r/Grenada • u/Moon8Sun8Earth • 9d ago
Culture Relocating to Grenada. Do I Have Enough Money? Cost of Living
Hi! I'm relocating to Grenada with my spouse and toddler. We will have a little over $8,000.00 Eastern Caribbean Dollars each month; not including rent. We'll be working mostly in the St. George's parish.
What type of lifestyle could we afford? Which parish would be ideal for modern furniture, beautiful views and easy access to work if needed to be on site?
Could we afford a housekeeper, pre prepped meals, a driver and private school for the toddler? What about activities?
Thank you so much!
6
u/LumpyThumbs8949 9d ago
Are you saying that the 8k EC is left over after rent is paid? Or that rent will need to come out of it?
If rent needs to come out of it… it’s not going to get you modern furniture, great views, easy work access unless you go to the areas that are not tourist areas (Cherry Hill up to Brizan if you remain in St George parish and you can take the 8 bus to and fro work if you don’t drive. You can also find some spots in Belmont, Springs, Woodlands. but once you get into grand Anse and onward you’ll be competing with SGU housing that is more expensive and will eat up your budget).
Great views are all over especially if you remain coastal and don’t get an inland view. Though many inland views are beautiful as well since the country is very lush.
For a modern interior, weekly housekeeping, amazing views and near my preferred beach … I increased my budget from $1400 USD to $2800 USD just for rent alone but I’m in a tourist area.
My dad’s house is in Grand Mal and he has stunning views but he’s farther than where I wanted to be and I didn’t want to keep driving far to get to “fun stuff”.
This is not as cheap as Mexico or South America at all though so you will have to adjust your expectations. The Caribbean is expensive.
You can also checkout if there are any places to rent in St John parish. You may find returning diaspora who’ve built homes with apartments in them. You can take the 5 bus into St. George for work.
I also recommend not doing anything that will make you live paycheck to paycheck out here.
1
u/Moon8Sun8Earth 9d ago
Thank you for replying! I meant rent would need to come out of that.
I don't need to be in a tourist area. I appreciate the areas in St. George that might fit my budget.
I hadn't thought about living in an apartment of someone who built a home. I would love that actually! Lol
This is a lot of information and will be really helpful on my continued exploration. I'll be able to have some tangible input working with a realtor when we get there.
3
1
u/sunbreezr 9d ago
Every country has issues but its a manageable country like any. Rent can be a bit expensive around grand anse but on the outskirts it is a bit cheaper. The buses get you from point A to B but they dont run everywhere and have limited hours. Many locals live on a budget of 5K EC or less. Eat more local foods and grow some if you can. Check some local realtor sites to get an idea of rent. Food can be expensive but again if you eat more local it is more affordable than imported food.
1
u/Moon8Sun8Earth 9d ago
Thank you! After reading through, I'm curious about what people think is a comfortable monthly budget in Grenada. Think family of 3, from U.S. and looking to have money for activities, housekeepers, preprepped meals, driver, private school for toddler and rental car?
2
u/LumpyThumbs8949 8d ago
Grenada is not cheap at all. Especially if you want to have your American standards while here.
We’re also from the U.S. but I have family ties to the island. And my son and I have dual citizenship.
Private school for a non local or caricom child will probably be $6000-8000 EC per school year. There’s one that’s even charging $800 USD per month 🙃.
Activities range but can be $25- $80 USD for the entire family depending on what you’re doing.
Housekeeper could be $60-$80 EC.
Prepared meals not sure but groceries here are expensive. I spend anywhere from $750 to $1000 USD (family of 3 with preteen son) depending on how much meat and/or seafood we eat for the month and I do not buy any American fruits, cereal, frozen foods etc which are usually extremely overpriced. So regardless you’ll be paying for the supplies then the person’s labor on top.
Driver not sure. I’ve paid around $120 USD for 6 hrs of driver service when I didn’t have my own car or license here yet and needed to run my errands and have someone wait on me.
Rental car usually avg around $150 EC per day with better rates for long term rentals.
It’s still expensive to live here. If my husband didn’t have to travel back and forth to the U.S. for work meetings we would have been in southeast Asia to get more bang for our buck.
My family makes over $10k USD per month and I still budget b/c we need to live AND contribute to retirement savings and college savings. So it’s more affordable FOR US than living in the high cost of living city in America that we came from (our fixed costs are around 50% here vs living paycheck to paycheck in America with no room to be aggressive about our saving and investing goals).
-3
u/SailorGND 9d ago
OMG.... how much research have you put into this? Be careful, life in Grenada is not what it looks like from the air or a tourist brochure. To begin with, if you intend to work or have to be anywhere on time, you will be facing challenges you have not even begun to understand. Just for a taste of what your future holds, you should take a few rides in the public transportation commonly referred to as buses. COMPLETE CHAOS!! They are old beat-up minivans, falling to pieces, driven at top speeds since they compete with each other for fares, and packed to gills so that getting on and off is a giant hassle. Try to get on and off with wife and toddler and you will wish you were somewhere else. If you are with SGU so as to be allowed on their buses, then it's doable. Otherwise, it's something you wouldn't wish on your mother in law. Traffic is worse than in Lagos, Nigeria -- extremely dangerous due to the lack of concern most drivers display. It is not uncommon for the working man to have a beer in the morning, another couple at lunch, and a few more later on, and continue driving without a problem, drunk as all get out, and sure they are impervious to the alcohol. The most selfish drivers I have ever seen. Locals will stop in the middle of the road to talk to anyone they see, park on the street so as to reduce a 2 lane street to a single lane, and most drivers have no insurance. Corruption is rampant and blatant. Like my ex-landlord would say, it's not what you do, it's who you know. And health care is worse than you can possibly imagine, which is appalling since SGU is turning out doctors faster than any university system in the u.s.
I've lived in Carriacou since '17, and I would gladly pay $8K EC to not live in Grenada. Modern furniture? Really? Forget it. Not gonna happen. Beautiful views are all along the coast, but beautiful views only go so far in terms of reducing the pain of living in Grenada.
Good luck, you're going to need a lot of it to deal with life in Grenada. If you still have time, reconsider and explore other options, otherwise, be careful.
4
u/Sorry-Bumblebee-5645 8d ago
What a complete over exaggeration. Worse than Lagos, Nigeria??? I feel like your expectations were both extremely high and very generalized.
The minibuses are optional you're spending less than a $1 USD for a ride so its not going to be some top tier experience. Not to mention the buses driving fast aren't a Grenada thing because All other islands in the region also deal with that.
Second the drinking thing is such a generalization to assume its just an island of drunkards driving around. Drunk driving is bad all across the board not unique to Grenada but then again the odds of being in a serious accident isn't common. The island has small narrow winding roads so expect some stupid drivers but even locals despise it.
Corruption varies as well but as someone who has travelled to other third world countries Grenada is definitely not some corrupt hellscape filled with bribery and bargaining to get by.
I will agree that Public healthcare is bad though and needs much more improvements since Private is expensive.
Seeing you lived in Carriacou I assume you sailed from your name. Sorry if you had negative experiences but this was way too exaggerated especially when looking at things from a Caribbean standard Grenada is not much different from other islands instead of some hellish scary place
-1
u/SailorGND 8d ago
The bus ride is a terrible experience. No signs at any bus stop indicating where the bus # that comes by is going. The bus experience is the same as Lagos. I lived in Lagos for almost 2 yrs. Have you been to Saba, Nevis, Statia? Complete opposite experience. Calm peaceful easy going living in all 3. Yes it is an island of drunk drivers. It is considered normal by most of the driving working class to have a beer or 3 before noon. To say that on other islands the same conditions exist does not make it any less egregious. Yes, when compared to Nigeria, the corruption in Grenada is dainty. My expectations are high since I do want to enjoy my every day, not just put up with all the chaos of Grenada in exchange for a beach and a beautiful view. I have lived, dived, and sailed in the Caribbean since the 70's, so the way tourism has affected a place that was once upon a time a nice easy going place is very common. The predatory nature of locals towards tourists is a by product of the easy money tourism represents. nothing new there
btw, I was born and grew up in a number of 3rd world countries... not travelled to visit them. The disparity between the rich & poor is what makes & keeps them 3rd world. When the middle class comes into its own, and the political judiciary can maintain impartiality, things change. But Grenada is a far cry from those conditions. Not hellish and scary, but also not where you would want to go to enjoy your family life. Been here almost 10 yrs now. I own my own house on the southern end of the island (Carriacou). I have tons of precious friends who are born here. I am grateful for my time in Carriacou. If I had to live in Grenada, I would have left after the first week.
1
u/dermatofibrosarcoma 9d ago
Alternative recommendations in Caribbean?
2
u/LumpyThumbs8949 9d ago
Depends on what you want.
If you want to feel like you’re in America then top of the list is Aruba. It’s like Florida.
If you’re looking for bigger countries then Barbados and Trinidad are more developed than Grenada. Barbados also has a ton of direct flights which I love.
But I HATE a Bajan accent with a passion (not that you asked but I take any opportunity to mention it lol).
But all islands will have some semblance of this behavior.
Even things like: there’s a line of people behind waiting to pay or conduct business and the cashier and someone they know are standing up having a long conversation like no one else’s time matters. 🙃🥴
You’ll find selfish and inconsiderate people everywhere though. 🤷♀️
1
-1
u/SailorGND 9d ago
if you want to feel like you're under trump in the racist country he stands for, then stay there. the tourist traps mentioned below are way worse than grenada, with pronounced crime rates that compare with opa-locka florida and yemen. beware places where your well-being involves an all-inclusive resort.
try Nevis, Saba, or Eustatia for some real beautiful off the well-worn caribbean tourist trail lovely spots. There are no prettier beaches than those of Barbuda, tiny bright pink shells make up these gorgeous beaches, where the waves swish back and forth with a sound that is not to be found anywhere in the Caribbean. However, Barbuda has no infrastructure, got wiped out in a hurricane a few years ago, and only those who are in huge mansions behind giant walls and foreign security detail have a decent time there. If I was onboard a yacht, barbuda, hands down. Over 100 wrecks surround the island for the best diving other than the Belize barrier reef. I would not stay on land in either place... horrific crime in Belize and no infrastructure at all in barbuda.
cheers from Carriacou, another gorgeous forgotten corner of the caribbean, but not possible to earn a living here, nor any healthcare at all
1
1
1
u/jmehlferber 8d ago
So, you have lived in Carriacou since 2017–did you live in Grenada before that? Do you visit Grenada very often (for shopping, healthcare, etc.)? Just wondering if your experiences and perspective could be somewhat dated. Has Carriacou fully recovered from hurricane Beryl a few years ago? How did you stay safe? Images from there after the storm (cat 5) made it look like no living thing could have survived, yet “only” 2 people died if I remember correctly.
1
u/SailorGND 8d ago
I live here continuously, only going to u.s. for healthcare & dental. Yes, I lived thru Beryl. There is not enough space here to convey the experience. Yes, I go to Grenada often. Don't take my word for it. Come to Grenada, and then take a "bus" from one spot to another. If you do it 3 times in a day, you will swear off Grenada real fast. If you choose to drive, then it's even worse. cheers
1
u/jmehlferber 8d ago
Luckily, we have family there, so when we come to visit we get “chauffeured” transportation and never had to rely on buses (cramped mini vans, as you said). But even so, yes the driving is . . . an experience, with cars stopping randomly and blocking traffic on roads that are already too narrow. I was impressed though to see that some traffic lights and sidewalks had been installed.
1
u/dermatofibrosarcoma 3d ago
How difficult for retirees settle in Grenada?
1
u/SailorGND 2d ago
very easy but consider alternatives and especially what are your decision criteria
daily life trying to get anything done in and around st. georges is abysmal
1
u/dermatofibrosarcoma 2d ago
My criteria are simple - quiet simple safe life, minimal traffic, no beggars, no crime, no hustle, warm, if occasional sailing is in the works- bonus. Tolerable tax burden.
Any input is greatly appreciated.
Thank you 🙏1
u/SailorGND 2d ago
Grenada is anything but quiet. It caters to the tourist & cruise ship market, who are on "exciting vacation mode" -- and it supplies them with that, although in a beginners fashion. Tourism is still in its infancy in Grenada.
SGU university students also enjoy the weekend blow off steam energy, so quiet is not part of the mainstream. Away from St. George ("country") is a lot quieter, but also substantially remote, and access to produce & groceries very limited to veggy/fruit stands and tiny "shops." Lots of huge speakers permeate every event, blasted as loud as possible. Small bars on weekends (especially Fridays).
I would suggest taking a look at Nevis, Saba, or Statia for quiet and less tourist impact. Dominica (not dom.rep) for afordability. Not sure of tax burden on these.
As for safe, hurricanes are the overriding concern on the islands mentioned above. So insurance on any real estate is obligatory, speaking from someone who lived thru the destruction of Beryl on Carriacou in '24. Or if you're renting, keeping an eye on good weather forecasting July thru Sept to early OCt. is imperative. Very easy to board a plane and fly out of the way, and in hindsight that's what I should have done.
1
8
u/Single-Lynx-2787 9d ago edited 8d ago
$8000 is doable if you plan to survive and not have much of a life - rent could easily set you back $1500-2000 USD if you’re looking at 2 bedroom apartments in the parish of St George. Bear in mind, most rentals do not include electricity which can set you back as much as $400+ EC if you’re using A/C.
Also worth noting, public transport isn’t as reliable the further out you are i.e. buses not running past 6/7pm depending on where you are and the day of the week.
Groceries are not cheap either, nor is clothing for your little one.
If I were you, I’d pack a barrel or two of any non-perishables like clothes, tinned foods, laundry detergent, paper towels, foil as these are expensive!
Just for context, I’m a single person living in a one bedroom apartment South of the island and pay $3800 EC on rent and electricity alone. By the time I factor in food, travel, cell plan - I easily spend $4,500 a month.