Singapore monthly expenses and steiner

[beachavendrea]

Hi all
My husband has an opportunity to go and work in singapore. For us money would be one of the biggest attractions.

before he discusses package etc, i wanted to get an idea of how much it costs to live there. i've done some googling but i figure mumsnet is way more clued up than google.

We would want a town house/semi-detached house probably 4 bedrooms in an ex pat area.
how much are school fees? food etc? we would be coming from nz where the cost of living is high.

we have two kids a one year old and a 4 year old. i plan for my 4 year old to be steiner educated, they don't start formal school until 7, but the cost of schools would also be appreciated. or if anyone knows of steiner schools in singapore? would it be easy to stick to this or if i enter him at school at 6plus would he find it difficult?
As i said we just want to know fianically if it is even an option for us or what we should be looking for with the relocation package.
any advice gratefully received.

[pupsiecola]

There are loads of posts on here over the last couple of years relating to costs of living in Singapore - very detailed one. Just use the search button to find them.

There is no Steiner school or anything comparable in Singapore. I have friends in the UK with a son at a Steiner school. Most schools in Singapore (international or local) would be at the other end of the spectrum imo.

[butterfliesinmytummy]

House would be about gbp 8k a month, car is about gbp 1k a month, international school about gbp 3k a term, health and dental, annual flights home, relocation costs, utilities would need to be factored in. As pupsie said,there are lots of thread about this. Packages are best, if not a six figure salary not starting in 1 would help

[TerrorAustralis]

In Singapore houses are referred to as landed houses. Townhouses or attached are often called cluster houses. Look at property guru.com.sg. Most people live in apartments and land is limited, so you will pay more to have a house.

International schools are around SGD$25,000+ for the early years, and that is just fees, not any of the extras that inevitably follow. There are also application fees, enrolment fees and a number of ingenious ways to part parents from large sums of money.

Groceries are quite variable. If you shop where locals shop, limit your consumption of red meat and dairy (or stock up on trips home), then it will cost less than NZ. If you eat exactly like you do at home and shop at 'expat' supermarkets, then food will cost you a fortune.

Go for full medical and dental coverage. GP visits are cheap, but serious medical care is not, and insurance is very expensive.

When doing any calculations, take into account the low tax rates. It really makes a difference and is one of the reasons it's financially worthwhile being here.

[beachavendrea]

thanks guys I'll do a search but it's great to have a rough idea when we have the Skype phone call next week

[pupsiecola]

Is it an actual school though? Not very clear from the website and no address or details of fees etc. I've not heard of it before (not that we would have considered it anyway). I wonder if it's support for home schooling? Anyone know?

[kday]

Interesting to see that Steiner preschool as I'd never heard of it here either! It might be worth noting that in the FAQ it says you'd need to do extra work to get your child ready to go to school (just pointing this out in reply to OPs specific question above!).

[Laptopwieldingharpy]

Never heard of steiner strains in Singapore....
At 6, most kids will be entering year 2/grade1 and proficient enough in numeracy and literacy in one or 2 languages.
Not sure you'd easily slot them into mainstream schools unless you heavily tutor at home.

[beachavendrea]

i did email them and i think they are slowly building a steiner school, not very clear from their email or website. they have said they will get back to me though. we might return when he is 7 and he will attend steiner school then so guess i didn't want to put him in 'mainstream' school and then back to steiner, didn't think that was very fair to him.
thanks for the insights on the singapore system it's sounds quite traditional so it confirms my thoughts on it. another factor to consider I guess.

[beachavendrea]

also i have tried searching for singapore living costs threads and haven't found anything, might be my search abilities. but i guess salary wise 7 figures with a 2 in front would make us comfortable.

[Laptopwieldingharpy]

Fir a town house in a condo, central expat area start around $11,000
For a semi can climb up to 20,000
Have a look on propertyguru.com.sg
Start with districts 9,10,11,21

Food budget caries depending on where u shop.
You should be comfortable with that figure.