Londonertogooz

Hello
how is the life down there?
And the economy? thanks

Madridboy

I moved away from there 1 year ago due to lack of work. I'd imagine at this time of year it'll be starting to get busy now BUT it was extremely quiet out of season. We also found you were expected to speak Catalan as well as Castellano to find work. Loved the area, didn't like all the toll roads though.

Londonertogooz

thank you!
how about self employment? as i can work for myself
what is the tax issue there?
and how about the building sector? (for my partner)
how is the situation with schools and children in general?
what benefits do kids get over there?
and how much are the houses to rent ?
thanks

cricketman

These are all impossible questions to answer without knowing your situation

I lived in Barcelona for a year and a half. It is an expensive city

- Firstly, do you speak fluent Spanish and Catalan, or at least fluent Spanish?
- Do you want to actually live in the city? There are no houses, just flats. How many bedrooms? A 3 bed flat will be around 1500 euros per month in a half decent area. 1000 euros in a not so good area and 700 euros in an awful scary area
- Sure you can be self employed. As long as you pay your social security contributions and taxes. Income tax is similar to the UK, a bit more expensive for people who earn around the 40-50k mark
- For children, you get some tax allowances but no benefits as such, unless you are a very low earner
- Schools, how old are your children? Do they already speak Spanish and Catalan? State schools here are mainly in Catalan
- The building sector? No chance at all

Barcelona is an expensive city and unemployment rate is about 3-4 times that of London. You need to be very qualified with great experience, have a lot of savings and be thinking of a high income to even think about it

t2uds

We're Emigrating down there with the wifes Job in late July/Early August. Barcelona is a great place. We've been there many times both socially and with work. The Spanish are great. They are having a few issues with udesireables from out of the region being a bit pickpockety scammy etc. But doesnt everywhere now?

Regarding your questions. We found no easy answers Im afraid. Lots of googling and reading though.
But heres a starter. This is from the Mayor of Barcelona and is a guide for moving there. Some useful info in there.

http://english.habitaclia.com/"]We found this an easy website to use for property searching. If you look on the outskirts of the Barcelona region- Maresme/Occidental/Orientals. Youll get more space & scenery & a 3/4 bed house with pool for the same price of a flat in Barcelona itself. Theres a good rail service that runs down the coast that'll have you in Barcelona pretty fast.

We're a bit narrow regarding school info. As we hope to return back one day, we needed to enrol our daughter in a school that does the UK curriculum. But sadly that runs at 8k a year. But as ever, Google is your friend! so heres an expatica guide that may help you regarding choices.

Regarding your hubby. I did a bit of Buy To Let property developing in the UK. Ill be keeping those in the UK. But with things how they are in Spain at the moment Ill be giving that a miss over there for now. Catalunya is apparently doing better than other areas of Spain. But I think your hubby will find it tough in construction there even if he spoke Spanish & Catalan.

Regarding self employment. We're lucky as we're getting funded to go over there with work. So I have limited knowledge on it. But again, how things are, if youre working for yourself Id make sure theres a good market for what you do over there and have some backup!

Hope this helps a bit and gives you a start on the info you need.

M

cricketman

Just a note that on those dates most the shops and businesses in Barcelona will be closed, so make sure you have sorted out the essentials, phones, electric etc beforehand

Actually Barcelona is one of the least Spanish parts of Spain I have been too. Careful about who you say that too, there is lots of nationalist sentiment in Barcelona and especially as you head up the coast.

Learn some Catalan when going to the local shops! That is the best way to get good service. A lot of people wont speak to you of you talk to them in Spanish, or will reply in Catalan. They certainly won't want to be friends with you

t2uds

Im not the OP, but cheers for the advice. Yes it was mentioned to us that a lot of the companies have the same annual holidays. Again, we're quite lucky as we have a relocation company to make sure we dont mess anything up. The company is also paying for language lessons, but Spanish! lol So we'll just have to throw ourselves in and learn as we go.

Casa Santo Estevo

I have read the OP's posting history. Maybe they should think about why one country or another and take the rough with the smooth.
Like what will happen if the Catalans vote yes to be a country in their own right?

Londonertogooz

thank you!

Londonertogooz

maybe another place to avoid then.... shame as i really love barcelona

t2uds

Interesting, but genuinely, what would happen? My wife works for a company with manufacturing based in Catalunya. How would it effect that? Would anything actually change for us in reality? Regardless of what Catalunya wants, and not counting a revolution . Will the Spanish Gov't ever let that happen do you think? Seeing how slow anything seems Political wise. Even if they decide to, surely it'd take years if not decades?

cricketman

Barcelona is a nice enough place to live..

As long as you have enough money, the job prospects and the language skills

gioppino

Hello, I hope I can post my question here without starting a new thread. Otherwise, mods please let me know.

I am not British but I was quite active in the Netherlands forum.

I have just applied for a position in the centre of Barcelona for about €1600 gross a month. I am not really desperate to move to Barcelona or Spain but it is an interesting position.

I know this is a n00b question, but is it worth to move from the Netherlands (mind you, I'm unemployed here) to Barca for that money?

Is there an online calculator that will give me the net wage from the gross, a bit like listentotaxman.com in the UK?

What kind of accommodation would I get for that money?

And last but not least, I'm in my late 40s. Do people of my age share accommodations like in the UK or is this only for youngsters/students?

A bit of more info about me:
- I don't speak Spanish but I'm Italian so I could communicate effectively (I think Catalan is a bit more similar to Italian than Castilian is)
- My war chest is a bit dented by a few months in Holland.
- I have a high school degree but not uni.

Sorry again for the silly questions and thanks in advance.

cricketman

Hi gioppino

1600 euros isnt a lot. You will net about 1350 per month. Fine if you were in a couple, but not much for a single person

You can either house share for maybe 400 euros per month or get a studio flat for 600-800 euros, depending on the region of the city. Obviously most house shares are 20 somethings, but in a big city like Barcelona then there are always exceptions

Catalan isnt closer to Italian than Spanish I'm afraid, not really.

There are lots and lots of Italians in Barcelona. It seemed to me that 2007-9 (when I lived there) that half of all the waiters were Italian, so you have an expat community to walk into

Londonertogooz

I am a textile designer and i work for myself and as freelancer with usa clients and australia mostly so i can work anywhere in the world really but i want to move somewhere were my kids can have a nice lifestyle and good education
In barcelona for example i have to send them to private school as i want them to have english as first language
How much a family needs in barcelona or nearby? Also my partner is a painter and plasterer and you say that the building industry is a bit dead there ....so i cant provide for all of them...
I'm still open to barcellona but i dont want to get worst than better only for the nice weather
how is the crime there? also what other places around barcelona we could live in? (one hour radius )
thanks