Pollypaprika

Happy New Year Everyone.

We hope to move to Hungary later on this year and would love to meet anyone who lives near the east side of the lake. We are moving to Polgardi and will also need to be put in touch with good workmen etc. We are currently learning Hungarian. Would love to hear from anyone/advice etc.

Many thanks and best wishes to all.

fidobsa

Good luck with the move. How are you learning Hungarian? I don't suppose there are too many teachers in UK. I'm also keen on getting a property in Hungary but I'm expecting it to be quite a difficult language. I'm wondering if it might be worthwhile initially learning German as I've heard that quite a few Hungarians can speak German. At least in Hungary you don't have to learn a whole new alphabet like you do in Bulgaria.

Pollypaprika

You are right about the language - very difficult. Have bought a few books and also there are some online free stuff such as http://www.livemocha.com/

I did a little bit of German at school, but I wouldnt bother learning it in an attempt to be better at Hungarian, I dont think there is any relevance - but yes - might help as a lot of Magyars do seem to speak German,

Pollypaprika

What is the standard procedure when getting a quote from a work man? I understand that quotes are not usually free, but would you get an written breakdown/invoice in the same way you would in the UK?

Many thanks

Rural Hungary

It really depends on the individual tradesman or company.
Due to our own business we have only ever had to employ a local "master electrician" and that was a nightmare. The quote was free but the quality of work was deplorable and things that you would expect to be included in the price were not.

Be aware that many Hungarian tradesmen do not include making good or clearing up in the price. If you employ a window fitter then that is what he will do, fit the window then leave! The rest is up to you.

My advise would be to request a written quotation and insist on a detailed breakdown of the work. Also, some tradesmen will quote you for the job but expect you to buy the materials yourself.

Re the language - German would help as the majority of Hungarians do speak German. The language is hard, more so than Bulgarian - even taking into consideration the Cyrillic alphabet. Pronunciation is of utmost importance here, if you are even just slightly out, they won't understand you.

Pollypaprika

Thank you Rural Hungary. Do you have any tips on learning the language? Also, re tradesman, how do prices compare to the UK?

We are too far away from you to use your services