What should I expect in a GOOD Expat Pkg offer?

My husband is due to get the Expat Pkg today or tomorrow and I would like to know what I should expect?  He would be moving with the same company he is with now. They have indicated that they will help with housing, give us a cost of living increase, cover tuition cost for my daughter and give him a company car.

We are moving from a rural town outside Cincinnati Ohio, and would hope to move south east of London.

I have been reading quite a bit about how much things cost in the UK and am getting nervous that we will be taking a step backwards.

I am well aware that the housing will be considerably smaller than we are used to, which is fine.

Any help in this area would be greatly appreciated. 

As this is an intracompany transfer your time in the UK will be limited to 5 years unless he makes £152,100/year or more in which case he can stay up to 9 years.  Your package should include not only moving your things to the UK but moving them back to the US when your visas expire.  You're entitled to use the NHS but private insurance is always a good thing to ask for.  A trip home once a year is pretty standard.  Your taxes will be much more complicated, they should provide you with an international accountant.  If they are paying your daughter's tuition, that's very generous as is a housing allowance.

The south east of London isn't going to be that much cheaper than London with the exception of housing. 

Thank you for information that does help.

Would be better if someone could just say that based on living outside Cin and moving to this particular area outside London you would need XX % to keep your standard of living.  But I know there are way too many factors.

Obviously no one can give you that kind of answer without knowing your lifestyle, your salary, your basic living costs and other factors.  Try to do a comparison between your town and Cincinnati and then compare that to London. 

One expense that you're probably not aware of is council tax.  It's a charge for services in your borough like garbage pick up.  It varies widely by bourough and is roughly based on the size and value of the property.  It's usually paid in 10 monthly installments.  In Surrey where you seem to be looking you should expect to pay £120-£150/month.

Obviously the salary would be dependent on the role, and I cannot comment with respect to that. 

However, numbeo.com can sometimes be useful for comparing the cost of living in cities across the world. 

Comparison of Cincinnati to London

Reasonable expectation would include:
- Tax equalization.  Meaning that you are not liable to 2 tax systems.  You should continue to pay the US tax only and your company should pay all UK tax.  All the extra benefits will be taxable so you want to be protected against a huge tax bill.  As Anonymiss said, you should be provided with tax assistance.
- home visits.  At least one annual trip home for the family, and 2 extra days of holiday as travel days.
- foreign currency exposure.  You will encounter fees for transferring money.  Also reasonable to protect his salary for exchange fluctuation.  The pound is on the rise and you want to be protected if his salary is still based in USD.  your buying power could drop dramatically.
- temporary accommodation for at least 30 days.  Assistance in finding a property to rent and assistance with getting deposits in place (you won't be able to open a bank account until you have a lease)
- shipment of at least 2000 pounds of goods for your family (and the return at then end of the assignment)
- a disruption bonus equivalent to two months salary on both ends of the move

Will be very lucky to receive:
- COGS adjustment for cost of living increase
- housing allowance

If I'm honest, to be like-for-like, you would want the US salary equal in GBP.  So if you make $50k in the US, you would feel an equivalent buying power with £50k in the UK.  Will you get that?  Unlikely.  Salaries are typically less in the UK (you adjust).  For me, I took an international assignment here and my disposable income disappeared and I used a lot of savings.  But what I lost financially, I gained in experience and now I earn far more than if I had stayed in the US.  I have a friend from the UK on an international assignment in NYC right now and he can pay his rent and daughters tuition from his salary, everything else is debt he is incurring.  But he knows at the end of the assignment he will be rewarded.  It's a trade off.

Also you may need a back-out plan.  I saw you have not been to the UK before....  It's not for everyone.  You need to know you can go back earlier if needed.  You know how everyone says it rains all the time here?  It's because it does!  It can be very hard to adjust.

Thank you all for your input it was all very good advice.  There were definitely things suggested that I would not have thought of which is exactly what I was looking for.

As to never being to London, I love to travel and am quite comfortable "doing as the Romans do" whenever possible. I grew up in upstate NY and from what I have researched London is within 10 days on the days with sun scale.  So I have lived in a cloudy, rainy, and snowy climate for over 20 years.  The more time I spend indoors gives me more time to plan my next trip!

Again thanks to all.  I await the Expat Pkg today, here's hoping it is all we have been lead to believe it will be.

I live in southwest London and have been in central London exactly twice,  since I "officially moved here" in October! I keep saying I should go in more often, go to the museums, shopping, shows, etc.... but there is always something that is keeping me busy here in my own little part of the world 
Then again, I used to live right outside NYC, about 20 minutes to Grand Central on the train, I never went into the city unless I had visitors or absolutely had to do so 
I also am from upstate NY with all the snow (my family near Albany were landed with 24 inches of snow last week) and dreary rainy days, good training for the UK!
Good luck with your expat pkg & hopeful move 

Upstate NY is great practice for the UK in terms of weather, but of course there's more to life than that. Houses, manners, food, culture, all of these things contribute to people's contentment in a place. I think it's almost certain you'll find some things in London to be a rude shock after Cincinnati, and will have some trouble adjusting. That's normal. Whether you'll be happy there long-term depends on your motivation to go and to stay, on whether you make friends quickly, etc. The expat package will be only part of the equation.

I lived in Syracuse where they get even more snow that Albany and have less sunshine in general. 

I have traveled to different places in the world and while I found some customs to be surprising I would never consider them to be rude.  I was more than likely being rude to them as I was not respecting their way of life. 

We are still waiting for the Expat Pkg...Erg......at this point that will determine whether we move or not.  If it comes in anywhere close to what we think we need to move, we will. 

Once again I thank all of you, I feel much better knowing what I can expect.

I lived in Syracuse where they get even more snow that Albany and have less sunshine in general. 

I lived in Syracuse too. Like I said, it's good practice, but the winters are nothing like the UK. That lake effect snow is unique .

Having travelled before is good. Living someplace is really different from visiting, though. You may not feel it as much since it sounds like your move will be temporary, but a lot of people have visited the UK and adored it, then moved here and hated it. As long as you're mentally prepared for a period of adjustment, you'll likely be OK. I just wanted to make the point that the expat package is not the be all and end all of moving to the UK. A lot will depend on the outlook you and your family have, and how you deal with the inevitable differences in way and quality of life that you will encounter.

I really agree with the advice you've given Historyenne.  While I never want to sound overly pessimistic & negative about the transition process, it is (IMO) much more significant than most people anticipate. 

My DH regularly reminds me that "culture shock comes in many forms" (usually when you least expect it).  I think just being honest about it & not being too hard on myself has been a big help...that, and regular trips back to the US during my first 18 months so that I can occasionally feel like the master of my ship. 

In the early days, I always felt like such a dummy in England..like everyone else knew how to "do stuff" except me.  When I visited the US, I regained my confidence.  Then as I've returned to England (back & forth) my confidence has built.  I still have a long ways to go, but all feels right for now   Best wishes to the OP!

Definitely agree with what Historyenne has said.  The expat package won't be the end-all-be all.

I think a lot of friends and family in the US think I'm living some sort of sexy lifestyle as I live "abroad".  The thing is, it's the same life just in a different place.  I still go to work to pay my bills and try to have fun in my free time.

I think that's the thing that hits expats the hardest - you realize you are just REALLY far away from home and life at home goes on without you.  I have a nephew who will be one next week....  I haven't met him.  I have a niece that is 2 1/2...  I met her once when she was 3 months old...  For a long time, I had no idea when I would get to see them, but luckily it looks like I'm going to get to see them this summer.

How exciting! I hope that it all works out for you and you get the offer you want! 

The BBC News did a great series called At Home Abroad and BBC Capital has a lot of articles tagged Expat 
Whilst a few of them are specifically targeting Brits going abroad, quite a few of them are just general themes about expat living.  Very interesting reading for someone not making a permament move somewhere.

Good luck!

I hope the offer comes in trumps! What a great opportunity for you and your family to experience living in another country without the commitment of having to live there forever! No matter what, being expats will be a learning experience for everyone.