This can be a daunting task. It can be frustrating enough in your home country where you have a reasonable grasp on how things work. Doing it in a totally new country, with different rules and regulations can be terrifying. But if you are thinking about coming to live in Singapore or any new country then it is a part of that equation.
The two times....
Tangent. My husband and I first came to live in Singapore about 10 years ago. While we didn't stay long, I think we may have been a bit too young and it didn't live up to expectations, it gave us a taste for the place.
Speaking of expectations, I think a lot of people come here with one set of expectations and find that the reality is rather different. Singapore has EVERYTHING you could want, it's just up to you to decide how you want to live here.
We have thrown ourselves in boots and all. My husband had been here earlier in the hunting for work. I think that makes us a little bit different to many recently arrived expats that I meet. We chose to come here and most others are transferred. I do get some strange looks from people when I say that we made the decision to come here and actively worked to make it happen.
I get sidetracked so easily. While job hunting and being very good at it, my husband got an offer within the first week of his 3 week sojourn. Instead of returning home and being there for his son's first steps, this is a factual even that happened, is all I am saying. He rightfully so, stayed here and found us a place to live. This was a GODSEND, when we arrived. It meant that we got off the plane and walked right into our place. Made it very easy with our son.
The way to find accommodation in Singapore is with an agent. I do know of people that have done it themselves. Generally these people have been living here for quite some time and have sussed some of the nuances of the city by then.
The agents, there will be two involved, 1 for you and 1 for the landlord, are the ones that you give your brief to. They are the ones that listen to your circumstances eg kids, no kids, huge budget or not, and because they know the city, the market and you they can generally find you the best fit.
In our case, my husband had these romantic notions of living in a shop house and being zen. Our real estate agent pointed out that this would be isolating for me and our son, we wouldn't have any facilities, pool, BBQ pits or play grounds and actually they didn't fit in our budget.
The other thing that we really considered was the location. We wanted something close to the MRT (Singapore's version of the tube, except that it is modern and works wonderfully) and preferably on the same line as my husbands work.
As a consequence of this we live very near little India in a Condo that has great facilities and lots of other mothers and children. This part of why we came here. To be immersed, not stuck in an expat bubble. Although that can be done and I have met a lot of people very happy living this way.
We are on the same line as my husbands work and it means that he doesn't have en excuse for missing story time.
To find an agent ask around. Some are great (ours was brilliant and went above and beyond. She met us at the airport the night we arrived and bought us to our new home), and some are not so good. We have a couple of friends at the moment who are looking and their agent is pandering to them which means that they have unrealistic expectations and are finding the whole process rather arduous.
Wow, just read this. It is rather disjointed. But hey, that's life.
No comments:
Post a Comment