Moving to Spain
#1
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Oct 2006
Location: uae
Posts: 8
Moving to Spain
Hi all
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
#2
Straw Man.
Joined: Aug 2006
Location: That, there, that's not my post count... nothing to see here, move along.
Posts: 46,302
Re: Moving to Spain
Originally Posted by Debby
Hi all
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
Hi Debby, all i can really saw is to have a bit of a browse around, there are some really good threads on Spain and its pitfalls and qualities on here. Try doing a thread search, (top right of the blue bar) it should bring up quite a lot of what you want to know, and ask. There are some knowledgeable folks on here and almost all are really helpful. By the way congrats about your choice of country, its a good one!
#3
Re: Moving to Spain
Originally Posted by Debby
Hi all
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
I am currently living in the UAE and have decided that its not all its made out to be so I am looking at moving to Spain with my little boy after the new year. I have decided to rent rather than buy for the first year just to see if I could settle there.
I have been to Spain several times over the years but only on holiday, are there any major pitfalls I should be aware of with renting etc and schools (7 year old boy). I am from London but have lived in other countries hence being in the UAE, any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Debby
For example, non of the owners we spoke to wanted to declare their rental income, so we had to pay in cash and weren't given a proper bill for the money. This didn't bother us too much.
For the same reason, the owner didn't want to give us a contract. I suppose that means that if I decided to trash the place before I left he wouldn't have been able to prove I was ever there?????
We rented an unfurnished property. Unfurnished really does mean unfurnished, ie no light fittings, curtain rails, etc.
On the plus side, there was no problem having our menagerie of animals in the house. (something you would never be allowed in the UK). No credit checks were done, no references needed, no checks that I was financially stable and receiving an income, nothing.
However, we do slightly regret our time in rented property because at that time the house prices were booming and we calculate that for two years in rented property we probably ended up paying about 40-50,000 euros more for our house than had we bought it at the outset. Renting meant that we were absolutely certain about the area before committing ourselves, but financially very out of pocket.
I think 6-12 months in rented should be ample for getting to know the country and deciding if you like it or not.