British Expats

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-   -   Is this feasible? (https://britishexpats.com/forum/spain-75/feasible-930580/)

Bigbroondug1 Jan 23rd 2020 7:49 pm

Is this feasible?
 
Morning, be gentle with me as my first post after lots of invaluable reading, lol. I will try to give as much information as possible so here goes.... My partner and I are 48 and live in Scotland. It has always been out intention to retire to Spain or Portugal but most likely Spain. We both work and will have access to work pensions at 55. Worst case scenario it will be when we are 55 but 53 would be ideal. If we go at 53 we will have at least 400k to buy somewhere and to live on till we can access pensions. We have no kids and neither of us are overly sociable and lead a quiet life. We do not want to move to an expat community, speak basic Spanish but will work on that over the next few years.
We would like some kind of house, definitely not an apartment, ideally with a bit of outdoor space. Nothing in the middle of nowhere but definitely more of a village than city feel, with a supermarket/local bookstores within 20 minutes. 2 bedrooms would be fine or even one, ideally no more than twenty minutes drive to a decent beach. At the moment I'm thinking of we bought somewhere for up to 120k, after a period of renting of course, we could live on the rest.
I appreciate things are a bit unclear at the moment due to Brexit but does this seem realistic cash wise? We will do a bit of travelling over next few years to look at locations. Have visited Spain a few times but just quite tourist areas for vacations.
Would really appreciate all help, especially on location and what the priorities on my list should be with rough timescale as we plan our move. We are gay women, not married at the moment so need an area where people are tolerant though we do tend to keep to ourselves. Will this have any impact on buying property or in the event one of us dying?
Thanks in advance.

Bigbroondug1 Jan 23rd 2020 7:51 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 
That should be food stores not bookstores

Moses2013 Jan 23rd 2020 8:05 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by Bigbroondug1 (Post 12794893)
Morning, be gentle with me as my first post after lots of invaluable reading, lol. I will try to give as much information as possible so here goes.... My partner and I are 48 and live in Scotland. It has always been out intention to retire to Spain or Portugal but most likely Spain. We both work and will have access to work pensions at 55. Worst case scenario it will be when we are 55 but 53 would be ideal. If we go at 53 we will have at least 400k to buy somewhere and to live on till we can access pensions. We have no kids and neither of us are overly sociable and lead a quiet life. We do not want to move to an expat community, speak basic Spanish but will work on that over the next few years.
We would like some kind of house, definitely not an apartment, ideally with a bit of outdoor space. Nothing in the middle of nowhere but definitely more of a village than city feel, with a supermarket/local bookstores within 20 minutes. 2 bedrooms would be fine or even one, ideally no more than twenty minutes drive to a decent beach. At the moment I'm thinking of we bought somewhere for up to 120k, after a period of renting of course, we could live on the rest.
I appreciate things are a bit unclear at the moment due to Brexit but does this seem realistic cash wise? We will do a bit of travelling over next few years to look at locations. Have visited Spain a few times but just quite tourist areas for vacations.
Would really appreciate all help, especially on location and what the priorities on my list should be with rough timescale as we plan our move. We are gay women, not married at the moment so need an area where people are tolerant though we do tend to keep to ourselves. Will this have any impact on buying property or in the event one of us dying?
Thanks in advance.

As long as you have done your calculations and know you can manage on that money, I don't see a problem in your case. Of course all the other things are important like common law relationship etc.
https://www.spanishsolutions.net/leg...n-law-couples/

When it comes to location, your best bet is to research areas you like and then see what type of properties you can get for your money (idealista etc.). I'm not retired and at the moment only have a holiday home in Spain but most of your priorities should be achievable on that budget.

scot47 Jan 23rd 2020 8:10 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Do not invest all that money in property. Rent. Do not buy.

Casa Santo Estevo Jan 23rd 2020 8:13 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Welcome to the form.
Yes the B word could mess things up for you.
This is the latest thread on the subject.
https://britishexpats.com/forum/spai...it-but-930375/
Money wise who can tell. You are talking of moving in around 7 years time. Thins will change a lot in that time period.
Location is going to be down to you. The north of Spain will have less expats.
At the moment I would say Spain has been tolerant towards the LGBT community then the UK: However the VOZ political party is trying their damnedest to destroy all of that.

el collado kid Jan 23rd 2020 8:19 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by Bigbroondug1 (Post 12794893)
Morning, be gentle with me as my first post after lots of invaluable reading, lol. I will try to give as much information as possible so here goes.... My partner and I are 48 and live in Scotland. It has always been out intention to retire to Spain or Portugal but most likely Spain. We both work and will have access to work pensions at 55. Worst case scenario it will be when we are 55 but 53 would be ideal. If we go at 53 we will have at least 400k to buy somewhere and to live on till we can access pensions. We have no kids and neither of us are overly sociable and lead a quiet life. We do not want to move to an expat community, speak basic Spanish but will work on that over the next few years.
We would like some kind of house, definitely not an apartment, ideally with a bit of outdoor space. Nothing in the middle of nowhere but definitely more of a village than city feel, with a supermarket/local bookstores within 20 minutes. 2 bedrooms would be fine or even one, ideally no more than twenty minutes drive to a decent beach. At the moment I'm thinking of we bought somewhere for up to 120k, after a period of renting of course, we could live on the rest.
I appreciate things are a bit unclear at the moment due to Brexit but does this seem realistic cash wise? We will do a bit of travelling over next few years to look at locations. Have visited Spain a few times but just quite tourist areas for vacations.
Would really appreciate all help, especially on location and what the priorities on my list should be with rough timescale as we plan our move. We are gay women, not married at the moment so need an area where people are tolerant though we do tend to keep to ourselves. Will this have any impact on buying property or in the event one of us dying?
Thanks in advance.

Everything you have said,I would say our two best friends who are gay men, have done this 20 years ago with no problems the only difference is they are married.They have their own business and love their life in spain and they travel all over spain as well. the only thing that is different is the money values.I am sure when you are ready and you have done your homework and think the time is right to move all will be well, we all live in the jalon valley which is what you have described we love it here to.

Casa Santo Estevo Jan 23rd 2020 8:22 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by scot47 (Post 12794906)
Do not invest all that money in property. Rent. Do not buy.

Did you read the first post?

Bigbroondug1 Jan 24th 2020 3:54 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Thank you all for responses. Jalon Valley sounds interesting, I will look it up. We will rent first but think ultimately we will buy as it will be a permanent move to a forever home and we would want to decorate, maybe even renovate to meet our tastes before we get too old.

Dxf Jan 24th 2020 5:20 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Hola

A long time ago (2002) I was in a similar situation. I went round in circles trying to work out how much money I had until my pensions cut in, and how much I should budget each month. At that time I allowed 1,000€ a month with 8 years until my old age pension started. I had other pensions cut in at 62 & 63 - but decided best to ignore those until aged 65.

Inflation has been very kind to me since I moved here; I decided that interest on my savings would roughly equal inflation, but added in a 25% "mistake" factor. I then had other investments that I decided to allocate to a "rainy day".

In truth I was over-cautious and had more money than i thought i would, BUT better that way than be short of money

In my opinion, from what you have said, YES go for it

Davexf

mikelincs Jan 24th 2020 5:44 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Definitely visit different areas a few times, especially in winter, it can get very cold, especially if you are inland and up in the hills., you will need to factor in Healthcare costs as well as you may need private cover at the start

Bigbroondug1 Jan 24th 2020 6:02 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by Dxf (Post 12795153)
Hola

A long time ago (2002) I was in a similar situation. I went round in circles trying to work out how much money I had until my pensions cut in, and how much I should budget each month. At that time I allowed 1,000€ a month with 8 years until my old age pension started. I had other pensions cut in at 62 & 63 - but decided best to ignore those until aged 65.

Inflation has been very kind to me since I moved here; I decided that interest on my savings would roughly equal inflation, but added in a 25% "mistake" factor. I then had other investments that I decided to allocate to a "rainy day".

In truth I was over-cautious and had more money than i thought i would, BUT better that way than be short of money

In my opinion, from what you have said, YES go for it

Davexf

That's all very reassuring. We would rather be over cautious than be left having to do without. We hope to still enjoy the odd long haul holiday. I know 5-7 years seems a long time away but want to be fully prepared and time definitely goes quicker the older you get, lol. Jason Valley and surrounding area looks ideal. Any other similar locations in Spain anyone can recommend? Healthcare costs will be taken into consideration closer to the time. Legally, would things be more secure of we were married. Is gay marriage recognised in Spain?

Bigbroondug1 Jan 24th 2020 6:03 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 
Sorry, Jalon Valley. Thanks to all who have responded

mikelincs Jan 24th 2020 6:41 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by Bigbroondug1 (Post 12795173)
That's all very reassuring. We would rather be over cautious than be left having to do without. We hope to still enjoy the odd long haul holiday. I know 5-7 years seems a long time away but want to be fully prepared and time definitely goes quicker the older you get, lol. Jason Valley and surrounding area looks ideal. Any other similar locations in Spain anyone can recommend? Healthcare costs will be taken into consideration closer to the time. Legally, would things be more secure of we were married. Is gay marriage recognised in Spain?

I'm sure it is, I believe it was legalised even before the UK, legal since 2005.

Moses2013 Jan 24th 2020 7:13 am

Re: Is this feasible?
 

Originally Posted by Bigbroondug1 (Post 12795173)
That's all very reassuring. We would rather be over cautious than be left having to do without. We hope to still enjoy the odd long haul holiday. I know 5-7 years seems a long time away but want to be fully prepared and time definitely goes quicker the older you get, lol. Jason Valley and surrounding area looks ideal. Any other similar locations in Spain anyone can recommend? Healthcare costs will be taken into consideration closer to the time. Legally, would things be more secure of we were married. Is gay marriage recognised in Spain?

Not a permanent resident of Spain but same-sex marriage is accepted and we are only 10 minutes drive from Lloret, which is a summer party town and anything is probably accepted lol. Then you have Barcelona and Sitges which is further away but probably the most gay friendly place. Reasons for us are probably noted here https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/d...-travel-guide/

Notdunroamin Jan 24th 2020 5:47 pm

Re: Is this feasible?
 
With the situation in what is arguably the most uncertain state since the referendum itself it's impossible to predict or even guess what may happen in the coming year let alone what may not be doable in 5-7 years time!

By all means visit Spain and explore areas which appeal but I don't see that you can do much more than that until closer to the time you're ready to make a move.


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