Been aproached for position in bank in Riyadh

Life in Saudi is kool!

Salary depends on,

1. the position offered
2. the bank

Dont know the bank. yet

What is the average cost of living for a family of 7.
Cost of groceries and general expenses. Can you drive your own vehicle?

It all depends upon the life style, however if you give a salary range may be given better feed back. Good Luck

I see alot mention lifestyle. Please elaborate on types of lifestyles in Riyadh. Thanks

There are 13 types of lifestyles available in Riyadh you'd be allowed to choose from them once you are entering the Kingdom.

They have been explained very elaborately, just try to search the earlier posts, as each lifestyle is around 45 min. long with subtitles.

There are families of 7 who are able to live, and still smile, from SR 10,000 per month to SR 300,000 per month, gross...

Slyshooters 13 lie in between this range

Jersey you can get a close to accurate feedback provided you provide more details like the salary offered, benefits etc. Also, how would you rate your lifestyle (spending patterns, quality of accommodation, facilities required etc.)

Ok thanks so far for the feedback.

2 Adults. Wife at home.
3 at primary school. We live a pretty normal life no funny extra unncesary expenses. Dont go out much.

We are home bodies and like a home that has a big kitchen as we like baking and cooking. Big lounge and living areas. Also I love working on race cars.

I will know more about money offered later so I will let you know when an official offer is on the table.

Rent, Groceries, Utilities, School Fees, one weekend dinner at a restaurant, in total will cost around SR 20K/month at least

SR i assume is Saudi Rial. What is the cost of basics like a loaf of bread. a litre of milk, a levi jeans, a tube of tooth paste, 1kg flour.
I am use to drinking water straight from the tap. In my country our drinking water is free. what do drink from bottled water? if so how much do you pay for water monthly.

Yes, SR is Saudi Riyals. 1 US$ = 3.75 SR

Drinking water here is always bottled. Tap water can only be used for washing since it is desalinated.

We pay around SR 40 for drinking water per month for a household of 6.

I have no clue about the prices of the commodities you have mentioned since thats entirely in the hands of the ladies in the house who do a weekly Grocery run every Thursday. I know that they usually rake up a weekly bill of approx SR 1,000 for groceries since I receive an sms text message from SAMBA (my bank) every time the Credit Card is used.

Eating out at a decent restaurant can cost between SR20-SR50 per person per meal.

Jersey,

Welcome to the Forum!  Living in KSA can be wonderful, but will all depend on your lifestyle, kids activities and where you live.  I would recommend that you seriously consider what you are getting into... 

I would encourage you to discuss the housing and school issue with your prospective employer and see who will be responsible for those fees.  If you plan on sending your children to the British or American schools, you will prob need to discuss the tuition allowances as most companies place limits on the number of children that are covered.  Annual tuition fees for the British school is anywhere from 24K(SAR) to 62K(SAR) per child...  ttp://www.britishschoolriyadh.com/admission/fee-structure.html
The American International School fees range from 20K(SAR) to 63K(SAR) per child annually... http://www.aisr.org/admissions/tuition-and-fees.html
I would also recommend that you contact the schools regarding registration, as several of the grades are full and not accepting any new students.  Several families that I know are home schooling bc they cannot get their kids into the school.
Housing is another huge concern.  If you are considering living in a compound (which would be nice for the family) you will need to discuss with your employer about allowances/assistance with the rental fees.  Rents are very high...  250K (SAR) annually is the going rate for a 3bedroom villa.  You can plan on paying at least 330K(SAR) for a 4 bedroom all payed in advance with a 10K deposit.  Villas located in the local community are less expensive, but security, maintenance and transportation to/from the schools would be tough and expensive.  Not to mention that your spouse would be limited to the villa and being here initially can be very lonely.

Another issue to consider is a driver.  With 5 children, your wife will need a driver to help out with getting the kids to/from school, the grocery store, the mall, kids activities, etc.  The going rate for drivers is about 2k per mo. 

There is a host of information located in the Blog, so I would encourage you to do some research before you make any decisions...  Best of luck to you! 

Regards,

20 -50sr you are joking I could not even buy a starter for that in some of the restaurants that I eat at.

Most Chinese restaurants, Nafoura, Ammo Hamza, etc range around that number. I was not referring to the Globe.

No, MM, Im not joking...  Its VERY expensive and its on the high end for the high schoolers...  If the employers are not involved, it can be a huge expense for a family.  If you haven't done YOUR homework, I suggest that you make that appt with your boss and have that chat NOW before your kiddies come to KSA! 

Oops!  MM, I see you were referring to Musicman's note.  Sorry! 

CAF wrote:

No, MM, Im not joking...  Its VERY expensive and its on the high end for the high schoolers...  If the employers are not involved, it can be a huge expense for a family.  If you haven't done YOUR homework, I suggest that you make that appt with your boss and have that chat NOW before your kiddies come to KSA! 

Caf,

I was talking about 20 - 50 riyals for a starter in a restaurant, not school fees.

You been imbibing

musicman wrote:

Yes, SR is Saudi Riyals. 1 US$ = 3.75 SR

Drinking water here is always bottled. Tap water can only be used for washing since it is desalinated.

We pay around SR 40 for drinking water per month for a household of 6.

I have no clue about the prices of the commodities you have mentioned since thats entirely in the hands of the ladies in the house who do a weekly Grocery run every Thursday. I know that they usually rake up a weekly bill of approx SR 1,000 for groceries since I receive an sms text message from SAMBA (my bank) every time the Credit Card is used.

Eating out at a decent restaurant can cost between SR20-SR50 per person per meal.

Nothing wrong with Desal Water.  It would be the distribution and storage systems that might marginalize the quality.  If you boil it first (i.e. tea, cooking) it is fine.  For pure drinking, bottled water is the best choice as it is convenient and portable.

MaserMan wrote:

I was talking about 20 - 50 riyals for a starter in a restaurant, not school fees.

You been imbibing

Yes, I caught that, my apologies!  Its early here and I hadn't had my coffee... 

CAF wrote:

MaserMan wrote:

I was talking about 20 - 50 riyals for a starter in a restaurant, not school fees.

You been imbibing

Yes, I caught that, my apologies!  Its early here and I hadn't had my coffee... 

Thought that might be the case

No doubt the Applebees/Chillies/Steakhouse type may hit around SR 100 per head.

I guess there is a great variety of restaurants, ranging from zero to infinity, out there to pick from?

We do eat out every weekend and end up paying around SR 500-600 for ten.

I love the cheap eats, the Turkish Restaurant, recommend by Alliecat many months ago, is our all time favorite! 

CAF wrote:

I love the cheap eats, the Turkish Restaurant, recommend by Alliecat many months ago, is our all time favorite! 

Where is it?

Well thats a good question...    I can certainly take you there...   Identifying the location and giving directions is an entirely different story...     I believe its on Talateen (sp?) heading east. 
lots of Chocolate Stores on the street!

CAF wrote:

Well thats a good question...    I can certainly take you there...   Identifying the location and giving directions is an entirely different story...     I believe its on Talateen (sp?) heading east. 
lots of Chocolate Stores on the street!

You looking for a free meal?

Guys thanks for all the info so far. I am having a telephonic interview on Friday and will know more. I am exited to live in Riyadh and wish that all goes my way. Its a dream come true to live in Saudi for me and the family.
I am looking at trying to save as much as possible.
Also prefer cooking myself.

If you are contracted by a a british contracter to work for a Bank in Saudi you get payed in pounds? Or SR?
Where's youre bank account held. Home bank and local bank?

Hi Jerseyboy - you will get paid in saudi riyals and if you check out South africa's currency it is about SR1 to R1.70. So you may not be too excited to live here after your first pay cheque.

The famous Turkish joint in town is on THALATHEEN Street, the one that goes East from the Al Faisaliah Mall intersection on Olaya Street. Its on the RIGHT about 700 meters from the Olaya traffic light just before the next intersection (You can see PANDA on your left here). You cant miss it the SIGN is as big as a BILLBOARD.

Steakhouse is further up the same street on the RIGHT. Tamimi Safeway is at the next intersection on the LEFT.

If you still cant find it then you gotta buy yourself a GPRS.

musicman wrote:

The famous Turkish joint in town is on THALATHEEN Street, the one that goes East from the Al Faisaliah Mall intersection on Olaya Street. Its on the RIGHT about 700 meters from the Olaya traffic light just before the next intersection (You can see PANDA on your left here). You cant miss it the SIGN is as big as a BILLBOARD.

Steakhouse is further up the same street on the RIGHT. Tamimi Safeway is at the next intersection on the LEFT.

If you still cant find it then you gotta buy yourself a GPRS.

Thanks

So far ive learned that the compounds are very expensive and requires a salary of at least 50k- 150k Saudi Riyaal just to live.
Thats a very high standard of living just be westernised. Compounds are the only place you are alowed to dress and behave like a westerner. Hence the price tag.
Compound rents are 30k to 50k per annum whereas local middle class rentals can be considerably less.

I suppose its down to the offer the bank is going to make me.
Thank you very much for all of your input.
Youve been a great help.

musicman wrote:

The famous Turkish joint in town is on THALATHEEN Street, the one that goes East from the Al Faisaliah Mall intersection on Olaya Street. Its on the RIGHT about 700 meters from the Olaya traffic light just before the next intersection (You can see PANDA on your left here). You cant miss it the SIGN is as big as a BILLBOARD.

Steakhouse is further up the same street on the RIGHT. Tamimi Safeway is at the next intersection on the LEFT.

If you still cant find it then you gotta buy yourself a GPRS.

and the name is "Turkish Assaraya Restaurant"

Ok its Arab National Bank. What can you tell me about them?

as most of the people here covering, the cost of living required depends on the life style.There r people who survive with a salary of 1200 SR per month with only one bed shared and the roof and top doenst belongs to them, only the bed and some with more luxurious life.

The two things that r expensive are Accomodation and Transportation, if you can negotiate with the Employer that they will provide the above two; almost 75% headache is solved and covered.

you have not told the position you r aplplying for and the number of yesrs of experience you have, which also matters to arrive at a final figure.

From an average pay package perspective, you need atleast 20K to 25K per month. If the accomodation and transportation is taken care , you can settle for 18 - 20K.