lcortez

So,initially I was too positive,then I was too negative,as in ignoring all the success's,and now I'm back to being to being too positive!

Which is it?

bil

You're fine as you are.

Mitzyboy

Wow
I haven't got an agenda, so dont know what you mean ... maybe you could explain , seeing as I dont remember shooting you down ... also as I AM the original poster I admit I am having difficulty shooting myself down.

I usually chip in on the "going to open a bar" threads, as its clear that so many seem to fail but apart from that .......... you have a chance of making a living here given the right circumstances. Having run my own businesses throughout my life in the UK though, the experience showed it was not easy ..... I would imagine its even more difficult here but I dont see that as doom and gloom, its just an informed observation

lcortez

Did you actually read the post?
Clearly the post was a general one refering to the generally depressing atmosphere on BE!
The fact remains that whenever a new poster comes on here to ask about their chances in Spain, in any given field,the answer is always a resounding no!
Also with regard to the OP statement,I was clearly refering to OP's in general!
There is such a thing as context,as clearly evidenced by the use of the words,"whenever","something",and the phrase "there's alway's a lot of people....".
With regard to agenda,just because the word is used it doesnt mean it refers to an ongoing agenda!
So clearly the original post was a general one, if you choose to take it personally,that's your problem not mine

casa del sol

To a certain extent our cost of living depends on how we choose live, we have to cut our cloth to the resources that are available, so our cost of living is determined on how we spend the money we have. Spending less doesn't necessarily mean we have a inferior lifestyle.

jdr

The thing is people ask questions like I want to run a bar in Spain to find out what they need to do.
I am sure they would rather be told how hard it is than to be told yeah come over its a piece of cake, get the local paper and buy the one you fancy out of the hundred in there for sale, surely that rings alarm bells straight away.
I worked in the building trade all my life, in Canada, UK and Spain and know how hard it is to survive especialy in Spain and since I have retired the work situation has got very grim.
I would never of advised anyone to come to Spain in the building trades then let alone now.
Lets face it, whatever business people think of doing here it`s been tried a thousand times before.

lcortez

Never at any point have I suggested telling people it's all rosy.Have actually made this same point before,but surely painting an overwhelmingly negative picture,on any given venture,wwould ring alarm bells as well,about the nature of the people giving the "advice".
This point has recently been made to me in a number of PM's.

Mitzyboy

I haven't taken it personally, I was just interested to know why you thought I was using it for my own agenda

lcortez

Re read the my post above

Rotor

I got my info from Ideal newspaper around two years ago,heres some other facts,

Shop workers pay from 6k pa

Unskilled construction workers 12-15k

Semi Skilled from 14-18k

Agricultural horticultural workers from 5k

Long distance truck drivers 24k

Cleaners from 5k

Skilled Mechaincs and body shop workers from 16k

Guardi Civil from 13k

All pre tax!!

These of course are regular jobs but if you included lawyers, accountants ,company chairmen etc the average would jump considerably, most Brits arriving in Spain dont speak any Spanish so would never get a big salary and very unlikley to get any legal employment at all,ever!
If you need an income here bring one with you!! No seriously, the way most survive is as self employed and thats not easy.

Rgds

Rotor

ballin

I really don't think Spain is cheap to live at all really.
Running a car is roughly the same although fuel is a bit cheaper.
Banks charge for everything.
Food in particular I think is actually more expensive, this is Carrefour I'm using.
Clothes/shoes same as UK.
Water you need to buy to drink.
Utils are probably a little cheaper

george43

ballin-- your post really surprises me. Do you live in Spain or are you one of those fortunate enough to be able to pop back and forth. During a recent visit to CBS I found most food cheaper, on checking utility prices they were much cheaper and although some things are definately more expensive I felt that overall Spain was about 20% cheaper.
Residents I spoke to seemed to feel the same.
Maybe this is just wishful thinking as I plan to move to Spain shortly.

jdr

No, you are right.

Rosemary

Car tax is roughly a third of what it is in UK.

Water from tap is very drinkable and costs us about the same for a year as it did for one month in UK.

Rosemary

bil

We get our water from our own pump well in the ground, and damn good it is too, plus effectively free.

Why is it that if I leave a glass of that water out overnight, it is fine to drink the next morning (no discernible difference in taste), but if I do so in the UK with that tap water, while it tastes fine out of the tap, in the morning it is almost putrid?????

Spain isn't perfect, but it'll do for me, and it is a damn sight cheaper than the UK in most things.