Job Discussion Forums

[Jaheebus]

Thanks, helenl, for the prompt and helpful response. The frequent trips to Dubai would have been for my wife's employment, so those are no longer a factor. Therefore, if at all possible, I am hoping to not have a car, at least for the first academic year. Is this a reasonable hope? In other words, can a single person working at UAEU commute via cabs and buses in Al-Ain ?

Also, I did some checking on this and other forums, and I came up with AED 1500 per month for utilities (water, electric, tv and broadband). Does that sound right?

I have no idea how much to budget for a phone, mobile or landline I don't really care. I was planning to communicate with family in the states via skype or some other VOIP, which I realize I would have to configure before I get over there.

I am a good cook and don't need to eat out much, maybe once or twice a week as a "frill."

As I would be all by myself I am hoping to keep costs low, but I don't want to be too optimistic as it is very hard to get real definite numbers. Thanks,

[veiledsentiments]

One factor would be food... as long as you can do your own cooking. Eating out all the time gets too expensive. I'd say that the first couple months while you are buying what you need or want to settle in will probably be more expensive, but after that your budget should be good.

Since Al-Ain is not on the water, I don't even think you'd need to leave the AC running when you are on leave. Actually I didn't even do that in horribly humid Abu Dhabi and had no problems, though I had friends who did. But, Al-Ain is delightfully dry.

VS

[alsysgo]

I found eating out to be a lot cheaper than buying groceries. There are many Indian/Pakistani and Egyptian restaurants that offer full course meals for less than $6. You can buy a shawarma for 4 dirhams (Arabic fast food). I usually bought a rotisserie chicken and stretched it out over a few days (12 AED).

[helenl]

You can check out satellite and cable TV rates online (although I'm not sure if cable is available in Al Ain). OSNetwork is one of the satellite TV companies, and Etisalat's website should give you some insight on their cable and internet packages.

Skype will save you money - especially as you have family to stay in contact with.

As for the car - you may be able to car pool with someone from your place of work - I never found it to be completely convenient for either party. Renting a car for a couple of months can give you a better idea of whether or not your situation requires one on a 24/7 availability basis. Taxis are available but hailing one in 50+C heat during the hotter months gets really old really fast. You may be able to arrange a regular driver for your daily commute at a reasonable rate.

[veiledsentiments]

[Geronimo]

Hello Jaheebus,

Here are a few links to websites that expats in Al Ain
can take advantage of...

http://alainexpat.com/ ,

http://www.myoasisliving.com/

http://groups.google.com/group/nialanews/topics ,

http://twitter.com/#!/AlAinEnthusiast ,

http://abudhabi.dubizzle.com/ ,

and my friend, TED...

http://tedxalain.posterous.com/ .

Geronimo

[Neutrino Girl]

Jaheebus, make sure to pick up an International Driver's License before you come over (you can get one at AAA if you are in the US). I forgot to do this and wasn't allowed to rent a car until my visa came through.

Taxis are doable and lots of people get around by them, but if you are at the Maqam Campus at UAEU you will either have to arrange a specific taxi to pick you up every day or walk quite a distance in the heat to wait by the main road to try and flag one down. That could take ages.

I would definitely recommend getting a car here for the sake of convenience and to avoid long waits for taxis in the heat. You could rent to start with and then buy...banks here will give you a car loan as well with fairly low interest rates. During your orientation here the university will bring a bank or two in to help you open an account and discuss things like car loans. It is all very organized.

Groceries are quite expensive here, but still cheaper than eating out if you aren't keen on frequenting the cheap eateries. My husband and I are not keen because of hygiene issues and the fact that we like to eat healthily, so we are pretty selective about where we eat. Having said that, Al Ain is far cheaper than cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi when it comes to enjoying restaurant food.

Electricity and water are dirt cheap as they are subsidized by the government, but Etisalat's cable and internet packages are much more expensive than what you would spend at home (for inferior service to top it off). You can check out their website to get an idea. Probably the cheapest package you can get is their e-Life package. It's still sub-par, but since they own the telecommunications monopoly in the UAE there's not much we can do!

[lizziebennet]

OSN is available in Al Ain and it has a whole lot of different options from HD packages to sports packages.

[mimi_intheworld]

With your wife and children staying home, this is plenty. I am a secondary school teacher, had half that furniture allowance, a significantly smaller monthly pay cheque, and didn't get a "relocation allowance". If they pay for your annual flights, take the offer. You can sae a lot, pay your bills and still live comfortably here on that income.

[Dominic-Pax]

[johnslat]

Dear Dominic_Pax,

I dollar = 3.67310 AED

"$25,000 with housing not great?"

"Salary: 262,944 Dirhams per annum (21,912 AED per month)
Housing: Provided by University
One-time Furniture Allowance: 40,000 AED
Educational Allowance: Max of 15% of salary per year (39,441 AED)
Relocation Allowance: 2,000 AED"

I could be wrong here - but aren't you confusing $s with Dirhams?

Regards,
John

[Eisenhorn]

John.

That is still almost $6k US a month. With free housing, house decorating allowance, yearly airfare, no taxes and minimal bills.

I would say that is a pretty good salary ANYWHERE in the world. But that may just be me. (I dont' make that much a month... I'm in the 16K range at HCT).

If he is single and living slightly modestly, he can easily send back about 12 to 14K a month.

[helenl]

The OP may want to check the tax implications where he is in UAE and his dependents are in the US.

Being Canadian I'm not up to snuff on US tax law but in Canada he would be subject to taxes because his dependents are resident in the US. Something to check before making the jump.

Also, are housing, tickets, medical, etc. lumped into the income equation?

[Geronimo]

In addition to etisalat...
http://www.etisalat.ae/index.jsp

there is du...
http://www.du.ae/en/about/events/WMF

du is just as expensive as etisalat, but
at least it's more musical!

(That's called "giving credit where it's du" )

Geronimo

[Tom Le Seelleur]

One question that everyone has missed. Have you ever been away from your wife and kids for up to 4- 5 months without seeing them? Have you considered the fact that if you leave you might end up divorced - your wife would lose your support at home and believe me bringing up kids alone is a lot harder. Have you also factored in the human cost of being away from your kids and not see them grow up, hitting milestones, that kind of thing. Alone in Al Ain away from your loved ones takes the brave and sometimes leads to depression and/or extra marital relationships on both sides. Be sure that if you come to Al Ain, there will be someone waiting for you when you get back. Money is NOT worth it if your family breaks up or you get back and the two of you have moved apart.