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Grendal
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Posts: 861
Location: Lurking in the depths of the Faisaliah Tower underground parking.
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 Posted: Thu Aug 19, 2010 7:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Emile Cioran wrote: |
I've looked at flat listings and I saw a family apartment going for like 1,666 SAR a month so please forgive me but I really don't understand why anyone is telling me that I need a minimum of 3,000 SAR a month for a dump. Perhaps the'666' is significant?  Seriously though, that's how much it was advertised at and there were cheaper places than that in the offering. |
furnitured or unfurnitured?
Grendal |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Thu Aug 19, 2010 8:00 pm Post subject: |
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Dear Emile,
" . . please forgive me but I really don't understand why anyone is telling me that I need a minimum of 3,000 SAR a month for a dump."
One possibility: because we're been there (or are there) and know what an "apartment" with a rent of SR1,666 a month would look like.
And we forgive you.
Regards,
John |
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 12:29 am Post subject: |
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I don't have a very vivid imagination; can you paint a little mental picture for me please, John?
I don't need to live in a salubrious area or in an ultra-modern flat. Just a place to sleep, shower, read, surf the net and throw the occassional wild booze-fuelled party (I'm joking about the last one; you see, I DO have a sense of humour! 
11,000 SAR a month represents to me (at this stage in my life) a decent salary and good saving potential - even if I DO have to pay 3,000 SAR a month on rent. You can see that my academic qualifications and TEFL experience is very mediocre compared to many posters here - so I don't consider myself to be able to attract top dollar (or even of being worthy of being able to do so for that matter).
I know I could have negotiated my salary with the recruiter but I was so, so passive when we discussed salary expectations. I'm not normally such a wallflower but I really hate what basically boils down to haggling and I find it a very alien and unsettling thing to do. Still, if I do go to Jeddah I really need to start thinking about how I'm going to cope with very alien ideas.
At the end of the day, I do have a job offer and they want me to fly out on the 28th Sep. It is tempting to sign the contract because the pluses are significant (4 months of fully paid annual leave a year for starters). In addition, I wouldn't have to adopt once againe the whole 'sell myself philosophy' which, I personally find, a little distasteful, in order to attract potential employers. But maybe I need to work on these 'character flaws' and heed people's advice here. Thanks everybody for your input (yes, even the 'coming/going' guy!  I look forward to the possibilty of some more advice and/or perspectives.
Cheers |
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 6:41 am Post subject: |
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| Grendal: I don't know whether it was furnished or unfurnished. Every flat I've ever moved into in my life has has always had the basics I needed to live in them |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:48 am Post subject: |
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| Grendal: I don't know whether it was furnished or unfurnished. Every flat I've ever moved into in my life has has always had the basics I needed to live in them |
That's all very well, but it's the norm in Saudi Arabia for flats to be unfurnished. So unless the ad states otherwise, I would assume this flat is unfurnished. Which can mean it lacks even basic kitchen equipment and even an air-conditioning unit!
If you're happy to live like that in a Jeddah summer, then your needs are very basic indeed! |
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Geronimo
Joined: 11 Apr 2007
Posts: 498
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 11:49 am Post subject: |
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Yes, very interesting links. Thank you Geronimo.
I see that even though one poster's rent doubled it was still at 12,000 SAR per year for a single accommodation. Not too bad considering my salary will be 9,000 SAR per month.
It does sound a very cut-throat culture though, doesn't it? It springs to mind Richard Dawkin's observation that the presence of religion doesn't necessarily make people behave more nicely to one another.
Of course, I will need air-con, Cleopatra. I'm not a sado-masochist! From what I can gather you need to add 25% on to the original cost for a furnished accommodation. So that would make it 15,000 SAR a month for a furnished one bed flat in Jeddah then? That would suffice. |
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 11:52 am Post subject: |
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| Sorry, I mean my salary would be 11,000 SAR a month. |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 12:17 pm Post subject: |
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| It does sound a very cut-throat culture though, doesn't it? |
Well, not really. Like anywhere else, you get landlords who'll try to exploit tenants, and new arrivals are particularly vulnerable. At the risk of sounding trite, there are decent people and lousy people here, like everywhere else.
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| It springs to mind Richard Dawkin's observation that the presence of religion doesn't necessarily make people behave more nicely to one another. |
I dont think we need Prof. Dawkins to tell us that.....!
| Quote: |
| From what I can gather you need to add 25% on to the original cost for a furnished accommodation. |
The problem isn't so much the expense as the fact that furnished apartments are just very hard to find, especially one-bedroom places. Basic furniture is very cheap in KSA, if you know where to look and aren't too fussy. It's things like AC and basic kitchen appliances such as washing machines which are expensive. Some unforunshed' apartments do come with AC and basic appliances, but many, particularly brand new places, have little other than the four walls.
| Quote: |
| So that would make it 15,000 SAR a month for a furnished one bed flat in Jeddah then? That would suffice. |
SR15000 for an apartment? And you'll be earning SR11000? Shurely shome mishtake? |
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:25 pm Post subject: |
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Date: Thursday, August 19, 2010
Category: Apartments/Flats/Houses
Region: Jubail
Description: Single (big) room, furnished with AC, single bed, cupboard, curtain, TV with disc connection, internet connection, fully carpeted with attached bathroom & small gallery (can be used for cooking space) available near Al-Dahaiyah Super Market / SHOALA Petrol Pump.
Only for decent Indian family or bachelor. This is a side room in family apartment & has a separate entrance.
Rent @1200 SAR/month including electricity, internet & water charges.
What's wrong with this offer John? |
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Emile Cioran
Joined: 15 Aug 2010
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:30 pm Post subject: |
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| Cleopatra wrote: |
| Quote: |
| It does sound a very cut-throat culture though, doesn't it? |
Well, not really. Like anywhere else, you get landlords who'll try to exploit tenants, and new arrivals are particularly vulnerable. At the risk of sounding trite, there are decent people and lousy people here, like everywhere else.
| Quote: |
| It springs to mind Richard Dawkin's observation that the presence of religion doesn't necessarily make people behave more nicely to one another. |
I dont think we need Prof. Dawkins to tell us that.....!
| Quote: |
| From what I can gather you need to add 25% on to the original cost for a furnished accommodation. |
The problem isn't so much the expense as the fact that furnished apartments are just very hard to find, especially one-bedroom places. Basic furniture is very cheap in KSA, if you know where to look and aren't too fussy. It's things like AC and basic kitchen appliances such as washing machines which are expensive. Some unforunshed' apartments do come with AC and basic appliances, but many, particularly brand new places, have little other than the four walls.
| Quote: |
| So that would make it 15,000 SAR a month for a furnished one bed flat in Jeddah then? That would suffice. |
SR15000 for an apartment? And you'll be earning SR11000? Shurely shome mishtake? |
I like you. 15,000 SAR a year I mean. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| Emile Cioran wrote: |
| Only for decent Indian family or bachelor. This is a side room in family apartment & has a separate entrance |
Those two phrases would have me running away. Are you a "decent Indian family or bachelor? Have you been to India? Do you want to share your place quite intimately with an Indian family - perhaps a very large one? Nothing against Indians, but our lifestyles are quite different. Is this a shared bathroom? I suspect that it has a squat toilet only. Do you know how to cook in a hallway over a small burner of some sort that you purchase at the market and use on the floor?
Camping out in Saudi... yikes...
VS |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:40 pm Post subject: |
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Dear Emile Cioran,
"What's wrong with this offer John?"
Hard to say, sight unseen. But I hope you like the smell of strong curry and enjoy hearing Bollywood movies far into the night.
One also has to wonder whether the adjective modifying "family" is also intended to modify "bachelor."
"Only for decent Indian family or bachelor."
Oner thing you probably should bear in mind is that your living abode is your refuge in Saudi, even far more than it often is in other places. It's your haven, your longed-for small world after a usually long, frustrating, patience-often-called-for day. It could make you or break you there. Unless you're completely oblivious to your surroundings (and I'm pretty darn good in that department,) you need to choose it very carefully.
Regards,
John |
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Mia Xanthi
Joined: 13 Mar 2008
Posts: 955
Location: why is my heart still in the Middle East while the rest of me isn't?
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 9:50 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
Description: Single (big) room, furnished with AC, single bed, cupboard, curtain, TV with disc connection, internet connection, fully carpeted with attached bathroom & small gallery (can be used for cooking space) available near Al-Dahaiyah Super Market / SHOALA Petrol Pump.
Only for decent Indian family or bachelor. This is a side room in family apartment & has a separate entrance.
Rent @1200 SAR/month including electricity, internet & water charges. |
The portion in bold indicates that single women need not apply. I shudder when I read this description. The buildings that house Indian families are often crumbling, decrepit, sqalid places that had had no maintenance in fifteen years. The hallways will be grimy. The lift will not work. You'll see the occassional rat running down your hallway, attracted by the smell of heavy grease that has built up for years in the cooking areas. At best, you will be leered at in the hallways and vicinities. At worst, you will have men knocking on your door at night, or actually be accosted while you are trying to carry heavy groceries (happened to two friends of mine in a MUCH better location).
Your salary is simply not enough to pay for a decent apartment. If you choose a funky sort of place that is acceptable to you, your Saudi employers will be horrified and you will lose face.
My opinion? Either negotiate more...MUCH more...right now, or back out. |
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Cleopatra
Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago
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| Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 10:10 pm Post subject: |
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Why are you posting an ad for a flat in Jubail? I thought you were planning to go to Jeddah?
Anyway, I agree with the above warnings. Some areas of Jeddah are really quite run-down, both in terms of general infrastructure and apartment buildings. You are simply not going to get a decent flat in a decent part of a major Saudi city for SR1500.
Think about it: Would you recommend a foreigner choose to live in a crummy flat in a dodgy part of your home town? If not, why would you do so yourself? |
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