Dear Kenneth,

Families usually settle down in France (near border) or in small towns near Geneva, like Rolle or Gland. Of course, it's not like living in the center, but you will save fortune plus enjoying views of Saleve or lake :-)

Buses, trains work ideally, like it's just 15 mins from Central Station to Ferney Voltaire (french border) or the same time by train to Gland. Fortunately, Switzerland is the small country :-)

good luck,

Dina

www.immostreet.ch

www.homegate.ch

two good websites to get an idea of rental prices... input bedrooms and max affordable rent and do a wide search..you'll see what you get for your money.

as Onis says... the Swiss commute is nothing like a UK or US commute...its close here, and for the kids, theres more outside of Gva than in...summertime = lakeside beach time...pool time... bbq time... better out of twon than in... winter = skiing...ditto.... the only reason you may want to be in Gva is to go out at night, and ease of babysitter finding... but you can get that in Nyon and the surrounding areas easily...

I lived there for 5 yrs... with kids...and it was fine..schools are better too... now due to circumstance changes Im in town... you'll just need a second car...thats all.

Hi,

There are certain elements to be kept in mind however:

Typically US citizens (depending on the permit type) can only live in the same canton where the permit was issued. So if you are issued a work permit for Geneva, you can not live in Rolle, Nyon, etc until your permit changes to a C after 5 years. Not sure about diplomats. Same issue with France.

Public transportation works good, except when you really need them like a snow storm and you need to go back home, or in the evenings. Plus, you would need to factor the costs of such transportation. Even having your own car, this can have its own drawback. To illustrate, it costs 700+ per person for annual public transportation costs in Geneva only.

I am sure rent costs are lower in surrounding cities, but I am not sure to what extent, and I doubt that it is a "fortune", specially when you have to factor in transportation costs, plus convenience costs.

Finally, if you are concerned about the impact of 3500 CHF for rent, you need to re-evaluate your overall budget. Everything is between 150 and 200% the cost of that in the US (Dallas is what I know personally). Case in point, McDonalds meal (one of the cheapest meals in Switzerland) will run 12-15 CHF. So put that in your budget when making your decision.

Best of luck to you.

Sam

Hi we lived in a small village sezenove near bernex for 5 years. We only needed one car as my husband could get the bus from the villiage into town and yes they may be late in heavy snow but they do still run. Normally you have to be early as they run dead on time

I have 3 children and found this much better as we were in the countryside lots of places to go on walks,bikes et.c for the children but it still only took 15 minutes for me to drive into geneva.

Rent is high in Geneva although lower in the villages (but still high compared to what i would pay back home) but to me with children i could walk out the front door and they wouldn't be on a main road.

Another thing to consider is if your children will be at international school. Mine were at the local village swiss school but i have heard from friends whose children do attend the international schools the nightmare of traffic getting them to school and parking.

Hope this helps

You said your wife is a diplomat. If so, she may not be allowed by her Mission to reside outside Switzerland because she loses some of her diplomatic immunities and privilidges outside of Switzerland. For example, she can't drive a car with Swiss diplomatic plates. Her/your home in France is not immune from French police searches. If she is working for the Consular services with limited priviledges, then it is a different matter.

As tempting it may sound to live in France, it is wise to check with her mission first before committing on anything outside Switzerland.

I would like to thank all of those who replied to my post. I won´t be able to make a decision until I´m on the ground in June, but your replies were certainly helpful. I´ll keep on reading.

Kenneth 

We moved a year ago from Amsterdam. We assumed Geneva city would be as much a pleasure to live in as we found Amsterdam, so we rented an appartment (CHF 4.500 a month) in Plainpalais. Then we realised Geneva as a city is not as pleasant to live in as we expected, traffic was horrible and so the commute to (international school and work, near the UN) took way too long, and parking was almost non-existent.

So we ended up looking around to buy an apartment which we found in Bellevue, near the lake. The monthly costs are far lower now, for a much nicer place, with modern conveniences (and a two car garage to boot), and the commute is easier and faster. I also bought a 125 cc scooter which must be the quickest, most flexible and cheapest way to get anywhere in and around Geneva.

Because I work for an international organisation I do need to live in Switzerland, also for tax reasons, so that may apply to you also. I would keep all options open and, given our experience, we really like living in 'the suburbs'. When we feel like getting the big city feeling we just hop on the scooter(s), park anywhere and enjoy.

Good luck with the move!