What i have learnt after 1 year in India

This was long overdue. But i thought i would share what i have experience so far. 

General

1. I don't regret the decision so far
2. Emotionally it was and is a great decision. 
3. Financially you will definitely do better in the US (Again if you earn and plan to live in the US it might be a wash, but if you plan to come back at some point it is worth accumulating the greens)
4. With time you get used to India

India

1. A lot has changed and yet nothing has changed (you can fill in the blanks)
2. Can get everything (but there is a price to pay)
3. What can be got under 1 roof @Target, Costco or Walmart might need 5 trips to different shops and you may not find what you were looking for

Family 

1. Kids settle in faster, my kids are small so i had no issues
2. Wives might take a longer time

Schools

1. A lot of pressure to succeed (rightfully so), again my kids are young so my knowledge is second hand.

Work

1. Attitudes are different (might be a shock for the R2I'ers)
2. A lot of know it all's at the workplace (as Indians we are probably used to this)
3. Hours will be long
4. Be prepared to work with low quality workers. Though i am a big homer for India and all things Indian this is one area i was shocked. The quality of graduates is appalling, what will take a day in the US to get done will take 5. 

Sports

1. For the Golf enthusiasts or non enthusiast i suggest investing in it In India you might have to fork out some money to be a part of a Golf club but Golf is the best way to network in India.

Life in General

1. If you are person for whom people matter more than the place, India is great. If the place matters you will have to make adjustments. example... if you having a craving for Mexican food you might be hard pressed to find a restaurant.
2. Domestic help is available, makes your life a little easy.
3. Good friends will make life fun matter where you live  
4. Lot of people become members of clubs (i.e Gymkhana, Cosmopolitan, Round Table) good way to meet and socialize with the upper crust.

Monthly Expenses:

This is just a rough estimate (without mortgage or rent)

Groceries (for 4 people):  Max Rs 15,000 - Rs 17,000

Milk etc: Rs 2500

Domestic help: Rs 12000  (if you have a driver and a maid)

Gas: Avg car gives 12-13 KM/LT, 1 LT @Rs. 75   (Rs 5000 if you travel 20 KM/Day)

Electricity: Paid Once in 2 months (in Chennai) with 2 A/C running in the night (Rs 7000-8000 for 2 months)

I think Rs.1 Lakh  should cover all expenses (mortgage/rent and car payments are unknown factors)

Initial Expenses in India --- Once you get here

Initial Expenses in India (Start up Costs)

This is a topic that needs a good amount of planning. The costs will vary depending on whether you shipped stuff to India or decided to buy everything from scratch.

The initial items you will have to buy in India include the following 

1. Car  (Budget 3 - 5 lakhs if buying used)

I bought a used Honda City Automatic. In Chennai i found JAIN CAR SHOPPE to be the best. No pressure sales and they seemed honest ( i have had the car for almost 2 yrs so far so good)

 There seems to be an expectation attached to a person returning to India from abroad ... everyone wants you to live up to a standard they have set for you. 

In India social expectations are more ... bigger is always better. Simple way out don't play that game. 

Another thing to note. PETROL VS DIESEL 

Petrol costs Rs 75/Litre , A sedan with AC running will give you 8- 12 KM/LTR. If you drive more than 3000 KM a month DIESEL will be a better option

Diesel costs Rs .54 but the cars are about a 1.5 - 2 Lakhs more expensive. Used Diesel cars go for a premium. Buy a diesel only if you plan to drive more than 100+ KMs a day.

Car Insurance: This will cost anywhere from Rs. 8000 - Rs. 12000/ year depending on the make and model

2. Fridge (Rs 45,000 - Rs 55,000 depending on size)

If you have kids you will be need at least a decent size fridge  (at least 450+ liters)

We bought the SAMSUNG 470 Liters. It is good enough but still not enough if you want to store a couple of days worth of stuff.

3. Washing Machine (45,000 - 50,000 for front loading)

Top loading washing machines are cheap (you can find ones from Rs 18000 - ). The size also matters (measured in Kgs. 5Kg + will be good for a family of 4)

Top loading --- Uses more water but less expensive

Front Loading --- uses 1/3 water but more expensive 

We got the SAMSUNG front loading with built in inverter. LG is a good option too. IFB Bosch is another.

4. Microwave and Oven  (Rs 20,000 - Rs 25,000 for both at the most)

Again depending on the size you can find both for the above price. There are modular kitchens with both of them in the same unit (like in the US)

5. Kids School (Depending on the school budget anywhere from Rs 50,000 - Rs 2,00,000)

I put my kids in a medium tier school (not really an international school but a school that follows IGSCE Syllabus (APL GLOBAL in Chennai)

The main reason was ADMISSIONS, all the other regular schools wanted me in India during may and their admissions process seems to be tougher than IIT's. 

I paid close to Rs 2,00,000+  for my 2 kids for the whole year. 

This includes

1) Admission fees (new term for donations)

2) Fees for a 3 semesters

3) Special fees

4) Transportation 

5) Food (school gives them snacks etc) 

Admissions is a pain the in the rear. For the popular schools in Chennai (PSBB, SBOA, PS, Vidya Mandir, Chettinad) it is almost impossible, i did not even venture. Most of these schools have low fees and rest assured your children will be another cattle head in their vast herd. Most of these schools have sections going upto M and N each with 50 students. 

This will probably a very big decision for families with Kids. One thing i learnt after years in the US is street smarts and confidence (an oft neglected trait in Indian schools and by Indian families) almost always trumps book smarts.

Update (12/25/2013):
A lot of you have asked me personally about schools. We have had a great experience so far with APL Global in Chennai. There are about 12 students in each class and lot of learning is activity based like in the US. But other than APL i have heard good things about Shishya and Chettinad. 

6. Furniture (Rs 50,000 - Rs 2,50,000 -- it is expensive in India) 

As i had mentioned earlier furniture is expensive in India. But if you do have to buy you can get decent furniture at LIFESTYLE, @HOME (They are a chain )

http://www.homecentrestores.com/
http://www.at-home.co.in/
http://damroindia.com/
http://www.zuari-furniture.com/
http://www.woodpeckerfurniture.com/

Sale:  Lifestyle and @Home have sales in JAN and AUG, you really get good deals

Dinning table (180 X 100 cms) seats 6 --- Rs 30,000 -- Rs 60,000
Entertainment Center - Rs 10,000 - Rs 40,000
Study table  ---- Rs 9000 - Rs 30,000
Sofas (good ones) --- Rs 60,000 - Rs 2,00,000 (Leather)
Beds (decent ones) --- Rs 25,000 - Rs 50,000
Mattresses ---- Rs 8000 - Rs 20,000

7. Home remodeling or Rental (Rs 2,00,000 - Rs 3,00,000)

If renting be prepared to pay an advance of at least 10 months (so if rent is Rs 25,000 you will need Rs 2.5 Lakhs)

If you have a home already you might need renovations or remodeling ( in my experience toilets usually need some work (new tiles or new toilets) ). Budget some money for that as well. 

8. Cable TV, Internet, Cell Phone etc   (Rs 10,000 - Rs 15,000)

You will need to budget some money for these (the numbers may be on the high side)

Cable TV - About Rs 11,000/Year  (for DVR + All Channels)  -- You can pay upfront or monthly
Internet - Rs 2000/month (if you get 40 GB and 4 MBPS connection)
Cell Phone - Depends on your usage but Rs 1500 avg

9. Other Misc Household stuff (Rs 2,00,000 - 3,00,000)

There are other expenses that may vary case to case.  Somehow the feeling is that NRI's are loaded, people will try to extract a premium so don't get carried away.

10. Medical + life Insurance

Look to spend around Rs. 30,000 in premiums for these 2.

11. Domestic Help (Maid, Driver etc)

If you plan to hire a driver (good drivers are in demand)

Driver: ----Rs 10,000 - 12,000
Maid: Cleaning and Washing dishes  ---- Rs 1500 - Rs 1700

I think overall having Rs 15 lakhs to Rs 20 lakhs will be a good cushion (Close to $30,000 - $40,000)

Electronics: What To GET ... 220 to 110v saga

This is where i spent the most time researching

You probably already know this:

1) India is 220V 50Hz
2) US is 110V 60HZ
3) TV format in INDIA is PAL
4) TV format in the US is NTSC

I got all my electronics from the US and i am using them in INDIA (almost for 2 yrs now). Here are the items i got from the US and using in India

1) TV's
2) Amplifier
3) Home theater (with powered sub woofer)
4) DVD/Bluray player
5) Game consoles (XBOX and WII)
6) Printer
7) Phones
8) Router

First things first: 

1) You will need a STEP DOWN transformer. (220 to 110V)

I suggest get a good one with a voltage regulator built into it. I choose the LITEFUZE brand. I got it from BOMBAY ELECTRONICS. (http://www.litefuze.com/) . My friend got the SIMRAN brand and he is happy with it.

I got the following

1. LiteFuze LR-3000 W 
2. LR 1000 W
3. LR 500 W

I decided on these wattage based on the output of the items i was going to use in India

Example: I choose the 3000 W for the living room because i planned to use the following gadgets in the living room

1) TV - 120 W
2) Amplifier - 300 W
3) Sub Woofer - 150 W
4) DVD Player - 100 W
5) XBOX ~ 100 W

The total is close to 800 W.

 I read somewhere that TV's need an estimated 3 - 4 times the wattage (how i don't know) at start up.

Transformer Efficiency 0.7 = 3000 * .0.7 = 2100 W (net wattage). As you can see 3000 W well covers what i was planning on using in the living room.

****Note: (ENSURE YOU CHANGE MCB IN INDIA)

In my Electrical board (where all the circuit breakers are) the MCB for the living room was rated at  6 AMPS. Since i had a 3000 W transformer the theoretical possibility was 3000 W/220 V = 13.5 AMPS

I used to have this problem, sometimes when i turned on the transformer that line used to trip, i once even managed to trip the entire house 1 time. After discussions with a local electrician i changed the MCB
(miniature circuit board) from 6 AMPS to 16 AMPS.

Since then i have had no problems of tripping.

50 HZ VS 60 HZ:

Lot of people have this question whether 60 to 50 HZ will work or reduce the performance of the device. 

All Electronics (TV,DVD, AMPLIFIER ETC run on DC not AC). Frequency does NOT matter

It matters for motors (Mixie, Grinder), clocks etc

EXTENSION CHORD:

The number of outlets on the transformers will not be enough to power all your electronics, get a 220 V extension chord WITHOUT SURGE PROTECTOR. I got the WONPRO extension chord from BOMBAY ELECTRONICS.

INDIA CABLE PROVIDERS:

Converter free cable providers (i.e no need to PAL to NTSC converters)

1) Videcon D2H:  It does not require a converter box (they use MPEG4 so no need for a converter box) --- On the set-top box use the TV setting 1080 60HZ --- and use HDMI

I use the Videocon D2H without any converter box. They also have a 3D channel in case you are getting a 3D TV.

2) AirTel  (they use MPEG4,  i am guessing you can use it similar to Videocon)

TATA SKY Requires a Converter Box

I got the Orei XD-990 PAL HDMI / Composite to NTSC HDMI 50/60 Hz Multi-System Video Converter - Up to 1080p
 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062BS09O/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I did not have good luck with it. If you ask me not a good buy.

DSL MODEMS:

Most cable providers in India use ADSL2 so bring your existing DSL modem (if you have one). All you will require is a power converter (Rs 200 - 300) to use it in India.

ADSL modem + Router combined are pretty cheap in India (TP Link or D-LINK can cost any where from Rs 1400 - Rs 3000). You can save the hassle of converters etc. (Amazon and Flipkart have tons of modem+router combos)

CELL PHONES:

I got my cell phones from the US and actually had them unlocked in the US itself at a mall (Valley View for those from Dallas). Phones are expensive in India especially Apple.

Example: Apple 5 costs close to Rs 51000 while a Samsung S5 costs Rs 44000 (2014 prices)

Packing and Shipping:

Packing and Shipping:

This is a biggie, decisions have to be made and this is where the rubber meets the road. Once the first box is packed the realization hits that this is for real.

Many many decisions to be made. I decided on a 20 ft container 

Prime Question: Should i ship from the US

1) What should i ship (i outlined some of the items but it is not an exhaustive list)

2) Do i do a dedicated container or FCL ?

3) Who should i ship with ... ? Sky2C, Universal etc etc

4) Should i get the packers and movers ?

5) When should i ship ? 

6) Insurance or not ? 

7) What kind of boxes ? Home Depot or something else

8) Customs in India ? worth it or not ....

Both me and my wife are not the most organized people, so our experience might be a little different from your individual experience.

Should i Ship ?: (Million dollar question)

In my opinion the answer is YES. But you have to do your cost benefit analysis, i am not sure you can always come up with a resounding Yes or No. There is no price to emotional items (like the wife's fav pots and pans and stuff like paintings or knick knacks made over time) 

In short it is a tough decision a 20 ft container after everything (packing, shipping, insurance, transportation, customs) will likely set you back by $10,000.

Just a price point comparison a 55'' LED TV will cost 1.2 lakhs in India (close to $2500)

What to ship:

There is no hard and fast rule but i think the following would be worthwhile if you decided to ship stuff to India (i,e get a container)

1) Furniture ( Having shopped for furniture in India after coming back i can say without any doubt get all you can)

General tips: Houses are smaller than in the US so big/huge furniture should be a no-no

• Get Sofa's 
• In India they range from Rs. 60000 - Rs.200000  depending on your style. Leather is always more expensive
• Dining tables (if you are going to live in an apartment 180 cm X 100 cm will be good this will seat 6 people. 6 people dining tables seem to be the norm in India (again because of space constrain)
• I paid Rs. 48,000 after discount at Lifestyle for one (close to $1000). We had looked at a kick-ass table for 6 with marble top for $650.00. Regret not getting it
• Get book shelves, Dressers any storage items. Indian houses are not built with storage in mind. 
• Target or Ikea shelves/storage stuff will be great
• Over the door hangers/Shower caddies 
• Study table (again size appropriate ones)
• Entertainment center
• Cheap to decent ones usually cost close to Rs. 10000 - Rs. 20000
• We had a lot of IKEA (i guess it is clear where we shop) shelf dividers that came handy buy more if you already have some.

2) Electronics (Separate post)

3) General Stuff

1. Kids clothes
2. Bikes if you have any (again to save money instead of buying a new one)
3. Kitchen stuff (Pots and Pans,We use the OXO brand of Bed Bath and Beyond we got what we had)
4. Kids helmet

TBD .... i will update this section

Who to Ship with:

I did a fair bit of research and trolled the R2I forum blogs to get a read on the best. Looking at the blog there seemed to a wide variety of experiences people have had with shippers making it hard for the R2I bloke to get a good read.

You had opinions from the guy from Pune who lost everything , Sky2C was the shipper (The shipper has  refuted the charges) to absolutely awesome experience. 

As in any transaction where there is not a consensus leader the following come into play

1) Does he have  a decent reputation (is there a > 50% chance that i will be screwed over).

2) Does he offer a good price.

I called and got quotes from 

1) SKY2C

2) Universal Locators
3) ShipForLess

4) For fun sake Mayflower and some in the same range

Universal was more expensive compared to SKY2C. 

In the end i chose SKY2C. The quote i got was after bargaining 4200.  Universal was close to $800 more than this

 Ex DOOR TO  CHENNAI  DOOR  INCLUDING CUSTOM CLEARANCE & DELIVERY :$ 4425

INCLUDES:

Shipping cost in an exclusive 20' container from US door to CHENNAI  DOOR

Export documentation & handling fees

Service Tax at destination (10.3%)

Port Charges, Yard Fees, Container Cleaning charges, & Concor Charges

Custom Clearance

Labor to Unpack & Repack during Inspection

Transferring Goods From Container Into the Truck

Normal delivery of goods inside the house

YOU GET 2 HOURS FREE TIME TO LOAD THE CONTAINER  AND THEREFATER EACH ADDITIONAL HOUR IS $60

OLLOWING ARE NOT INCLUDED AND ARE OPTIONAL SERVICES:

1)PACK & LOAD AT ORIGIN:OPTIONAL SERVICE AVAILABLE AT $125/HR.(3 MEN) WITH A MINIMUM OF 4 HOURS INCLUDING 1 HOUR OF TRAVEL TIME:(NOT INCLUDED IN THE ABOVE COST & WILL BE ADDITIONAL)

   2)MATERIAL FOR PACKING:OPTIONAL TO BE QUOTED BASED ON THE ITEMS THAT REQUIRES PACKING (MAY RANGE BETWEEN $350-450):(NOT INCLUDED IN THE QUOTE ABOVE & IS ADDITIONAL COST)

    

      3)  Un Packing/Set Up/Removal Of Debris At Destination: $200 (OPTIONAL)

INSURANCE : INSURANCE IS 2.5% OF THE TOTAL VALUE DECLARED WITH $250 DEDUCTIBLE, OUR MINIMUM INSURANCE PREMIUM IS FOR $45 WHICH COVERS UP TO $1800. YOU CANNOT TAKE INSURANCE ON PARTIAL BOXES OR FURNITURE ITEMS, IT HAS TO BE TAKEN ON ALL THE INDIVIDUAL BOXES AND FURNITURE ITEMS.

My Sky2C Service and Experience:

With any shipper the service at both ends is important i.e while loading and while clearing. The clearing agent has to be honest and not in cahoots with the customs agent (so you don't ripped off  on the customs duty).

Anil Tandon set me up and the whole process was smooth (too smooth that i began to wonder if i have to be worried). The guy in Chennai was awesome, he walked me through the process the customs was a breeze.

They did ask me to open the entire container and did a walk through.

Pickup in Dallas: Showed up a little later because the guy could not find a container (it costed me i will explain). But the process was smooth 

Delivery in Chennai: No problems they delivered it on the same day after clearing customs. It was in the night about 1:00 PM because containers can only move about the city during that time.

Time: The container arrived as promised on time

Couple of things they can improve on

1) Better communication at the beginning of the process

What i shipped and the duty i paid:

Electronics attract the most duty, i had the following

1) Used 52'' TV
2) New 40'' and 39'' TV's
3) 2 Bose home theater systems (for friends)
4) 1 JBL home theater (used)
5) Epson printer

I did not declare games consoles, DVD player or the amplifier. I had new furniture but told them it was used.

Duty is 15% for 1st tv and 35% for the next (Same for all electronics). The customs have their own pricing system. They take the model numbers and find the price on their own ( So don't sweat on deflating the prices when you declare the value of the goods)

I paid Rs. 39,000 in duty

Packing Materials, Actual Packing and Movers

I did a lot of research and trolling. I think this part is easier than it seems

Box Basics:

1) Medium boxes (Should contain all the heavy stuff)

2) Large Boxes  (Should contain not so heavy stuff

3) Wardrobe boxes (for storing coats etc along with paintings anything large that cannot fit in the smaller ones)

Where to buy them:

I got the initial set of boxes from cheap-moving-boxes.com. The package had

1) 20 medium boxes

2) 10 X large boxes

3) 3 wardrobe boxes 

Though none of the boxes from "cheap moving" were damaged or broken, they did wear out badly compared to the Home Depot boxes (Home Depot boxes were double walled albeit unfair comparison)

In the end i ended up with 

1) 100 medium boxes 

2) 10 x-large boxes

3) 6 wardrobe boxes 

I RECOMMEND buy all boxes from HOME DEPOT. Keep it simple (forget U-haul and all that crap save time)

Buy the following 

1) Double walled Medium boxes  (about $2.00)

2) Wardrobe boxes (about $10.00)

Buy boxes of the same size so it is easy to stack over one another.

I used the double walled boxes to pack all the glass/fragile items i had.  I had no issues with damage.

Other Packing Materials:

1) Bubble wrap (get this online it is cheaper and get wider ones so you can cover things better).

• Smaller bubbles offer better protection than the bigger bubbles. 

2) Scotch tape (3M is the best, had no issues the tape was on the box almost 5 months after shipping)
3) Peanuts ( I got this from a local mailbox place ---- this might be overkill but will give you peace of mind)
4) Wrapping paper (Home Depot)
5) Glass Dividers (Home Depot)
6) Avery Labels (very IMPORTANT. This is to label each container. I tried using printer paper but it did not work get a bunch of avery label. SAMS CLUB or COSTCO will be good. I did not do that so i ended up spending more)

My Packing Experience (How i packed the boxes --- no science here)

When i started packing i did not know the right way to do it. Since the boxes were going to be stacked over each other i didn't know the right amount of padding to put.

I think i went overboard with the wrapping and packing. I tried to cushion every box with either peanuts or clothes or bubble wrap. In hindsight that is not needed, the DOUBLE WALLED boxes and withstand a good amount of abuse. Having said that use common sense.

1) Bubble wrap glass and other fragile item
2) I paper wrapped kitchen stuff

All fragile items were the topmost boxes, boxes with books etc were the lower most boxes.

Movers on the day of the Container 

• I self packed
• Movers packed dressers, Furniture, TV, Chairs and all big items

I opted for self packing, so i had to get movers. The ones i got were good they had done containers before so they knew how to pack it (A container should be loaded tight) they also wrapped it good along with furniture saver.

I got charged more than what i had expected ( i had contracted for $500 but ended up paying $850)

Mistakes i did
1) Assumed that the movers knew that a container had a 4 foot drop (meaning they need to get the sloping thing to load the boxes). They didn't bring it so it added 1.5 hrs to the move

2) The Container arrived late that added another 1.5 hrs

3) I printed and stuck the label on the boxes while loading (my problem was i did not know the total count of packages), it added another 1 hr (Do the label before calling the movers)

BOXES + PACKING MATERIALS + MOVE = $400 + $250 + $856 ~ $1500

This is with me packing most of the stuff.

My thoughts: 

We spent a lot of time (weekends) trying to pack. In hindsight i should have got the movers to do it (yeah it costs more ...) but it eases your worry a bit and leaves with with more time to enjoy the last few days ...

20 ft container

Inside a 20 ft'' container

Boxes ready to be loaded

Wrapping done by the movers

Everything packed. Just has a little space left

Planning: Preparing to Sell Part 2 What to keep and Why

What to keep:

We kept
1) All kitchen utensils + Jars + tupperware
2) Electronics (TV, DVD player, Game consoles)
3) Selected kid toys
4) Clothes
5) Footwear
6) Selected furniture (Study shelfs, some ikea dressers)
7) Washer, Dryer and refrigerator (for the next lessee)

Kitchen Stuff (My wife is the authority)
We kept the following

1) All the spoons, spatulas, OXO brand stuff
2) We had a bunch of ikea bottles for storing stuff we kept them
3) Plates
4) Pots and pans, Cooking set (rachael ray)
5) Beer mugs, wine glasses, shot glasses etc etc
6) Baking pans etc

Reasoning it will help us settle quickly as well these things were collected over time after going through many iterations. Also it made sense from a financial perspective.

Electronics ( Will have a separate post. Near and dear to my heart)

Furniture: 

Debated this a lot. Always thought that furniture was cheap in India (key word being thought...). Since we had decided on the container and we needed to fill it up, we packed the ones that were in good shape and not too big.

1) Dressers
2) Bookshelfs
3) Shoe rack (open one)
4) Couch (we bought a new one in Dallas before we left an shipped it)
5) Bunk bed for kids
6) Over the door hangers for clothes, shower caddies etc

I feel i should have got everything from the US. Hindsight i would have got an entertainment center, dinning table (India size), study table and some more storage

Cost of furniture in India:
Furniture is EXPENSIVE in India, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I had a hint and confirmed this once i got there.

1) First of there are only so many places where you would want to shop (lifestlye, @home and maybe some custom shops)

2) Choices are less and prices expensive (the cheaper ones are usually particle board cheap crap)

3) Real wood furniture (teak etc) prices will make you want to go back

4) Most furniture now available comes from Malaysia (rubber wood) or Sri lanka (Damaro brand)

Advice: If you are a person with a reasonable sense of style, don't buy furniture in India unless you have oodles of cash to burn.

Clothes: (Jury is still out)

On the outset it looks like the quality of clothes is better in the US, but again there are so many cloth shops in India it is mind blowing (Wonder why people in India are not better dressed ... ? )

Advice: Get clothes from the US for men and kids. Clothes are reasonably priced and better.

1) For men all the dry fit clothes are cheaper in the US
2) Women if you are into ethnic clothes then India would be a a no-brainer

Planning: Preparing to sell Part 1

We had made a decision to rent our house which meant, all the things in the house had to go.

Deciding what to sell vs keep (to take back home)

What we sold
1) Cars
2) Kitchen appliances (mixie, magic bullet, toaster, grill etc etc)
3) Our beds (we had ikea beds so it was a no-brainer)
4) Old couch
5) hutch china
6) Kids toys
7) Car seats
8) Some decorations etc

What we kept
1) All kitchen utensils + Jars + tupperware
2) Electronics (TV, DVD player, Game consoles)
3) Selected kid toys
4) Clothes
5) Footwear
6) Selected furniture (Study shelfs, some ikea dressers)
7) Washer, Dryer and refrigerator (for the next lessee)

Selling Process:

Cars:
This was the high dollar item, i had a sedan and a SUV to sell. I couldn't sell them too early because i needed the cars till the last day. This is what i did

Checked the blue book value then ...

1) Went to CARMAX to get an appraisal ( usually a lower value)

Advantages: you dont have to repair the dings and scratches or fix anything with the car they take it as is but it is also valued as is. Usually they are the lowest estimate

2) Ad in autotrader (did not work for me ...)

3) Ad in Craigslist (Got more scammers than real folks)

4) Sulekha.com and EkNazar.com (Got some good response)
I got detailing done on the car for pictures to post.

You may not get what you want for the car ... so be MENTALLY PREPARED. Depending on your situation and time you can hold off for the best price but time is never on your side.

I finally sold both the cars to desi folks one was through sulekha and another was through friends.

I did not try E-BAY but have heard it is a great avenue as well.

Rest of the items: Craigslist
Post them early it takes time, when my friend told me this i did not take it seriously. It DOES TAKE TIME.

Things i have observed on Craigslist:
1) There is a buyer for everything provided the price is right (read low price)
2) Weekends were when most sales happened (for obvious reasons ... so post on Friday afternoon that way your post ranks high ...)
3) High dollar items face price resistance (especially above $1000.00 check competition ...)

In the end i did give ways stuff like Bread-maker, mas sager, Christmas decorations etc to my friends.

Introduction:

This blog attempts to detail my personal R2I experience. I moved to Dallas, Texas in 1997 on H1-B through a body-shopping company ( also called Ghaja in southie circles).

My first contract was for a period of 1 year. I liked the place enough, so after a year i looked around for jobs in the DFW area and found one. After stints in Fidelity investments, Verizon and doing something on my own i spent the next 16 years in Dallas, along the way i got married and had 2 beautiful kids.

I love everything Dallas and by extension Texas, i am a big fan of the cowboys, mavericks and the rangers.

R2I was always a topic of conversation at the numerous parties we have attended, however the X+1 rule seems to be the norm ( i will get back next year once i have enough money ....). Occasionally you'd hear stories of some friend who moved back, to me moving back however would be a passing thought restricted to low times (read mid-life crisis).

Life was good, i was living the american dream. There was nothing to complain really, but it did seem boring at times to be just drifting along.

They say all it takes is 1 moment for life to change in my case i did have that moment and it set the ball rolling for my eventual Return to India (R2I).

Moving back to India is an emotional and financial exercise, it was not easy for me. Only in the long run can i say whether it was a good decision or not (My wife thinks otherwise ... but i disagree...)

Anyway i have tried to breakdown the process into different phases ... hope it will be of use to anyone who is contemplating a move back to INDIA.

Planning: The decision

Even though R2I was in the back of my mind for a year, the real decision (the tipping point so to say ...) was made in Dec 2012. The plan was to move to Chennai

Once the decision was made i had to make the following major decisions

1) House -- To Sell or Rent
2) Contents of the house --- Sell or take to India
3) Buy things for India ---
3) Job --- what to do

House: Sell or Rent

I think i personally spent very less time of this, i made the decision to rent the house. The reasoning was tough real estate market, the money i had to spend to get it sold, the idea of having rental income pay for mortgage was alluring (precedence of friends having done that helped)

Final Decision: Rent

Take things to India: To container or not

Here my friends experience helped, he was moving in feb 2012 and had got himself a 20' container. I did a few back of the envelope calculation about buying things in India. The cost of electronics in India seemed high plus my wife and I (mostly my wife) had spent a good number of years accumulating stuff (kinda sorta labor of love) + we would have got pennies (literally) if we proceeded to sell them.

Final Decision: 20' foot container

Buying things for India: Will talk about this later

Job: Will talk about this later

Planning: How it all started

The first seeds of my move was planted in Feb 2011, a false alarm related to my Dad's health started it all. Unable to do anything from 10,000 miles away got me thinking real hard about my future in the US.

I let the thought germinate till the end of the year, luckily my wife was on board. By the end of the year i had made up my mind and started telling people about it (It was by no means an easy decision with swings on both ends ... numerous phone calls to known R2I friends. The pro's and con's are always split 50/50 in the end the decision is yours and yours only.)

The plan was to move lock stock and barrel in May 2012. My best friend was going through the same process and he actually ended up moving in Feb 2012. As organized as he is, he gave me pointers on where to start and what to do. His input was valuable and got me believing that it was a possibility

Eventually i ended up moving September 09 2012.