Plenty of questions....moving with family to Chennai

twin-mummy

My husband has a job offer from his company in Chennai. Me and the children have never been in India so I have plenty of questions that need to be answered……can you help:

-Where to live? We need a 4 bedroom house with garden (maybe pool as well) preferred gated community
-How much does it cost? Rental, power, water etc?
-Kids have to join school, any recommendations for first graders?
-How safe is Chennai? Can I walk my dogs myself without getting into trouble?
-How is health and hospital situation?
-How are the beaches and the pollution of the air?
-Do I need a driver?
-What to do on the weekend?

Your honest answers are highly appreciated.
Thanks and maybe cu soon

Nick-H

First, find out where your husband will be working. If possible, add your childrens' school into the equation, although you may not know that until later. If you want to be shut off, an appartment would be better than a house, but the house will have its own compound, walls, gate ...even security guy, if you want.

It costs the same as that proverbial piece of string! A seaside house, with garden and pool will not be cheap, but a decent ex-pat package should allow you to live very well here.

Yes, you can. You may have to carry a stick to ward off the occasional street dog's interest in your dogs. Generally I'd say that Chennai is a safe city, though I sadly suspect that it is beginning to catch up with the outide world.
Good private doctors, dentists and excellent hospital facilities are available, at much less cost than many places in the world. You wouldn't want to be stuck in the traffic in an ambulance, though.
I don't think the pollution is bad, so long as you away from the Buckingham canal or the Cooum River, but I am used to Chennai air! The beaches? The city beaches are over-crowded and dirty, although they get a little better to the South.
With children to get to shool and all? yes.
What do you usually do?

You'll find many of your questions asked, answered and discussed in this part of the forum: it seems Chennai is a popular destination! Please read through the threads and then come back with any specific doubts/quiries.

Your honest answers are highly appreciated.
Thanks and maybe cu soon[/quote]

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twin-mummy

Thanks Nick!
My kids would go to American School, if I can get them in. Do you know if they have long waiting lists?
My husbands work right now is located in RA Puram, but they are thinking about relocating.
I guess it would be up to us to choose best location.
Where do most families with children live? Seaview, wow that sounds nice

Nick-H

We have ex-pat parents as members; hopefuly one of them will see your thread and reply. My wife knows about local schooling, but we cannot advise on international.

RA Puram is a very nice area. You can live quite close to there, or accross the Adyar river in Besant Nagar, or nearby, to be closer to the sea. Moving South from there down the East Coast Road there are several localities that offer the kind of house you are looking for, and while they may not have a sea view, they will be a short dog walk from the beach. Quite a lot of ex-pats choose these areas.

mirjamd

Hi,

Welcome to India Mike,

If your kids go to the American School, anything in the South of Chennai is a good idea. East coast road (ECR) is a popular expat place to live. There are great houses there, pretty close to the American School and of course close to the sea. It's not too far from RA Puram as well. RA Puram, as Nick said, also has some great houses, but that might not really make sense if your husbands company is moving.

If you want to meet other expat women, check out the Overseas Women's Club at www.owcmadras.com. You can meet people and there is a playgroup for kids. There is also a forum where you can ask questions (even though you have to become a member first..)

I have heard that the American School has waiting lists and it's not so easy to get into now. So check with them how far in advance you have to register your child.
Billabong is another good school apparently. I don't know where they are located though...

Good luck with the preparations!

ISN

-Where to live? We need a 4 bedroom house with garden (maybe pool as well) preferred gated community

It depends on the budget and the quality of life you are expecting, if you have a budget in mind I can suggest some places, use this link to get a sample of Chennai housing http://www.primelocator.in/search-properties.php

-How much does it cost? Rental, power, water etc?

This totally depends on your budget, Chennai has a wide range of housing options.

-Kids have to join school, any recommendations for first graders?

American International School is good and expensive another alternative is Vaels Billabong http://www.vaelsbillabonghigh.com/home.htm

-How safe is Chennai? Can I walk my dogs myself without getting into trouble?

Yes, Chennai is a safe place, but you should always use some common sense till you get accustomed to the local place.

-How is health and hospital situation?

You can get good healthcare, but you have to do your homework and know where to go in an emergency, and try to stick with your primary physician and always use him or her as a reference for your specialized care.

-Do I need a driver?

Yes you definitely need a driver, you can get one for $150 USD.

-What to do on the weekend?

It depends on your interest, let us know your interest and I can suggest some activities.

Can you share with the forum what type of industry your husband will be working, Chennai has become home to lot of expats these days.

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twin-mummy

Our housing allowance would be adjusted to living expenses in country we go to. Right now we have a budget from around 2000 Euros. Can I get a bungalow in a nice area for this amount? Do I need security or live in a gated community?

Of course I would not try to attacked locals while walking my dogs, but as I am European and do look different it would be nice to know that my dogs could have a run on the beach every day.

How dirty are the beach and the water? Can we spend a day on the beach as a family?

Good to know that doctors are well trained, how is the hospital situation compared to Europe? Do I get all medications over the counter?

I heard stories about the quality of water? What do you say? Brushing teeth with tab water is ok?

How about live-in helpers? Do I apply over an agency? Are they reliable and how much do they cost? Are they locals or come from other countries?

As Europeans we like to be outdoor: running, biking, water sports, scuba diving. Social wise we do ball room dancing and salsa, like to go to the theatre or musical or cinema. The kids are happy with everything as long as they can explore the world and get rid of their energy.

Can I buy everything in Chennai or are there certain things I should better stock up in the container?

My husbands Company is into the parking and security business.

Thanks for all your help so far.

Nick-H

TW; watch out for the notice saying that your post is being moderated; when that happens, the moderators will approve it as soon as possible... it is a pain for you if you post it all again.

I took a couple of lines out of your 'moderated' post and edited them into your later post, so I think it says everything you wantred to say. The more posts you have on the board the less the moderation thing happens.

twin-mummy

I was not ready to send and then my boys pressed the buttons , sorry. Thats why I did it again.

madan80

well, chennai does have a lot of outdoor activities. There are cycling clubs, and there are treking groups (that go on weekend treks)
the beach is all over - and its pretty clean at most places.

About running the dogs free- as long as the dogs are trained well enough not to attack unless given the order they should be fine.

Chennai does hve a very large expat community. for the housing part- the budget will allow you to get a decent sized house in city limits - else you can try and find one with a pool- but that would be on East Cost road.

You can get almost everything you need (except Mirjamds Expresso coffee powder! ) but there are local substitutes for everything. There are quite a many shops that stock a lot of imported items- so bringing down food stuff would not be an issue unless it is specifically medically related.

IM does have a LOT of information - so relax and enjoy your stay!

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Nick-H

That's about 1.3 lakh (100,000) rupees. Yes, you should get a very nice house for that.

Do you need to live in a gated community? Hmmm... the question suggests that you feel that living here is a threatening or dangerous situation. It isn't! Chennai is probably safer than many European cities. It is not perfect, and no-way is it 100%-populated by angels, but I think you can turn down your worries-about-security to a much lower setting.

Having said that, many people who have large houses, and can afford it, employ a security man who maybe does odd jobs too. Whilst it is a good idea, it has to be balanced against that fact that burgleries do happen here with the help of domestic staff who's background and credentials has not been properly checked. You may be forced to go to an agency for your staff until you get to know people, but preferable by far is recommendation by word of mouth.

People here tend to be afraid of dogs, perhaps as the dogs at most houses are intended to be guard dogs. It could cause problems if your dogs are over-friendly towards strangers --- but you'll have to ask a dog owner!

You might attract an audience! You may well end up living close enough that you don't have to go there for the day. You should easily be able to find a place within 10 minutes walk. The beaches are perfectly safe, but you should avoid those that 'belong' to the fishing communities once it gets dark. The beach near where I live is fairly clean.

The beaches are not safe for swimming, a fact that is fatally ignored on a regular basis by local people.

Yes, they don't bite often, except when roaming the streets at night as a pack .
Yes, you will be able to buy your medicines from a small pharmaqcy, probably on your own street.
You should consider tap water undrinkable. You can buy yourself an expensive machine and purify your own water, or buy 20Ltr cans of purified water.

See comment above. Live-in, full-time is likely to be expensive. English-speaking domestic help is rare.

Check out other threads here where this is discussed.

I think we did a whole thread on this recently!

twin-mummy

Once again a big THANKS to all of you. I did not expect to have all my questions answered in such a short time!
One more question came up in my mind: I assume we have to buy cars? What do I have to expect when it comes to safe car with ABS and Airbags (does not have to be new). Is there a local market I can trust, how much are cars anyway?

brownboy66

cars can range from very inexpensive for a locally produced model, to hideously expensive for a fully built up import (and no problems buying a second hand car).

In terms of features it does pay to shop around. Things like ABS, airbags, side intrusion bars, etc - all incorporate extra engineering that has to be paid for somehow - hence you will tend to find those sorts of things on the higher priced cars. Don't be fooled, however, into thinking that all the more expensive vehicles are better.

Our family has a locally produced SUV - and when we compared it to a locally assembled SUV from a major car producer - the technology in the locally produced car was streets ahead (ours had a bigger engine, better engine technology, better suspension and chassi - whereas the major brand SUV had a smaller engine and leaf spring suspension; which is what you use for trucks and horse drawn buggys). The major brand SUV, however, was twice the price!

there are some vehicles that don't fit into either of the categories above (i.e - toyotas are good everywhere). Since your looking at a family vehicle and will need something easy to get in and out of with the twins - have a look at a toyota innova (google it and you'll see what it looks like). Its a people mover, brutally practical and thoroughly efficient at what it does, wont turn any heads but its comfortable, rock solid, goes forever, hardly breaks down, and is backed up by toyota servicing. If you're buying second hand - be careful as alot of them are used by taxi and tourist companies and are literally run into the ground before they are sold.

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Nick-H

First step, I would try and get the employers to provide a car and driver a part of the package. Heck, two cars, why not?

It all depends how stuff works out with your husband's work travel, or if he needs to travel as part of his job.

I'd say there may be a clash of priorities here.

---His: living where he can walk to work and back, or at least do the journey for a cheap and easy auto-rickshaw ride.

---Yours: Desire to live near the sea, and/or ease of getting the children too and from school.

This can be a matter for pre-move conversation, but I think you both need to see and explore the city for a week or three before deciding. Hope the company facilitates this with hotel accomodation.

I drive a cheap Indian car: Maruti Swift. This is an incarnation of the Suzuki car availablke in many countries in the world, but with some building down to Indian price. Safety features are the first to go when it comes to this process, as the drivers here do not really care about keeping their families alive in the event of an accident. The Swift, in terms of value for money, is great.

I'd have to be paid to buy (another) Tata.

If I was buying with a corporate, particularly ex-pat, income, I'd probably buy Honda. You'll find much the same standards of safety and specification that you'll find in their cars world-wide, they are not ridiculously more expenisive, as some imports are, and their mainainance costs (and availability) compare well with Skoda, which is another favourite here.

If you do want to go further upmarket, Audi, BMW and Mercedes are represented here. Further down-market, Ford, Hayundai (never can spell that).

I'm sure the Innova makes a wonderful car for the family, yes. Another compromise: the smaller the car the easier it is to get around city traffic.

The traffic here can be very congested at the busy times of the day, but it doesn't often grind to a complete halt. When it does it is usually because of a special event, or some politician has decided to halt a rally in the middle of a major route.

Whatever people say, it is perfectly feasable to drive here, though it took me a year to pluck up the courage! One tends to be put off by the professional drivers, who are the most aggressive on the road. Get yourselves International Driving Permits just in case you want to give it a go. After the first year you'll need to get local licences, but that is easy; as you will see from the standard of driving here!

ISN

Checkout this link Resources for buying a car in India