The story so far is that we (wife, daughter aged 3 and my mother) moved to Spain in December 2007. At first we rented a holiday-let in Moraira while we looked for a suitable long-term let, which turned out to be an apartment in the centre of town, and we moved into it at the beginning of January. We stayed there while house hunting and eventually found one that we fell in love with, obviously over-budget. We put a silly offer in, 20 odd percent off the asking price, as the exchange rate had (and continues to) conspire against us. It was accepted and the subsequent bank valuation came in at 50% more than the agreed price, so I felt like we had done a good deal. We moved in in May and had a great summer splashing about in the pool and getting the building work done that we needed. In October I started my business (signs, printing and graphic design ) using the huge under-build as a workshop.

Now the weird thing is that during the months leading up to us escaping England I had all sorts of daydreams and fantasies about what it would be like moving to Spain. Truth is it has been completely different. Not necessarily worse, just different. We haven’t made as many friends as we thought we would, but the ones we have seem to be nice and we didn’t find them while sitting in a bar (but not for a lack of trying on my part).

Bureaucracy has been easier than I imagined too, horror stories of having to queue up from 4 am have proved unfounded. NIE and residencia were both obtained by swanning into the police station and 10 am, and the pardon was obtained in 15mins at the local town hall. SIP cards took an hour or so queuing, but all said and done, fairly painless. Especially for an immigrant whose command of the language is poor at best. (That said I have found that if you try your pigeon Spanish in the land of officialdom it is often appreciated and also in my experience after about 15 minutes of mime and stuttering mispronunciation the official then switches to English!)

Business has been incredibly slow though. I know it takes time to build a business but I’ve found it difficult to break into the market. Those people that have used a sign-maker in the past seem keen to stay put, not even entertain a second quote. Loyalty like that is unheard of in the UK, and I suppose once I have a client base I’ll be glad of it, but for now it’s frustrating. Another big difference to the UK is marketing. Here there isn’t really a Yellow Pages that every business uses and refers to, what there is here is a hugely fragmented glut of magazines, newspapers and radio stations that to be honest are too expensive compared to how many people you reach. Time will tell though, and I’m expecting a really tough 2009. Anyone thinking of moving to Spain to work or set up a business I would advise to: (1) Think twice (2) Ensure you have enough money to live off until 2010, …at least. If you can survive and get started in this economic climate though, come the recovery, you will be well placed to make some money before everyone else spots the bandwagon and clambers aboard.

My daughter loves it here too, she can play outside a lot and is very slowly settling into school, and Valenciano. The only thing we do miss about the UK for her is to be able to take her to one of those indoor play things that are everywhere in England. I don’t suppose it’s viable here though as there are probably only sixty days a year when it’s too rough to play outside.

I wish I could end this message with an upbeat rousing speech about how great it is in Spain, and I’m sure it could/will be, but at the moment there seems to be a lot of uncertainty. Every week I hear of another business that’s folded or about an expat who is returning to their home country, seldom do I meet new arrivals or those setting up new businesses. I am lucky though, I have income from property in the UK and I can see the green shoots for my business here, it’s just that with exchange rates as they are and a huge mortgage here, everything is balanced precariously on a knife edge. I am hoping to rent out our house in the summer while we move into the flat in the underbuild, but at the moment I think tourists will be more likely to head for Blackpool than Spain.

One thing for sure is that I have no regrets, if anything we should have moved here a few years earlier. I remain optimistic too, we may have to eat more lentils than we bargained for but life will be richer for it, if you don’t do the troughs you fail to appreciate the peaks! I wish everyone the best for 2009, and may those who are here or making the move keep the wolves from the door and your glasses full!

©Steve (Splatt) and Britishexpats.com