Realistic startup for Germany (Munich)

lecker Hendl

How's it goin?

I'm fairly fed up of living in Ireland for a while and it's always been a bit of a pipe dream of mine to live in Germany, Munich specifically.

Assuming I had a job, we'll say starting on min 30k P/A, how much would you think would be needed money wise to go over and start a life over there.

I have heard of the whole rent situation being that you pay something like 2 or 3 months rent in advance. Anyone know what the average rent might be in Munich?

The cost of living is also something I am unsure of. Any help would be appreciated. Is there anything you need to do to 'get started' in Germany...registering for tax etc.

I also don't have a job over there, but this is only a small part of the problem for now.

donadoni

Hi lecker Hendl (nice nick )

I am Bavarian and lived in Munich for more than 20 years, so hope I can help you a little.

Generally its like this:
In Munich it is relatively easy to find a job (depends a bit on what you are looking to do there) but rather hard to find a reasonably priced flat.

Assuming you are a young lad or lassy without any strings attached I would recommend that you look into shared apartments just for a start. Once you got a job and found a place to stay you can start looking for your own place to live in peace and take your time for it.
There are always some bargains to be found if you don't rush it and have built up some connections to locals or other people that have been in Munich for a long time, who'll know where to look and what to do.

A room in a shared apartment is usually 300 - 600 Euro, depending on the area and the size of your room. Usually you have to pay the 3 month rent deposit too. The rent usually includes heating but water and electricity are extra costs.

Even if you think that your rent in a shared apartment is too high and you feel ripped off, you can always look at it as a temporary thing and move on, if you found something better.

In Germany flats are usually rented out without any furniture and even worse without a kitchen, so the big advantage of a shared apartment is that you don't need to buy a kitchen straight away. Sometimes the rooms have furniture in them, but if they don't, all you need is a Bed and a press for a start.

Depending on where you are going to work , some employers also provide accommodations. That's mainly the public service (like the city of munich or the Bavarian State, if you are a nurse or something similar for example) or big companies (ie. Siemens etc.) These flats are usually a bit cheaper than the ones out in the market too.
If you apply for a job and they invite you for an interview, it's always worth asking.

Looking at your nick, I assume that you have some German, which is essential IMO if you want a smooth start up in Germany.
I know many people say that it is not that important, and I would agree that it is possible to live in Germany without mastering our lingo, but I believe that it is certainly far more difficult especially if you are on your own.

If you are looking for an apartment in Munich for yourself straight away, here is a little idea on what it will cost you:
The rents displayed on this site are without heating, electricity etc. Just the plain rent. They are also without kitchen or furniture, unless specifically stated that they are furnished.

http://www.immowelt.de/immobilien/immoliste.aspx?geoid=10809162000&etype=1&esr=2&roomi=1&rooma=3

Edit: I forgot to get into the other questions that you had regarding tax etc.:

Cost of living: It's generally slightly cheaper than in Ireland, but ou also earn less (after tax). At least that's the way it was before the whole Euro disaster.

Tax etc: Social insurance etc. is something your employer will sort out for you. Except health insurance. You have to look into that yourself, as there is a choice what insurance company you would like to go with. But you must have health insurance. Thats the law of the land.
After you moved to Germany you will have to go to your local "Einwohnermeldeamt", to register yourself. That's about it really.

Here is a bit more info on this:http://www.toytowngermany.com/wiki/Residence_registration

lecker Hendl

Great reply Donadoni. Thanks for the info! I'll check out those links

Ares

@DonaDoni, what are the main sectors with jobs in Munich at present?

I'm due to finish my degree this May, (Economics and History) and was wondering what would be the chances of getting a job 30k salary? I have a little German so moving over wouldn't be an issue.

munchkin_utd

Ares wrote: »

@DonaDoni, what are the main sectors with jobs in Munich at present?

I'm due to finish my degree this May, (Economics and History) and was wondering what would be the chances of getting a job 30k salary? I have a little German so moving over wouldn't be an issue.

check out the Arbeitsamt (mega civil service dept for jobs, social welfare and training) as they have a database on something like 800,000 jobs germany wide
http://jobboerse.arbeitsagentur.de/

it might even be worth checking out some of the larger companies like Allianz, Munich Re, BMW, Siemens etc as they are always hiring college graduates and are the type of company to see value in the type of degree you have in management and strategy roles.

Otherwise theres lots of jobs in IT/ electronics/ engineering in general. Segments of the Irish economy that are doing pretty well still meaning theres not all that many Irish heading to Munich nowadays compared to the 80s when there was 1000s of engineering graduates in the big engineering companies in Munich and Erlangen (siemens).

donadoni

The states of Bavaria and Baden Wuertenberg (ie. Stuttgart) are the ones which offer the highest chances of getting a job in Germany at the moment. In Bavaria this means mainly Munich and surroundings.
So I would say, anything that is being sought for in Germany applies especially to these areas.
I know that in Germany they are looking especially for professionals in IT and technology. But there is plenty more. I'd say with your degree in Economics you have a good chance to get something eventually.
I am by no means an expert in this though, so I would recommend that you go on to specific forums and ask the same question there.
Here for example: http://www.toytowngermany.com/

Jobs in bars, restaurants, buildings etc. are always available in Munich and if you have a little German already your chances are very good to get a job in that area quite quickly.
Once you're there, have somewhere to stay, and a roof above your head you could perfect your German and look into these higher paid jobs.


I just did a quick google and found a ton of places that are looking for people with a degree in Economics ("Volkswirtschaft" (VWL) or "Betriebswirtschaft" (BWL), in German). The only problem is, that it's all for German speakers. That's why I keep saying, that it's a huge advantage to have good German before you are looking for a higher paid job in your area.
IMO the best way to do it, is to jump into the cold water and go there, look for a "simple" job like bar keeper etc. (plenty of Irish Pubs in and around Munich), perfect your German and apply for jobs in your area of expertise until the cows come home. Also I would try to get practical placements in big companies while you're at it.

I already gave you a link for toytown.germany above.
Here are some more job sites for Germany in English:
http://www.thelocal.de/jobs/

Munich is München on that site btw. But I am sure you know that anyway

Edit: Only just seen Munchkins post above now after finishing mine. That is some good advice right there

Jim2007

lecker Hendl wrote: »

I have heard of the whole rent situation being that you pay something like 2 or 3 months rent in advance. Anyone know what the average rent might be in Munich?

One important thing to note is that apartments in the Germanic part of Europe (DE/AT/CH) are usually rented without out furniture, in Switzerland in many cases even the light fittings are not included!!!

Also if you don't speak German, try and get a few classes in before you go. I'm sure there must be some evening classes starting up round about now. I did a 4 week intensive course at the Goethe Institute in Dublin before I moved to Switzerland 20 years ago and it was a lot of fun as well as being very useful.

Making an effort to learn the language, even if it does not always turn out well, is important to your integration, because the locals will appreciate the fact that you are at least making an effort.

adamski8

do you guys know the situation with science based jobs in southern germany? or is it mainly engineering?

donadoni

Yes. There are also science based jobs in Germany. Again, especially the states of Bavaria and Baden Wuertemberg are the ones with the best options.

There is a large influx from job seekers in that area from Greece and Spain at the moment (I know that from a TV program I watched only just a couple of weeks ago on German TV on that matter)
I would even say that native English speakers have an advantage here, as I believe that a lot of the daily conversations are actually in English in those jobs.
But despite that, please always remember that you have a massive advantage if you have some reasonable German at the same time.

Here is a link that may be useful to you adamski

http://www.research-in-germany.de/8784/scientific-career,page=Job_20listings,mcn=on.html

lecker Hendl

Jim2007 wrote: »

One important thing to note is that apartments in the Germanic part of Europe (DE/AT/CH) are usually rented without out furniture, in Switzerland in many cases even the light fittings are not included!!!

Also if you don't speak German, try and get a few classes in before you go. I'm sure there must be some evening classes starting up round about now. I did a 4 week intensive course at the Goethe Institute in Dublin before I moved to Switzerland 20 years ago and it was a lot of fun as well as being very useful.

Making an effort to learn the language, even if it does not always turn out well, is important to your integration, because the locals will appreciate the fact that you are at least making an effort.

The only German I know is what I learned from fellow Germans on my travels. I have however taken an active interest in the language and I listen to the Michel Thomas Guide, which is quite good. I want to learn it, so hopefully this helps (unlike say Irish being forced upon me in school). I had already inquired to the Goethe Institute but I think I'll self teach with the audio I have for a bit. The savings are not exactly sky high at the moment and I need to start putting away for any potential moves. I was checking IT jobs too as I do software support here. There does seem to be a lot but as mentioned, the majority say German and English. So I'll need to knuckle down.

adamski8

donadoni wrote: »

Here is a link that may be useful to you adamski

http://www.research-in-germany.de/8784/scientific-career,page=Job_20listings,mcn=on.html

Cheers, thats a pretty comprehensive site! might take a long time getting through it

dont fancy learning a language but the fact is that science is in english everywhere and germany is a good location for me so its a toss up between germany and canada atm.