veliz

Hi,

My family and I (hubby and daughter 3 years old) have moved to mallorca for a while now. I work in palma and live in calvia.

what part of mallorca will I be able to live in if we earn 4500 euros monthly.

Currently in santa posa and it seems really expensive.

What part is affordable and very nice.

Sue

Hi veliz,

Welcome to BE. I can't help with you query because I am in the US, but I wanted to pop by and say hi

I'm sure some of our members who are more familiar with Mallorca will be along soon. In the meantime take some time to read through some of our other threads.

Rosemary

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

amideislas

Hi there,

Yes, you are living in the single most expensive area of the island. The further you go away from the southwest, the cost of living goes down exponentially, and arguably, the quality of life goes up substantially.

€4500 per month is a lot to live on here. You and your family can live quite well on that. It depends on your standards and what you expect. Santa Ponsa is more or less the poster child for suburbanism in Mallorca. Nice area, rows of new, cookie-cutter groomed-lawn homes, shopping centers, etc... But damned expensive.

If you wouldn't mind living in the country, and presuming you are renting, you can rent a lovely 3-4 bedroom finca with a pool and open space / privacy for well under €1000 per month. Don't let anyone tell you that you'll be isolated "out there". You'll still have plenty of shopping and activity nearby.

Most (nearby) villages have everything you'd ever need - shops, supermarkets, lovely restaurants, yet prices are a mere fraction of the southwest. And the beach is within minutes of almost anywhere. Ironically, if you have a pool, you'll find the beach to be less desirable as a daily routine; sand, salt, tourists... the pool is a lot more attractive - as a daily routine anyway.

On the other hand, a country finca renders the burden of maintenance which, if you like things to remain trim and green, it takes some work. Also, old fincas have a lot of charm, but few have the modernity that you may be used to . If you are DIY inclined, you can usually get permission to modernise to suit your needs. Prices on furniture and home appliances are cheap, if you know where to shop.

Also, in the country, you'll be surrounded with far fewer Brits or other foreigners (although not completely void), so you'll be living primarily amongst Mallorquins. We've found that Mallorquin neighbours tend to be a lot nicer and easier to get along with than their foreign counterparts. I'd only suggest avoiding going into business with them. They tend to live in the 1970's.

There's also lovely old townhouses in various old villages that ooze charm. 120 square metres with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths start at about €500 per month. If you work or need to be in in Palma frequently, a village on the train line, such as Sineu, gives you easy access to central Palma for about €3 each way.

But then there's the school issue. The public schools in the campo are every bit as good if not better than anything in the southwest. If your daughter cannot become fluent in Spanish and thusly attending a private international school, then unfortunately, you're probably stuck with the (expensive) southwest. But if she can speak Spanish (or better, Calalan) then your public school is paid for in the taxes you already pay. However, a 3 year old is a language sponge. I'd give her 6 months to become fluent.

For my money, I'd say get out of the suburban southwest and get triple the space and a more peaceful and charmed lifestyle for a lot less money.

If you'd like some suggestions, feel free to PM me.

Hope that helps,

Ami

veliz

Many Thanks Ami, apart from sineu what part of mallorca can i live that is close to palma airport (where work is)

amideislas

Well, Algaida (or Pina) is only 15 minutes away by motorway, and is well out of the more expensive suburban zone of Palma. Nice little villages. Pina seems to offer some excellent prices on quality rentals.

LLucmayor is not a particularly charming place, but it's again not far from the airport by motorway, and has a lot of resources - supermarkets, shops, etc.

In any case, try segundamano or fotocasa or Habitaclia to search for rental places. Just searching those links, I saw some impressive, large places for around €500 /mo.

Hope that helps.

Ben1986

Hola Veliz,

I'm looking to move to Palma at some point in the near future (hopefully 2015).

I have more or less the same budget that you have and will be visiting Palma next week for three weeks.

Preferably I'd like a place right in the centre somewhere, but I'm open to suggestions if anyone knows any suburbs with good rental potential, as I plan on renting my place out for at least 8 months of the year.

Could you recommend any areas in particular that I should look at while in the country?

Best regards,

Ben