Job Discussion Forums

alanportland · Joined: 07 Apr 2014 Posts: 16 Location: Worthing- England

Hi all,
Just out of curiosity, will this 17000 SR be enough to rent a flat?

P.S: my contract states that I'll be living in a campus designed for Uni lecturers (westerners) but I am really dying to know the answer.

lcanupp1964 · Joined: 12 Dec 2009 Posts: 381

The answer to your question is, "Yes, and no".

For 17,000sr a year, you could find a place, but you would not like it. Maybe it's old and run-down. Maybe it's far from the KAU campus. Maybe you would be on the top floor and very loud kids are playing in the hallway in front of your door at 3:00 in the morning. The lift works about half the time. You might have bouts of very low water pressure (or no water service for hours). The elec. cuts off due to all the brownouts for an hour at a time every few hours all weekend long. The smell of dead cats and seeing toilet water pooling in front of your building acts as a reminder to you everyday that your are saving a little bit of money by living there.

I pay 24,000sr a year for an apartment that is 1/4 of a mile from campus. The landlord speaks very good English and the parking is great. It's clean and in good repair. The people that live in the building are nice and very quite/respectful. There's even a very small market about 1000 feet from my building. I have not had my water/elec. cut off in the three years I have been living here. A mall with a large supermarket is about a 2 minute drive from my place as well.

Basically, you will get what you pay for.

And...

If hired at the ELI at KAU, you would also get additional 8,500sr as a housing set-up allowance for your first year. That comes to 25,500sr - more than enough to find a place like mine. I have three bedroom, but a two bedroom place is cheaper. You would have to buy stuff for your very empty shell that is your apartment, but there are many places that sell very cheap stuff. I furnished my place for around 5,000sr. You can buy things that are second-hand. In addition, you would also get a 10,000sr advance during your first week to help with things.

If you stay on for additional year, you would pay around 333sr out of pocket per month if you found a nice two bedroom apartment and the rent was 21,000sr a year. That's money well spent to have all the benefits that I stated above.

P.S. There's not a chance in Hell you would be able to live on campus. Just doesn't happen and there's no system set-up for teachers at the ELI to get on-campus housing. On-campus housing is for Saudi nationals that have the word, "doctor" in front of their family name.

Rostom · Posted: Sun May 25, 2014 1:44 pm Post subject:

alanportland · Joined: 07 Apr 2014 Posts: 16 Location: Worthing- England

lcanupp1964 · Joined: 12 Dec 2009 Posts: 381

Most private apartments (as compared to on-campus housing and/or hotel suite apartments that are move in ready) are empty boxes. You have to buy AC's (window units), and sometimes, people have to buy kitchen cabinets. The water fixtures that are sticking out will be the only things that come with the place. Toilets are included, but I had to buy a hot water heater for my place.

Alanportland... No harm, no foul. Smile

ricardobaltierra · Joined: 30 May 2013 Posts: 20

Greetings,

Thank you for your reply.

Frankly, there are better job outfits out there. The salary there I was offered was the same as I have now; the difference is that I am offered good and decent housing in my new contract.

I simply will not go to work for a company that will not provide housing - there are better paying jobs elsewhere.

Cheers!

plumpy nut · Joined: 12 Mar 2011 Posts: 1652