chrissyking35

hi every one. my name is chrissy. i own my home in the midlands in the uk. i am 54 (retired), and my aunt lives with me. she is 86. i am looking for a very long term rental property in spain. hopefully finding one for around january 2012. i am looking for a rural inland property with large gardens or small finca. can any one help in my search. thank you.

dmu

Hi, welcome to the Forum! If you post again on the Spain forum, there'll be plenty of members to give you advice!
If you had chosen France, I would hesitate to recommend bringing an elderly relative with you. I've seen many senior expats (including my father) unhappy living here, with no French and no friends, and many have returned to the UK while they are still able. Healthcare in a rural environment and in another language is a problem at that age.
Good luck with your search!

Sue

Hi Chrissy,

Welcome to BE.

I've moved your thread to our Spain forum for you. I'm sure our other members will be able to give you some pointers as to the best places to look for property.

missile

Sound advice. Similar situation in rural spain and public transport can be very poor.

chrissyking35

hi, thank you for your help and advice. i do have my own transport as we would be driving and coming over to bilbao by ferry, then driving to where the property is situated. i don't think my aunty will have any problems as she has dementia so doesn't really socialise with other people. we both have private health care with bupa. i am hoping to find a property to buy whilst we are renting one, and eventually selling or renting the english property. that is all in the future though, so a long term rental i think is the best solution for now. any advice would be really appreciated.

lynnxa

sounds like a plan!

I'd check that your BUPA covers you though, as residents of Spain

jdr

Also your car insurance.

dmu

Hi again, this is a general problem, which is why I'm butting in on the Spain forum. Maybe your aunty won't have any problems, but YOU will, if you are isolated (or even in a town). You yourself will need support, if only from kindly neighbours to watch over her while you go out shopping, for example, or even to have a nap or take a shower. Our French neighbour is tearing her hair out as she can't leave her husband (suffering more and more from the same disease) alone for 5 minutes, otherwise he'll wander off. AND she has family nearby to help out...
Do you speak Spanish? Imagine your aunty having to be hospitalised for some reason - will you be able to communicate with the hospital staff?
I would think very carefully about the practical aspects of your proposed move - multiply the present problems that you must already have in the UK by infinity, in any European country where the language and way of living are so different.
Sorry to be so negative, but I'm being realistic.

jackytoo

BUPA only covers you for a maximum number of weeks when out of the country and they do check. There is/was? a BUPA worldwide but it was very costly and you could not transfer if you had any previous illnesses.

dmu is correct, there is not much support for dementia sufferers and taking your Aunt away from familiar surroundings could exacerbate the condition.

stuboy

I wish you luck but please think very carefully. Ruaral Spain is no place to be if you don't speak the language or are seriously ill.

A friend of mine last year returned to the UK following an awful prognosis. THey had lived in Spain for about six years close to a couple of very large modern towns and in the end even though she had private medical insurance etc. she still and her husband couldn't cope with the bureaucracy and the language barrier.

agoreira

Indeed, and although they won't thank me for saying so, I think they are mad to even consider it! (especially if they don't have a good level of Spanish, a good knowledge of Spain).

busters mum

I agree totally

scampicat

So do I.

adra04778

I also agree, even with the language and good friends around, it will become
difficult, I think the posters are just trying to help you, you can always move over in a while when your aunt is longer with you, at her age and given her health, It sad to say it won't be a lifetime that you will have to wait, probably better for you both.

chrissyking35

hi. thank you every one for your sound and very thoughtful and helpful advice. maybe if i give you a little more information about us it would help. i am or was before i retired a mental health nurse in the uk for many years. i worked specifically with dementia for about 7 years. my aunt has no children and i promised her many many years ago that i would care for her if or when the time came that she needed help. she is a lovely lady whom i love very much. at the moment i never leave my home except for 2 hours on friday. i have a carer come to sit with aunty whilst i do the food shopping. every thing else i do on the phone or internet shopping. i think i also forgot to mention that my very close friend of many many years is moving to spain with aunty and i. aunty has very little short term memory so hobbies are just not able to be done. her favorite pass time is sitting outside in the sunshine, which is almost non existent in the uk. she loves to look at the flowers and trees and also the birds as she always had a bird as a pet. our lives is spain will be almost the same as in the uk, which is being at home 99% of the time. i did have a house in spain when i was much younger, and i must admit that my spanish is not too good now, although i am taking a course on line at the moment. aunty has no one that comes to see her anymore so her only company is myself and my close friend. i just feel that her quality of life in spain would be much nicer for her and also for me if we were not trapped inside the house due to the awful weather in the uk. thank you for the advice re bupa. i will look into that and other health insurance plans. although i would like a rural property with no close neighbors, it would be good if we were not too far from a village for basis food supplies. any more advice or help would be much appreciated.