Moses2013

Sorry to hear you had some tough times. Seems the Americans just prefer Ireland these days.

brits1

At least your mind is made up and you can now be happier about living in America, I am not going to “go into” a reply about your rant….each to their own etc
…nope just not going to go there lol

bats

​​​​​​"Woke" government? Seriously? You're having a laugh aren't you

Oxfordite

Yeah, just a joke. In Russia (population 146 million,) 400 people were arrested last year for things they wrote on social media. In the UK (population 67 million,) 3,300 were arrested last year for things they wrote on social media, such as posting the lyrics to a recorded rap song that contained the “N word.”

Moses2013

Well, how many anti-war protesters have been arrested in Russia?

Jerseygirl

This thread is to discuss moving back to the UK from the US. It is not to discuss the current war with Russia. If you wish to continue with this conversation, please do so in the following thread.

https://britishexpats.com/forum/take...kraine-942049/

brits1

Sorry I posted before I read your quote .

Moses2013

For our American friends LOL: https://money.usnews.com/money/retir...tire-in-the-uk

Where to retire in the UK

The United Kingdom offers a diversity of lifestyle options, from bustling cities to quaint countryside villages to coastal resort towns. Generally, there is better weather and higher property prices in the south, while worse weather and less expensive real estate can be found in the north. Across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, you’ll find strong infrastructure, high-quality health care and historical significance. Here's a look at the best places to retire in the UK.

rwf039183

This is interesting. I feel exactly the same but in reverse about Vancouver. My Canadian wife and I sold our house and moved from the UK 2 years ago. We both have decent jobs and a down payment but I'm feeling utterly dejected by the state of the housing market. We've rented for two years now, I loved having a house and a garden and privacy but we simply cant get on the housing ladder here. Barely any choice of house below $1m, CMHC insurance premium because we don't quite have 20% down payment, interest stress testing on our mortgage, which is depressing the amount we can borrow etc etc. I just feel its very sad that two hard working people, with no debt and a sensible down payment cant buy a house. It makes me miss what we had in the UK. BC is beautiful don't get me wrong, but if im going to spend the next 20 years trying to clear a massive mortgage (if we can find a house), that makes me pretty sad.

kateg60

No regrets, but it has been difficult, much harder than I thought it was going to be. Setting up a new life, is hard! I lived in US the for 36 years so it really is starting from scratch. I do miss a lot about the US, but I personally feel a greater sense of belonging in the UK, I had not really adapted culturally to the US. I do not find life cheaper in the UK and I have taken a small financial loss, with exchange rate, but I had prepared for it and will recover. I imagine it would be quite difficult to move without substantial savings.

coolcat

Hi ... just curious whereabouts you are on Vancouver Island. We have lived in BC for 17 years and we too live on Vancouver Island one road back from the beach ! lol

Zeppo595

I moved back from 2020-2022

First year was covid lockdown HELL

Second year was PGCE teacher training TORTURE

Both awful years

Though I would say this element of stress of being abroad did go away...but also the excitement and feeling of life being an adventure. Everything just feels static and slightly dead and coffin like about the UK. A comfortable coffin I suppose. But I don't feel like I am getting the most out of life there. Feels very grim and yes dysoptian.

Anywhere in central or Eastern Europe feels calmer and more relaxed from my experience.

getoutofbritainquick

I have to agree with you. We moved back to the UK in 2021 and decided to settle in a smallish coastal town in Cornwall. We lived in Canada for 15 years, having spent half that time in Vancouver and half in the suburbs of Victoria. My wife and I both had good jobs and a beautiful home on a golf course. We decided to cash in and retire back to the UK while the housing market was red hot in BC. We were lucky enough not to have a mortgage in BC and had made substantial equity in the property of the years we were in Canada. Just to put some perspective in our journey, we wanted to live in the Okanagan but never reached our goal for one reason or another. We we first arrived in Kelowna we could have bought a brand new property 3000 sq ft for $400k in a highly desirable area (the average price of a home in Vancouver was around $500k at the time). We didn't land for another 2 years for various reasons but when we finally arrived we ended up paying $780,000 for a brand new similar property in 2007. When we finally left in 2021 we sold our property for $1.8 million during COVID! We had 2 grown up children, our son who was 19 came back to the UK with us but my daughter stayed in Victoria.
Fast forward to 2023, my daughter was seriously struggling in Victoria despite having a good job and we were having to subsidise her. She decided to return to the UK and I went out to help her pack and return to the UK. The flights were ridiculously expensive and we had to get indirect flights to minimise the cost, she also wanted to bring her German Shepherd dog back to the UK which which cost over $11k but my wife and I thought it was the price we had to pay.

We had settled very well back in the UK and have a 3 bed semi and have an amazing view overlooking the sea and harbour, we absolutely love it here and have found the people to be very friendly. I only need to drive once or twice a week, there is very little traffic and the only hold ups are usually caused by a tractor. We have an amazing lifestyle in a beautiful part of the country and have no regrets whatsoever. I was wondering how I would feel when I went to pick up my daughter having not returned to Canada since we left for the UK. I was lucky to get the first heatwave of the season and booked a hotel very close to where we lived in Victoria. I can honestly say I hated every minute I was back in Canada, the roads where so congested, there was awful development everywhere you looked and the place had become very expensive. The cost of living has risen in the UK but nothing compared to what I saw in BC. The service in the hotel was awful and when we returned to Vancouver for our flight back to the UK the hotel was even worse. The bar and restaurant closed at 2100hrs due to a lack of staff, and the Shark Club next do had closed some time ago for the same reason. I was so glad to get back home. I doubt if I will ever go back to Canada again.
Back in the UK we have our problems just like Canada does. Our self serving politicians are a complete waste of time and the world seems to be becoming a much more dangerous place due to geopolitical issues. COVID did a lot of damage as did the war in Ukraine. But where we live is a great place to live, we have very little crime and everyone looks out for one another, something you don't get in the large cities. As for being woke, this was one of the reasons we left Canada. We found this to be forced on you in every direction in the workplace and to waste money on rainbow painted crosswalks was comical. As for the First Nations issues, good luck with that one. As for the gender issues in the workplace the white male was a second class citizen. I worked for a Crown Corporation, when I retired as a manger I was replaced by a young women with very little experience (no issues if she can do the job), she didn't actually turn up to do the job for over a year, she was then promoted to Area Manager and then went on a years maternity leave! My ex Foreman now has my old job and the Area Manager still hasn't returned to work. He wasn't very impressed. So glad I don't have to work in today's environment.

Helen1964

That’s reassuring after Zeppo’s account of his experience. Although I still can’t decide which annoys me more: the sentiments behind that notice on the Tube or the appalling English.

What about healhcare where you are? That’s probably a big concern for anyone contemplating moving back.

getoutofbritainquick

We live in Looe, Cornwall. There are issues with healthcare. We have had a Tory government for 13 or so years and they have been hopeless. They don’t seem to have done anything of any good other than self interests. I can honestly say I cannot think of one thing they have achieved. It looks like we will have a change of government coming up at the next election but who knows if they will be any better. I must say I wasn’t impressed with Canadian politicians either. I thought Harper was good when we first arrived in Canada but it rapidly went downhill when Trudeau got into power.
There are long waiting lists but I can say we haven’t experienced any problems. We got a doctor without any issues but getting a NHS dentist is almost impossible. Be prepared to pay for a private dentist! Having lived in Canada we were fortunate to get good benefits as we did when I worked in the UK many years ago.
What you will find is food was is cheaper and more varied compared to Canada, as is beer and wine. Car insurance is at least half of what we paid in Canada and property and contents insurance is far cheaper. Energy is more expensive but is starting to come down. There are areas of the UK I wouldn’t go near due to over population and crime especially my home town in Kent. The other big plus here is you don’t always need a car to get anywhere. We have excellent public transit compared to Canada. Both my grown up kids don’t drive here no does my wife. You can get by without a vehicle.