SteveandGalina

Let's face it, for a large percentage of people, living in the UK is not exactly Nirvana. Bad weather, a high cost of living, loads of traffic in city centres and not exactly an ideal life stye.

I have been living abroad for many years - living outside of the UK is great - I would advise that you NEVER sell your UK property unless you really cannot afford to move without selling or unless you are totally committed to leaving the UK and never coming back - even then financially it may be better not to sell, in general the UK property market moves more quickly than most other established markets mainly due to small fees involved in buying and selling (in France or Spain it costs around ten to fifteen percent in legal charges without the estate agency costs - therefore people don't move so often!) It is much better to use the rental income to fund a mortgage on your new home.

Rental is a great way to provide income but, of course, you have to be lucky with your tenants - try to rent to a company or, if you have decided that you won't return to your abode then you can rent it to the local council and have a guaranteed income.

Don't worry about how messed up it will get, if you are only using it as income then you don't have to worry about it. Just pretend that you have sold it and placed the money in a very good investment. You will just have to brighten it up every few years so set aside a portion of your income for that.

In the UK we have many TV programs showing people who have moved abroad for 'a better life' and the one thing that comes through over and over again is that people's ideas of finances are way out! They underestimate building costs and always think that things will go smoothly which they almost never do.

So, first of all make sure that you have sufficient funds for your project - delay your move for a year if it means that you can add another five or ten thousand to your savings.

Unless you are particularly skilled, getting a job in a foreign country is not easy, much better to wait until you can retire and not worry about job prospects. Of course if you do have a job opportunity then seize it with both hands - nothing better than to get someone else to pay your expenses!

Before deciding on a location, ask yourself what your aims are in moving abroad - more sun, a cheaper life style, more spare time?

Don't believe that all of Australia is a hot house, the southern coast can have long, wet winters and don't forget that daylight saving time means that Adelaide, for example, has seven months of winter time and only five months of summer time - it makes a difference!

And do think about time zones - living on the other side of the world can cause communication problems - and don't forget your attempts to watch soccer on Saturday - getting up at two in the morning to watch your team is not fun!

Right now South Africa is a great destination, housing and living is very cheap compared to the UK and being only one or two hours ahead of the UK it means there are none of the communication problems mentioned. Also the loca cable TV provides access to loads of UK sport (sorry I am speaking from a male viewpoint here!)

Finally, do make sure you move your money using an establishedmoney broker rather than a bank - of course you need security but you also need to get a decent rate of exchange and normally banks don't provide this.

Mitzyboy

This is a joke, right
Housing is cheap cos every one is trying to get out it seems!
Some of the worst violent crime in the developed world also

SteveandGalina

Having only been to Cape Town for each of the last six years I bow to your superior knowledge - you obviously have spent many years there :-)

My experience of Cape Town is that it's no more violent than some parts of London - of course you shouldn't walk out on the streets late at night waving your large bankroll or flashing your expensive jewellry but that's true of most large cities.

Don't bother with Jo'burg, that's a different situation but Cape Town is safe.

Now, of course, if you have other stories to tell then please feel free.

SteveandGalina

By the way, for a Moderator you're not very moderate.

:-)

Mitzyboy

I have spent the last 5 years or so moderating on the South Africa sections on several forums, including this one. No I have never been there. But I have seen the arguement that SA is no more violent than London shot down in flames now so many times now with factual statistics and life stories about people being shot dead for the want of a mobile phone, and people watching their wifes and daughters being raped before being stabbed to death in their homes.

Please feel free to post your thoughts on SA in the South Africa section, I would be interested to see the discussion

SteveandGalina

Mr Moderator, you are confusing South Africa with Cape Town and with respect, if you haven't been there you cannot comment.

There was a point last year when every few days a young boy was knifed to death in London - did that make it a dangerous place to live?

jdr

Tin of soup ?

Mitzyboy

No ..... I'm not
and
Yes ... I can

So would you like me to move this to the SA forum so you can get some "more informed" comment?

SteveandGalina

This is not an adverisement for Cape Town or South Africa, it's a comment about people wanting to leave the UK. I can only give advice based on my own experiences - unlike yourself apparently.

I have no wish to send people to dangerous places - all I know is that hundreds of thousands of football supporters will be on their way to South Africa next year so let's see exactly what happens.

I agree entirely that there are some parts of South Africa best avoided - there are possibly some parts of Valencia that also qualify - and, yes, I have been to Valencia and loved it, especially the Old City and the diverted river bed.

I am sure that hundreds of thousands of people (if not millions) live a very good life in South Africa - most of those I spoke to when there love the place.

That's not to say that there aren't problems but give Europe another year of financial crisis and we'll see what happens here, and of course the war in what used to be called Yugoslavia is not so far back in time.

This planet has trouble everywhere - I consider the biggest problems that South Africa faces are unemployment and HIV, not forgetting corruption in Politics but then again after what we have heard recently about the UK who are we to criticise on that point?

Lorna at Vicenza

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure why you even wrote the first post.
It's in the Europe forum yet you mention Australia and South Africa and Cape Town.

Anybody wishing to leave the UK to move to France or Spain normally writes and asks questions in the France or Spain forum and the Australian forum has a number of threads dedicated to people moving there and advice on visas etc.

SteveandGalina

As I am new to Expats, you obviously have much more experience than I do on posting comments.

Where do you advise that a general post should be placed that contains ideas on moving abroad, whether to Europe, Australia or South Africa, and what one should consider before moving.

Mitzyboy

There is an Australian section, a South African section .... and this is of course the general European section for non specific countries that you are posting in now

Lorna at Vicenza

What one considers before moving and the questions one might ask, are generally specific to the country that one is thinking of moving to. That is why this forum is already split into different countries.

jdr

I think he is a Maltese money mover, punting for trade, 50% of his posts are about moving money. ;-))
He should be posting here.

SteveandGalina

Punting for trade? I wish I was that wealthy! Actually I am an out of work ex IT Consultant who has travelled a lot!

Currently live mainly in Malta but have a small summer house in Hungary.

I wanted to send a message to one particular Expat but was informed that I couldn't do this until I had posted three times - didn't know whether this meant I had to start my own post or simply reply to others so I wrote three quick articles and was amazed that someone would immediately tell me that what I was saying about South Africa was a load of rubbish when in fact I have spent a couple of years there during several visits over the past six or seven years.

I repeat that I can only report from my own experiences and although many people told me how dangerous South Africa can be I have perhaps been fortunate in that I have never been affected by it (touch wood).

I have friends in South Africa who tell me that a lot of the black population say they were financially better off under apartheid because at least jobs were available. And nt many of them want to maove away- mainly the young ones who don't see any job prospects.

And I don't apprciate it when people who have no experience of the place tell me that I am crazy and my post is 'a joke'.

I also don't appreciate it when people make stupid statements about my reasons for posting on Expats - if you make the rules that people can't communicate until they have made three posts then don't criticise them when they do.

I am really not that concerned what you think of me JDR, I am sure that I will never need your help and you will certainly never need mine.

Enjoy your life in sunny Spain and stop making false accusations!

:-)