Negotiations in the works

Tajkazil

I know this question has been asked ad nauseum,but I'm talking with a large pharmaceutical about coming to Hyd to work. So I have the standard questions about relocating to the area. Let me start with where the job will be located;

Plot no-6, Raheja Mind Space
Hitech City, Madhapur, Hyderabad 500081

Now let me say that I want my wife to be as comfortable in HYD as possible since she is supporting me in a great job opportunity. I suspect that it will take at least a gated community, luxury apartment with western style toilets and air conditioning to start. I try to research what's available online and noticed that you dont get very many posting with photo to show whats being offered like I'm used to seeing on Craigs List. We also see lots of residential projects on the internet but they seem to all be 'For Sale" but I would think that somebody is buying them as investment properties and they should be available for rent too.

I would like to be able to negotiate a good enough salary to enjoy ourselves there in HYD and still save some money to take home in a few years too. So now that you have some idea of the lifestyle we're looking at what would the forum suggest? From reading other posts I gather driving in Hyd is not an option another good reason to be located close to the job but what all is involved in employong a 'driver' does he own the car or do we have t rent it? I assume we'll buy gas (petro) and provide a salary but forgive my ignorance but, is the driver 'On-Call'

As you can tell we have lots of questions but let's start with these two first, while I keep educating myself on the web.

life_is_journey

Dear Tajkazil, you can get a good gated communty house or flat near to hightech city. and you cn own your own car. if you are not staying near begumpet,ameerpet,samajiguda then car is not a problem. well if you want to have car by rent there are cabs available always. so you have both options.Any queries you have please go ahead and ask.
cheers
Ashis

gopalk

You can get good apartments or gated community houses close to your place of work - a tad expensive though. If you are willing to travel about 30 mins to and from work, your options will increase manifold.

I wish it were easy to locate and rent a place off the net. In fact I would strongly suggest that you first inspect any place you would like to rent. The recession has made it possible for you to get a good place at a reasonable price ;-)

There are many options to hire a car+driver. My suggestion would be to negotiate it as part of your pay structure.

-
Gopal

VivaPamplona

Most of the newer expat "compounds" are located in Gachibowli or HiTec and should fit well with what you're looking for. Check out Lumbini Springs, Jaybherri Meadows or Aparna Orchids...those three are pretty popular with expats from my company. There are also some gated apartment communities in Banjara Hills (closer to the city center) with pools that have expat familes as well...check out Stone Valley, Whisper Valley and Trendset Vantage. As others have said, in this economy, you should be able to snag a great rental deal. Negotiate the deal your landlord gives you...I would think for a 4-5 bedroom, depending on the quality of the house and furnishings, you can find properties from 50,000 to 100,000 rupees/month. Most leases are 11 months and they're easy to get out of with a 3 month notice. Your security deposit may be extremely high so try to negotiate it so your firm pays the deposit for you.

Most of the local cab companies (Pushpak, 4 Wheels) offer long term deals for a car/driver combo...so you pay a set monthly rate for the car + driver..and the rate you pay is all inclusive so there are no extras for gas, tires, etc (you should tip your driver and their may be extra charges for late night hours or extra mileage). There are also independent drivers that have their own cars, but you will have to search to find those. One option you may want to consider is leasing your own car (so you can drive it if you want) and then hiring a seperate driver to drive it for you when you need him. In that case the driver would be available whenever you need him (so yes, he's on call). There are always expats drivers available (check with the TEA expat association and maybe they can forward you their newsletter with driver advertisements from other expats).

life_is_journey

Viva i agree with you. and one can also get good house with good facility around hi tech city in between rs20000- rs35000 also.But it will be 4-5 kilometers from that place.

Tajkazil

Good Day everyone just waking up This is very helpful and will get us off to a good start. Since it just the two of us I believe a 2 or 3 bedroom flat would work well. I agree that we'll have to see in person what we're renting' I will be talking to 'HR' tomorrow and then I'll know what the company will provide and then plan accordingly.

Tajkazil

I spoke with HR this morning and they are telling me a range of 2-2.4 million for an annual salary plus bonus. But I have also been looking on-line with my wife at apartments and it looks like to come close to what we are use to here in the states we will be looking at the newest luxury appartments and I'm not sure with the rest of the cost of living, drivers, internet, basic utilities if I'm not stepping backwards. I don't wish to sound snobish I'm just looking to our 'mutual' happiness and trying to decide to continue negotiations. They said the company would assist in 'finding' a driver but that didn't sound like they were picking up the cost. There would be some allowances to get basis supplies to get started so I'm sure there are more questions I should be asking them. I will talk with some of my indian colleques working with me here and see what they have to say as well.

life_is_journey

Tajkazil,
i think they will only pay for your rent, but not driver and other stuffs.
Any way you have decide how much you want to spent on rent. but you can get good facility in rs20,000-rs 35,000 also for 2or 3 bed room houses.
Driver you can get one in rs 7,000 to rs 10,000 per month.buts its easy to drive your own. or take radio cabs.any other questions you have you can always ask.
cheers
Ashis

vegan

I live and work in San Francisco bay area. Most Americans who work in San Francisco either live in tiny apartments in San Francisco paying hefty rents/mortgages from their pockets or live in bigger houses in places like Concord and commute by BART or bus long-distance to work.

Seems like when they move to countries like India they want to lead a dream life (best apartment possibly next to Prime Minister's accommodation, luxury car with a driver, most expensive schools for their children and large enough salary so that they can save enough for a home in the USA within 2 years.

I just find it very interesting.

Tajkazil

Vegan,

My first interest was the opportunity afforded me by the job being offered in India moving into mid-management, next it would be the adventure of living in another country. But I am living in a tiny apaprtment paying hefty rents and even if I was looking at another job here in the states I would be trying to better my life. My wife has been asking me "If India is such a great place to work, why are so many indians coming here??" Yes living the "Dream Life" in India would be the reason we would leave our friends and families behind and getting the international working experience on my resume would be very beneficial as well. Yes we would want to live a "Dream Life" because we can't do it here, remember those tiny apartments and hefty rents.

T

VivaPamplona

Tajkazil,
That salary sounds a little low (~$50,000) given the hardships of livining in India...but then again I'm not sure about what level you are or how many years of experience you have. Most companies actually increase your base pay a bit by coming out here (i.e. a "hardship allowance"). And I think LIJ's housing estimates are also low. If you want a top quality, furnished apartment that you and your family will be comfortable in, within a gated neighborhood where you have access to other expat families, there's no way you will find anything for less than 40,000 INR/month. I've seen some real nasty properties out here and I'm assuming you want nice furnishings, nice construction, Western quality. Plus...foreign epats in general tend to pay a bit more than locals or NRI's...it's a fact of life.
Regarding car and driver...you can probably strike a deal with a local cab company to do a car/driver package combo for 30,000 - 40,000 INR/month. If you can lease you own car and then find a driver on the side, a driver should cost you 8,000-10,000/month for 7 days a week service (hours over 12/day may be extra). Most Indian companies give their managerial staff a car and driver allowance to help offset the cost of this.
Last comment...not sure if you have children of school age...but if so, the private schools here are very, very expensive.
VP.

nycank

Yup. Quite low I think. He would save bupkis after inflation and conversion.

__________________
bade bhaisaheb is outsourced

AwayFromHome

[quote=VivaPamplona;794466]Tajkazil,
That salary sounds a little low (~$50,000) given the hardships of livining in India...but then again I'm not sure about what level you are or how many years of experience you have. /QUOTE]

Yeah, a little low - but not bad at all.

You'll have agreat life here, but aspirations for saving up for a house in the US are completely misguided. Unless you live a puritan life here.

vegan

Tajkazil,

I think you are being paid a little less (or quite a less) than what many American employees earn while in India. (Are you a Caucasian? Just wondering.) It is very good money by Indian standards but if you spend it on your 'dream life' there won't be much left to buy a house in the States.

Regarding your comment about why so many Indians are coming to the States for work you might be aware that in past two years it has been mostly Indians going back to India for work - because USA has no good job openings and India is still growing. Maybe USA situation will improve but many, including market guru Robert Prechter, think that USA is ripe for a full-blown depression and deflation with prices of many assets taking big hits. If that comes to pass, it is doubtful many Indians will go to the USA.

Regarding being able to buy a house in the States with your savings in India seems doubtful but it is a matter of chance. If USA goes into a depression and dollar collapses, it is quite possible that you might be able to buy a mansion in San Francisco for say Rs 5 lakhs. Have patience. Detroit, once a shining city, had its median home price less than $8,000 (less than Rs 5 lakhs) a few months ago. Other cities might follow.

Tajkazil

Thanks Vivapamplona & Others,

This confirms my suspicions about thier salary range,while we are not trying to save for a house back in the states, we've owned several and at the moment apartments work fine for our lifestyle here. We do want to be able to live a comfortable life while living in India without living paycheck to paycheck because of the real cost of living.I can stay here and do that now. I do want my wife to be able to pick up a phone when ever she wants and call home or get a plane and go once and a while. So if the offer doesn't improve dramatically I wont be givening it serious consideration.