Moving to Singapore
 

Hi All,

Hoping you wonderful people can help me with moving to Singapore.

I am going to be offered a role in Singapore and before I accept the offer, I want to make sure that I am taking into account the cost of living and various other issues people run into whilst living in SG. Would be good to get some info on things you've experienced that you weren't aware of when moving.

If I do accept I will be moving with my wife and 2 kids, aged 6 and 7, my OH and kids won't be joining me straight away, they will join once the kids have finished the academic school year which will be July.

I'd like to know your experiences of British schools and how the fees work. What's the crime rate like in SG? What about driving, do you need to convert british license? Is it expensive to hire a car?

My office will be near the Marina/Downtown Core, for a family of 4, where would be a good place to live bearing in mind we may not opt for a car and will have school runs to do. I would also appreciate any feedback from you on what sort of salary I would need to cover these costs.

Thanks,
Shoaib

Re: Moving to Singapore
 

Hi Shoaib, unfortunately this is not a very lively forum these days but hopefully somebody with more recent experience than me will drop in and give you some up-to-date advice. We left in 2008 after six very happy years there, don't have kids, chose to live in a run-down shophouse in Geylang - so not really much help to you!

I will say (to quote the marketing friend that coined the phrase) - it's low crime, not no crime. I felt very safe walking the streets alone at night (and I lived in the red light district) but didn't follow the local practice of leaving my bag on a table in a food court to chope (reserve) it.

We never had a car, just took taxis or public transport, but then didn't have to do a school run.

A lot of my friends with children lived in cluster houses - townhouses in condo type complexes. Google "cluster houses Singapore" for some good information (sorry I can't link to it here).

Don't underestimate the cost of healthcare - if you're getting an expat package, make sure it's covered.

Re: Moving to Singapore
 

Many of your questions have been answered before.

Even answers a few years old won't be outdated so do a search.

You don't give sufficient info about your job to give a detailed reply. The way you state it it sounds like you can ask for any salary you want.

I'll just say, find the school you want for your kids first. Accommodation, car requirements etc will fall in to place from that.

We live opposite a school and parents are dropping their kids off by car before 6-30am.

Re: Moving to Singapore
 

Maybe it's too late to answer some of these questions as time has past but I'll go ahead anyway

- Usually, schools have wait lists, which you are probably aware of by now. All International schools are expensive, British, American, International, you name it are way overpriced, but they have us over a barrel. If you can get this paid in your package it will save a lot.

- Singapore is one of the safest places in the world. Very little crime and a great place to raise children due to the relaxed nature of safety here.

- If you plan on buying or hiring a car you will need to convert your British licence to a Singapore licence by doing a theory test. Cars are incredibly expensive and a luxury. Public transport is very efficient however when you have two children believe me having a car makes life much easier. You can hire for around $2k a month sometimes a little less or a lot more, depending on model and age and depending on what company you use. Again if your company is generous try get them to pay. In the good old days, this used to be the case, not so much anymore.

- If you have now decided on a school, then maybe we could give you a better idea of where would be more convenient for your workplace and school

- Regarding salary, do keep in mind Singapore is expensive. Housing, education and car are your three main expenditure's. Food is more expensive than home and keep in mind your visits home, airfares etc. It's an expensive place to live so you need to be earning a good salary if you want to be saving anything.