Moving to Cambodia in October

Hello Sara.

Welcome to Expat.com!

I invite you to read this thread. You can have an idea of the cost of living in Phnom Penh.

Hope other members will be able to give you some advices soon.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Thank you!! That helps a lot!

hello sara

abt job, u can find, but it depends a lot on which are your expectations , as a teacher of English u might find a job at all times especially if you're a native English speaker.

a motorbike, it depends ,it will cost arnd 2000$ and this PP is not that large ,its a walking distance i guess from one end to another , most of the foreigners here have a bicycle , or take a tuk tuk ( thats what i do when i have a lot of walking to do or got things to buy and need to carry them .. u need a good tuk tuk driver who wont rip u off though, thats the biggest problem here i'd say, transport,its horrible and traffic is a nightmare ...for me at least, i personally m afraid to drive a bike in here ,its crazy. i'd rather walk.i"ve been here for abt 6 month now and i can say that yeah a bike would definitely be useful if ure adventurous enough to drive it in here, the driving licence will cause u some trouble but it can be done 

the cost is up to your living standards, the rent comes abt 300$ at least ..if u care for any decent living and by that i mean at least a well illuminated room cz thats a problem in here , for some reason these buildings are poorly illuminated N rather depressive
i could make a list with prices if u think its useful.. jst lemme know N i'll try to fill in a list for u asap

they don;t pick pocket but i've heard about houses being robbed at times and my landowners keep  telling me to lock my doors when i leave the home .. but in spite of all these i still feel its pretty safe arnd here

u can wear anything in here , u'll probably even find smth for urself to buy from here .. the market isnt great cz mostly everything is made on asian sizes but u might have sm luck .. jeans are ok, the more cotton the better cz its  super hot, ppl are rather decent  and foreigners  rtend to dress hippy i dont know why but yeah u can wear anything nice , these ppl here appreciate  cleanliness and foreigners who dress up.// u'll see . ..i personally tend to overdress but for some reason the landowners seem to want me to stay here cz of that .. some culture thing i guess i dont know ...

skpowell91 wrote:

Hello Everyone!

My name is Sara. I am moving from Richmond, VA to Phnom Penh, Cambodia in October and I have a few questions that I need answered. I have done loads of research but was hoping some of you expatriates would be able to help me

1. I have read some threads that said, unless you have a Bachelors Degree most schools will not hire you. I have an Associates Degree in Web Design and a TESOL Certification...do you think I will have a hard time finding a job?

2. I am considering buying a motorbike when I get over there? Does anyone know if this would be a wise investment esp if I am staying for at least one year.

3. How much is the average cost of living for one month in Phnom Penh? I have read that its about $500/month but then I have read that it is less.

4. How is the crime in Cambodia? When I was living and working in Ecuador and Tanzania, I had to worry about petty thief. Is there a huge problem with pick-pocketers?

and the last question for now....

5. What clothing is appropriate to pack? I was thinking some jeans but then I thought those would be hot... What kind of pants would be good for Cambodia's weather? What is the teaching dress code like?

I look forward to moving to Cambodia in the fall, and hope to meet some people before hand

MC: You can find several huge markets where they are selling renovated motorcykles from Korea. I am the proud owner of a Daelim 100 cc, since one year ago, I paid 550 dollars, and the bike has never ever let me down.

The good thing about Daelim is that you can get it fixed everywhere in Cambodia. Every single village has a Daelim expert or five, believe me:)

You can also find a secondhand MC from another expat who is leaving, use the forum.

A Daelim is very easy to sell again. If you pay lets say from 300 to 550 dollars for the bike, you will never ever loose more than the half, never, and if you have the time to wait for the right offer, you can almost get all your money back.

Lets put it this way: If yoy buy a Daelim you can never loose more than a couple of hundred dollars, if you buy a new scooter, you can hardly awoid to loose a thousand dollars or so. Up to you:)

With the knowledge I have now, I would bring a top quality helmet, up to you

Crime: I have been told that in Phnom Penh it most happen late nigth, and that the bastards do prefer women as their victims.

But then again, it seems like its the same people who gets robbed every single time.

Anyway, I am a man, I would never travel by bike late night in Phnom Penh.

Internet: I am using Metfone 3G, with a USB moden. You have to pay for the modem, and then at the moment its 20 dollars a month unlimitted. The good thing about the USB modem is that you can use your laptop everywhere. There is a SIM card in the modem, so you can top up everywhere, just by talktime at the nearest corner.

When you arrive, pls start your visa with an EI visa (incl workpermit), its five dollars more expensive, but from then on, you can extend it inside Cambodia. I am using the agent "Lucky Lucky Motor" ( they can rent you a motorcykle as well

You can find several agents, Lucky Lucky is my choise since three years ago.

oh this is so cool

Very little homes are robbed.Most people that are robbed are in the wrong place, at the wrong time and usually admit that it was their fault anyway and accept the loss.Never heard of any armed hold up's.I have been turned over twice.....the second time, I was given my wallet back, with all the cards too, as they only wanted the cash, now I go out with just enough to last the night, and leave all the rest, secure at home...But as I said above,I was in the wrong place, at the wrong time...LOL..