# moving to spain



## stacie (Sep 30, 2009)

hi can anybody help me it has always been my dream to move to Spain ever since being a little girl . I'm at a time in my life where i think it is time my marriage of 12 years has just ended and I'm wanting a new fresh start with my two children I've looked and researched lots about this but the only thing that worries me is doing it all on my own so any help anybody can give me i would really appreciate sorry for all the info but i need to no if its the right thing to do.


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

This is asked a lot, read some of the previous threads. In a nutshell, unemployment in Spain is 20% ++, jobs are very, very few and far between and if you hope to work you need to speak the language well. Houses worth half a million a couple of years ago are fetching 150k now, people can't sell them.

Unless you have a pension or regular income and don't need to work then don't go. Others will be along to add more but its not a good time to move at the moment.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

stacie said:


> hi can anybody help me it has always been my dream to move to Spain ever since being a little girl . I'm at a time in my life where i think it is time my marriage of 12 years has just ended and I'm wanting a new fresh start with my two children I've looked and researched lots about this but the only thing that worries me is doing it all on my own so any help anybody can give me i would really appreciate sorry for all the info but i need to no if its the right thing to do.


You've got lots of things to think about! First of all, does your ex mind, or will he allow you to take your children out of the UK? Will the kids miss him? Will they miss their home, their family and friends

If thats all ok, then you really need to ask yourself why you want to come to Spain, what you hope it will be like? Do you need to work (as pointed out, work is incredibly hard to find here), if so what about childcare. Family and friends? do you need them, will you and the kids miss them. How will you cope in Spain if you have a crisis or if things dont pan out??? Is it worth the hassle and the cost (financially and emotionally)

You should come over for a fact finding visit, with a list of questions, have a good look around and see how and where your life would fit in, with minimum amount of stress! and then give it a long hard think. Its not all like a holiday and reality is that its the same ****, different place and it can be very lonely and hard if you have no familiar infrastructure.

I'll just add that many moons ago when my first marriage broke up, I wanted to move to Spain with my two little girls - so I know how you feel. I decided in the end it would be too difficult - as you can see, my dream didnt go away for me and I'm here now with my second batch of kids from my second marriage - my husband commutes to pay the bills and my children are 14 and 16, so its no too difficult for me. Altho I hate my husband being in the UK so much, if only cos I find it quite stressful being the responsible adult and being in charge here on my own. Looking back, I'm glad that I didnt do it in my "previous life" eventho in those days, it may have been easier - more jobs, cheaper cost of living, more opportunities. It is hard work being a single parent here and there is no benefit system, child allowance, assistance if things go wrong - unless you've paid for a significant time into the Spanish social security system.

I'm not trying to put you off, I'm just trying to give you things to think about.


Jo xxx


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

jojo said:


> You've got lots of things to think about! First of all, does your ex mind, or will he allow you to take your children out of the UK? Will the kids miss him? Will they miss their home, their family and friends
> 
> If thats all ok, then you really need to ask yourself why you want to come to Spain, what you hope it will be like? Do you need to work (as pointed out, work is incredibly hard to find here), if so what about childcare. Family and friends? do you need them, will you and the kids miss them. How will you cope in Spain if you have a crisis or if things dont pan out??? Is it worth the hassle and the cost (financially and emotionally)
> 
> ...


I totally agree with what you say Jo. I dont have kids but I dont think I would want to start a new life in Spain totally on my own. When I split with my ex and he returned to the UK it was very wierd being here despite the fact that I had a strong network of friends locally.

Now I have my wonderful Spanish partner I feel very settled and secure and love life but my point is that even for someone who has lived in Spain some time, and previously spent a few years here I still don´t like the idea of "flying solo".

You do make some very valid points about the kids. My friend in the UK divorced her husband and did talk to me about coming to Spain BUT she decided against it in the end because of the kids and the effect not having regualr contact with their father after the divorce might have on them.

Moving to Spain is a dream for many, and for the likes of Jo, myself and many on here its a dream come true, but timing is everything and however rosey the picture seams, rest assured it will be stressful and there will be significant things to adapt to. It is nothing like moving to a different part of the UK. Until you become confident in the language and culture it can actually be very traumatic!

Having said that, some people and some kids are very strong and it may well be the perfect thing for the OP to do. Think carefully about money etc. As Jo said, unless you have been paying into the system for a long time you wont get a penny from the Spanish state and frankly finding work is almost impossible.

Sorry, I may have missed this in your post, but how old are your kids? If they are very young then they may well integrate into Spanish state education easily, but if they are older this may be difficult for them (especially if they are doing specific studies). Therefore you may need to consider an international school which does come at a price.

GOOD LUCK though if you do decide its for you


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Here on the Southern CDS unemployment is at over 30%. Most worrying are the recent figures relating to seasonal employment in the Marbella area: fewer people have been able to find employment in the tourist sector this year than last year.Not a good omen.
In short, if you have no professional skills and speak no Spanish, don't have a secure job offer, have no financial backup, then it's best to stay home.
Dreams are not dreams without money to fulfil them...they rapidly become nightmares.
The only people who can really afford any sort of life in Spain at this time are retirees with good incomes, people with secure job offers and people with overseas businesses or partners who work away.
Even in skilled jobs/professions pay is low and hours are long. I was talking to a woman today who works as a translator for a firm of lawyers who deal with the affairs of community associations. She speaks/writes fluently in five languages, works much more than the hours she is paid for, often sitting interpreting at Community meetings until 11.30 at night but can't refuse the extra workload because,, as she says 'They will find someone else who will do it and I can't afford to live on the paro'. The fact is that desperate people will take almost any work ...if they can find it, regardless of long hours or appalling levels of pay.
Not my idea of a dream...


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> Here on the Southern CDS unemployment is at over 30%. Most worrying are the recent figures relating to seasonal employment in the Marbella area: fewer people have been able to find employment in the tourist sector this year than last year.Not a good omen.
> In short, if you have no professional skills and speak no Spanish, don't have a secure job offer, have no financial backup, then it's best to stay home.
> Dreams are not dreams without money to fulfil them...they rapidly become nightmares.
> The only people who can really afford any sort of life in Spain at this time are retirees with good incomes, people with secure job offers and people with overseas businesses or partners who work away.
> ...


Absolutely right and accurate as always Mary!


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Stacie, moving to a foreign country is a hugely stressful thing to do even for a long-married stable couple with no children - there is so much to think about, so much bureaucracy, and so many things that could go wrong, plus all the emotional turmoil that you must be going through following the break-up of your marriage. I wouldn't even contemplate it right now, if I were you!

Start learning Spanish and think again in a year or two. Hopefully the economic situation will be better then. See if you can find other women in the same situation as yourself, and maybe you can pool your resources!


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