Speedtwoten.....any news on your paperwork?
The housing here is very expensive if you are planning on living somewhere like MQ or Qurum.
My "employer" pays for my accommodation so I have nothing to worry about there and I am comfortably housed.
There has been a new law introduced that only allows landlords to increase rents by 15% per year and this is causing major grief because landlords are evicting tenants under the reason of "renovations" and then massively hiking up the rents for new tenants.
Expect to pay around 1000 - 1200 rials a month for a villa and around 600 - 800 rials a month for a decent two or three bedroomed apartment - all depending on location.
Areas I would recommend living are:
Madinat Sultan Qaboos (MQ), Shatti Al Qurum or some parts of Al Khuwair. (all about a 20 minute drive from the airport but due to roadworks at Bowshar and Ghala roundabouts it gets a bit mental in the afternoons so leave 15 minutes earlier if you are doing afternoon shifts.)
Athaibah, Mawahla, Al Hail....all near the airport.
Oman is a great place to live. Look me up when you get here.
Farrell