# i want to be an expat



## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

hi guys myself and my hubby both in our late 40s want to make the move to spain
im hopin there is someone out there that will be kind enough to be a mentor in makin this happen
what is the best way to go about these things
any advice welcome
marion


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Search this forum, and Google to your heart's content. Then, if you have a specific query, ask here. Possible searches include
Costa del Sol, Madrid, living in Spain, buying property, Spanish, employment (or more to the point unemployment).
Have fun!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

.......... After doing some research on the forum, I would suggest your next step would be a fact finding holiday. Find an area you think appeals to you and come over and take a good look - taking off any rose coloured spectacles lol!! But if you have anymore questions just ask, someone here will know the answer !!???!!

Jo xxx


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

we holiday quite frequnetly and i always look at the area as a potential and look for business ops that i may fill 
im thinking canaries and surroundin areas althought to some it looks as if the resorts are on the way down i see this as an op because with just a little local investigation it seems to me that there are a lot of new beginings and now could be the time to scoop a bargain i feel that my first move should be a 3month let poss on accom and see if we coup maybe get jobs or find a hole in the buiness market that we can fill
we both drive i have qualifications in retail childminding cookin first aid swimming and can turn my hand to anything he has worked in alarms for the past 30 years
he can do any elcetics computers and any thing with buttons really
so if your reading this and you think we can help your business let me know
im happy in the start to work for someone but ultimately would be lookin to start my own little goldmine
marion


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> we holiday quite frequnetly and i always look at the area as a potential and look for business ops that i may fill
> im thinking canaries and surroundin areas althought to some it looks as if the resorts are on the way down i see this as an op because with just a little local investigation it seems to me that there are a lot of new beginings and now could be the time to scoop a bargain i feel that my first move should be a 3month let poss on accom and see if we coup maybe get jobs or find a hole in the buiness market that we can fill
> we both drive i have qualifications in retail childminding cookin first aid swimming and can turn my hand to anything he has worked in alarms for the past 30 years
> he can do any elcetics computers and any thing with buttons really
> ...


Unemployment here is at 20%, more in some places. All the jobs you mention you can would surely require Spanish. Many similar immigrant businesses have proved unsuccessful and many people are heading for home.
However that does not mean that every new immigrant will be unsuccessful.
Have you any experience of running a business in the UK?
Jo's suggestion of doing a fact-finding mission is very sensible. You may need longer than three months to set yourselves up - or not. You will need a considerable amount of 'fall-back' money - someone on a similar post suggested 20000 euros at least.
You will then find that the cost of living here is equal to that of the UK, that you will not qualify for any UK benefits or Spanish benefits if you fall on hard times and that gold-mines are elusive, to say the least. After all, if they were that easy to find, we'd all be multi-millionaires!
But as I said, some people just strike lucky. You may be one.
Or not.....but life's a gamble.


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> Unemployment here is at 20%, more in some places. All the jobs you mention you can would surely require Spanish. Many similar immigrant businesses have proved unsuccessful and many people are heading for home.
> However that does not mean that every new immigrant will be unsuccessful.
> Have you any experience of running a business in the UK?
> Jo's suggestion of doing a fact-finding mission is very sensible. You may need longer than three months to set yourselves up - or not. You will need a considerable amount of 'fall-back' money - someone on a similar post suggested 20000 euros at least.
> ...


thank you for the input a stark warning
but i beleive we have the start up cash the ideas and the drive to move ever forword and adapt to the nessecery
that said am happy to give consideration to any advice given
thank you again for your time
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> we holiday quite frequnetly and i always look at the area as a potential and look for business ops that i may fill
> im thinking canaries and surroundin areas althought to some it looks as if the resorts are on the way down i see this as an op because with just a little local investigation it seems to me that there are a lot of new beginings and now could be the time to scoop a bargain i feel that my first move should be a 3month let poss on accom and see if we coup maybe get jobs or find a hole in the buiness market that we can fill
> we both drive i have qualifications in retail childminding cookin first aid swimming and can turn my hand to anything he has worked in alarms for the past 30 years
> he can do any elcetics computers and any thing with buttons really
> ...



come over, give it a try. Can your husband commute??? That was the only way we could see to fund living here and its not cheap. There are no holes in the business market. Thats the trouble, When Spain was on the "up" everyone came over and did everything and then more came, the spanish also joined in and now? Well the whole lot is crashing down. It may pick up but there is such a surplus of people who are desperate here that it wont be easy for outsiders to find a gap. 

There! How negative and miserable was that! I'm sorry, its just how it is here right now, but if you have a good buffer and some serious savings to invest in yourselves, you maybe lucky. It is a lovely country, but its a hard one at the moment

Jo xxx


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

jojo said:


> come over, give it a try. Can your husband commute??? That was the only way we could see to fund living here and its not cheap. There are no holes in the business market. Thats the trouble, When Spain was on the "up" everyone came over and did everything and then more came, the spanish also joined in and now? Well the whole lot is crashing down. It may pick up but there is such a surplus of people who are desperate here that it wont be easy for outsiders to find a gap.
> 
> There! How negative and miserable was that! I'm sorry, its just how it is here right now, but if you have a good buffer and some serious savings to invest in yourselves, you maybe lucky. It is a lovely country, but its a hard one at the moment
> 
> Jo xxx


id rather be misrable in the sun than the rain 
ive seen some things on the mainland that have yet to reach the canaries and im hoping to jump in before someone else does
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> id rather be misrable in the sun than the rain
> ive seen some things on the mainland that have yet to reach the canaries and im hoping to jump in before someone else does
> marion


...... and thats another thing. It rained here ore or less constantly from the middle of December until the beginning of April!! We were flooded in several times for several days cos our drive turned into a river. It was relentless, landslides everywhere, power cuts, water pouring thru the doors and my family in the UK would keep mailing me about how sunny it was in England 

You've caught me on a downer today - I really am sorry. I know how it feels to be excited and full of "the dream". Actually I took the children to the beach and a fun park yesterday and that reminded me of why we came here, the sun was shining, the sea was blue, lovely sandy beaches...... 

Jo xxx


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

You didn't say what if any business experience you have had, or if you speak Spanish. I honestly doubt that the situation in the Canaries is that much different from the mainland but I really don't know. Maybe someone on this forum who lives there can help.
It's great that you have energy and enterprise, that's essential. But of course you won't be the only ones with those qualities looking for a lucky break, as I'm sure you know.
Times are really hard here at the moment and look set to be so for quite a while. In my experience the only people doing OK here are retired people with good incomes, people with steady jobs in Spain or people like Jo whose husband commutes. It would be unkind for us to tell you everything is wonderful when sure as hell it ain't.
Have a look at the posts Steve Hall wrote last week about moving to Spain...there's a man who knows whereof he speaks...
As for it being better to be miserable in the sun....well, sunshine is free, true, for six months of the year and then it can be very wet and cold indeed.. But I would not like to be an out-of-work hard-up immigrant in Spain or anywhere for that matter. Rents in a good area with likelihood of work are not cheap and there are no state safety nets as in the UK.


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## JBODEN (Jul 10, 2009)

jojo said:


> ...... and my family in the UK would keep mailing me about how sunny it was in England
> Jo xxx


As I remember at the same time it was pouring down here GB was covered in snow.


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> You didn't say what if any business experience you have had, or if you speak Spanish. I honestly doubt that the situation in the Canaries is that much different from the mainland but I really don't know. Maybe someone on this forum who lives there can help.
> It's great that you have energy and enterprise, that's essential. But of course you won't be the only ones with those qualities looking for a lucky break, as I'm sure you know.
> Times are really hard here at the moment and look set to be so for quite a while. In my experience the only people doing OK here are retired people with good incomes, people with steady jobs in Spain or people like Jo whose husband commutes. It would be unkind for us to tell you everything is wonderful when sure as hell it ain't.
> Have a look at the posts Steve Hall wrote last week about moving to Spain...there's a man who knows whereof he speaks...
> As for it being better to be miserable in the sun....well, sunshine is free, true, for six months of the year and then it can be very wet and cold indeed.. But I would not like to be an out-of-work hard-up immigrant in Spain or anywhere for that matter. Rents in a good area with likelihood of work are not cheap and there are no state safety nets as in the UK.


iv never known the "safty nets" in the uk to be of any help weve both worked all our days and paid for everything we have and now he s unenployed im not happy to pour any money i have back into the uk
people dont get me wrong i know i wont be living the dream im not lookin to be a millionair im willing to work hard as i do for a living wage be it from my own business or someone elses
there must be some sucess stories out there
oh buy the way my last hol in spril was set about by the rain and a bloody volcano but when the sun did shine so did i
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

JBODEN said:


> As I remember at the same time it was pouring down here GB was covered in snow.


Thats right! And of course my kids wanted to go back cos believe it or not they've never seen snow!!!!!! In fact it was the snow that stopped OH coming to Spain the beginning of the year and the volcano last time and each time he couldnt get here, I couldnt have got out cos of the floods to pick him up if he could! 

Its been a bad winter hasnt it and not just the weather, my son tore the ligament in his knee, so back and forth to the hospital for weeks, our electric gate kept jamming, our drive kept flooding, several long power cuts so no heating, washing machine broke down, steering broke on the car, as I say, my husband couldnt get over here very much and the final straw was my doggie dying - which, if we could have got him to the vets we could have saved him - but we were flooded in!!! 

At least we have sunshine now!

Jo xxx


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

jojo said:


> Thats right! And of course my kids wanted to go back cos believe it or not they've never seen snow!!!!!! In fact it was the snow that stopped OH coming to Spain the beginning of the year and the volcano last time and each time he couldnt get here, I couldnt have got out cos of the floods to pick him up if he could!
> 
> Its been a bad winter hasnt it and not just the weather, my son tore the ligament in his knee, so back and forth to the hospital for weeks, our electric gate kept jamming, our drive kept flooding, several long power cuts so no heating, washing machine broke down, steering broke on the car, as I say, my husband couldnt get over here very much and the final straw was my doggie dying - which, if we could have got him to the vets we could have saved him - but we were flooded in!!!
> 
> ...


awh poor jojo i feel for you it never rains but it pours
but tomorrow is another day things can only get better by the way where are you
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> awh poor jojo i feel for you it never rains but it pours
> but tomorrow is another day things can only get better by the way where are you
> marion


I'm about 5 miles inland from Málaga city. A village near a town called Alhaurin de la Torre! Its a lovely place, very clean and modern, handy for the coast, the airport, the mountains and in the countryside

Jo xxx


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

jojo said:


> I'm about 5 miles inland from Málaga city. A village near a town called Alhaurin de la Torre! Its a lovely place, very clean and modern, handy for the coast, the airport, the mountains and in the countryside
> 
> Jo xxx


lol we were in belamadena in april
honestly i must have been the only person who wanted to be delayed and got my scheduled flight home i was raging all ready for another week
are you on msn [email protected]
if you would like to add me itll be easier to chat i know i shouldnt laugh but your predicaments have given me a giggle while decoratin my bedroom again
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> lol we were in belamadena in april
> honestly i must have been the only person who wanted to be delayed and got my scheduled flight home i was raging all ready for another week
> are you on msn [email protected]
> if you would like to add me itll be easier to chat i know i shouldnt laugh but your predicaments have given me a giggle while decoratin my bedroom again
> marion


I'm not on MSN, that my childrens territory - too complicated for me LOL Actually I'm glad my predicament made you laugh cos I was worried after I read what I'd written that I'd been a little too negative - I'm not really a grumpy old bag lol!!!!! Obviously I love it here really or I wouldnt be here, in fact we may have to go back to the UK in the not too distant future and I'm gutted. Thats not to say that its easy here tho, it really is hard and nothing like I thought it would be. Its hard to convey the whole senario here. The country, views, weather, ambience are truly breathtaking, but life here is hard and making a life and a living here is almost impossible at the moment. 

Jo xxx


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## bigbirdmaniac (May 3, 2010)

jojo said:


> I'm not on MSN, that my childrens territory - too complicated for me LOL Actually I'm glad my predicament made you laugh cos I was worried after I read what I'd written that I'd been a little too negative - I'm not really a grumpy old bag lol!!!!! Obviously I love it here really or I wouldnt be here, in fact we may have to go back to the UK in the not too distant future and I'm gutted. Thats not to say that its easy here tho, it really is hard and nothing like I thought it would be. Its hard to convey the whole senario here. The country, views, weather, ambience are truly breathtaking, but life here is hard and making a life and a living here is almost impossible at the moment.
> 
> Jo xxx


now thats where i have an advantage
i have 4 kids all growwn up they do as they please
its just me and him and some money
if i spend my inheritance on us 2 being happy 
job done
if we have to return to the uk well we still have the house but at least i tried
and had fun doing it
i just dont want to be here we need a new start
lol now im beingin the tone down 
marion


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bigbirdmaniac said:


> now thats where i have an advantage
> i have 4 kids all growwn up they do as they please
> its just me and him and some money
> if i spend my inheritance on us 2 being happy
> ...


I've got older kids. I had two batches so I have the two younger ones as well! In fact two of our older ones live in our UK house and cover the costs there, so it works quite well.

Yes, if you have no ties or responsibilities then go for it! The warnings you see on here are just that and if you think about it, if you were to read how easy and straight forward it all would be to move here and then found it wasnt, you'd not be pleased. Its far better to know its gonna be hard and prove us/me wrong lol!!

Jo xxx


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

If you have no dependent children then the risks are much less. Two adults will sink or swim and survive.
But as many posts here will tell you, times are very hard. Spanish people will be first in the job queue and too many British, German etc. run businesses are closing. Only yesterday I noted that a large German-owned car sales firm had closed down and this area is supposed to be fairly affluent.
I notice that you haven't said whether you have any business experience or speak Spanish so I'm assuming you haven't? It's hard enough running a business in the UK -I speak from experience! -and without past experience and a knowledge of Spanish setting up here would be a nightmare! You may find work in the British community but those jobs are sought after by many and they don't pay well. It is said that thousands of Brits are returning home disillusioned. Everyone on this thread knows of at least one person who's packed up and gone. That's why we are telling it like it is.
But as you are two responsible adults, give it a go. Just be prepared to find out that for every job/opportunity there are hundreds if not thousands of people just like you desperately seeking ways to make ends meet. Dreams can easily turn into nightmares.
But at least you will have had a few months in the sun if all else fails and you will have a house -and presumably jobs -to go back to if the worst happens.


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