Moving to work and play in Bali - Help

[jakelynn]

Hi all,

My girlfriend and I are hoping to move from UK to Bali in August, fingers crossed for the interview, to work as teachers.

We would welcome any hints or tips that might be useful. We have read much about the cultural differences and that is all fine, what we really want is the nitty gritty.

1) Renting houses, villas or apartments (really want a pool - Canggu area) Have heard about some ridiculous thing where you must pay a years rent in one hit???
2) What is expected with regards to maids, gardeners etc.
3) What sort of medical cover will we need.
4) General cost of living (we will have a combined income of around £2500 a month, how far does that go) eating out 2-3 nights a week, perhaps an excursion a month etc.
5) Getting on and off the island to visit other palces, read some interesting things about paying a refundable deposit to leave the island.
6) Anything else....

Many thanks in advance for any replies.
Hope to see you all soon
Jake and Hannah

 

[Roy]

Dear Jake and Hannah,

First order of business, welcome to the forum! Hopefully you will find it to be very informative as well as entertaining and sometimes even lively!

1) You might be surprised, but some leases require payment in advance for the entire duration of the lease...5, 10, 15, 20 or even more years. That said however, in the Sanur and Seminyak area, finding rentals on a monthly basis should be considerably easier than say in the Ubud area. There are two English language newspapers here on Bali, The Bali Advertiser and The Bali Times. Both include real estate classified ads, and both are on line (just Google or Yahoo). However, you might consider staying in a bungalow type small hotel for your first month or so. This will give you the opportunity to look for the perfect place while you are here...not to mention the advantages of negotiating in person rather that over the phone or internet.

2) If you are asking about typical monthly salaries for maids, (pembantu) or gardeners, they average around Rp 500,000 to 700,000 a month, but some folks pay less. Some rentals will come with a staff already in place. Once again, it is much better to arrange that once here, and once your house has been selected.

3) Assuming that your employer will not be providing medical insurance as part of your compensation package, the majority of expats here use Sue Speak at Bali Medical Insurance. Her web site is http://www.balimedicalinsurance.com Most of us have policies with William Russell (UK based of course). The coverage is comprehensive, including that all important medical evacuation benefit. If you take a high annual deductible, the premiums are very reasonable.

4) Your combined incomes of US $5,000.00 a month will easily allow you to enjoy an excellent quality of life...very excellent in fact. On that income, you could easily afford to eat out every night if you wanted.

5) Your employer will most likely be handling your visa, which will be a working resident visa, or Kitas. Currently, a Fiskal tax of Rp 1 million is payable for departures outside of Indonesia, and an application to leave (a formality) is also required. The word about is that this tax will soon be eliminated. Leaving Bali for other parts of Indonesia does not require this tax to be paid.

6) You might also search this forum on topics of interest to you as everything you can think of has likely been addressed here at one time or another.


Good luck with your interviews. Bali is a great place to live and work.

 

[johannes]

Hallo Jake and Hannah,

I think with that income you can live in Bali like kings.

johannes

 

[Roy]

Isn’t that the truth Johannes? Also it should be mentioned that on a Kitas visa for your job, you can purchase a car here and in your name. If the plan is to be in Bali for at least two years, a purchase works out better than a lease, as most of the vehicles here hold their re-sale value very well, especially the Indo/Japanese (Toyota) partnership, Kijang.

Another Kitas advantage is that you can open a bank account here, and the savings interest here is very attractive.

 

[jakelynn]

Yahoo got a job in Bali,

Hi again folks,
Its been a bit touch and go but have finally picked Bali over Cayman Islands - really tough choice.
All systems go now, sure we will bombard with you all with questions over the next few months.
Cant wait to join you.

Jake and Hannah

 

[Jimbo]

All systems go now, sure we will bombard with you all with questions over the next few months.

Can I suggest before you do that you have a good look around the forum and do several searches within it as most questions will have been asked and answered previously. Folks here are very helpful but are not here just to answer questions.

Welcome

 

[froggy]

Bali/Caymans hardly a tough call, been to both, Caymans-Very expensive -Bali-super rates,,, Caymans- nighly stroll,better be packin,dont trust anyone, especially locals!--Bali,stay out all night , visit everywhere with tons of new friends, let your driver escort you,super friendly,safe, ---- But I do love those sting-rays! Hardly a choice-enjoy 8)

 

[jakelynn]

Cheers froggy,
kind of been wanting someone to say something like that.
Jake

 

[jakelynn]

Now we are defo coming to Bali, anyone got any thoughts on the best areas to live out there. Think we will get something for a couple of weeks before we pick something permenant, but it would be nice to start looking. needs to be in easy reach of the Canggu.

Cheers Jake

 

[Roy]

Congrats on landing the job and for your decision to select Bali. Your enthusiasm is infectious! Cheers!

 

[DCC]

on the money frogman - but i'm still head scratch'n re your avatar

 

[DCC]

look west of Canggu or you may be forever wishing you had! All the thrills of urban island living in the yak can easily turn to torture IMHO.

 

[Roy]

All the thrills of urban island living in the yak can easily turn to torture IMHO.

VERY well “said” but nothing more about that from me “in public.” :shock:

Don’t let this last exchange scare you, but there are realities, and DCC is spot on. He’s a good man, and with lots of experience “down there” and I hope he wouldn’t mind some private discussions via the PM function on this forum.

Speaking of Froggy’s most recent avatar, I am in the dark as well. Just what the hell is that weird looking thing Froggy? And please, don’t tell us that it is your pet.

 

[Jimbo]

Looks like a goat but what that has to do with Froggy is beyond me

 

[froggy]

I suppose it reminds me of Andrew if he was reincarnated, hell if i know , Thought it was interesting, Ill change it-- one for y'all

 

[froggy]

No disrespect to anyone, just thought that one was hilarious, I will edit it later...

 

[DCC]

Froggy - It was interesting - but now it's gone? If my memory serves me it was some sort of goat that got a makeover in the Bud when no one was looking

 

[max]

Hey Frog
I like this one

Sorry Bert for the Lang
[attachment=0:v8umu4lk]uptheshutfuck.jpg[/attachment:v8umu4lk]

 

[froggy]

Now that the thread has officially been highjacked, i will post my new favorite

 

[Jimbo]

Like the new avatar..........Suits you sir :twisted: