a ticket at our cinema is 5 euros (hasn't gone up for at least 3 years)- a drink 1-1.50 euros - a huge bucket of popcorn 3 euros!!


my spanish friends never believe me when I tell them how much it is in the UK!!

Just got back from another short break In CBS, third one this year, and from my experience and the conversations I had with others I would say that the cost of living is about a £ to the € ,therefore about 20% cheaper in Spain than the UK.

It seems i may have found an exception to the rule on this one, as i start with one of them in a couple of months

The term IT related is a bit too broad to give good advice. However it has to be said that somewhere like Madrid (as you'd expect) is normally the best place to get work, IT or otherwise. Put it like this, if you were moving to the UK, where would you expect to find work - London and the South-East, or Blackpool/Weston-super-Mare/Cornwall? It is true that gaming companies are prevalent in Gibraltar, but obviously it will depend on your skill set. If, however your husband is lucky enough to have SAP skills - well they're always advertising for this on jobserve.com and infojobs.net I believe a lot of these contracts are ultimately putting in systems for the El Corte Ingles chain.
Incidentally, although I find Spain to be cheaper in many respects than the UK, there are 2 things that always seem to cost more - decent clothing and books. So if you do come out to Spain, make sure you bring over a decent wardrobe (and make sure to bring options for cold and wet days too - they do occur!!!)
It is difficult deciding what to do in these recessionary times. I'm currently working in the UK, but it looks as though this will end in December. Ah well -I'll have a lot more time to waste on here then!

I moved to Barcelona about 9 months ago and I have to say the gap between earnings and cost of living is far, FAR worse here than the UK.

Cheap things like H&M clothes just don't seem that cheap anymore! 20 Euros is quite a lot of cash compared to 20 quid in the uk (on uk earnings)...

I am not sure what it's like down south, but you will both have to be super flexible when looking for work and willing to work for a lot less than your Uk pay value. I echo everyone else, that take as much cash to live on as possible, UNEMPLOYMENT is a huge problem here in Spain currently ( i saw one stastic of over 100,000 people just in August alone became unemployed).

I saw the news two days ago that said spain will be in recession 'early 2009', so I wonder what is in store for all of us here? But one thing I feel sure of, is that the uk will fare better than Spain..

I fear the UK is going to be dramatically hit. Not just the usual economic downturn victims (builders, shops, estate agents etc) either. The City is already laying off 1000s, and remember it's not just fat cats who work there. It's canteen staff, receptionists, IT staff, accounts staff, HR people etc. Plus, it now transpires that a lot of councils and charities won't have any money to pay this months' salaries, still less keep people on, as a consequence of putting their money into Icelandic bank accounts.

I'm currently investigating Germany or Canada as a place to work. As a contractor, 10 months anywhere would suit me.

The UK is in for a significant amount of pain - far more than the rest of the world. UK has a greater than average reliance on Financial Services as a proportion of GDP.
The economy is tanking because much of this is now revealed as an illusion - in effect, the banks and the Government have been running a not very elaborate Ponzi scheme for some years.
Bankers paid their shareholders generous dividends and themselves bonuses, and the government gleefully taxed the dividends, the income, the profits and the bonuses. The Government stuffed the MPC with their own placemen, and have held interest rates at around the rate of inflation ever since, enabling them to continue spending like drunken whatevers.
Now the collapse in buy to let and self certificated mortgages has infected the rest of the housing market, which is, as we all know collapsing daily.
What the collapse cruelly exposed was not only just how weak the financial sector in Britain had become, but more importantly, how the Government had perverted the system and - critically- the regulation of the sector for its own ends. When they screwed up over Northern Rock they knocked the confidence of the international community which traditionally has seen the UK as a safe haven. As a result, it is not only businesses wishing to avoid our high levels of taxation who are heading overseas, but, much more importantly, the international financial community is also leaving in droves - even old established names such as Hendersons and some of the princely hongs are off!!
These companies have not only paid large amounts in tax, but have also been significant employers in the capital.
The dangerous part of this is that it is this banking "elite" (if I can use such an inappropriate word for such a bunch of t*ssers) who have been the drivers in the UK housing market ever since Big Bang. They paid heavy premiums to live within 10-15 minutes of the desks they man from 5 in the morning till late at night. Their juniors paid slightly less heavy premia to live 20 to 30 minutes away. And the rest of us have had to commute insane distances to be able to work at all and live in something larger than a rabbit hutch.
If those two props are taken away from the market, the knock on effect will ripple out throughout the country. They have undoubtedly been a major factor in the explosion in house prices, and whilst the risk premium is far higher in London than in Leeds, there is going to be a double whammy here.
Furthermore, if you look at GROSS public sector debt including all the dodgy deals that have been pushed off balance sheet in the last few years, you come to a figure of around 120 percent of GDP, rather than the 40 percent they keep pretending. And that is before you put in any notional amount for whatever sums are required to keep the banking market functioning.
Nor are we going to be rescued by interest rate cuts. These are the very policies that created this mess, and will certainly only make the situation worse and last longer. We are however in the ?fortunate? position that sterling is so weak, and inflation so high, that even this moronic government surely cant cut rates any lower!
Or can they?

I notice no-one has tried to give you an idea of average bills and it is really difficult as peoples usage of electric, water etc can vary enormously. My reason for replying is your comment that 'water bills are tiny'. Our first water bill was over 600 euros for a quarter. We discovered that there is a standing charge for our urbanisation of approx 185 euros per quarter. No-one bothered to tell us about that when we bought our house. On top of that we had an invisible leak. Utility companies just take the money from your bank account before they send you the bill, unlike in the UK where even with direct debit they have to send out the bill first. Now our leak is fixed our bill was 304 euros for last quarter. Electricity is also expensive although with the recent price rises in the UK probably not a lot different. We use a lot less oil here and try to rely on a wood burning stove rather than central heating as much as possible. We are lucky enough to have a solar panel so get free hot water in the summer.

As people have said booze is much cheaper but you have to be an alcoholic for it to make that much difference!! I would say food here is similar to what I used to pay in the UK 12 months ago - so cheaper as its gone up so much in the UK. But it does depend what kind of food you buy. I have a large freezer and try to make the most of special offers 3 for 2s & that kind of thing.
We've been here just over a year now and its taken that long to get to grips with what things should cost, the best places to shop, how to run the house economically etc. When you first arrive theres so much to do, you tend to spend more so you definitely need a financial cushion. 6 months money must be the absolute minimum, I read in some financial advisory column that it should be 3 years (We should be so lucky!)

Very best of luck whatever you decide to do.

Rose

I think that you are choosing the worst time to come to Spain. The pound would have got you a lot more euros a year ago.
The job situation is bad here. As it was pointed out to get a good IT job, you need to go to the big cities.
Spanish is a must. Dont forget the Spanish are the best educated unemployed people here. I also find that most British people accept any old job, with no contract and no rights. This is no good for anyone, it does a lot of damage, as employers can always find someone to do the job for less.
I think it would be wise to wait.
We took a long time to come and live in Spain, and we had all the advantages (Language, culture etc) that the majority do not have. Our families emigrated to a country where the wages were much higher than Spain. It does not seem logical to go to a country where the wages are lower. It is a great place for financially independent people, but not for folk who need to find jobs.

Wise words.

I agree with your comments about the lack of contract/rights that most Brits take as employment here, and particularly the bit about moving to the city rather than the Spanish countryside (well - just think about it!!! What 'good' jobs are there in the English countryside )

...but I totally disagree with some of what you have said as I think that 'some people' don't mind a drop in wages for a change of culture/lifestyle - it depends on the person. Remember, money does not motivate everyone in this world...

185 euros per quarter for water! 877 town hall tax
Certainly a lot cheaper to live in the campo
I have a 180 mtr modernised 4 bed cortijo , water is included in the circa 50 euro p.m electricity bill as I pump from my own well,town hall tax less than 300 euro p.a, heating is usually free as I cut my own wood, plus water heating is included in the electricty bill
Dont have a/c as its for tourists
I also have a telefonica satellite phone and the bill is around 20 euro pm

You can live MUCH cheaper in Spain with a bit of thought and planning

And presumably depending on the area,

Blimey that's cheap!!!

Rotor - maybe you could set up a course on 'how to live cheaply in the campo' for all of us with dreams of moving to rural Spain...

If you think about it the cortijero`s proberley earn less than 6 k euro p.a from there fruit crops/goats etc ,they dont have a choice , Most dont even pay their town hall tax as many old cortijo`s are not even a registerd dwelling, if you have land you can easy grown your own in this climate ,keep poultry ,pigs etc, just depends how much time you have ,I shoot at least 2 wild boars a year for the freezer,more for the sport though, it also helps no end to have building and mechanical skills , you never stop repairing/improving cortijos and you never stop repairing your 4x4 in the campo either
Personally I cant understand able bodied retired people moving into apartment blocks along with a load of other moaning giris when you can have a great life very cheaply in the campo ,I`m only in my forties and will only live in a town if I ever become disabled.

Rgds

Rotor