AdiosAmigo

Hi everyone, I'm always on this forum reading and trying to learn from everyone in the hope that one day we can follow our dream and sample life in Spain.

Over the many months of reading this forum and trying to learn as much as possible regards life in Spain from the web, I have found that although the typical dream is to own a nice property, possibly with its own swimming pool/gardens etc I personally now have serious doubts over buying and am considering long term rental may be the better option.

I have many reasons for now thinking this way which got me thinking of starting a new thread and asking what decisions people made in their lives with regards moving to Spain and what they regret, what they are glad they did and what would they change if they could turn back time ??

Hopefully hear from you all soon.

Moses2013

Everybody will have a different reason and a different approach. For some a permanent move with renting makes sense, while others might just spend half the year in Spain, or go when it suits. Are you retired, or do you need to work? I'm not retired and only have property in Spain (holiday home), but I certainly have no regrets buying. Everyone spends money differently and it depends what you can afford and expect. I'm not making any money with the property, it's only for personal use and I'm well aware that the value could drop. Others might buy a car or spend money on expensive holidays, so it's just personal choice. While it is always recommended to rent before buying, I certainly prefer having my own place. Renting is great for flexibility, but you have no guarantee you can always call the place home.

AdiosAmigo

Hi Moses,

I am 7 years from retirement, play a lot of very average golf as a hobby and until recently was very interested in buying a small holiday home in Spain to use for family holidays and golf trips with friends and family. Having looked into this I believe the amount of time, effort, money and worry this would have cost me, it simply wasn't worth it and It was easier to simply book worry free holidays.

However the wife and I still do want to, at some point in our lives, sample life abroad and our plan now is to spend our holidays until retirement trying to find that somewhere we feel we could live and upon retiring book a number of 2-3 month rentals to sample it. Part of me doesn't want it to be a roaring success simply because having read this forum for a while the thought of buying a property seems riddled with worry and stress.

To be honest though I started this thread for peoples thoughts/regrets etc on not only buying or renting but on every aspect of moving to Spain. What regrets they have now they have moved, what they would do differently and would they turn back time ??

Thanks

missile

We purchased off plan and were very happy with the purchase. It is very nice to own my own property, we have no regrets but … for some it can be a very expensive mistake. If you choose the wrong location / neighbours / etc and who can predict that our circumstances will not change in ten years?

I would suggest you are wise to rent. That is what I would do if and when I had to do it again, I would rent an unfurnished property ……..

Dxf

Hola, I am one of the lucky ones; back in 2002, my kids paid £63,000 for my three bed bungalow in its own plot. If they sell it at today’s prices, then they should get more than that given the current exchange rate. And that is the crux of the problem; anyone buying today could lose a packet if the rate of exchange goes up to say £1 = 1.50€

Given what was paid I think “Yes I would do it all again” but if I had paid say £200,000 then “No I wouldn’t do it all again”. Not that £63,500 is pocket money but my thinking was that if I lived for another ten years, then the price would be about the same as renting, but with the advantage of getting something back. Life is what you make it so having “made it” here, I would have made it wherever I retired.

So no regrets; I have made my bed and will now lie in it but to be brutally honest, I gave it a year after which I “went and sat on a mountain top and contemplated my navel”. My conclusion was simply that moving wouldn’t really be any answer; you would be just running away rather than stay and make it work.

Davexf

Moses2013

Some people decide to have 3 kids, others buy a sports car for pleasure and then others spend thousands on holidays every year. Do they regret it? You can question everything and all you can do is decide what's best for you personally. Ideally I'd probably split time between Ireland and Spain once retired and since I'm earning €, exchange rates don't affect me personally (good point from Dxf). If I don't fancy Spain anymore, I'd just sell.

spainrico

With the benefit of nearly 20 Spanish years hindsight:

Would not have bought off-plan on a large development - made to assumptions everything would be perfect. I would advise try and find a ready-built mature area.

I would have made more of an effort to really learn adequate Spanish during the first year (I got a bit sidetracked by blue skies and cheap beer!)

Apart from that I have had many great experiences and met a lot of good friends and have no real regrets about my decision to live in Spain. Yes, there have been ups and downs but hey they occur wherever you live.

AdiosAmigo

Please don't think I'm trying to suggest purchasing property in Spain is a bad idea. Far from it in fact as one day I may take the plunge myself if the time is right. This thread was not particularly about purchasing property but sometimes good lessons can be learned by listening to experienced people and simply asking them, now they have experience in living in Spain, what they would do differently ?, what they are glad they did ?, glad they moved to a certain location ?, glad they found work ?, glad they returned to the UK ?? etc etc.

I'm just after peoples experiences really as I'm very interested in how moving abroad worked out for people and also someone may mention something regards moving I never even considered.

Thanks

AdiosAmigo

Ha Ha, Easily done I guess !?!?!

Moses2013

I get your point, but most people are only focused on the area they live now and will never know if another location would have worked out better (same for us). I've often heard people on this forum moan about Catalonia and they say that you have to speak Catalan, although they've never lived there. I've actually noticed the opposite and if you're willing to speak a few words of Spanish and greet people with a nice bon dia, most will happily help. Especially along the coast, nearly everyone speaks English these days, but you have to at least try a few words in Spanish. The biggest challenge will always be language and again just depends on the person. Some avoid it by moving to a British community, others just find different ways to communicate or might use a gestor. Especially with Google and other apps, it's not that hard to translate things but it's more time consuming. Luckily we only visit now and usually drive down with our own car, so don't have to worry about things such as car insurance and phone bills.

Retired in Euskadi

If you want to play golf & possibly have a swimming pool, then you're doubtless looking at somewhere near the Med. I am retired, my wife is from here (Basque country) & so our position is different from a couple who are both British. Eg, I am included in the health service here & pay nothing for it. No regrets coming to retire here for various reasons:
* quality of life; generally the Spanish work to live, whilst the British now live to work
* so much to see & explore the different areas of Spain
* public transport much cheaper than UK
* our handicapped child has a much better quality of life here
* you can keep in touch with the British media via satellite links or similar. We have internet radio & I listen most days to something on Radio 4!
* road infrastructure is very good; road signs & Spanish driving is however what I'd classify as "could do better".

However, not everything is rosy:
* any assets world-wide are liable for Spanish tax if you are permanently resident here (183days+)
* being near so many "Brits" isn't for everybody; one week in Mijas in our friend's chalet near Fuengirola is more than enough for us. After a couple of "full English breakfasts" in "Sid & Dot's bar" the novelty wears off!
* Language can be a barrier; get learning Spanish now, because at least you'll have a reason for doing so.
* Don't ever give up your UK bank account. Once closed, you cannot easily open another one.
* Being a native English speaker can open doors in the job market if need be, though it's not everybody's cup of tea. Unemployment generally is higher than in many other EU countries, & especially in provinces along the Med.
* At some stage you'll need the help of a 'gestor' or solicitor. There are many sharks even in that field (though I do not speak from experience).

Definitely rent first. Everybody here will tell you that. I reckon you'd need a joint monthly retirement income of around €2000 give or take to enjoy your life here.

Best wishes.

missile

Golf is your main / only hobby?
You might want to focus your location to an area close to a great club, i.e. rather than a great course.
Course nearest me is well maintained but boring. More importantly the social club is lively with a good restaurant and regular organised trips to many other courses.

AdiosAmigo

Having visited Mijas and played many of its superb golf courses I fully agree with you regards Fuengirola. No thank you..LOL

AdiosAmigo

Eh ?!?!?!?

spouse of scouse

Regrets? I've had a few. But then again, too few to mention.

Sorry