Thinking of leaving for germany
Apr 17th 2007, 7:00 pm
#16
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Dee is absolutely right, believe me. 
Apr 18th 2007, 2:48 pm
#17
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
But not in what used to be the DDR. Very little English is understood there. In fact, I once lived in a village in Brandenburg where nobody at all spoke English, not a single word.
Mind you, my knowledge of German accelerated at an incredible rate.
Mind you, my knowledge of German accelerated at an incredible rate.
Apr 19th 2007, 7:38 am
#18
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Amazing what you learn when you have to isnt it. My german currently runs to ordering chips with mayo, a currywurst & a beer, used to be much better but if you dont use it you lose it.
Apr 19th 2007, 2:31 pm
#19
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Apr 19th 2007, 4:19 pm
#20
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May 10th 2007, 6:26 pm
#22
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
My wife and I rented a three bedroom apartment in Bavaria last year for just 480 Euro's a month (inc oil electricand water!!) as a test to see if we liked it here. We now own a 5 bed house in .6 acres of land which cost us less than 300K. What could you get in the UK for that?? Not much! The people here are fantastic, and the way of life is superb. I work in Nigeria, so my wife lives for long spells alone here, but has abslolutely no trouble at all. She tries to speak German as much as possible, but as soon as the English accent is picked up, the locals speak English to her (whenever they can). I really can't see us going back to the UK to live again after experiencing the delights of Germany.
May 10th 2007, 9:32 pm
#23
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Anglogerman and Deedee...
are you guys trying to tell me how things are done in Germany?
I'm German and have lived in Germany for almost 40 years..and I never had to pay any makler any money..nor any deposits in my live..I have always rented privately
Hubby will keep working for NATO and will in fact get more money outside England...plus..yes we would get a big house compare to here..we live in London and 300k gets you nothing here but 500.000 Euro buys you a lot of house in Germany. Have you any ideas what a house cost here? What makes you think I don't know how much Tax is paid in Germany? By the way..hubby never pays Tax anyhow..not here not in Germany.
If I would be English I would thank you now for your replies ..but since I'm German ...why do you think you have to explain the German way of live to me
are you guys trying to tell me how things are done in Germany?
I'm German and have lived in Germany for almost 40 years..and I never had to pay any makler any money..nor any deposits in my live..I have always rented privately
Hubby will keep working for NATO and will in fact get more money outside England...plus..yes we would get a big house compare to here..we live in London and 300k gets you nothing here but 500.000 Euro buys you a lot of house in Germany. Have you any ideas what a house cost here? What makes you think I don't know how much Tax is paid in Germany? By the way..hubby never pays Tax anyhow..not here not in Germany.
If I would be English I would thank you now for your replies ..but since I'm German ...why do you think you have to explain the German way of live to me
May 10th 2007, 10:57 pm
#24
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Dunno, your initial post consisted of two lines with not a huge amount of information. If people then jumped to conclusions you would have to take some responsibility for that 
That being said, if some people give blatantly incorrect information then that needs addressing.
That being said, if some people give blatantly incorrect information then that needs addressing.
May 11th 2007, 8:16 am
#25
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Dunno, your initial post consisted of two lines with not a huge amount of information. If people then jumped to conclusions you would have to take some responsibility for that
That being said, if some people give blatantly incorrect information then that needs addressing.
That being said, if some people give blatantly incorrect information then that needs addressing.
thats all...
May 11th 2007, 9:34 pm
#26
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Location: Birmingham 26 years, Germany 20 years, in Toronto since 2015
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
It was not clear that you had lived in Germany for 40 years. You could be German and never have lived in Germany at all. My answer was based on the experience I have gained during 12 years in Germany, and even if it is not relevant to you, it might be useful for someone else, especially as I know that I know (of) plenty of other people with the same experience.
May 16th 2007, 4:52 pm
#27
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
No..only me..Hubby would work in an English speaking job again and Kids probably at an international school again..that why we wanted to be in the uk..so we all can integrate..thinking of Bonn in Germany..but would still try a couple month more to stay and make it over here..its a shame its almost impossible to live here
I'm thinking of moving to the Uk but not sure how much it would cost me to buy a nice house in the UK.Out of curiousity how much are you looking to spend on a house in the UK so you could avoid having to move to Germany?What area do you live in? I'm looking at buying in either London or Manchester.What do you think?
Jun 5th 2007, 4:26 pm
#28
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Re: Thinking of leaving for germany
Hi Heather,
I saw your post and noticed that you are in Bavria. I am moving there later this year and would love to get some names of reputable real estate agents in the region around Bad Reichenall. Can you recommend any?
I saw your post and noticed that you are in Bavria. I am moving there later this year and would love to get some names of reputable real estate agents in the region around Bad Reichenall. Can you recommend any?
Actually, as a British expat who has been living in Germany for nearly 12 years, I'm a bit puzzled.
You can get a palace in Germany for the price of a British semi? Are we talking about the same country? I suppose that when converted, the prices do look quite attractive, but don't forget that a typical salary won't look so great when converted into GBP. And the deductions from your gross salary are huge. My DH's net salary is two-thirds of his gross salary, which is still fairly good. As for me, my tax category (which I can't change because of being a freelancer) means that I pay nearly 50% in income tax, plus a fat sum for health insurance, and then there's social and pension insurance on top. Plus VAT has just been increased to 19%...
Living space is at a premium (unless you go to the former GDR). If you start out by renting, you must expect to pay a deposit of 2 or 3 months rent plus possibly another 2 month's rent as commission for the "Makler" (estate agent). And the competition for flats and houses is huge. Make sure you take plenty of liquid funds with you when you go - you'll need them.
As for people being polite - in Bavaria at least, I have found people to be the epitome of politeness and friendliness. Admittedly we live in a rural area. I have noticed that if you go to Munich and say "Guten Tag" to everyone you pass, as is standard practice here in the country, they are likely to look at you as if you were threatening to attack them. But rude?? No.
On reflection, I think the Germans are simply more direct. If something annoys them, they'll say so. I really notice the difference when going back to the UK. Where a British person would say "I'm not sure if that's right", meaning "You're talking cr*p", the German is more likely to say "You're talking cr*p" . Depends on your personal response, I think. Personally, I prefer the direct approach.
One thing I do agree with: learn as much of the language as you can before you go. Otherwise you may find yourself feeling extremely isolated.
If I can help you any more, please send me a PM.
Heather
You can get a palace in Germany for the price of a British semi? Are we talking about the same country? I suppose that when converted, the prices do look quite attractive, but don't forget that a typical salary won't look so great when converted into GBP. And the deductions from your gross salary are huge. My DH's net salary is two-thirds of his gross salary, which is still fairly good. As for me, my tax category (which I can't change because of being a freelancer) means that I pay nearly 50% in income tax, plus a fat sum for health insurance, and then there's social and pension insurance on top. Plus VAT has just been increased to 19%...
Living space is at a premium (unless you go to the former GDR). If you start out by renting, you must expect to pay a deposit of 2 or 3 months rent plus possibly another 2 month's rent as commission for the "Makler" (estate agent). And the competition for flats and houses is huge. Make sure you take plenty of liquid funds with you when you go - you'll need them.
As for people being polite - in Bavaria at least, I have found people to be the epitome of politeness and friendliness. Admittedly we live in a rural area. I have noticed that if you go to Munich and say "Guten Tag" to everyone you pass, as is standard practice here in the country, they are likely to look at you as if you were threatening to attack them. But rude?? No.
On reflection, I think the Germans are simply more direct. If something annoys them, they'll say so. I really notice the difference when going back to the UK. Where a British person would say "I'm not sure if that's right", meaning "You're talking cr*p", the German is more likely to say "You're talking cr*p" . Depends on your personal response, I think. Personally, I prefer the direct approach.
One thing I do agree with: learn as much of the language as you can before you go. Otherwise you may find yourself feeling extremely isolated.
If I can help you any more, please send me a PM.
Heather
