<prompt> Human: Hi All, 27M moving to NYC on L1B visa next month. My girlfriend is moving with me as well.Ill be earning 88k USD salary, hoping this will provide comparable living standard to London currently earning 52k GBP in London? Looking to live in HobokenJersey City area. Work are paying for 30 days temp accommodation which gives us some time to find a good place to rent.Looking for some advice on how to set myself up financially as an expat e.g. best bank accountscredit cardsinvestment accounts to go forDepending on how things work out, I want to settle down and either buy an apartment in London NYC in 2-3years. Currently have 40k GBP saved and would like to move at least half of that into USD and saveinvest it conservatively - what are my options?Id also like some advice on how best to build a good credit rating in the US and have an idea on how much banks typically lend for mortgages? for example in the UK you can borrow 45 times your gross salary - is it the same across the pond? Id be looking to do this solo as my gf has some hefty student loans to pay back first. Therefore would like to know what gross salary savings Id need for as place costing 450k. Appreciate I may need to boost my income to achieve this but should be possible as similar banking roles to mine are paying 30-40 more in NY according to glassdoor.com and it will be good to have something to aim for.Ill be very grateful for any advice or tips that you can provide. Thanks in advance.  <response>: While I cant help with the expat details, I can provide a rough idea of the housing market in NYC. It is challenging to say the least for homeownership unless you are within the 1 earner bracket. The median sales price for a condo or co-op is 1.1 million as of 2016. Median sales price for a townhouse hover around 4.97 million. Probably higher now but thats what Curbed data has.As such, my recommendations for home buying would be outer Brooklyn boroughs or further south in New Jersey, somewhere along the commuter rail. It will still be expensive but youll find more housing stock for slightly lower price tags. If youre willing to undertake a longer commute, there is affordable housing. I would not recommend a mortgage over 3x your income. Banks will lend you that but thats stretching yourself too thin. Have your girlfriend pay down the student loans aggressively and get yourself into a better position for saving. Or consider renting. Most people in NYC rent and if your plans include moving back to the UK, that flexibility will be there. 