Questions on housing allowance (Abu Dhabi)

[rmit4583]

Hi all,

I received a job offer from a company in Abu Dhabi but the "housing allowance" part puzzles me a lot. It says i will receive a housing allowance 22000 AED per month but what will happen if I can find a place which just costs 20000 per month? Can I pocket the difference? Also I heard that many landlords in UAE ask tenants to pay their rent up front, say yearly. But I don't have that amount of cash. What should I do in this case?

Could anyone please shed light on this? Thanks a lot.

[dizzyizzy]

Hi,

Since they are giving you an allowance I would think you should be able to pocket the difference but that also means to pay from your pocket any difference should you not be able to find accommodation on that price range.

You may be able to negotiate a deal with the landlord for 3 or 4 cheques instead of 1. Since the recession a lot of landlords are being more reasonable, but not sure if that's the case in Abu Dhabi as well (where accommodation is more scarce), you'll need to talk to the landlord of the property you're interested in and ask. You would still need to give them the 3 or 4 cheques in advance but they would be post-dated, and you'll need to come up with the money to cover the first cheque, deposit and agent fees if applicable. Some companies offer low interest loans to their employees with this purpose, I suggest you get in touch with HR at your company and ask if they offer this to their employees.

[rmit4583]

Originally Posted by dizzyizzy

Hi,

Since they are giving you an allowance I would think you should be able to pocket the difference but that also means to pay from your pocket any difference should you not be able to find accommodation on that price range.

You may be able to negotiate a deal with the landlord for 3 or 4 cheques instead of 1. Since the recession a lot of landlords are being more reasonable, but not sure if that's the case in Abu Dhabi as well (where accommodation is more scarce), you'll need to talk to the landlord of the property you're interested in and ask. You would still need to give them the 3 or 4 cheques in advance but they would be post-dated, and you'll need to come up with the money to cover the first cheque, deposit and agent fees if applicable. Some companies offer low interest loans to their employees with this purpose, I suggest you get in touch with HR at your company and ask if they offer this to their employees.

Thanks very much for the great answer! It would be very helpful!