EagleExpat

Hello everyone,
I won't bore you with the details, but I now find myself a single dad to 2 young boys aged 3 and 8. Living in London is now unaffordable on a single salary and I've been looking to relocate.

I was looking to move to a cheaper British city, but I was talking to a friend who lives in Barcelona. He feels confident of being able to get me a job with a NET salary of 1400-1500 euros a month.

Do you think it's possible for me to bring up a family in Barcelona on this salary? We would be looking at having a very basic lifestyle - public schools, no car, a visit to a local pizza or pasta place during the week, visiting an attraction or two at the weekend, a couple of judo classes etc. We don't mind not living in the centre, places like Sant Marti or Horta-Guinardo seemed affordable when I looked.

I would appreciate any advice you might have.

Rosemary

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

tabbicat

Hi,

I think you'd find it a real struggle. Rent would likely be 50% of your salary, and you'd have to put down a 2-3 month deposit and buy furniture, etc. Then there's electricity, water, gas and phone/internet. And public transport (cheaper than UK at least). Then you'll have expenses such as clothes, books, etc. for your kids. Not to mention food. There wouldn't be anything left for emergencies or holidays, never mind odd outings, etc.

Compared to London, Barcelona may look cheap, but it is not a cheap city. And then there is the language issue - your kids would need to learn both Catalan and Spanish. Do you speak either language yourself? If not, you'd find it difficult to manage without your friend's help at first.

For a single person without kids that salary would be enough. You'd be better to look for another town or city in the UK that's more affordable than London rather than put the kids through the upheaval of such a huge change and financial insecurity.

Moses2013

I doubt you'll manage with 2 kids and it wouldn't be a great life. I'm in Ireland and have a small place on the Costa Brava, roughly an hour from Barcelona. If I compare both locations, Barcelona is not much cheaper. I think you just need to move out of London, somewhere else in the UK.

jonboy

You never mentioned the language, perhaps because all of you are fluent?

andypmg

I cannot directly give advice regarding costs in Spain but can suggest you at least think about what costs you would need to incur.

For example as your youngest is 3 - what about child care when you work
or for both boys should your work schedule require it say after school.

In any new place getting settled may mean time in a hotel or expensive rent until you can get somewhere to suit.

Could the job pay more - given time.

I agree London is very expensive and then is there any way now you are single to reduce costs Council tax reduction or your have you examined say your income tax or any form of DWP help.

I do not know when the job would start or have to start! but then can you
say for school holidays take the boys over and do some on the ground research.

cricketman

No way can you live well on 1500 euros net in Barcelona

My sister in law and partner earn over 100k per year in Barcelona, have no car and send their kids to state school, and they struggle!

You are looking at over 1k in rent in a nice area (my sister-in law has a 3 bed 100 square meter flat that rents for 2,500 euros per month), OK maybe 700 euros in a not-nice area, but the bad areas in Barcelona are terrible!

You have to pay for lunch and materials at state school. Lunch is 150 euros per month for each child. And unless you finish at 2pm each day, you will also need to pay for extra lessons and child care

Eating out once per week, will be 40-50 euros even at the cheap place

You need at least 2,500 euros net, and even then, that will be a huge struggle

bob_bob

They struggle on €8300 a month ? Either your telling porkies/fantasizing again or they need to rethink their lifestyle.

The original poster won't do well on his budget and in his circumstances, the maths just don't really add up. As others have said, a move out of London would be the first thing he should do. Depending upon his skills Cardiff and Birmingham are a lot cheaper than London and there is work. In Wales the three year old will have a place in School (we start them young in Wales ) and property rentals are cheaper than London.

mikelincs

That sort of salary, IF you can get it, isn't really doable, don't forget that even though the teaching at school is free, everything else, text and exercise books, after school activities, meals etc all have to be paid for. Child minding would be costly, and you would need to either pay someone to look after your 8 yr old, or pay for him to stay late at school, there is no government allowance for child care, and no state benefits.

Remember that, if you were to move out of the UK you would need written permission of the other parent.

cricketman

After tax, 100k per year it is about 5,500 euros per month

2,500 euros is mortgage
500 euros is school lunch for the 3 kids each day
1000 euros is after school childcare and cleaner
500 euros is food for family of 5
Which leaves 1000 euros for everything else. Bills, clothes, holidays, school text books etc

Not exactly luxurious is it?

Moses2013

I think they really need to rethink their lifestyle The majority of people in Europe don't have that kind of money, be it Dublin, Munich, Paris etc. Barcelona isn't that cheap, but you don't have to live in a penthouse. Many people live on the outskirts and can afford a car, house, schools on way less. In reality €1500 just isn't enough for 3 people in a big city. Birmingham would certainly be a better option than London.

cricketman

I said they are "struggling" in that they have no money left each month, but sure, they are living where they want to live, in a nice penthouse, 100 meters from the beach and a nice neighbourhood

The trouble with Barcelona is that the cheaper not so nice neighbourhoods are terrible. Ugly, noisy and depressing. You can't live happily in Barcelona on such little money, the people who do are scraping to get by, living a miserable life

For 1500 euros each month you could just about get by in a village somewhere or perhaps one of the smaller towns

Moses2013

Cmon cricketman, €2,500 mortgage is their own fault. They could buy a house like this, just 30 mins away from the centre and mortgage over 25 years would be half that
Chalet en Montornès del Vallès en Montornès del Vallès, Zona Can Buscarons - Montornès del Vallès 135833188

Dondurma

Don't like that house Moses

It has no pool, sauna, solarium or even staff accommodation

Moses2013

True, but I suppose you could add the pool, sauna, solarium with monthly payments of around €400 and hey they might even be able to afford a car including the petrol. Tough life they have