Retirees - Spain
 

Im thinking of retiring to Spain would lik to hear from thoes that have done it The pros and cons.

Errrrr its quite a big country......which part ??¿¿

Read the last few pages of posts, that will give a fair idea of the pros and cons.

And before carrying out any business, even with friendly folks, make double double sure its pukka....

These links may help also, but they are del Sol area.

http://www.andalucia.com/

http://spainexpat.com/

http://www.marbella.com/eng/

http://www.spain.info/Portal/EN/Default.htm



:cool: :cool: :cool:

PS bring yer brolly...

Costa Living!
 

There have been two or three threads recently on andalucia.com Message Board about the cost of retiring out here for a couple and the general consensus was that £12,000 net per annum was about right. We are in our mid 50s without children to support and no mortgage and live on the Coast near Estepona. We run one car but do have a full sky TV package, ADSL 24/7 broadband Internet access and a BUPA derivative medical insurance, called SANITAS, (you will need private medical insurance out here if you are not in receipt of a UK age related pension thus not eligible for Spanish medical support). We also drink and smoke, which is much cheaper than UK particularly with Duty Free in Gibraltar, but you may save some here.

You could remove some of these (Internet, Sky TV etc.) to reduce the cost of living, it's horses for courses!

As an indication these are our annual bills:

Electricity 1,500€
Health Ins (inc. Dental) 1,650€
Town Hall 'Rates' 765€
Urb. Fees 1,500€
Telephone 900€ (inc 480€ Internet ADSL)
Sky TV 720€
Car Insurance 410€
House & Contents ins. 300€
'Wealth' Tax 535€
Water (metered here) 175€
Car Tax 45€
Food, Drink, Petrol etc. 7,000€

As you can see this comes to about 15,500€ which equals £10,300 at current rates leaving £1,700 for entertainment, emergencies, holidays etc.

This is obviously only a guide but you can make adjustments. I estimate living out here saves about 25%-30% on living in UK, and the weather, people, friendliness are so much better. Inflation is about 2 2/1 - 3 % annually so a reasonable pension should keep up with this. You will need to learn Spanish to make the most of your retirement but there are plenty of classes.

Some people are frightened of losing touch with family and friends, but Malaga is nearer London, in terms of cost and time, than 70% of UK and I see more of my children here than I did in UK!

Medical services are good and private cover a lot more accessable and cheaper than UK.

Hope this helps. We've been here 19 months and NEVER looked back! Even the cat enjoys basking in the sun.