Just to be clear folks. Be very careful of taking the allowance and going out on your own if you have a family. One of the great benefits is the comfort and lack of stress with having EK pay for all your housing headaches. There is enough to worry about in this place... years ago, people were squeezed by the rising market and some were paying big out of pocket money, cutting back on A/C and water consumption etc. DEWA bills can rise very quickly here and the last thing you want is to stress about your housing situation.
If you do move out to one of SASSY's locales, what happens if you hate it and want to move back to Dubai with your family? All of the sudden, your allowance is not enough for a 4 bedroom villa with all the bills to cover, and your 100k in savings is long gone.
I know of a single captain who lives in Discovery gardens, and heard of one that lives in International ghetto city....probably saves 80% of the allowance. They can have it and save all they want..... with NO life. To each their own i guess.
Lospilotos...For a new family I would highly recommend taking the company accommodation and give yourself time to settle in. The Jumeriah area is one the best available and worth it. Paint it up and get EK to make some updates in the villa for you. If it's that bad, ask for another option.... Good luck