We're going for it ...
 

Right, advice needed!! I've accepted an offer to work for an IT firm in NYC on an annual salary of $120k. My wife and seven-month-old son will be joining me. We're living in South London at the moment. Visas are all sorted, although my wife won't be able to work. I've been using city-data.com for advice, and the general consensus is we can afford up to $2,500 rent for a two-bed place in NYC. My big concern is lack of credit. We have £10,000 in savings to spend on relocation/resettlement. Here's what I'm after help with ...

1) Shipping. We're going to sell most of our belongings but still have small items of furniture & personal possessions we'd like to ship. Should I be looking at sharing a container or (considering the total amount will be pretty small) is air freight the way to go?

2) Rental. This is the big question. With no credit, and with the company unwilling to act as guarantors, what's the best thing to do. I have friends in NYC who reckon I could have to pay as much as six months rent in advance, which isn't ideal to say the least. Would brokers/landlords be happy with a letter from my employer stating my salary, along with a UK credit report, previous bank statements, etc?

3) Mobile phone. I'll get a mobile phone through work, but obviously I'd like my wife to have one too. How easy is it to sign up to an iPhone contract in the US with no credit, especially for my wife who will not be able to get a SSN? Should I apply for it in my name, giving my SSN, and then let her use it?

4) Cable/internet. Similar question to no. 3. Can I just ring AT&T, TimeWarner, etc, once in our apartment and sign up to a deal, or will the lack of credit again prove to be a problem?

5) Bank account. I'm with HSBC in the UK, does anyone know if I can set up a US HSBC account before I arrive in the US? I'm not an HSBC Premier account holder.

Apologies for all the questions, but it's taken us three weeks to take the plunge and accept the job offer, so it's time to get all the questions in our head answered!

Thanks in advance :)

Re: We're going for it ...
 

$120K will not go very far for 3 people in NYC. There are a few current threads on NYC at the moment that May interest you. Here's one of them...

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=831058

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Thanks Jerseygirl. Unlike the other poster, with a seven-month-old baby we won't need to concern ourselves with pricey restaurants, flash nights out, numerous cab journeys, etc! I should have also said that the company I'm working for will be paying our healthcare.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Which visa?

Re: We're going for it ...
 

$120,000 is doable for a family of three in and around NYC but it'll be relatively tight. You probably won't get better than a studio anywhere decent in Manhattan for $2,500 but you'd do better in Brooklyn, Queens or in the 'burbs like Westchester. We rented a 2/3 bed 1 & 1/2 bath apt in Tarrytown for $2,100 pcm from 2011-2013. One thing to note about living outside the city is that even though the commute would be longer and more expensive you might save overall by not having to pay NYC income tax.

We shipped about 17 tea-chest size boxes of stuff through Excess Baggage in 2011 for about £700.

It's going to depend on the landlord. If it's a corporate rental thdy are going to be more likely to want a bigger deposit up front in lieu of a credit history. Certainly a letter from your employer stating salary will be essential.

If you already have an iPhone, make sure it's unlocked and just get a PAYG SIM. In any case, PAYG is pushing out contracts these days, I think T-Mobile for instance only do PAYG now. If you do bring an iPhone from the UK bear in mind it will only work on T-Mobile or AT&T or a MVNO that uses them. Expect to pay around $40-$60 a month depending on how much data you require. Get Skype or another VOIP for calls back to the UK.

You may well have to put up a hefty deposit. If wherever you rent is capable of being served by more than one telco/cableco (e.g. cable or FiOS), you may have a bit more leeway to get competing quotes and negotiate down your preferred choice.

HSBC have a lot of branches around Manhattan at least. You'd best be asking them here first before you move.

Good luck!

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Check very carefully what is paid for and what you have to pay for yourself. Firstly does the company pay all the premiums for the three of you (rare) or do you have to cover part of it ($300pcm for the sort of plans a decent tech co might offer would be typical). You will also potentially have co-pays e.g. $10-$30 per doctor's visit, $10-$50 for prescriptions depending on the drug, and quite likely a deductible of a few thousand you have to pay yourself before the insurance co coughs up.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Since the spouse won't be allowed to work, I'm guessing H1B.

Rene

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Me too - the next question was going to be if it had already been submitted.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Yes, we have the H1 visas in hand

Re: We're going for it ...
 

If so, that was quick confirmation - they only did the 'we're so massively over-subscribed again' lottery on April 10th: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/B...w/33636553.cms

Edit: never mind, I see the OP says he has one. That WAS fast!

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Or from the USCIS web site.

USCIS received about 172,500 H-1B petitions during the filing period which began April 1, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption. On April 10, 2014, USCIS completed a computer-generated random selection process, or lottery, to select enough petitions to meet the 65,000 general-category cap and 20,000 cap under the advanced degree exemption. For cap-subject petitions not randomly selected, USCIS will reject and return the petition with filing fees, unless it is found to be a duplicate filing.

http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reac...015-h-1b-cap-0

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Don't underestimate the one-time start up costs of moving - £10,000 will not go far.

If you are paying all of your own relocation costs then you are looking at:

• air fares for you and your family
• shipping costs for whatever you decide to take
• cost of temporary accommodation and car rental when you first arrive
• first and last month's rent and security deposit for wherever you end up staying
• deposits for utilities
• furniture, bed linen, kitchen utensils, tv etc ...

... and, possibly, buying a car - but that will depend very much on where you end up living - in Manhattan a car will be more trouble (and more expensive to park) that it is worth, but if you end up further out at least one car may be a necessity ...

Re: We're going for it ...
 

This is my biggest concern at the moment. We move from East London to NYC in July. We have spoken to my wifes company and asked if they will be guarantor but they said no. The relocation team said we wont have an issue finding somewhere - but most post on here seem to indicate the opposite. However, they do move people fairly regulalry so I am inclined to believe them - just figure we may not have luck with every landlord and may also need to pay a few more months up front.

Get some quotes from companies. I got quotes from Greens Removals, Excess International Removers & DoreeBonner. All came in at around £550 for 100 cubic feet. They consolidate containers on your behalf - so you dont need to commit t a full or half container. I dont look at airfreight - just assumed it would be a lot more. Paying excess baggage may be a cheaper option for stuff you need urgently.

I think HSBC will still help you out even if you are not Premier - you may just need to pay!

Re: We're going for it ...
 

When trying to find an apartment in NYC, I would suggest that you go for a building that has a management office / leasing office on-site. That way, you can avoid paying the broker fees (usually at least 1 month's rent). Even some of the 'no-fee' apartments are not quite as advertised.

Our building also offers a reduced security deposit if you sign-up for electronic rent payment (rather than paying via a monthly 'check').

We rented an apartment without a guarantor and with no US credit history. We just needed to pay the 50% security deposit and provide proof of income. (A letter from the employer, stating salary, etc.)

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Thanks for the advice everyone. AlphaTangoMike, whereabouts is your building out of interest? And do you have any advice for finding buildings with on-site management/leasing offices?

I've spoken to HSBC (who I bank with in the UK) and they can open a US account for me with HSBC that comes with a debit card. It's a 'choice checking' account that needs a constant minimum of $1,500 in it to avoid fees. The good thing is they say it can be set up before I arrive in the US, and when I've found somewhere to live I can simply change the address linked to the account.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Greenwichlad - I'd prefer to not publicly announce my location. I'll send you a PM as the building management company owns several buildings in NY and other US cities.

You can also try the following:
http://www.tfc.com/
http://www.rockrose.com/
http://www.stonehengenyc.com/

Re: We're going for it ...
 

You might want to see if they can also provide you with a USA credit card.

When I moved to the USA (many moons ago) I was able to obtain a USA credit card before the actual move (by leveraging existing UK bank relationships).

If your employer is affiliated with a Credit Union, it may be worth opening an account there too. CU's are good for your credit history. I even took out a small $2K loan secured with money I deposited in a savings account. Then set up automatic payments for the loan from the savings account. The money went around in circles for a while and it cost me a little interest but it did wonders for establishing a good credit history.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

To give you an idea on Rental costs - there are some 2 beds in Maplewood/South Orange/Millburn on the MidTown Direct Train line for $2500 (30-40 min commute to NYC Penn Station. From $14 return).

Typically if you use an agent, upfront costs would be one month advance rent, one and half month security deposit, plus one month agent commission. All required at lease signing. Landlords can require employment verification and credit check.

Re: We're going for it ...
 

Do you know where you'll be working? If you're around midtown east, then you should consider Queens (Astoria, Sunnyside, Woodside, Jackson Heights, Forest Hills, Kew Gardens) - you could easily find a 2-bed apartment in your price range and the commute by subway is a bargain compared to London. Alternatively, places on metro-north into grand central could be good. If you're in midtown west, you can look at NJ transit or LIRR trains into Penn station. And if you're downtown, PATH trains from NJ could be good or Brooklyn (but it's expensive - you'd need to go a bit further out with your price range).

it's great that your employer covers your health insurance but check the co-pays and deductibles.

I think credit is less of an issue in NYC where they're more used to foreigners. I didn't have a problem.

The brokers ask for 15% of the annual rent, btw! It's a total con. You need to bargain them down before you start. Don't pay more than a month's rent.

We had an HSBC account in the UK and they didn't want to know here unless you were premium so it's good you managed to do that already. In the end, only Citibank and Chase would let us open accounts as non-US PRs. Like a previous poster, we used the credit union attached to my employer as it was the simplest option.