# move to spain yes or no?



## tonemar (Nov 9, 2010)

My previous thread rent to buy got a good response, thanks to everybody.
May i pose the following for your thoughts. Many horror stories of people being forced back to the UK, trapped, unable to sell property. They have my sympathy.

My situation, retiree or will be. Can move as a property cash buyer, no mortgage required, no job required. Pension and an additional pension, not rich but comfortable, just would prefer a more comfortable style of life, and, of course somewhat better weather.

On that basis, would you think a move is a good/bad idea?

What would be considered to be a required monthly income required to substain a reasonable existence.

Look forward to hearing your replies
T


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## leedsutdgem (Jun 3, 2010)

I would say go for it!

Ive always said, I would rather be here only just getting by than back there where I know I could get a better job and be confortable. 

I have 2 kids under 3 and the quality of life here is just so much better for them.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

tonemar said:


> My previous thread rent to buy got a good response, thanks to everybody.
> May i pose the following for your thoughts. Many horror stories of people being forced back to the UK, trapped, unable to sell property. They have my sympathy.
> 
> My situation, retiree or will be. Can move as a property cash buyer, no mortgage required, no job required. Pension and an additional pension, not rich but comfortable, just would prefer a more comfortable style of life, and, of course somewhat better weather.
> ...



If I were you, I'd rent out my UK house and rent in Spain! 

The rents are cheaper here so you could find you have a bit of extra money to play with and you still have bricks and mortar. I dont think house prices are falling in the UK as they seem to be in Spain, plus you're not going to be paying out legal fees etc in both countries. Also the inheritance laws on property in Spain can be confusing and very different to the UK. Ok, I'm sure thats not something thats on your mind, but if you're planning to buy here for the long term its worth a thought! Renting also gives you the opportunity to change your minds on location, size, views, amenities........ I've found that the things I thought I wanted when I first moved here are not what I want now!

As for how much you'd need to live here?? Well, I always say as a "rule of thumb" to work on the theory it will cost you the same as the UK! It maybe slightly less, altho the cost of living here has risen and there isnt much difference. Anyway, if it is less then thats good isnt it!!!

The weather in Spain is better, altho in the winter, houses are cold due to tiles everywhere, no damp course and not many properties have central heating and there is no mains gas - yet!?. In the summer it can be very hot - too hot, so you then have to factor in the cost of air con

Those are my thoughts!

Jo xxx


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## lynn (Sep 25, 2008)

tonemar said:


> My previous thread rent to buy got a good response, thanks to everybody.
> May i pose the following for your thoughts. Many horror stories of people being forced back to the UK, trapped, unable to sell property. They have my sympathy.
> 
> My situation, retiree or will be. Can move as a property cash buyer, no mortgage required, no job required. Pension and an additional pension, not rich but comfortable, just would prefer a more comfortable style of life, and, of course somewhat better weather.
> ...


What constitutes a reasonable existence isn't the same for everyone, so you will need to narrow down what your criteria are, and prepare a detailed budget. Put it into a spreadsheet and be brutally honest about what your costs will be. Then, do a calculation based on today's exchange rate and one 30% lower. For a number or retirees here, this is what happened when the exchange rate went against them. Can you still live comfortably? If the answer is yes, then go for it...


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

jojo said:


> If I were you, I'd rent out my UK house and rent in Spain!
> 
> The rents are cheaper here so you could find you have a bit of extra money to play with and you still have bricks and mortar. I dont think house prices are falling in the UK as they seem to be in Spain, plus you're not going to be paying out legal fees etc in both countries. Also the inheritance laws on property in Spain can be confusing and very different to the UK. Ok, I'm sure thats not something thats on your mind, but if you're planning to buy here for the long term its worth a thought! Renting also gives you the opportunity to change your minds on location, size, views, amenities........ I've found that the things I thought I wanted when I first moved here are not what I want now!
> 
> ...


......... I'll just add that once you have been here for a while, the economic climate may settle (hah!!??) and you could then "do the deal" and buy here!! There really is no rush to sell up in the UK and buy in Spain while things are as they are. you wont lose anything by waiting

Jo xxx


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## Sonrisa (Sep 2, 2010)

I'm with jojo. By all means move down to Spain if that's what you want to do, but dont buy just yet, renting sounds like a more sensible option. You can get a pretty good deal if you're looking for a long term rental


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## tommy77 (Nov 13, 2010)

Hi, Just registered on the forum. I moved to Spain from the UK 2 months and its great! 

I would go for it! The quality of life here is so so much better

Tommy





leedsutdgem said:


> I would say go for it!
> 
> Ive always said, I would rather be here only just getting by than back there where I know I could get a better job and be confortable.
> 
> I have 2 kids under 3 and the quality of life here is just so much better for them.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Hi tonemar,
Here's some interesting (IMO!) reading for you. Hopefully this will give you some background to Spain and what's happening today. Obviously all the refrences to unemployment won't affect you directly as you're looking to retire here, but it does affect the country in general.

http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...g-spain/56434-do-you-want-emigrate-spain.html

http://www.expatforum.com/expats/spain-expat-forum-expats-living-spain/60826-definition-needed.html

And some info about the health card
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...ain/49987-european-health-insurance-card.html

You can find out what other people have said about different areas of Spain by doing a search using the search icon on the main Spain page.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

tonemar said:


> My previous thread rent to buy got a good response, thanks to everybody.
> May i pose the following for your thoughts. Many horror stories of people being forced back to the UK, trapped, unable to sell property. They have my sympathy.
> 
> My situation, retiree or will be. Can move as a property cash buyer, no mortgage required, no job required. Pension and an additional pension, not rich but comfortable, just would prefer a more comfortable style of life, and, of course somewhat better weather.
> ...


That´s more or less what we did, in 2008 (though we´d bought the house a few years earlier and used it as a holiday home before retiring here permanently. We live comfortably on a small income because most of the things we enjoy doing don´t cost anything.

We are very happy and have no desire whatsoever to return to the UK, although we know many other retired couples who would go back tomorrow if they could sell their houses. The main reason is family; they are missing seeing their grandchildren grow up, or they have ageing parents who need looking after.

Another reason is that they treat retirement as a holiday, and run out of money too quickly. You have to reorganise your life completely and stick to your monthly budget, with a contingency against exchange rate fluctuations.

And there are others who never feel comfortable in a foreign country and try to make their life as English as possible. They end up complaining that the health centre staff don´t speak English, they can´t get decent teabags, their 2m satellite dish doesn´t work properly, etc etc,

If none of these apply to you, go for it. If you can afford to rent first, to get the feel of a place, that makes perfect sense. If you decide to buy, make a checklist of essential and desirable requirements that you both agree on, and DON¨T DEVIATE from it, however tempting the estate agent´s patter is. At the moment, once you buy a house you are pretty well stuck with it.

Buena suerte! (Good luck!)


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## Cazzy (Nov 23, 2008)

I would go for it. Property prices are low and you will be sure to get a bargain!!!


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## neilmac (Sep 10, 2008)

Alcalaina said:


> That´s more or less what we did, in 2008 (though we´d bought the house a few years earlier and used it as a holiday home before retiring here permanently. We live comfortably on a small income because most of the things we enjoy doing don´t cost anything.
> 
> We are very happy and have no desire whatsoever to return to the UK, although we know many other retired couples who would go back tomorrow if they could sell their houses. The main reason is family; they are missing seeing their grandchildren grow up, or they have ageing parents who need looking after.
> 
> ...


I would pretty well go along with this. 

We are now coming up to four years and have encountered a few problems, some through 'ignorance', some through legislation changes i.e the change in healthcare provision has caused us a few issues since we are not yet pension age. 

However we have a fairly simple lifestyle, live in a mainly Spanish area where there are a few(er) Brits if you want to seek them out. We live in a village where the locals are friendly and accepting although we are not deluded we will never become Spanish. 

Our main interest is walking although as the fairly new owners of a 'camping car' we have the opportunity to travel a bit and explore the rest of Spain. So far we have not found a place that we like better BUT I did read an article about Spanish health survey - apparently people who live in La Rioja are the happiest in Spain No surprises there then!

Not having some language can be a frustration when dealing with officialdom.
Other than that we walked up to our local castle yesterday in T-shirts had our picnic enjoyed the sea-view, walked down again enjoyed a bottle of cool beer (1euro) before going home to collapse in front of the TV. Not a bad way to spend a Friday in November.

Good luck.


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## diamantelady (Jan 31, 2010)

Having wanted to up sticks and move abroad for a better life, and after posting in the French & Portuguese Forum and got fairly the same response of - unless you are self sufficiant $ wise can speak the lingo you are going to find life rather difficult abet a better quality of life, at least all the advice here is positive, & informative, maybe i should have considered Espana as me hablo espanol poco, cant reply very well but i get the jist of whats being said


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## casa99 (Oct 19, 2010)

diamantelady said:


> Having wanted to up sticks and move abroad for a better life, and after posting in the French & Portuguese Forum and got fairly the same response of - unless you are self sufficiant $ wise can speak the lingo you are going to find life rather difficult abet a better quality of life, at least all the advice here is positive, & informative, maybe i should have considered Espana as me hablo espanol poco, cant reply very well but i get the jist of whats being said


We bought our casa in 2002 with our intention to live when we retire and for me that is next october 2011, we sold our house to pay for the casa and here in england have a small 1 bed flat , I guess at the time we were lucky with house prices in england and the exchange rate was 1 euro 60 cents to the pound so we got a good deal. We are in part of andalalucia near baza which is mainly spanish and my spanish is terrible but with a few words and hand guestures I can get by its fun and have always been made welcome. If you get the chance do IT spain is still a lovely place to be


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## djfwells (Sep 28, 2009)

On the basis that you are not dependant on having a job I would say go for it ! - I would however advise that you seriously considered renting a property for a good few months to start off with to make sure that you *A)* are suited to live in Spain *B)* can get a better feel for the immediate area you have chosen and select the best possible place for you to buy *C)* get an idea of what your living costs are likely to be and therefore make a better decision when budgeting for a house to buy.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

tonemar said:


> What would be considered to be a required monthly income required to substain a reasonable existence.
> 
> Look forward to hearing your replies
> T


Overall, prices here are on a par with the UK now - fuel, food, even petrol. So just take your current expenditure and deduct what you spend on going to work (you will be amazed how much this adds up to), and you won't be far off.

Just out of interest, several million Spanish old-age pensioners live on about 630 euros a month.


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## mazlester (Oct 30, 2010)

tonemar said:


> My previous thread rent to buy got a good response, thanks to everybody.
> May i pose the following for your thoughts. Many horror stories of people being forced back to the UK, trapped, unable to sell property. They have my sympathy.
> 
> My situation, retiree or will be. Can move as a property cash buyer, no mortgage required, no job required. Pension and an additional pension, not rich but comfortable, just would prefer a more comfortable style of life, and, of course somewhat better weather.
> ...


Hi,

My husband and I are in exactly the same position as you are and have taken the plunge. Currently we are buying a finca near San Javier and intend to 'potter' around once over there. We have friends nearby who love it and we have stayed there many times which is one reason we made the decision to go for it. Our thinking is what have we got to lose? 

In the end it's up to you but you'll always be thinking what if.....

Mazlester


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

I'd certainly rent for a lengthy period first, get a feel for different areas, etc. We bought 8 years ago but the possibilty of selling anything at the moment is extremely difficult & with the costs of buying alone you could rent for a couple of years & prices will probably drop more in that time. 
Just an aside, I went in a branch of my bank this morning to use the cash machine & heard people talking, saw the sliding door open so we looked in & there was a couple of women behind the desk speaking to customers with about 6 waiting. " It is saturday , isn't it ?" asked my wife . " I think so " I replied, not too sure as they definitely don't open on saturdays. All was revealed when we walked out , they're flogging off houses flats , etc, cut-price through the 'servihabitat' arm of the bank. Must be getting desperate if they're working saturdays & sundays. Full days as well morning & evening.


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## Nignoy (Jun 4, 2010)

as mentoned in previous threads ,we are british retirees living in queensland australia, we have been considering for family reasons for quite a while to move to spain to be nearer uk , but also not lose the sun and outdoor way of life,here as I write at 0645 am sunday morning it is 22 degrees celcius outside, at xmas time the low 40,s is average , but I digress originally we were going to buy a rural property with some land near Torrejeiva,, but now we have decided to rent or lease long term ,as we can easily rent our property out here in aus there will be no problems financially, admitted the cost of living in spain will be a lot higher ,but for us it seems the way to go, we have had a couple of offers from expats in portugal to do 6 month a year houseswaps, but we did the buy a house in portugal thing in the early 80,s and by 91 it was getting to be all union jacks ,bratwurst , and full english breakfasts so we moved on, I am sure there is a little plot of land in the foothills somewhere for us to call home, so we will be over in april having a look round, but will be keeping in touch and asking for advice along the way


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Nignoy said:


> as mentoned in previous threads ,we are british retirees living in queensland australia, we have been considering for family reasons for quite a while to move to spain to be nearer uk , but also not lose the sun and outdoor way of life,here as I write at 0645 am sunday morning it is 22 degrees celcius outside, at xmas time the low 40,s is average , but I digress originally we were going to buy a rural property with some land near Torrejeiva,, but now we have decided to rent or lease long term ,as we can easily rent our property out here in aus there will be no problems financially, admitted the cost of living in spain will be a lot higher ,but for us it seems the way to go, we have had a couple of offers from expats in portugal to do 6 month a year houseswaps, but we did the buy a house in portugal thing in the early 80,s and by 91 it was getting to be all union jacks ,bratwurst , and full english breakfasts so we moved on, I am sure there is a little plot of land in the foothills somewhere for us to call home, so we will be over in april having a look round, but will be keeping in touch and asking for advice along the way


And you must promise me you´ll check out Cadiz province while you´re over!!!


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## Nignoy (Jun 4, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> And you must promise me you´ll check out Cadiz province while you´re over!!!


,looks like the type of country we are looking for and our birds would love it


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Nignoy said:


> ,looks like the type of country we are looking for and our birds would love it


They certainly would - this is raptor country!
Andalucian Guides - Birdwatching in Southern Spain

Aren´t you afraid they´d make a bid for freedom though?


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## Nignoy (Jun 4, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> They certainly would - this is raptor country!
> Andalucian Guides - Birdwatching in Southern Spain
> 
> Aren´t you afraid they´d make a bid for freedom though?


the ancient art of falconry is to train your charges by giving them their freedom,seeing they are kept in free flight by only worry would be that they would be seduced by some randy young spanish vulture, not worried about the eagles they are both gay


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