Moving to the States

Rappel

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:01 am

Financially? Hmm...no, it isn't. It is easier to find a better-paying job, but the money gets sucked into other things, like kosher food and private school. The community is also very much structured differently - every family is an island, and it's very unusual to be as welcoming as an Israeli there. You'll find yourself using money to cover gaps that your community has been filling for you until now, in many surprising areas.

The one thing America has for Americans is that it's more familiar.

If you're moving to get away from financial stress here, then I wouldn't suggest it. The shock of moving cultures and countries is huge, and needs some cushioning, emotionally, socially, and financially.

Where are you from?

amother

Scarlet

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:02 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

My husband and I are considering moving to the States from Israel, so I was just wondering if life in America is really that much easier than it is here (in Israel)
Financially, better education ect'...
Wld like to hear anyone's thoughts on the matter

same here! we are also thinking in that direction however let me give you some heads up..

tuition is way more in the states!

A car is usually not a necessity here in Israel and in USA most of the times you must have (depending where you live)

amother

Bronze

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:04 am

There are too many variables to give an answer. Where do you live now and where would you live in the US? What kinds of jobs would you have? Are you American citizens? Do you have Israeli citizenship as well? Is your Hebrew fluent?

My feeling, both halachically and hashkafically, is that you need a compelling reason to leave Israel.

amother

Scarlet

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:07 am

amother [ Bronze ] wrote:

what if the reason is strictly for financial reasons?

amother

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:14 am

We're from the gush Dan area. (My family made Aliyah when I was a kid...so mentality speaking I don't think we'll have that hard of a time. My kids are under 6)
About communities paying for stuff or being very welcoming here; I couldn't disagree more israelis have no such thing as a community like u do in the States. Paying for our stuff? Never heard of such a thing happening here.
Maybe I misunderstood what u meant...

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:21 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

It really depends where you live. We live in a yishuv and the feeling of community is very strong.

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:27 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Financially there will be MORE costs, think tuition (incredibly expensive), medical insurance (also, crazy expensive) just to name a few things. I dont know if you have a car here, but in suburban america, you cant not have at least one, sometimes two.
Better education? That depends what you are looking for, obviously.
Also, if you dont go having already cemented jobs for yourself, that could be very difficult as well.

amother

Bronze

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 3:58 am

amother [ Scarlet ] wrote:

what if the reason is strictly for financial reasons?

Then, leaving aside religious and philosophical considerations, you'd have to be sure that you will really see a rise in living standards. Your salary will be higher on the US, and housing costs are generally lower, but tuition and health care will be much higher.

amother

Wine

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 4:55 am

My DH and I crunched the numbers (not because we are seriously considering moving but his boss in the US asked him how much is would take for us to move so we did it "for fun"). We would need to almost triple our income to live a similar lifestyle in the US (we would have to live in NY/NJ because of DH's business). I don't think Israelis realize how expensive Jewish life is in the states. Healthcare costs are also huge.
Unless you can live in a low cost city with a high paying job, maybe.
I also know that my children are getting an education here that cannot compare with the insanely expensive Jewish private schools that my nieces and nephews are attending. My children are much better educated for a fraction of the cost.

Besides that we would be miserable and would never leave Israel. But from a strictly financial perspective I don't think it's worth it for most people.

amother

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 5:31 am

amother [ Wine ] wrote:

U mentioned ur husband's boss is in the US, therefore I am going to assume that ur husband makes his money in dollars which he then converts to shekels. So yeah, you're living in Israel making an American salary, so you're going to be living a very high life style, seeing as how tuition here is so cheap. And converting you're lifestyle here to an American one living in NY or NJ you're going to need a lot more money to live like what you're used to here.
Most israelis do not make an American salary in dollars, they make Israeli salaries in shekels. I.e. most ppl can barely finish the month.
We would not move to either of those States since they are notoriously expensive to live in.

As for education, I have three boys they are currently in a chareidi school. Their education is laughable. They barely learn any math past the 4th grade and won't learn any English or secular studies, so I couldn't disagree more...

amother

Navy

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 5:36 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

It's not easier. The struggle is there, they are just different struggles in different places.
If you want a higher standard of living and a higher standard of education than your kids are getting now, that will happen, but you will still struggle just as much.

amother

Ivory

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 5:52 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

If you put them in the same type of school in the US they won't learn those things either.

If you're going to put them in normal schools in the US, why not just do that in Israel?

amother

Ivory

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 5:54 am

amother [ Ivory ] wrote:

If you put them in the same type of school in the US they won't learn those things either.

If you're going to put them in normal schools in the US, why not just do that in Israel?

Keep in mind, for three kids that good education in the US will run you $30-60k per year, whereas in Isarel you could get it for free.

amother

Wine

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 5:55 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Yes, my husband is earning dollars but if his Hebrew was better he could make the same amount of money in shekels - he is very skilled and has over 20 years of experience in his field.
All of our friends and neighbors who are earning salaries in shekels are finishing the month. Most Israelis I know who have the English level to even entertain the thought of moving to the states are making decent salaries.

You can improve your children's education by staying in Israel and switching to chemed schools instead of chareidi.
Chareidi education doesn't really exist outside of NY/NJ. So if you are moving to OOT USA and sending your kids to expensive schools for better education, it's not going to be up to par with your Israeli chareidi values. Better to switch them to diff schools here where they will get a better education (IMO).
Most middle class Americans that I know are struggling financially much more than the middle class Israelis that I know.

amother

Jade

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 6:27 am

amother [ Wine ] wrote:

I am not sure where you got the bolded information from. Plenty of OOT communities have excellent chareidi education! There are differences from place to place in who learns what when, and in many places the student body is not as uniform in where exactly the family is holding, frumkeit-wise, but there is definitely quality chareidi education OOT!

notshanarishona

Sun, Jun 23 2019, 6:37 am

Financially , the main difference is where you live and what type of job opportunities you have . To live in the tri state area or a place like LA or Chicago you need a very good job to be financially stable . If you live somewhere cheaper and oot such as Cleveland , Southbend, Cincinatti , Milwauki tuition can be free with vouchers and cost of living is much less .