relocation costs
 

Hi All,

Hoping someone can give me help -

I am currently negiotiating a package to move to Florida. I am wandering what to ask for for relocation costs.

I am married with 1 child, Home owner (in I think a static housing market).

I know there will be travelling costs and I will not take many items (most elec goods no good anyway) so this will all have to be factored in.

Has anyone any experience of this and figures offered to them by their companies?

This will probably be L1 visa with future greencard.

Many Thanks

Re: relocation costs
 

Depends a lot on circumtances - we got a container paid for - hotel for a few weeks, help finding house and a company car. Also get 1 flight home a year and we had a 10% of salary tax free bonus to help with settling in. The shipping was the big one!

Re: relocation costs
 

- look/see visit before move (maybe a week)
- packing and shipping of stuff
- replacement of items that aren't worth taking (elec. goods plus anything replaceable that would cost more to ship)
- tax preparation (say, 3 years)
- we got expat medical package with no deductibles
- rental car for first couple of months
- cost of driving test, licence etc.
- hotel/apartment/condo for first couple of months
- return flights to UK (say, once per year for all family members for first few years)
- closing costs for sale of UK house (if that's what you're doing)
- general assistance in setting up new bank accounts, utilities, social security numbers etc. a huge plus
- all costs associated with visas (goes without saying)

Oh, and make sure they gross up for tax purposes so you don't end up with the tax liability for any of this!

I'm sure others will add....

Good luck! :)

Re: relocation costs
 

Thanks for the replies.

I suppose my biggest worry is the house. I will have to sell it, and thats pretty tough at the moment. It would not pay for itself at all in rent.

Re: relocation costs
 

You may want to ask for help with that, if you can check what the US inter-state relocation package is like as at my husband's firm they buy the house if it doesn't sell within a certain time but it's only for US confined relocations. But if your firm has something similiar then you have a basis to negotiate from.

In our case we didn't get a 'relocation package'. We got a cash sum 'sign-on bonus' which was to pay for it all, and it all worked out fine. Plus it was tax-deductible at the end of the year rather than if they had paid for it all, which wouldn't have been.

Re: relocation costs
 

When I do the sums I guess it will end up costing the company in the egion of $30-$40K - it just seems a high figure!!

Re: relocation costs
 

It's not.

What ever you think it'll be, ask for more as you'll get less and moving countries, especially if it's only for a few years will be bloody expensive.

Re: relocation costs
 

Definitely all adds up. Our package includes:

All Visa Costs
Family Travel to US
Shipping (40 ft container)
Air Freight (500lb)
Insurance & 30 days storage for above
$5,000 taxable settling-in allowance
Relocation Co. to help with destination services (bank, houses etc.)
Rental Car for 30 days
Subsistence Allowance for 30 days
1st Years Tax Prep

Co. wouldn't pay towards medical or co. car but hubby negotiated higher salary and a signing on fee to compensate for cost of both. And he gets to keep his 5 weeks hols!!!

Also we get repatriation costs as it is only a 3 year contract initially (removals back home, travel, re-settlement allowance) and of course they have to give him a job if we return.

We were determined that the move wouldn't leave us out of pocket. Only things we had to pay were mortgage redemption costs and estate agents fees but they are covered from the sign on bonus.

Agree with Bob - hubby hoping the more it costs the co. to move us out there the better the chance they will keep us there to recoup their outlay. Bearing in mind that they paid for us all to go out for a week in August 'on their dime' and hubby has been back and forth on expenses since then.

Re: relocation costs
 

We did it all ourselves for $6k (excluding flights) and if you count the deductible on my tax refund we actually came out in pocket rather than out. That was for us two and our 3 year old. We used the proceeds of selling off pretty much everything we owned before to buy new stuff here. The cost of selling our house came out of what profit we made.

If you have to do it cheaply you can. If you don't have to then don't as it's a lot of work!

In our case the move was really at our instigation and it was worth it to get what we wanted. We wouldn't have accepted those terms to move somewhere we weren't trying to get to.

Re: relocation costs
 

I agree with the "ask for everything" approach.

Our move is (semi) permanent rather than a 2/3 yr deal, but we still got:

- Visits (2 for me, 1 for the wife), including airfare, hotels, car rental
- One-way flights for the move
- Cash allowance (sufficient to cover costs of shipping/packing etc)
- Car rental for the first couple of weeks

Re: relocation costs
 

Keep your receipts for EVERY SINGLE THING you spend and buy and log it in a spreadsheet. Yep, from the coke in the airport to the fridge in your kitchen as nearly all of it can be written off against your tax return as "job relocation" expenses.

And if you wonder how I know this, our former-IRS accountant re-did all our expenses and tax returns and found us tens of thousands of dollars not claimed by the company accountants. The company cares about keeping you legal, your CPA cares about getting your money back if you are due it - he did an excellent job and it was all legal and above board.

Re: relocation costs
 

we got about $36k cash allowance (protected so no tax liability either) for 2 adults and 2 kids. That had to pay for reccie flights and accomodation, hotel accom on arrival, hire car, new white goods, rent deposits and any incidentals.

On top of that we got the following paid for:
the actual one way flights over to emigrate (business class),
a 40 ft sea freight container
a 6 ft air freight container
US tax preparation year 1 and final year
all visa costs
relocation consultant service at the US end
2 days cultural training in the us once we arrived

hubbies salary package includes family medical and dental, etc.

Re: relocation costs
 

Everything you spend out of your own pocket that the employer doesn't reimburse you for (in the amount they will list on your W2 as relocation expenses) can be tax deductible. You have to be able to show the receipt if asked. In principle that shouldn't really be anything as the idea is to not be out of pocket in the first place.

Re: relocation costs
 

Thanks everyone for your responses, this gives me something to work with!

Re: relocation costs
 

bump!