassy Do's like ??