Accommodation Prices

$70K is a good salary for a single male, and you should be able to save plenty of that each year. A two-bedroom apartment will cost you $1500 a month, more or less, plus utilities. Don't worry about it. For general information about life in Cayman, you could check out my website. The earliest pieces were written for Cayman residents, though I don't do that much now.

Have you read "Cayman New Resident" the online magazine? It covers pretty much every topic you want to know about.

Thanks Gordon for your reply...i have extensively read the new cayman resident magazine and i was curious about the accommodation as there is a quite variance in price if you take into consideration that grand cayman is a small island

zwgris wrote:

Thanks Gordon for your reply...i have extensively read the new cayman resident magazine and i was curious about the accommodation as there is a quite variance in price if you take into consideration that grand cayman is a small island

Small island it may be, but there are safe districts and unsafe, convenient and inconvenient. The cheapest rents are offered in areas that are either "rough" or too far out of town. My wife has a nice three-bedroom house in a safe area 15-20 minutes from George Town that she rents for $1000; it would rent for two or three times that, close to central GT.

Saludos Gordon,
i am thinking on moving to Cayman with my wife and three kids, what would you recommend to alocate for rent? How about schooling?

Tacktila. I don't think you can have looked for answers in "New Resident Cayman" online. You should do that. Also, what about the comments in this thread, re rent? Also, what job do you have and how much is the salary? What do you know about Cayman that has convinced you to live here - or are these just speculative questions you're asking?

thank you for the tip about "new resident cayman", I can't share quite much about my interest as I am in a confidential process... The salary offered is  USD 150k/year. i have been checking online and my first impression is to alocate 4k for rent , schooling 1k per child ( i have 3) and 1.5k for domestic service, if my numbers are ok that means a basic of 8.5 k per mont, THAT IS SCARY! i saw your post about rent on 1.5k monthly and that was refreshing that is why I took the liberty of asking you direct!
Thanks for the help.

Tacktila. I'm not well up on the cost of living for a large-ish family, but you can rely on "New Resident" to give you a fair idea. Remember that its figures are CI Dollars, not US. Your US$salary is CI$120K; I don't know what currency your expense estimates are in; you might need to adjust them. $1,500 p.m. for a housemaid - well, you'd need to decide whether you want to employ one yourself full-time or to use an agency; the agency we use has just raised its charge to $12 an hour, of which the employee gets about $7. Your rental will depend on how big a place you want, and whether a flat or a house. Plus electricity, sewage and water, TV, phone and computer. Car(s)  - what make and year... Private school - decide whether US or British system, and remember the cost is more than just the bare fees. Sports for every member of the family... entertainment costs.

$120K is a pretty good wage, but, the kids alone will set you back quite a bit. Also, you'll lose a few thousand for compulsory pension contribution. Your employer may or may not pay half your medical insurance.

If I were in your shoes, I'd want to fly out here to suss the place out - depending on where you'd be coming from. If you're still in DR, you could easily come via Miami.

Try www.numbeo.com for cost of living.