TLDR: Could anyone share their experience with mail-order bride? Do share if you have any contacts for the arrangement. Thank you!!! __________
Longer story below only for those who're really bored:
I am a 30+ y/o local chinese male working in finance (MNC, international hours kind), have a stable job, already staying on my own (no longer eligible for BTO), uni & house loans already fully-settled, decent amount of savings - can travel at least twice to thrice a year (sometimes paying for family / friends is ok too) while still accumulating savings. I can cook very extensively, clean up quite well, manage my own household chores, do basic repair & maintenance around the house. I spend weekends with light exercise and self-care routines, and I keep in touch with my own mental stability and emotions via monthly therapy sessions and self-care routines.
I'm not doing so well on the dating scene... I use almost all the apps: Tinder, Bumble, CMB, Hinge, OKCupid, Tantan (yes I tried using overseas and 'rates' are much better, though still nothing suitable). I do also make known to my social circle that I'm single and looking - so they can introduce me anyone whom they think are suitable (none on that front).
My experience with dating is not so good... I plan out dates, spend about $200 - $400 per month just bringing random dates out on meals every other week, spending up to $300 - $500 per occurance on gifts for dating periods which crossover birthdays/special occassions (Valentines / 520 / CNY / Christmas, etc) for my dates. Sometimes, I cook for them and go on weekend trips with dates. Unfortunately, despite my efforts, I'm still single.
Dating locally is really quite challenging and I cannot find myself meeting the needs / wants of any of my dates, and none of my dates seem to be genuinely interested in me either (yes, some I asked directly too - 'no' was clear cut and 'see how' was not a good answer, and I only discovered some were already married / attached when I asked this).
With the amount and time I regularly spend, I was wondering if its more time and/or cost-effective to spend on a mail-order bride instead.
Could fellow redditors share your lobang / indicative price range / process flow, etc? Are there any concerns that I should look out for?
Thank you in advance for sharing!
Note: Discrimination against mail-order brides vs 'true love' is less of a fear / concern than my bad experience with the local dating scene... Some of these dates have left me quite traumatised and disappointed in both society and myself. Hence, it is likely that mail-order bride would be a better 'solution' for settling down than trying to date locally.