Hello
We are a family of 4 with single income. I've been offered a job in central London which will pay about GBP 170K gross plus relocation and standard benefits. We have lived in the SF Bay Area (California) in the past and used to live in the Cupertino/Saratoga area. I need to make a decision if this is something we will do. I am looking to connect with some people who are familiar with London and have some idea of how much would it cost to live in a 3-bed flat about 30-45 minutes from Central London and still be in schools that are comparable to Cupertino/Saratoga/Palo Alto area of California.
I also need to understand if this package is sufficient to live a reasonable lifestyle and still save some.
Thanks a lot for your timely replies. I only have until Monday to make a final decision.
Photobuddy
Need Quick Feedback to make move decision to London
We live in West London in a 3 bedroom terraced house for about GBP 3000 monthly. To us houses/apartments here feel really small (about 80 square metres over two floors) and no parking space! We have a parking permit and have to look for a free space on the street.
International school for our boy is paid for by my husband's company. At the moment he is still at nursery at GBP 284 a week (4,5 days). Good schools don't come cheap here and are hard to get into. Maybe that will prove to be your biggest expense.
Thanks Globetrotter. I think we were budgeting about 3GBP for a 3bedroom place. I am researching schools at the moment. We have an 11 year old and a 7 year old and it seems like if we go for private schools, they will cost 15K GBP each. Ouch !
That's what I thought. Big shock, right? And the older they get, the more expensive it gets.
Another thing I forgot to mention. Since we've been here I've heard some horror stories about the NHS (National Health Service). The care isn't always as it should be (to put it mildly) and sometimes it takes weeks just to get an appointment. Not something you want to hear with children around the house. Luckily my husband has excellent health care insurance (full coverage) allowing us to go to private doctors. Worth looking into.
Dude 170k is plenty. Buy a house in a nice area of london. Mortgage would be roughly £1250 for a 3 bedroom house per month. Google the best schools, forget private school just go for the best schools in london, and move/live closely to there. London is nice, multicultural. Weather is sh*t, but if your making that much money you can always plan a few trips to somewhere nice every year.
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