Hi all!
First let me greet you and tell a little about myself: I am Brazilian and recently returned from Russia. I am currently working as a real estate broker and decided just recently to extend my stay here and actually bring my wife and settle.
Most of the questions you made i can answer because i had to make them myself just a couple weeks ago. And some other questions will eventually pop up, so don't feel bad about e-mailing me with any doubt. I will gladly help out because i appreciate the help i had when i needed it in similar circumstances.Â
The salary you would need:
Decide where you will live. Good neighborhoods are expensive and will dictate your daily expenses accordingly. You should have at least 3 times your rent costs / month. I would add 1 more time to that cost for your daughter comfort. So, if you plan on renting a reasonable apartment in Barra for instance, expect to spend around R$2.000,00. So you should be making R$ 8.000,00 total to live very comfortably, with little worries about money regarding your living expenses.
You can find a job without fluent Portuguese as easy as with it. Only thing you will be competing against people that know the language. But "cariocas " are really ok about hiring expats and the deciding factor will be your qualifications.
If you have money saved, contact me about costs of living places, but a good neighborhood wont give you anything cheaper than R$450.000,00 for a 3 bedroom. If you buy a place you will need a LOT less money monthly, but should do the counting the same way. (3x a regular rent in the region you bought)
Cost of relocation can be high. Brazil has very high taxes (regular imports are 60% for instance) and costs. Shipping is very expensive here too. But i would advise you to buy the furniture here. Its one of the things that will cost similar to other places around the world.(Besides electronics)
I cant say much about preschool, but expensive bilingual schools will cost around U$1100 a month. So take that as basis.
I wouldn't advise you to move to a house away from city because a good school for your daughter would be a problem.
I would have to say there are a couple of good neighborhoods in Rio. South Zone and Barra are good places to live with awesome schools and beaches (which you should look for since you are coming to a city like Rio). Barra is the neighborhood that is growing and South Zone a more established luxury place. If you need more information about that i could chat with you through skype MSN or other.
If you are going to Barra i say you will need a car.. and if you have a car in rio you wont regret it. Its probably one of the worst public transportation systems i know (lackluster) but the price difference on the apartment between those 2 regions can easily make up for that, so, don't worry that much about it.
Don't know about problems during travel, but pets are welcome in 99% of places in Rio so, besides the travel you wont have issues with it.
If i can help with anything else or if anyone else has doubts i could help with, feel free to e-mail me at romaguerafm@gmail.com.