Realistic Estimate for Cost of Living in Ukraine

[ECOCKS]

Sorry, just saw this thread. I own flats in Kyiv and Kremenchug (pop. 225,000). Flats will be cheaper in the smaller cities but westernized ones for rent will be much more difficult to find. Without knowing what type of area you are thinking of it is difficult to predict rent. Oh, landlords ripping off foreigners is not an unknown event. Don't be embarrassed to rely on a trustworthy expat or local to make clear to the landlord that you won't put up with any crap and get everything in writing, witnessed and properly registered. Utilities will probably run you $50-60 a month depending on how they setup metering of water, gas and electricity. Of course, none of us can really predict how "Western" you really need it to live in a satisfactory manner.

I would not move to a city with less than 150,000 because you are going to need a few English-speakers at least initially and being in a village or small town probably won't work very well. These size towns don't have metros so you need to learn to read Cyrillic. Some won't have trolleys but all will have mashrutka/buses.

As David's situation illustrates, what seems an adventure can become a nightmare. I know far more people with horror stories than fairy tales about FSU healthcare, shopping, business transactions and searching for directions from people on the street.

A washer can be purchased but think through that you probably won't be able to move it to another city very easily if you change your plans. Practice washing in a tub with some Tide and learning how to use a drying rack.

If you are  normal westerner, you're going to want a bigger refrigerator rather than shopping for a little bit of stuff 4-5 times a week. That might also be an option if you are a vegetarian. I'd plan on $200-250 a month for food assuming you eat normally and expect to have some sort of social life.

Over three years, I purchased a washer, refrigerator (to replace the dorm-sized one in my first flat and my wife's relic from the 50's), flat-screen TV (for your social life ie gf/dates, unless you speak Russian or Ukrainian), stereo system, microwave, new bed, real mattress, three fans (your new Ukrainian friends will think you are suicidal), 2 oil-filled/2 ceramic coil heaters and about a dozen multi-outlet power strips.

Strategically, I'd pick the city/area you want to try and go there for a short period and test the water. If you think you can deal with the lifestyle, then take the plunge and think through the setup you want to build for yourself. Women are everywhere. You can search/date among 5,000 appropriate females as easily as among 350,000 in Kyiv.

$1000-$1200 will let you live modestly in most small cities but you won't be living like a king or hitting clubs every night.

The visa/work/registration situation is a whole different matter entirely without a wife/serious GF.

[Ronnie]

It's been pointed out that I mistyped the Meest phone number.  Should be 1-800-288-9949.


I'd also like to correct a statement I made about bat sizes needed.  I've been noticing the younger kids actually swing better with 25-27 inch bats and I don't have but a few of those so any sized bat is welcome.


Back to the topic of this thread, the issue of health care is very critical.  I am living here in part because I developed an unexpected heath problem attributed to my lifestyle in California.  Working at the computer long hours, the going out on weekends and running bases was a perfect environment for the pulmonary embolisms that afflicted me.  Even though I now still work at the computer, I also get out every day and walk to the store or have a series of practices with the kids.


I moved last month to a more modest apartment, cutting my rent from $480 to $250 per month.  It's not a modern remodel and has no elevator, which is a plus for me. Hiking the four floors keeps my blood moving.  Other pluses are that it's closer to the ball field and surrounded by families with kids eager to learn baseball.  Perhaps the biggest advantage is that I'm within 100 meters of Into Sana, the modern private heath service facility.


But, despite this is Odessa, a city of more than a million people and the presence of Into Sana and other modern medical facilities, when I asked about getting a D-dimer test which checks to see if there may be a DVT or PE going on, I was told that there is only one lab in the city that performs the test.  Due to inadequate training, lab reports are often wrong and conditions misdiagnosed.  Due to less than sanitary facilities and less than modern equipment, surgeries are hit and miss as to their success.  These are things I have to balance in my mind every day.


Ronnie

[The Natural]

I'm wondering, how do westerners moving to FSU do with money unless they have a pension or something like that?

[Muzh]

That's a really good question. I talked to my wife about this because with my pension alone we can live a luxurious lifestyle in UA.


The stopper is our 8 yo son.


It's no big deal any way. We will live the same luxurious lifestyle once she start working.

[Nat]

There's a similar thread on the forum:
http://www.russianwomendiscussion.com/index.php?topic=13175.0
Maybe you'll find something useful there as well.

[Ronnie]

I'm wondering, how do westerners moving to FSU do with money unless they have a pension or something like that?

Of course this IS the big question and until fairly recently, I'd say, there wasn't really a good answer.  I just recently had a short phone conversation with a 40 AM who teaches English here.  As it turns out he lives only 3 blocks away from me and is a baseball player of some experience.  I'm trying to recruit him to help coach a team but his schedule is pretty tight right now it seems.  For all I know he could be a member here on RWD...I didn't ask.


Anyway, until fairly recently, you had a hard time running a business while living abroad.  Now, with Vonage, Skype and the like, you can be anywhere you want to be electronically even though you're somewhere else and at a cost that is practically no cost.  So if you are in some kind of consulting business, most of which is done over the phone, you should be able to continue doing it from any physical location.  I can imagine also, that if you have a retail store for example with trusted employees, you could continue to manage with daily or weekly video conferences via skype.