Expat Experiences: Netherlands - Arwa Lokhandwala

Who are you?

My name is Arwa Lokhandwala and I am an Indian expat living in The Netherlands with my husband.

Where, when and why did you move abroad?

We relocated to The Netherlands from India because of my husband's work. It has been a little more than a year now.

What challenges did you face during the move?

The initial paperwork was mostly hassle free but took some time. We arrived in Rotterdam in Dec, 2008 which is one of the coldest months of the year so the weather tested us too. The language and the culture in The Netherlands is entirely different from that of ours. But it also presented a great opportunity to learn about different things.

Can you tell us something about your property?

We liked the idea of renting an apartment rather than buying. Once that was decided, we contacted a couple of Makelaars (Dutch for "estate agents") for the property and after seeing a number of flats, zeroed in on one of them. Finding a property in the beginning takes time and effort since you have to be very careful regarding the area, rent etc. It always helps to check things out with different Makelaars before finalising the deal. The rental contract should be translated into English (or the language that you understand) and only after reading all the fine prints should you sign it...

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