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S/O of "buying an apartment"... Rich Americans!!
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amother
OP


 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 11:11 am
Anyone else's Israeli relatives think money grows on trees in America?
For example, if relative is making a Simcha, they'll say something like, " I have a feeling you'll surprise us and come" or, they will talk to us about vacations / brand name clothes etc. Lol, we can barely afford the basics, but they are sure that since we live in America, we are wealthy.
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Genius




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 11:20 am
My great uncle's family is from there and he's hesitant to go. He's known as the "reicha fetter fin america" (who doesn't have a penny to his name.) My family lives in EY too but I personally never got this attitude
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gingertop




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 11:28 am
It's an old-fashioned stereotype that took root at a time when Israel was genuinely impoverished, absorbing more immigrants than their base population, all of whom came without any assets. Labor laws were socialist and wages low. There was even, possibly within living memory of your relatives, an austerity period.
As more Americans live in Israel in mixed population centers, I think that myth has loosened a bit. However, Americans in Israel do populate some pretty expensive neighborhoods so there's some perpetuation of some stereotypes.
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Rappel




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 12:01 pm
Don't you know, all my relatives are millionaires. To make Aliyah, they just need to sell their mansions and live comfortably here. LOL I don't know why they haven't done it yet - it makes total sense.
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amother
Orchid


 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 12:15 pm
People here see the way American tourists and students spend, and come to the incorrect assumption that all Americans are made of money. They don't realize that while the standard of living in the US is higher, a lot of it is because of the bargains that can be found there, and not because all Americans are wealthy.
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Chayalle




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 12:18 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Anyone else's Israeli relatives think money grows on trees in America?
For example, if relative is making a Simcha, they'll say something like, " I have a feeling you'll surprise us and come" or, they will talk to us about vacations / brand name clothes etc. Lol, we can barely afford the basics, but they are sure that since we live in America, we are wealthy.


A relative of mine made a Bar Mitzva in E"Y and she told me she will not forgive me if I don't come.

No ticket was included with that, and we are living on a Kollel budget, so....

Same relative did not come to same type of relation weddings in the US.

It definitely seems they think we all can afford more than they can.
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HonesttoGod




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 8:36 pm
I will never forget sitting with an israeli cousin we had never met. He came to America collecting and we sat by the Shabbat meal. He started saying about Americans how rich they are how they ALL go on vacation, ALL send their kids to camp, ALL bla bla bla.

My husband turned around and said tell me when was the last time you went with your wife and kids on vacation, somewhere away from your house. He replied a couple months before.
And how many times in the past year? 3. 3 times.
My husband said I have been married 4 years and have never ever been away with my wife.

So yeah, israelis think were all billionaires but somehow they are all "poor poor poeple" It is just different liffestyles. They don't understand camp because their kids are off school for barely 4 weeks. They think that cancun and miami is a huge vacation, yet they go to Greece, Thailand, North and South Israel, its cheap and the same thing as it is for us. Life in America, Tri State to be specific, is way more expensive just for the basics. So of course we have "more money" because we have to work ten times harder and make more to cover the basics. But they don't get that.
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amother
Sienna


 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 10:27 pm
The standard of living for many many Americans is a lot higher than that of many Israelis. Not all Americans and not all Israelis. But when I lived in israel for a bit after my wedding, it was mighty easy to find a high school girl to babysit for me each afternoon, because she wanted the pocket money, and because all girls worked. These girls charged 10-15 shekel an hour!! In the US, I have a hard time finding a babysitter for sleeping children and when I do, they want $10/hour. Because they don’t need the money as badly as the Israeli girls do. And it is more easily accessible.
I understand that living in America does not equal money but we definitely act and spend like we have considerably more than they do.
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Kiwi13




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jul 16 2019, 11:02 pm
Side point - when Israelis (who LIVE in Israel) see American tourists (who are VACATIONING in Israel) they are bound to get a warped perception of Americans' finances. People spend differently when they're splurging on a vacation - often a once in a lifetime trip - than they do in their everyday lives. You also don't know what they are skimping on at home in order to afford their vacation. Spending time in Israel is a priority to many people.
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shabbatiscoming




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 3:23 am
amother [ Sienna ] wrote:
The standard of living for many many Americans is a lot higher than that of many Israelis. Not all Americans and not all Israelis. But when I lived in israel for a bit after my wedding, it was mighty easy to find a high school girl to babysit for me each afternoon, because she wanted the pocket money, and because all girls worked. These girls charged 10-15 shekel an hour!! In the US, I have a hard time finding a babysitter for sleeping children and when I do, they want $10/hour. Because they don’t need the money as badly as the Israeli girls do. And it is more easily accessible.
I understand that living in America does not equal money but we definitely act and spend like we have considerably more than they do.
First off, you must have lived here a while ago. No high school girls are asking that little to babysit now. Thats almost nothing.

Also, you mention that the americans dont "need" the money as much as the israeli girls. What do you think the israeli teens are "needing" this money for that the american girls dont need it for?
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shabbatiscoming




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 3:24 am
This is not just in america though. I live in Israel and have encountered Israelis who believe that all americans are wealthy and are rolling in the dough. Sigh, if only that were really true.
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amother
Royalblue


 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 4:36 am
HonesttoGod wrote:

So yeah, israelis think were all billionaires but somehow they are all "poor poor poeple" It is just different liffestyles. They don't understand camp because their kids are off school for barely 4 weeks. They think that cancun and miami is a huge vacation, yet they go to Greece, Thailand, North and South Israel, its cheap and the same thing as it is for us. Life in America, Tri State to be specific, is way more expensive just for the basics. So of course we have "more money" because we have to work ten times harder and make more to cover the basics. But they don't get that.


Which Israeli kids are only off for four weeks? Summer vacation here is all of July and August for elementary, and also a third of June for junior and senior high school.

Maybe some ultra charedim have only 4 week vacation, but they aren't the ones vacationing in Thailand.

You are mixing up sectors here.

Anyway, it's true there is a stereotype here that Americans are well off, maybe because the wealthy ones are so visible. The expensive cities and neighbourhoods are all full of Americans.
However, I dont think most Israelis think haredi Americans are necessarily wealthy. The stereotype usually is about secular/MO , in my experience. At least among the general populace. I guess the Israeli haredim think differently if they go collecting.
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mochamix18




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 4:46 am
shabbatiscoming wrote:
First off, you must have lived here a while ago. No high school girls are asking that little to babysit now. Thats almost nothing.

Also, you mention that the americans dont "need" the money as much as the israeli girls. What do you think the israeli teens are "needing" this money for that the american girls dont need it for?

I was going to say ₪10 will maybe get you a young preteeen (9-11 years old during after school hours) ₪15-20 fairly young high school girl and most older or post high school girls are now taking ₪20-30.
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mochamix18




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 4:51 am
Maybe some ultra charedim have only 4 week vacation, but they aren't the ones vacationing in Thailand.
[/b]
No need to use “ultra”. It’s true that the chareidi school schedule only has off from Tisha B’av till Rosh Chodesh Elul.
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yerushamama




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 4:56 am
Only chadarim have such a short summer vacation. The chassidish girls schools have less than BY, but not quite that short.
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chagru




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 5:05 am
I'm not surprised Israeli think Americans are wealthy, they are doing nothing to debunk that theory, on the contrary, go look what's going on in areas that are full of young people coming for a few years, living off their parents in fancy apartments. Those areas around these developments are getting more geared towards Americans every year. Many have Israeli living there as well, but the rich non Israelis have unquestionably raised the level
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mochamix18




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 5:10 am
yerushamama wrote:
Only chadarim have such a short summer vacation. The chassidish girls schools have less than BY, but not quite that short.

I only have a boy so far so that’s all I know 😂.
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amother
Royalblue


 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 5:31 am
mochamix18 wrote:

No need to use “ultra”. It’s true that the chareidi school schedule only has off from Tisha B’av till Rosh Chodesh Elul.


Girls too? Or only boys?
I think most charedi schools that are connected to misrad hachinuch (chabad, BY) have 2 months off.
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amother
Teal


 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 6:09 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Anyone else's Israeli relatives think money grows on trees in America?
For example, if relative is making a Simcha, they'll say something like, " I have a feeling you'll surprise us and come" or, they will talk to us about vacations / brand name clothes etc. Lol, we can barely afford the basics, but they are sure that since we live in America, we are wealthy.


I am a dual citizen of the USA and another European country. When I was purchasing some street art in Israel from a father and daughter whom I had chatted to a fair bit, I was given an outrageous price from the father. The daughter then said no wait Abba, she is from <Euro> and he said, oh yes, and substantially dropped the price! This was even though they knew I lived in the USA. I do think that there definitely was a bias that Americans are rich by Israelis, certainly when I was there in the 90s.
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Iymnok




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Jul 17 2019, 7:00 am
School ends at the end of June. The girls generally have a 3 week kaytana then six weeks until September 1. The boys get off either R"C Av or 9Av, though some go another week. That gives them 2-4 weeks off.
Babysitting rates depend on community. We recently had a highschool girl for 15/hr. I know that it’s cheap, so I round up.
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