Housing for families in Asia

[kellysensei]

I'm wondering what kind of housing is generally available for families in any of the following countries:

Taiwan
South Korea
Thailand
Malaysia

(I'm already familiar with housing in Japan.) My family is planning to move overseas in July 2021 to one of those countries (or Japan) and we're trying to plan for what housing might be like. As in, what is the typical monthly rent for a 2- or 3- bedroom apartment? Is rent usually covered, or partly covered, by schools in those countries? What is a typical apartment size/type - 2 bedrooms? 3? More or less than 800 sq feet (75 sq meters)? Are there any schools I should be aware of that absolutely do not allow pets? We'll be bringing our two cats, and that is non-negotiable.

Thanks for any insight!
(For what it's worth, I'm a licensed ESL teacher with a Master's degree and 13 years experience; my husband will get his TEFL certificate and teach online or at a conversation school, at least at first; and our two sons will be 11 and 9 at the time of moving.)

[PsyGuy]

This is hard to say, how long is a piece of string. Youre asking to compare and quote for entire countries. BKK vs. Chiang Mai,etc. There is a lot of range across a country.

2/3LDKs are available. KL and Seoul are going to be more pricey across comparable properties than BKK or Taipei.

Most ISs will provide you a housing benefit of some kind, based on your family an allowance is probably more likely, especially as you emphasis a 3LDK. ISs tend to have revolving leases, and larger apartments/flats are generally fewer in an ISs housing portfolio. This means with an allowance depending on what you want, you might have to go into your pocket to cover housing costs, this is less likely the higher the ISs tier.

Pets arent usually an IS issue, its an immigration and a property owner issue.

A very broad stroke typical apartment/flat is fully furnished, move in ready. A living room, kitchen, balcony or patio, a dining area, 1 bathroom, 2 bedrooms. Generally you have half as many bathrooms as you do bedrooms.

[sciteach]

As mentioned above - it's hard to tell. I can tell you that an EAL teacher with 3 dependants living comfortably in the countries you have mentioned will find it extremely difficult to find a position. All the countries you have mentioned are highly sought after countries and it will take some time for expat families to slowly make their way to asia after the hollowing out after COVID-19. I can tell you that Taipei, KL, Seoul and Tokyo are expensive. Secondary cities not so much - but the pay normally follows the level of cities. In general - these countries normally make you pay for and find your own apartments (but with help - depending on the school)

Finding a job in China or the ME with good pay and apartments might be a better bet

[Heliotrope]

For rent prices (and other cost of living information), have a look on Numbeo.com
The bigger cities for the countries you mention all have many contributors, so those prices are more or less reliable.

If you go with capital cities, these are the numbers you'll find:

Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre
- Seoul: $ 1,163
- Bangkok: $899
- Taipei: $ 885
- Kuala Lumpur: $ 510

Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre
- Seoul: $ 2,220
- Bangkok: $ 2,100
- Taipei: $ 1,421
- Kuala Lumpur: $ 874

In all cities, the best schools will provide you with a housing allowance that will easily cover the 3BR outside of the city centre, and in Taipei and Kuala Lumpur you can also easily afford the 3BR in the city centre.

[kellysensei]

Thanks for the info so far! Seoul is more expensive than I thought. I'm quite interested in Incheon (Chadwick Intl School) and Busan, though, too.

sciteach wrote:
> As mentioned above - it's hard to tell. I can tell you that an EAL teacher
> with 3 dependants living comfortably in the countries you have mentioned
> will find it extremely difficult to find a position. All the countries you
> have mentioned are highly sought after countries and it will take some time
> for expat families to slowly make their way to asia after the hollowing out
> after COVID-19. I can tell you that Taipei, KL, Seoul and Tokyo are
> expensive. Secondary cities not so much - but the pay normally follows the
> level of cities. In general - these countries normally make you pay for and
> find your own apartments (but with help - depending on the school)
>
> Finding a job in China or the ME with good pay and apartments might be a
> better bet

China is out, partly for pollution reasons and partly because when I visited China for 3 weeks in 2017, I had severe stomach/digestive issues every single day. I don't think I can live a healthy life there. The ME is out because we're atheists and wouldn't feel safe there. (I realized Malaysia is also Muslim, but it's more diverse and liberal, and we've been to Malaysia, so we kind of know what we're getting into.)

I know it won't be easy getting a position in those countries, but I'm hoping my experience/qualifications and the fact that I speak advanced Japanese and have lived overseas (in Japan) before will help me out. My husband is quitting his job this month, and my kids are raring to go, too, so we're really counting on me getting a position *somewhere* in Asia! (There MUST be quality healthcare wherever we go; that's my #1 requirement.)

[calvin76]

Seoul is expensive, but most likely you will receive housing with the schools you mentioned. Great infrastructure though - definitely a developed country with excellent health and public transportation. If your husband works at a language school (hakwon), many offer housing in officetels (small bachelor or maybe 1-bed)...if you have housing through a larger international school, they may provide him with a cash stipend instead if they don't already. There are many "key money" arrangements in lots of Asian countries where - if you arrange housing yourself - you are expected to put up large sums upfront to secure the apartment. In Korea, this can make renting anything resembling a family apartment independently very difficult. As in any major city, you get more bang for your buck out in the suburbs and Incheon would qualify. There are affordable options in Busan as well. International schools in Korea generally provide good packages that once factored in against things like housing and benefits are excellent for this region.

[Heliotrope]

kellysensei wrote:
> Thanks for the info so far! Seoul is more expensive than I thought. I'm quite
> interested in Incheon (Chadwick Intl School) and Busan, though, too.

Chadwick provides furnished housing, and the two main international schools in Busan do too.

[shadowjack]

Here is a hint - the ME no longer really cares if you are Christian or Muslim or atheist. However, just put Christian on your application for immigration - they really don't care, but their system doesn't recognize atheist. Apart from that, there is no pressure on you, nobody, even in Saudi, is really going to get in your face about it, in short, nobody really cares. Plus you'll be in your own bubble where it really is a non-starter.

[PsyGuy]

I concur with the Numbeo data. Its not just the best ISs though, many ISs even in lower tier ISs will provide you some type of housing benefit.

There are various key money and other rental challenges but you will want to inquire if you IS will guarantee for you and absorb some of those costs. If not there are usually various companies that for a fee will become your guarantor. You pay a nonrefundable fee and they provide a guarantee for you as well as the gift/key coin to make the rental happen. Even then most of the major cities in these locations will have properties that dont require key/gift coin.

I concur with @SJ, no one really cares about your religious beliefs in the ME to any degree it going to be a problem.