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Aliyah Dollars and Sense
The Nefesh B'Nefesh e-mail list has been hopping lately with prospective olim asking questions about whether or not it makes sense to ship their appliances, electronics and/or furniture to Israel on their lift or container. And others have written to me off-list about realistic budgeting of their living expenses during the first year. I've been responding to as many as I have time for regarding the cost of shipping vs. selling at garage sale prices and buying new here, along with ball-park living expense figures. This morning it dawned on me that it might be beneficial to publish the information here until I get the Aliyah Handbook ready for its online debut, so here goes...
Follow up:
My moving item analysis spreadsheet (208 kb XLS) that was used to help us decide what was worth shipping vs. selling. Explanation of tabs:
- items to ship - a list of the items we actually shipped, along with their estimated replacement cost, carton dimensions, calculated cost to ship (based on shipping quote), and cost ratio. This became the basis for our insurance inventory list.
- items considering - a list of the items we didn't make a final decision on until the lift had been filled with the items to ship.
- planned on the plane - a list of the items we planned to take on the plane with us, along with their weight, quantity and value.
- plane box inventory - these were the items we took on the plane as checked luggage, listed by box with weight and value.
- documents - a list of documents and quantities of each that we brought on the plane in our carry-on luggage.
- shipping_Sonigo - their quote vs. the actual charges on our final invoice.
- Insurance List - the spreadsheet we attached to our insurance application declaring the value of our ocean shipment.
- shipping_quote_SUMMARY - a comparison of the shipping quotes we received from KEF, Rainier, Sonigo and Strand.
- shipping_quote_KEF - their detailed quote.
- shipping_quote_Rainier - their detailed quote.
shipping_quote_Strand - their detailed quote.
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Appliances, electronics and furniture (54 kb PDF) we purchased in Israel during the summer of 2008. Currently the exchange rate will give you more shekels per dollar than we received, so your dollars will buy more than ours did.
- Living expense analysis (118 kb PDF) for two families living in Ma'ale Adumim.
If there is additional information that would help you with your upcoming Aliyah, please don't hesitate to ask.
06/15/09. 10:49:01 am. 411 words, 1285 views. Categories: B. Aliyah Planning, Home Furnishings, Financial Planning , 5 comments »
5 comments
In another two years, you're going to find your gross income cut by between a third and a half. That's when the going begins to be rough. With all due respect, I think the picture presented is a false one and gives potential olim a much too optimistic picture. I would have replied on the NBN list, but I am not allowed to--I've been in the country for far too long [no one on that list has been in Israel for more than 7 years] and my enthusiasm has been tempered with realism.
All the best.
Cheryle: We were allowed to take three 20" x 20" x 20" cube boxes each with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. each on a charter flight.
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Antigonos: You have a valid point and I invite you to propose an alternate detailed budget that I will publish with your permission (anonymously if you'd like). I can only report the real picture from my personal experience and am sure that the readers here would appreciate the benefit of additional scenarios.
Before we made Aliyah, we were told by people in our fields that a monthly income between NIS 15k and 18k for me, and 22k to 26k for my husband was realistic for our hi-tech skills. The reality on the ground is different and a struggle. I would very much appreciate learning where in Israel people (who don't own property) can live on a dual income of less than NIS 10,000 per your example. We need to move to a less expensive community, please share your experiences and budgeting secrets.
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Ron: Thanks for the suggestion. I can't speak for the family of 4, except that their income is from US sources. The family of 3 (us) has had NO income aside from NBN grant, Sal Klitah and unemployment benefits and cannot continue to live in Ma'ale Adumim without securing employment at joint monthly income of at least 24k NIS before taxes.