I want to move to EY. But financially cant.

salt

Thu, May 23 2024, 1:25 am

amother OP wrote:

We are barely making it in Tristate area.

We would love to move though and there is no way we can think of doing it.
My oldest is 9. Its now or after the kids get married….

Any ideas?

Why will you have less expenses after the kids get married?
Tuition in Israel is pretty much free.

You mean because you will be able to live in a smaller apartment?

amother

Gladiolus

Thu, May 23 2024, 2:30 am

Here's what I'd ask. Do you NEED RBS, or could you be flexible? Because RBS is expensive, and I hear a lot of Yeshivish peiple saying they need to move to RBS and anywhere else would be bad for their kids, and I respect that. I'm MO, so it's totally different for me.

I live in a much cheaper area that is still nice. There are Haredi people here, but they are not Anglo.

If it's a cost of real estate thing, perhaps you could go on a vacation (not even pilot trip) to check out a few cheaper locations and see if you could imagine yourself living there. Then if you think maybe one could work, research it specifically more.

LovesHashem

Thu, May 23 2024, 2:33 am

amother Gladiolus wrote:

RBS is expensive is relative. If you need a two floor home it is. If you can get by with a 3 bedroom apartment it's not horrifically expensive.

amother

Heather

Thu, May 23 2024, 2:51 am

The essential thing is, do you have a way of generating a regular income in Israel?
Do you have jobs that can be transferred?
Or would you be able to work remote?
And do you have savings, or a house you could sell or something, to cover living expenses for the first few months up to a year until you are settled in and working?
Also, how do you identify on the frum scale? If state schools, either hareidi or DL would work for you, you'll have mininal tuition costs.
Basic health insurance in Israel isn't expensive either.

amother

Banana

Thu, May 23 2024, 3:13 am

salt wrote:

Why will you have less expenses after the kids get married?
Tuition in Israel is pretty much free.

You mean because you will be able to live in a smaller apartment?

I think she means because she knows it hard to move kids once they get to be a certain age. It’s easier for them when they’re younger.

salt

Thu, May 23 2024, 3:15 am

amother Milk wrote:

I feel u, I just spent 10 dollars on a tiny bag of craisins in israel. food prices are astronomical.

Where? Why? Are you exaggerating - I just looked on Shufersal website, which is considered not a cheap shop, and it's 19 shekels for 250g of sugerless craisins.
And 13 shekels for sweet ones.

Food did get more expensive, but you learn where to shop.

amother

Milk

Thu, May 23 2024, 3:18 am

salt wrote:

Not exaggerating. In ramat eshkol. its hard bc I dont have a car so if im in store before shabbos and I need something for shab sometimes I gotta just get it, and it was not from a makolet, from a reg supermarket

amother

DarkMagenta

Thu, May 23 2024, 3:18 am

LovesHashem wrote:

RBS is expensive is relative. If you need a two floor home it is. If you can get by with a 3 bedroom apartment it's not horrifically expensive.

2.5-3 million shekel for a 3 bedroom apartment is expensive - that's about $850k. Which is enough for a 3-4 bedroom house in parts many parts of the Tristate area ( and a larger house in somewhere like Jackson.

Good news is there are other, cheaper parts of the country if you are willing to leave the anglo bubble.

What are your careers?

amother

Peru

Thu, May 23 2024, 3:21 am

amother Milk wrote:

One of the problems of living in a neighborhood geared to chutznik couples is that prices are higher. I just bought in my local makolet 12 shekel for 200g. This is another time things get skewed. You think that prices in Israel are crazy. They are but not like you describe if you live in a cheaper neighborhood. Living in a chutznik neighborhood is crazy.

essie14

Thu, May 23 2024, 4:15 am

amother Milk wrote:

Ramat eshkol is an expensive neighborhood.
Prices vary based on location. Food is cheaper in lower priced neighborhoods.
Also craisins are much cheaper in pitzuchim stores. I assume you bought the actual craisin brand? That's also an imported item.

June

Thu, May 23 2024, 4:56 am

If you and your husband really want to come, I don't think finances should hold you back. Tell us what community you most identify with, and we'll give you ideas of less expensive areas.

Do plan on having one parent not work for the first year. You get a grant from the gvmt when you make aliyah, plus NBN has an additional grant you can apply for. You also get a free degree, so you can retrain if need be.

Rent for a nice apartment where I live is under $1700, and tuition for my girls' BY is free. Cheider is about $150/mo and includes hot lunch. Groceries are pretty decent in the big supermarkets - on par with or cheaper than the US. If you don't need a car and live in a bigger town or city, transportation is cheap and reliable. Insurance is cheap, and if your family is healthy, the regular healthcare is good.

Our monthly budget is 15,000 NIS (around $4000), living frugally but not stingily.

Happy to answer additional questions.

P.S. I know a woman who is an expert in helping families like yours choose where to live, where to send to school, etc. PM me if you want her info.

amother

Thu, May 23 2024, 5:59 am

June wrote:

I live in a small house and my mortgage is $2000. If I sell I can walk away with $150k. By far mot enough to buy anything in Israel.
Jobs - neither of us have the remote option. It would mean finding jobs there the day we move or we dont have bread on the table…

But on the other hand, my kids are growing up and from what I heard they say not to move with big kids. Adjustment wise.
Also, its just time for us to go everything about it. Just financially We cant.

amother

Canary

Thu, May 23 2024, 6:20 am

amother DarkMagenta wrote:

Nope. My house in Jackson is worth 1.4 million and it’s not very large (2,800 sq ft)
We bought it for almost a million less. I just told my husband we should sell it and move to Israel!

amother

Gladiolus

Thu, May 23 2024, 6:50 am

amother OP wrote:

$150k isn't enough to buy, but in cheaper places it can get you the down payment. How many rooms do you need? What kind of community do you need? We can see if any of the cheaper areas might fit.

June

Thu, May 23 2024, 8:22 am

Can I be blunt OP? Lmk if I'm out of line here.

If you're so worried about the finances that you can't even think about aliyah, it say to me that you're not really committed.

You can totally make it in EY if you commit to the process and leave a little room for Hashem to step in. I'm not saying come blindly without a plan, but there is totally what to think about here.

If I were you and I'd get 150k from the sale of the house, I would research the costs of bringing a lift and buying new furniture/appliances in Israel, and earmark a generous allowance for that. I'd put another 30k in savings to help me get through the first year and invest the remaining amount in index funds. No need to buy off the bat.

That's just my first thought - but I'm sure there are a million other options that could work.

In terms of jobs, I don't know much about the job market because I'm self-employed and my husband works in a perfect job that fell into his lap with nothing but major hashgacha (see what I'm saying about leaving room for Hashem to step in?) However, if you post what fields you/your husband work in, other people can chime in with info/leads for you.

There are so many amazing things about living in EY. For example, all the public holidays are yours. Chutz la'aretz Jews have no idea what it's like to be part of the dominant religion in a country. It's a different world! There is much less consumption and need for things here. The weather is nicer. Just so many quality of life things that you can't put a price tag on, so if you really, really want to do it, you just need to get into a "this can work" mindset.

Hope this helps!

Last edited by June on Thu, May 23 2024, 8:34 am; edited 1 time in total