New to the island with many questions

hello,

i have seen that you will be coming to Mauritius for Long term and that you want an accommodation which is not very expensive... The price of the accommodation will depend on what facilities you was to have... and also the location. However it should not be difficult to have one between the range of Rs 20,000 to 30 000 per month for 5 rooms. Most of the bungalows are fully furnished with all the cutlery. i do know some bungalows with all these details.

In case you do not have a BBQ it is not very expensive to have one from the supermarkets of stores. With regards to your baby the baby items you can have them from either pharmacy or stores..

"Push"

Please guys, there must be someone who can give me some insights?

Huge thanks!

1. Housing. Go to lexpressproperty.com/en to get an idea of what you can get and at what prices. Chances are, you'll just go for something too expensive at first then find out a better deal (in the newspaper or so) after a few months... it may be a good idea to find a not so nice but short term lease at first to give you time to check the newspaper ads to find something which you'll really enjoy and that's OK with your budget.

2. Fence. Pretty much everything is negotiable in Mauritius. Some houses do have fenced pools so it may be easier just to look for one.

3. Water/alarm/AC : don't really understand your question there. Most "posh" houses are alarmed, and the alarm is linked to a security company (most often Caudan security). Water : make sure the house has a large enough water tank, at the very least 1 cubic meter. The more the better. AC is often included, if not it costs around 300 EUR per aircon unit to have one installed.

4.Cuttelery / BBQ : even if it's not included, it's dead easy, the island is full of shopping malls (including a brand new one in grand bay) where you can satisfy all your barbecue and cuttlery desires... no issues whatsoever there.

5. I've found lots of useful stuff for my daughter in the Jumbo store shopping mall in Phoenix. I'm sure there's plenty more around (bagatelle might be worth checking out). Again, don't worry about "finding stuff", as Mauritius has no shortage of shopping malls.

6. Maid. As it's an unskilled job, I'd say anywhere between 150 and 200 euro for full time, i.e. not more than 90 hours per fortnight.

7. Unfortunately there's no silver buller for the trust issue, it's a bit hit-and-miss. Pehaps try to give a little bonus at the end of the month if you're happy with the work and if you didn't run into trouble. I've had a couple of housemaids and never had any issues myself.

Good luck with your installation and welcome to Mauritius. I hope you'll like it here as much as I do.

jhiver wrote:

1. Housing. Go to lexpressproperty.com/en to get an idea of what you can get and at what prices. Chances are, you'll just go for something too expensive at first then find out a better deal (in the newspaper or so) after a few months... it may be a good idea to find a not so nice but short term lease at first to give you time to check the newspaper ads to find something which you'll really enjoy and that's OK with your budget.

2. Fence. Pretty much everything is negotiable in Mauritius. Some houses do have fenced pools so it may be easier just to look for one.

3. Water/alarm/AC : don't really understand your question there. Most "posh" houses are alarmed, and the alarm is linked to a security company (most often Caudan security). Water : make sure the house has a large enough water tank, at the very least 1 cubic meter. The more the better. AC is often included, if not it costs around 300 EUR per aircon unit to have one installed.

4.Cuttelery / BBQ : even if it's not included, it's dead easy, the island is full of shopping malls (including a brand new one in grand bay) where you can satisfy all your barbecue and cuttlery desires... no issues whatsoever there.

5. I've found lots of useful stuff for my daughter in the Jumbo store shopping mall in Phoenix. I'm sure there's plenty more around (bagatelle might be worth checking out). Again, don't worry about "finding stuff", as Mauritius has no shortage of shopping malls.

6. Maid. As it's an unskilled job, I'd say anywhere between 150 and 200 euro for full time, i.e. not more than 90 hours per fortnight.

7. Unfortunately there's no silver buller for the trust issue, it's a bit hit-and-miss. Pehaps try to give a little bonus at the end of the month if you're happy with the work and if you didn't run into trouble. I've had a couple of housemaids and never had any issues myself.

Good luck with your installation and welcome to Mauritius. I hope you'll like it here as much as I do.

Big thanks Jhiver!

It was exactly this kind of information that I was looking for (water, AC's and such).

The prices on lexpressproperty.com, are they somewhat negotiable in our experience or are they set in stone? I'm jst trying to find out the Mauritian Bargening mentality.

Thanks!

Hi there. Yes, everything is negotiable in Mauritius, pretty much like anywhere else I assume. At least people are not offended if you try to negociate, it's normal behavior.

As a matter of fact it's quite funny how many ads in the newspaper don't have a price! You have to call and "discuss". So if you are a sharp negociator with business acumen you'll like it here.

If you have a house maid it might be worth asking her to call as she will probably get a better deal than you as a foreigner, Mauritians aren't stupid and know well that expats are on average better off... thus say hi to your friend "price discrimination", especially in Grand Bay which is a very touristic area: anything goes, the sky is the limit

Please don't be offended or get angry by it, that's how it works here. And when you look at the average wages it's quite understandable. Pretty much anybody here will be eager to help you find what you need... for a little fee, which they might get from the vendor.

You'll get used to it and the more you'll be on the island, the better you'll get at purchasing things at the right price. Don't worry too much about it.

Thanks Jhiver, I'l make sure to have a clear and calm head :-)

We are really looking forward to the move.

jhiver wrote:

Hi there. Yes, everything is negotiable in Mauritius, pretty much like anywhere else I assume. At least people are not offended if you try to negociate, it's normal behavior.

As a matter of fact it's quite funny how many ads in the newspaper don't have a price! You have to call and "discuss". So if you are a sharp negociator with business acumen you'll like it here.

If you have a house maid it might be worth asking her to call as she will probably get a better deal than you as a foreigner, Mauritians aren't stupid and know well that expats are on average better off... thus say hi to your friend "price discrimination", especially in Grand Bay which is a very touristic area: anything goes, the sky is the limit

Please don't be offended or get angry by it, that's how it works here. And when you look at the average wages it's quite understandable. Pretty much anybody here will be eager to help you find what you need... for a little fee, which they might get from the vendor.

You'll get used to it and the more you'll be on the island, the better you'll get at purchasing things at the right price. Don't worry too much about it.

My only question is the following : Why would you move from Sweden, a country renowned for it's extraordinarily high standards of living, to a third world island in the middle of nowhere?

Don't forget that it is also dark, cold and wet for at least 9 month per year.

This coupled with the nice climate, culture and personal development we will get in Mauritius should answer your question.

PassTheDank wrote:

My only question is the following : Why would you move from Sweden, a country renowned for it's extraordinarily high standards of living, to a third world island in the middle of nowhere?

It somewhat answers my question but I still don't entirely understand your motives. You, being from Sweden, are accustomed to a rich lifestyle and a well coordinated society which is completely the opposite of Mauritius. You are aware that you would have to overcome a tremendous culture-shock upon arriving there right? If you have read my thread you would see that I mentioned that it is a country where it is extremely difficult (this is no exaggeration) to find common necessities which someone such as yourself or any other tourist might have.

If a warm climate is what you're after then why not move to Spain or perhaps France which both have higher standards of living (and should suit your income and expertise) ?

"I have sent you and an answer through email instead, this thread is not for this topic"

PassTheDank wrote:

It somewhat answers my question but I still don't entirely understand your motives. You, being from Sweden, are accustomed to a rich lifestyle and a well coordinated society which is completely the opposite of Mauritius. You are aware that you would have to overcome a tremendous culture-shock upon arriving there right? If you have read my thread you would see that I mentioned that it is a country where it is extremely difficult (this is no exaggeration) to find common necessities which someone such as yourself or any other tourist might have.

If a warm climate is what you're after then why not move to Spain or perhaps France which both have higher standards of living (and should suit your income and expertise) ?

PassTheDank wrote:

Where it is extremely difficult (this is no exaggeration) to find common necessities which someone such as yourself or any other tourist might have.

Common necessities? Like what? Could you elaborate?

Pershagen76 wrote:

this thread is not for this topic

Pershagen76 is right. It's going slightly off topic. Maybe we could come back to the initial topic.

PS: PassTheDank, if you want to discuss another subject, feel free to start a new thread.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Hi,

I agree with the idea of renting a house for one or two months first and then check yourself what are you looking for. There are a lot of houses or appartments for rent in the north, and of course you can negotiate the price and what can be included (water, electricity, gardener, etc.)You can get a furnished house, 3 bd, air con, alarm, water and electricity bill included in @30k.
Some houses come with cutlery, and kitchen appliances included, but for sure you will need to buy  additional ones.

For children/babies items you can find them locally, but I prefer to buy and bring them every time we travel abroad (better quality and cheaper).

For a full time maid it will be ok 6000/8000 RPS per month, it depends how far does she live from your place.
To find a good one is not easy. Do not hire someone very young if your wife will not be able to supervise her. I met a good one after one year (she works partial time only). If you wish you can contact me for more details.

Good look!

Many thanks for your answer Carmen, I be sure to have them in mind when we start the search for real in March when we arrive.

There are exciting times