a provisional budget (opinions please)

JoeR
By JoeR

Hullo everyone,

I am contemplating a written offer, to relocate tentatively in December. I am trying to figure out what sort of living expenses I should expect to incur in Doha, and have come up with this monthly budget:

1) Housing QR13,000 (am eyeing a 2BR place near Corniche / West Bay)
2) Utilities QR2,500 (W&E, phone, ADSL, mobile & cable TV)
3) Food QR2,000 (take-away or eat out most meals)
4) Leisure QR2,000 (mainly gym / club dues, green fees & DVDs / CDs)
5) Clothing QR1,500
6) Insurance QR1,500 (vehicle & some supplementary personal policies)
7) Transport QR2,500 (inc. fuel & maintenance)

I am a 30-something bachelor who smokes and is a moderate drinker, and I've come up with that budget above based on observations made during a short visit recently. I would be very grateful for views as to whether I have missed out on any important items, or even if I have completely cocked up the estimates.

At the moment, I am not very sure of the amounts I've set aside for food and leisure. Some tips and pointers in those areas would be most appreciated.

One last question: Does anyone have any idea what sort of monthly instalment I can expect to pay over 30 months for a Hummer H3? If I could get an indicative rate for financing costs, I'll do the math myself. The H3 may be a pretentious vehicle to some, but I reckon Qatar presents the best excuse for driving one.

cheers

p.s. Before anyone points out the gym, ciggies and booze combo; I'd just like to point out that I believe in a "balanced" lifestyle. LOL

By satria• 18 Dec 2006 19:21
satria

that's a real good budgeting

By novita77• 11 Oct 2006 21:48
novita77

oops ... sorry ... i must be thinking 3.000QR annualy :-)

By xtian001• 11 Oct 2006 21:30
Rating: 5/5
xtian001

4) Leisure QR2,000 (mainly gym / club dues, green fees & DVDs / CDs)

For gym and club dues alone, you might spend about 4000QR++ the least...

6) Insurance QR1,500 (vehicle & some supplementary personal policies)

Yup, I'm paying at least 1500++ for my vehicle insurance. If you're planning to buy a 4 wheel drive(a hummer i see), the minimum would be 3000++...

Chris San Juan

http://www.lifeonthespot.com

By Sabrina• 11 Oct 2006 21:27
Rating: 5/5
Sabrina

Yes, your budget is definitely workable. It all depends on where you want to eat out - 5* hotels are very expensive. If you want to go to restaurants like Applebee's price-range, figure it is about 50 riyals/person.

By xelull• 11 Oct 2006 17:32
xelull

if i use ur budget,, then.. i won't have anything to save..

I started feeling that I'm making a mistake coming to Doha

;(

By butterfly• 11 Oct 2006 10:20
Rating: 3/5
butterfly

Food: depends what kind of food you are willing to eat. If you want to survive on McDonals meals, 2000 is ok. If you are looking to eat lunch and dinner in a 5* hotel every day, you should be looking to budget at least 5000.

Otherwise, your budget is perfect. I couldnt have done it better.

By butterfly• 11 Oct 2006 10:18
butterfly

3000 QR monthly for insurance???? THat's a little too expensive, me thinks

By novita77• 11 Oct 2006 10:09
Rating: 3/5
novita77

You will need to increase your food allowance if u take away and eat out most of the time.

For insurance ... our car 5 yrs old ... and we pay 1.300 for insurance. While my friend drive 2 yrs old prado she paid over 3.000 for insurance.

By SK5000• 11 Oct 2006 10:02
SK5000

what is the approx salary offer so the expenditure can be compared

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