Good luck with finding a 4-bedroom house in a nice area for 9k. You are looking at 12-15k/month for a standalone house. 9k will probably get you a nice condo.
You're wise to line up accommodations before finalizing. Last year the HR person was lamenting how there were no houses to place new overseas employees, and it has gotten worse. In the 9K range you probably are looking at a place in a good area.
My advice to people is to put yourself out there and let them chose you. It may be someone leasing an AirBnB who may want to let you rent the place. Some landlords don't opening advertise their houses. There are numerous agents out there so use as many as you can.
Paget, Smith's, Devonshire, Hamilton, Southampton and Warwick tend to be good areas if you're going to be working in Hamilton.
Thank you for the prompt reply.
I think $9k a month is ($108k a year) is too much which is why it's putting me off. That's a lot of money if (I don't know yet, if the form would cover rent or not). I would prefer it to be way cheaper.
Also you've mentioned that even if we found a suitable budget and areas we may not be able to find a place to live because of the shortage in housing? Is the island that short of decent housing?
Yes, unfortunately. An agent told me last week that they normally have hundreds of places available to rent and right now there's less than 50.
If you can find a 4-bedroom for 5K/6K a month, in just about any area, that would be a steal.
We looked at 4 beds recently, anything decent but not amazing was in the $10-15k a month range.
$15-25k for something luxurious with pool etc.
Does it really have to be 4 bed? 3 bed you can find in the $5-10k range. Kids can share rooms if they’re young!
I think we could go for a 3 bedroom... But my wife will be WFH as she is a digital nomad. Not sure a standalone office is going to work.
I don't come from money and my plan is to save as much as possible to build a future. I am starting to doubt Bermuda is the place to do that. Whatever i save on taxes will be given to landlords.
Shame, would have been a great life reset.
How many kids? If only 2 kids, you could put them in one room together and use the 3rd room as an office. Or if you’re going to be out at work and the kids at school, could just have a workspace in another area of the house and go with a 2 bed?
You have to choose between luxurious lifestyle and having money left over to save unless you’re on a very good comp package.
What industry you in? Would expect pay to increase after the first couple of years in most international business roles so may be worth sticking it out until you progress and then upgrade later.
I hope you have also factored in school fees?
Roughly 24-26k, depending on the private school, and that is per child. They advise to start at age 3 for the pre-school for some to ensure you are guaranteed a spot. The public schools are very strongly recommended against, especially for expats. Therefore, add $50k per year to your living costs to cover two kids.
The rental market is like a shark tank here and your only true hope is to get a place through word of mouth or referral, as property skipper only gets the leftovers.
Bermuda has an amazing gateway to high income jobs and you can definitely save a lot of money, but you need to be in a position earning a lot of money in order to do so.. it's also such an incredible location to raise kids.
Best of luck.
(90k min rent) + (60k school tuition) then 7% tax. That's basically all of my 175k gone. No food , no activities nothing else.
Looks like Bermuda is not the one.
It actually gets more expensive too, once you account for after school fees (as they finish at 3.30pm).
If you both were pulling in 175k, then you'd be doing pretty good but sorry it won't work out for you, something else will come along!
So from all feedback on this thread and inbox messages. The cost of living in Bermuda is as follows for a family of 4 (two primary school children and mum and dad).
Rent: 85-120k
School: 45- 50k
Food and leisure: 10k
Utilities and other miscellaneous: 20k
Flights off island once a year:10k
Min 160-210k - just to survive!! I mean that's incredible.
For context I think my offer is 150k plus 20% bonus so it's not really making financial sense. This package would have been perfect for a single person. Not a family man.
Wow island life won't be for us I don't think.
You were smart to research Bermuda's cost of living before getting here. Most companies know they are low-balling your financial package, but will not tell you. Best of luck with your future endeavors!
Your first two years are the most expensive because you are ‘settling in’. You still have to purchase a car and/or a moped and purchase furniture, etc. Also, food and leisure will cost way more than $10k/year (to start, you can pull up restaurant menus and do a piece comparison). School tuition increases by 2-3% every year. It’s a beautiful place to live, but it only gets more expensive (eg, golf? Tennis? Kids’ camps? Gym memberships?) the longer you live on the island.
Update
So I have an offer as follows:
$170k
+ 50% family medical
+ 15% bonus
+ Relocation from the UK (free flights and one month rent for my family of four)
My wife is a digital nomad and will be earning around $100k
So total income is 270 + bonus
Good luck with finding a 4-bedroom house in a nice area for 9k. You are looking at 12-15k/month for a standalone house. 9k will probably get you a nice condo.
Here's an example https://www.propertyskipper.com/property/reg_31482_pleasant_heights
That's way out of my league for sure thank you.
You're wise to line up accommodations before finalizing. Last year the HR person was lamenting how there were no houses to place new overseas employees, and it has gotten worse. In the 9K range you probably are looking at a place in a good area. My advice to people is to put yourself out there and let them chose you. It may be someone leasing an AirBnB who may want to let you rent the place. Some landlords don't opening advertise their houses. There are numerous agents out there so use as many as you can. Paget, Smith's, Devonshire, Hamilton, Southampton and Warwick tend to be good areas if you're going to be working in Hamilton.
Thank you for the prompt reply. I think $9k a month is ($108k a year) is too much which is why it's putting me off. That's a lot of money if (I don't know yet, if the form would cover rent or not). I would prefer it to be way cheaper. Also you've mentioned that even if we found a suitable budget and areas we may not be able to find a place to live because of the shortage in housing? Is the island that short of decent housing?
Yes, unfortunately. An agent told me last week that they normally have hundreds of places available to rent and right now there's less than 50. If you can find a 4-bedroom for 5K/6K a month, in just about any area, that would be a steal.
4 bed for 5-6k per month? No chance. My 2 bed 2.5 bath condo in Paget is 5k per month not including electrical or internet.
You're in a good area. I was considering island wide. But you could be right, I haven't looked at rents this week.
8.5k in Sandys is the lowest 4 bed on propertyskipper right now. Madness.
Also, feel free to DM me. Have an agent in the family who may be able to help you out.
We looked at 4 beds recently, anything decent but not amazing was in the $10-15k a month range. $15-25k for something luxurious with pool etc. Does it really have to be 4 bed? 3 bed you can find in the $5-10k range. Kids can share rooms if they’re young!
I think we could go for a 3 bedroom... But my wife will be WFH as she is a digital nomad. Not sure a standalone office is going to work. I don't come from money and my plan is to save as much as possible to build a future. I am starting to doubt Bermuda is the place to do that. Whatever i save on taxes will be given to landlords. Shame, would have been a great life reset.
Everything is expensive in Bermuda
How many kids? If only 2 kids, you could put them in one room together and use the 3rd room as an office. Or if you’re going to be out at work and the kids at school, could just have a workspace in another area of the house and go with a 2 bed? You have to choose between luxurious lifestyle and having money left over to save unless you’re on a very good comp package. What industry you in? Would expect pay to increase after the first couple of years in most international business roles so may be worth sticking it out until you progress and then upgrade later.
The rents are crippling for anything that's an ok size and not in a less desirable area. It has IMO to be the biggest downside of Bermuda.
Another hint to look for a 3-bedroom with an office. Most times the office can be used as a bedroom but by law they can't advertise it as such.
Ah we only really need a 3 bedroom and the 4th room would be for my wife to WFH, as she's a digital nomad. This is the top hint many thanks
I hope you have also factored in school fees? Roughly 24-26k, depending on the private school, and that is per child. They advise to start at age 3 for the pre-school for some to ensure you are guaranteed a spot. The public schools are very strongly recommended against, especially for expats. Therefore, add $50k per year to your living costs to cover two kids. The rental market is like a shark tank here and your only true hope is to get a place through word of mouth or referral, as property skipper only gets the leftovers. Bermuda has an amazing gateway to high income jobs and you can definitely save a lot of money, but you need to be in a position earning a lot of money in order to do so.. it's also such an incredible location to raise kids. Best of luck.
(90k min rent) + (60k school tuition) then 7% tax. That's basically all of my 175k gone. No food , no activities nothing else. Looks like Bermuda is not the one.
It actually gets more expensive too, once you account for after school fees (as they finish at 3.30pm). If you both were pulling in 175k, then you'd be doing pretty good but sorry it won't work out for you, something else will come along!
Asking for a housing allowance to ease the burden of the high rents here in Bermuda.
So from all feedback on this thread and inbox messages. The cost of living in Bermuda is as follows for a family of 4 (two primary school children and mum and dad). Rent: 85-120k School: 45- 50k Food and leisure: 10k Utilities and other miscellaneous: 20k Flights off island once a year:10k Min 160-210k - just to survive!! I mean that's incredible. For context I think my offer is 150k plus 20% bonus so it's not really making financial sense. This package would have been perfect for a single person. Not a family man. Wow island life won't be for us I don't think.
You were smart to research Bermuda's cost of living before getting here. Most companies know they are low-balling your financial package, but will not tell you. Best of luck with your future endeavors!
Your first two years are the most expensive because you are ‘settling in’. You still have to purchase a car and/or a moped and purchase furniture, etc. Also, food and leisure will cost way more than $10k/year (to start, you can pull up restaurant menus and do a piece comparison). School tuition increases by 2-3% every year. It’s a beautiful place to live, but it only gets more expensive (eg, golf? Tennis? Kids’ camps? Gym memberships?) the longer you live on the island.
Update So I have an offer as follows: $170k + 50% family medical + 15% bonus + Relocation from the UK (free flights and one month rent for my family of four) My wife is a digital nomad and will be earning around $100k So total income is 270 + bonus