Martabelfast

Hi,

My husband and I are considering moving to La Antilla. I was wondering what the British expat community is like in the Ayamonte area and what work is like. My husband is a british national and a painter/decorator, I am Spanish and currently working as an Admin Assistant for the local Goverment in Northern Ireland. We also have two young kids.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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

Moses2013

As you're Spanish, you will probably know better than anyone else, but I doubt there will be many jobs available that pay decent wages in that area. I'm in the Republic myself and don't know where you are in Northern Ireland, but being a painter/decorator in the Republic of Ireland seems like paradise when I look at what some people are earning (Especially if they're good). Does it have to be that area and wouldn't you be better off securing a job first?

Moses2013

Sorry, your name says it "Belfast". Silly me.

MikeJ

We looked at Islantilla when we first decided to buy but we visited in the close season (Feb) and we observed that basically the place was closed. It seemed to be almost entirely a holiday property location - mainly Spanish owners as it was developed before the Brits discovered this little and wonderful corner of Spain. We decide to be nearer Ayamonte as it is a live working town all year - busier in the summer of course, but with something going on and restaurants etc open all year. Of course, we may have been wrong but subsequent visits in the winter seem to confirm our initial impression.


(I expect I'll get flamed but lots of cheerful Islantilla owners now )

Martabelfast

Thanks for your reply.

I haven't lived in Spain for 10 years, so I am a bit out of touch with the work situation. Money isn't bad in Belfast, but that's is not the reason why we are thinking of moving. We have a young kids and we feel that by going back to Spain we can give them a better quality of life. I am just testing the waters, it might not happen at all..

My parents have an apartment in Islantilla, so if we were to give it a go, we could stay there rent free and not commit to anything long term if it didn't work.

Martabelfast

Thanks for your reply.

I agree, it is so quiet in the winter, however my family owns an apartment there, which could be very useful as we wouln't have to pay any rent, and if it didn't work out, we can leave with no issues.

I absolutely love the area!

Jon-Bxl

On this forum we have had many requests like yours and the advice has often been 'give it a try' ..... if possible. It saves 'giving up everything'.

With your parents having a home there - I think if you can say get a leave of absence from work you would be ideally placed to try it out. In your case being Spanish it should be easy, but you never know how it will work with your family.

Also you can check out the work situation, which IMO isn't very good (sorry).

I agree with Mike, the place is lovely, but empty in the low season. But as a base to check out the area it would be great as you can see the whole area with a shortish drive. Including visiting Portugal which is the high point for us who live on the border.

Check out, Google, Portugals 'Non Habitual Resident' tax situation. VERY good for those relocating there - with 'nearly tax haven status' for the first 10 years, depending on your personal status of course. And if you buy just across the border, Spain will be on your doorstep

Good luck
Jon

Moses2013

I suppose living in a bigger city is different, but I can't see why kids would have a better quality of life in La Antilla. Live in the West near Galway and kids have so much space here, plenty of sport clubs, good schools, fresh air etc. It's great that you could live rent free there, but what about kids making friends, if it's mainly people who have holiday homes there?






I don't know how you live now (renting, own a home etc.) but you also need to look at other things. While living rent free might sound great, you still need money and have to look at healthcare/pension. Of course you could give it a try and your kids are still young, but it's also stress for kids who have to move back and forth.

EsuriJohn

The unemployment situation is dire with an official rate of over 25% and under 25s over 50%. The "Black" seems to take up the slack. Even the hospitality industry has been particularly bad this year all the hotels on Canela and Ayamonte closed for at least a month most for three or the whole winter. The fishing industry is booming judging by the size of the refrigerated 25tonners waiting for the auction to end.

I am staggered by the number of painting firms around Ayamonte from one man bands to medium sized companies with their own cherry pickers. There is also a sizeable expat cohort of handymen offering this service to the resident expat population. It also seems the easiest area for the "black" workers to engage in.

That's the bad news now for you. Before the last election the new Mayor promised to provide Esuri with bi-lingual support on site. So far nothing even the town hall does not have English speakers so there is a huge opportunity to improve things there. If your Spanish is still fluent and you have the "opciones?" and are perhaps native of this area then you would be a perfect fit. I have recently read of towns on the Med coast which have a small team dedicated to assisting all expats with the myriad bureaucracies of the town, Provincial, Communidad and central government departments such as health and tax.