Moving to indonesia

Middle class Indonesians tend to live on 5 to 8 million per month.
Low paid urban people get a max of 2.5 million.

Think how a married man with a family can live normally on 8 million, then wonder if 19 will be enough.
Such a man doesn't live in a fancy flat with a swimming pool, but he commonly rents a house in a cheaper estate.
His is less likely to own a car, so he uses a motorbike.

and so on.

When in Rome, wander around the estates looking for "disewa" signs, just as the locals do.

Added, unless you're into boozing and parties with gold digging excuses for women, you should be able to live easily and save 5 to 10 million per month with no effort.

thanks. It puts my mind at ease a little. but for the person who normally takes transit etc.., which i doubt ill be able to navigate or at least figure it out quickly.

Other things worry me too like the traffic. It all became real too fast...haha

If you would like to experience living in a Balinese surroundings's in one bedroom that has its own entrance, verandah, bathroom, tv/living room and study desk with green garden, pool, gazebo and w cleaning service included then I will rent you for Rp 10 millions/month.  PM me.  How long do you need it for?

you can do a lot better than 10 million a month , half of that or less, will give you something similar , be careful ya .

Excuse me? With maid for free laundry & ironing included? A swimming pool privately used? I live by myself 6 months here and 6 months in my other residence which is in Italy.  So the house will be to his own private use also as in its living room when I'm not around.  The maid, gardener/night security man live in the compound that has their own entrance from another street.  Pool man is included.  Electricity and gas as well.  So, I'm offended by your warning as to be careful after my post above that offers a lovely place to live in with all the extras above included.

And out come the high prices aimed at foteigners.
IF anything is in Dollars, forget it.
It's illegal and they're always daft prices anyway

Am I wrong...or wasn't the original poster (none other than The Flash) asking about Jakarta?   

So, with that in mind, real estate in Bali has nothing to do with this discussion.

My house IS in Jakarta but as you know Roy, it's Balinese in style, thus for its extra beautiful surrounding.

I was relying on this...

"If you would like to experience living in a Balinese surroundings's..."

Until you just clarified this...it sure wasn't clear to me that you were discussing your home in JKT.   Did I miss something?     

Cheers, and good luck!

As an extra though the person of course did not specify that he was seeking that but I see it as a thrown-in beauty to its surrounding.  So, no, you did not miss anything unless you wanted to?

"unless you wanted to?"

Nope, I was just reading and comprehending English as it was written...and nothing you had previously wrote had indicated anything about your house "in a Balinese surroundings's" being located in Jakarta.

Just read the thread again...it should be clear.

The discussion is all a bit pointless because her ad doesn't fit "how do I find a cheap place.".
As for the other ad, prices are listed in US$, something that is illegal here, and usually aimed at people who have no idea they're being ripped off.

Ok, I'm lost w you, guys!! Anyway, to the poster, if you're interested, fine, pm me.  If not, no obligation that you have to.  I'm outta here, thanks everyone!

yea man. im making like not even double that... so its a no go. Sorry if the post wasnt clear.
I am not looking for someone to rent me a place... but just how to find places... is there a website? I mean... I see craiglist are super retarded prices.... so... im looking at something on the cheap end of cheap.
as long as it has a bit of a kitchen and bathroom.... etc...

Not too hard, but you have to tell us the area you intend to live in.
The most basic is a kos, a shared set of single room flats (Usually with own bathroom), commonly single or double story. They start at Rp500,000/month but there are also many flats at about 2 million/month. Secure but small.
Another option for the very cheap is a small house designed for transient workers, but the former and the latter could be a problem as 19 million/month would make you extremely rich in those areas, so prone to break ins.

Hmm yea that's an issue then. I gotta be careful then .

Also how much would a driver be? For like a morning time? One way route?

As for area, not sure yet. I got a job, but ... They have many schools all over Jakarta, and so they haven't placed me in one yet

Sounds like you may have got a job with English First?

Hi Flash,
I can answer most of your questions easily, as I live in Jakarta.
When I have time, I can come back to this post here again.

What is cheap and what is relatively not cheap, it is all a matter of perspectives. All depend on your budget really.
The nice house that myjak offered is actually slightly expensive only and still reasonable. She might do short term though. However it might be out of your budget and out of the way from Jakarta.

Simple answer for cheap transport is motorcycle taxi called Gojek or Grab. You can order within minutes from your smartphone app and the trip costs around mostly 15 k to 25k.

As you lived in Japan abroad before, it might be a whole lot different. However, it is a good experience, if you are willing to tough it out.

Food variety is amazing here. And most things are cheap and reasonable.

If you are willing to share what are some of your goals in Indonesia. And for how long?

Fred wrote:

And out come the high prices aimed at foteigners.
IF anything is in Dollars, forget it.
It's illegal and they're always daft prices anyway

Fred, as I understand it, the law doesnt say illegal to quote in USD dollars. USD is still the wheel of business in Indonesia.

However, it is illegal to receive in USD dollars for transaction within Indonesia.
The reason being, discouraging mass effect depreciation of Dollars to Rupiah when someone converts into USD to pay for transactions.

I would strongly advise against using taxi taxi apps as they all require you to allow access to pretty much every bit of data on your phone, leaving you prone to data mining. At least one company has been accused of this.

Try to get the work address asap as Jakarta's traffic is something you don't want to play with unless you absolutely have to.

If you have any option, try to get a branch outside Jakarta. Most of the schools have places in like Tangerang and BSD, all a lot easier on the wallet as far as housing goes, and less headaches for travel.

enduringword wrote:

However, it is illegal to receive in USD dollars for transaction within Indonesia.

That is true, but you also have to consider why they advertise in dollars.
The one and only reason is they're trying to attract foreigners, and that commonly means aiming for people who have no clue about normal house rental pricing.

Illegal, absolutely, and commonly rip offs.

@Hansson English first? No way! English First I would be living in Poverty. they are offering around 12 million - 14 million. Which is ...okay i guess and doable... but not for me I have student loan debts and stuff too that ill try to pay down a bit.
@Enduringword
yea... I dont know if Ill be getting a smartphone. I may use one old one that I have lying around. Need to see if I can get it unlocked though, but probably cheaper than buying a new one.
Ill be in Jakarta for at least 10 months. not sure past that, it depends on a lot of things, but I am initially planning it to be for the first year only.  If I really like it ,,,, I am open to renewing.
My goals with going to Indonesia is because I kinda have a desire to travel and live in different places. That is my dream. i am doing that with Japan now. Next step is Jakarta. I went to Jakarta before. It wasnt my favorite place... but it was nice. And I have a friend who lives there now...And secondly... It is close to bali. I like the idea of zipping over to bali on my down time, and then spending about a month there on the tail end of my contract.

yea.    Rip offs commonly. I think a lot of expats like to go to places and live the high life and pay rich prices simply because they can afford it and its convenient.

not me... dont have the money anyways.

The higher scale hotel and resorts in Bali generally quote in US dollars.  And they are often paid in US dollars as well, however they are required to accept IDR if that is the preferred currency for the guest.

Most all else operates on the IDR aside from many restaurants who will take dollars (AUS and US) as a convenience to their guests who haven't exchanged enough money to settle their bill. 

Many foreign owners of private villas that they rent short time also quote, and receive their payments in US dollars.  As you say Fred, they want to attract foreign clients, many of whom could get pie eyed when looking at all those zeros and commas if quoted in IDR.     Long term rentals, and of course rental contracts, are strictly in IDR.

TheFlash wrote:

@Hansson English first? No way! English First I would be living in Poverty. they are offering around 12 million - 14 million. Which is ...okay i guess and doable... but not for me I have student loan debts and stuff too that ill try to pay down a bit.
@Enduringword
yea... I dont know if Ill be getting a smartphone. I may use one old one that I have lying around. Need to see if I can get it unlocked though, but probably cheaper than buying a new one.
Ill be in Jakarta for at least 10 months. not sure past that, it depends on a lot of things, but I am initially planning it to be for the first year only.  If I really like it ,,,, I am open to renewing.
My goals with going to Indonesia is because I kinda have a desire to travel and live in different places. That is my dream. i am doing that with Japan now. Next step is Jakarta. I went to Jakarta before. It wasnt my favorite place... but it was nice. And I have a friend who lives there now...And secondly... It is close to bali. I like the idea of zipping over to bali on my down time, and then spending about a month there on the tail end of my contract.

Hahaha.....noted.

Actually I spend a lot of my free time in Japan, also am considering living there sometime in the future. I usually stay around Shizuoka (Mishima and Numazu) and Tokyo but seriously thinking about getting a place in Yokohama. I love that city.

For sure, Indonesia is going to be a big change.

Hi Flash,
You can get a really decent smartphone - Xiaomi brand, purchased locally.
It costs around 100 usd. And the model could be Redmi 2 or Redmi 3.

Fred is correct in saying that you need to work out which address first for your workplace to consider likelihood of place to stay.

Be assured there are plenty of spaces available to suit your budget needs.
I would recommend around 2 million Rupiah to 5 million Rupiah range per month, would be suitable and if you want more comfort to the higher range.

Apartment living is more secure than houses.

If you have 2 days off a week. You can make a short trip anywhere in Indonesia, and make a fuller life experiences than only in Jakarta.
I agree using the money to travel and experience is more beneficial.

Yea I plan to travel a bit but not abundantly. I do wanna get a feel for Jakarta too. And save a bit

I dont know if Ill be getting a smartphone. I may use one old one that I have lying around. Need to see if I can get it unlocked though, but probably cheaper than buying a new one.

Probably cheaper to unlock, but be careful of being overcharged.
If I were to buy a new one, I'd go for the Samsung J5 with 2 SIM cards.
One Telkomsel for calls only, and the other on 3 for their 'Always on' internet/calling package.
3 have a very cheap but very good 12 month deal, but you can leave their coverage areas sometimes, hence the TKS card for calls. TKS probably have the best coverage in Indonesia, so you're rarely out of a service area.
That will cost you something like Rp2,700,000.