Savings for 12,000 SR

summurao wrote:

Quick reply (I stay in Jazan though, which's much the same in terms of expenses one way or the other - family of 4 here with 2 school kids.)

1. House rent: In Riyadh it will be about 1000 - 2000 for a 2-3 BR flat; depending on landlord, electricity may be extra - 60SR - 100 SR per month for me)
2. Public transport: None exist here, for 2 cabs a month (school & office) I spend 900 SR. I should really get my license and car soon! (Cant buy car unless you get a license, which's a bit of a hassle here)
3. Laundry expenses: I do my own; buy a good washing machine and iron, you're fine.
4. Weekly once eat out for 2: Cheap; 30SR feeds a family of 4 more than once. (I have picky kids)
5. Monthly once shopping at a mall: 100 - 150 SR (Do you get anything on this budget?) That's my weekly grocery bill! If you throw in eating out and games for the kids the mall, double this per week.
6. Household groceries: 300 SR (Budget capped) Should be good if you are single / no kids and don't buy higher-priced imported stuff.
7. Utility charges: Electricity above, mobiles / international calls about 25-50 SR monthly (2 phones); STC Home Broadband 140 SR /  month.

Roughly, you'd spend about 3000-4000 SR per month for a comfortable living..

All the best!

Summurao
1. what kind of house or room do you get for 1000 or 2000 riyals? is this monthly or yearly rent?

Cvishy, your lifestyle will change once you live here in Saudi Arabia. Different people have different needs. if your lifestyle in india is very plain simple, and you have set or visualize your future after working in Saudi, then you can save much.

no offense meant. most guys from the subcontinent, after arriving here they started to buy branded clothing, act like hollywood stars, drive fancy cars. well that's their lives anyway but i'm giving you the idea. food is cheap, clothing is cheap, gas is cheap, cars are cheap. electronics are cheap. i don't know where that house is located that cost 1000 or 2000 sar ;-)

VB12345 wrote:

Dear CVishy,

Here in Riyadh Indian compounds are rare and normally it is safe to  live outside. I am also Indian working here from past one year and not living in compound. Even if you get compound its quite costly unless provided by your company. The rents are not less than 60K annually for 1 BHK in good compound.
The house rents are 1500-2500 SAR depending on type of flat and locality.
Regarding other expenses can be covered in 2500 and depending on distance between your home to office taxi can be any where 500-1000 SAR per month. No Public transports are avialable other than taxis.
So for your estimation all inclusive max 5000-6000 SAR you can consider as expenses here.

Hope this helps you...

Nicely covered.. just back from a trip to Riyadh where I visited friends, for semi-compounds (mostly Indian) they are paying 60-80k a year, on top of agent commission and furniture cost to previous occupant.
To the original poster, Riyadh is swell now from a personal freedom point of view, plus you get a lot of Indian restaurants, Lulu and Nesto for all the Indian stuff including snacks and food. But I guess it will be tempting to spend, and unless you can keep tight control on your budget, you'll end up spending more than the indicated 5k SR for an upper-middle class kind of life.
If saving is your intention, stick to the Batha side for cheaper accommodation, though it's a bit cramped. But you may get the 2SR mini-buses (for males only) to your workplace, which's a plus. Also, make sure your (private) company employer covers medical insurance..
All the best. PM for anything more. Also I'd learn Arabic starting immediately!