Moving to Dubai

lexusrx400h

Hi All,

I am currently toying with the idea of possibly moving to Dubai, and I am doing the usual job hunting on various recruitment sites etc.

A few points I am hoping for some help however:

- Is it really as dear as it is made out to be? I see rent is quite high, however from looking at a few sites, it seems the cost of living isn't much higher than Ireland.

- Renting - many landlords look for minimum three months rent in advance - how have people gotten around this or is it a case of grin and bear it.

- Any articles I have read, people love living there, is there any downsides?

Any help would be great.

Thanks all

Anonimo13

Hey lexusrx400h,

I myself am on the same boat,.. toying with the idea of moving to Dubai. I have some friends currently living there and they have informed me that it is not as easy as people think to save. Employers are cutting back a little on benefits such as the ones you've mentioned which makes saving that bit more difficult.

I did find this app really good and is very common in dubai: "Dubizzle".

Without putting a dampener on everything, i think if you can afford it, the best thing to do would be to go out there and see for yourself for a few weeks. But the general feedback i'm getting is the lack of income tax is balanced out with how expensive it is to live on a daily basis.

I see you posted this 5 months ago, so maybe you are already there? if so, id love to hear how it is out there because im still on the edge...

FURET

Anonimo13 wrote: »

Hey lexusrx400h,

I myself am on the same boat,.. toying with the idea of moving to Dubai. I have some friends currently living there and they have informed me that it is not as easy as people think to save. Employers are cutting back a little on benefits such as the ones you've mentioned which makes saving that bit more difficult.

I did find this app really good and is very common in dubai: "Dubizzle".

Without putting a dampener on everything, i think if you can afford it, the best thing to do would be to go out there and see for yourself for a few weeks. But the general feedback i'm getting is the lack of income tax is balanced out with how expensive it is to live on a daily basis.

Very untrue. Dubai is as cheap as chips to live in on a daily basis as long as your rent is covered by a housing allowance (all decent employers provide this) and you have good health insurance (something employers must also provide). Groceries and petrol are far cheaper than Ireland; clothes are quite a bit cheaper in general; and eating out is a bit cheaper too.

The problem with westerners in Dubai is that they gravitate towards high rise apartments in the Marina or Business Bay and hyper-consume, and therefore save nothing. Any westerner on a package of 400,000 AED should be able to save a minimum 40k euro per year, assuming you don't have a load of loans to pay off.

Molly999

What is the best way to look for work? Do you need to find work before moving there or can you go over first, get sorted with accommodation and then look for work? I'm an accountant. Any idea if much work in that?

FURET

Molly999 wrote: »

What is the best way to look for work? Do you need to find work before moving there or can you go over first, get sorted with accommodation and then look for work? I'm an accountant. Any idea if much work in that?

You won't be able to rent a place without a residence visa and you won't get that unless you've a job. You need to use LinkedIn etc. Tough for western accountants due to huge pool of cheaper Indian and Filipino accounting professionals - but try the accounting departments of law firms based in Dubai.

Ginger11

Anonimo13 wrote: »

Hey lexusrx400h,

I myself am on the same boat,.. toying with the idea of moving to Dubai. I have some friends currently living there and they have informed me that it is not as easy as people think to save. Employers are cutting back a little on benefits such as the ones you've mentioned which makes saving that bit more difficult.

I did find this app really good and is very common in dubai: "Dubizzle".

Without putting a dampener on everything, i think if you can afford it, the best thing to do would be to go out there and see for yourself for a few weeks. But the general feedback i'm getting is the lack of income tax is balanced out with how expensive it is to live on a daily basis.

I see you posted this 5 months ago, so maybe you are already there? if so, id love to hear how it is out there because im still on the edge...

Same boat as myself, can anyone help me with finding a job in dubai. Iv tried all the usual recruitment agencies and LinkedIN. Commited to moving out in August 18, but nothing lined up job wise.

Sir_Name

FURET wrote: »

Anonimo13 wrote: »

Hey lexusrx400h,

I myself am on the same boat,.. toying with the idea of moving to Dubai. I have some friends currently living there and they have informed me that it is not as easy as people think to save. Employers are cutting back a little on benefits such as the ones you've mentioned which makes saving that bit more difficult.

I did find this app really good and is very common in dubai: "Dubizzle".

Without putting a dampener on everything, i think if you can afford it, the best thing to do would be to go out there and see for yourself for a few weeks. But the general feedback i'm getting is the lack of income tax is balanced out with how expensive it is to live on a daily basis.

Very untrue. Dubai is as cheap as chips to live in on a daily basis as long as your rent is covered by a housing allowance (all decent employers provide this) and you have good health insurance (something employers must also provide). Groceries and petrol are far cheaper than Ireland; clothes are quite a bit cheaper in general; and eating out is a bit cheaper too.

The problem with westerners in Dubai is that they gravitate towards high rise apartments in the Marina or Business Bay and hyper-consume, and therefore save nothing. Any westerner on a package of 400,000 AED should be able to save a minimum 40k euro per year, assuming you don't have a load of loans to pay off.

Agreed re the savings in that context, however I doubt if 400kAED is the standard package for those moving over. Also, while petrol maybe cheaper, groceries and clothing certainly aren't. I am spending a good 20% more a week than I would have at home and clothes/shoes/makeup etc are without doubt more expensive. And now there is the addition on VAT so I only see the cost of living rising.
Eating out/Drinking is more expensive however that said, there are lots of money saving apps like dubizzle / the entertainer where there is 2 for 1's on drinks/meals.
What industry are you in OP? I think the jobs market is has slowed down the last few years.


What industries are you in OP?

sashafierce

This post has been deleted.

wuffly

sashafierce wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

What area of banking? You would need to be looking at a fairly senior position to get a decent salary. They don't hire westerners for junior roles. You'd need to be looking for head office management role. I honestly don't know what salaries would be like, but all in I wouldn't think its worth moving for less than 20k(aed) per month. Join Dubai Irish exchange on FB and you'll get more detailed info, from guys working in the sector. Also get in touch with GreenGulf careers, its an irish operated recruitment agency. Avoid financial services companies like Global Eye they hire people on low basic and get them selling completely unsuitable financial products that they are not trained to sell for commission. Also avoid real estate jobs for the same reason, terrible if any basic.
Also bare in mind they have just introduced VAT which means the cost of everything has gone up by at least 5% in most cases more than that.

Dubai is a hard move and getting hard, everyone's margins are tighter. Cost of living is going up salaries are not. For the right job it might be worth but it takes time to get set up and get saving.

These agencies might be of some help.

https://www.michaelpage.ae/
https://www.roberthalf.ae/
http://www.irwinanddow.com/vacancies

wuffly

@sashafierce a sales manager position in a bank has just been posted on Dubai Irish Exchange might be worth following up!