Hi everyone, I'm a newcomer to the forum.

Perhaps you guys are used to these types of posts but here I go. My wife and I with our 2 kids are in the very early stages of planning to move to Spain. As I say this is in the early stages and we don't know where to begin. Location wise we have spoken about the Costa de sol region as we would like somewhere coastal with a large ex-pat community.
My kids are aged 6 and 5 and we feel this would be a good time to do it for them before they are older and feel more tied and sentimental to home.
Any advise or tips would be greatly appreciated on where and who to contact to get things moving.
Also, roughly how long would the process normally take? I know each individual circumstance is unique but again any advise helps.

Cheers

I'm sure others will be along to advise you but the first thing I would ask is ...
Are you a Millionaire ? If not do you already have a job lined up?

If the answer to both is no then I would advise you to think about moving somewhere else. The employment situation here in Spain is DIRE! even though the numbers have started to go down there are 4.5 million Spaniards (25 % of the work force) looking for a job.

If however you have a lot of money to spare then go for it !

thanks for your reply.... wish i was a millionaire lol Employment isn't an issue as I work offshore. Perhaps my wife would be looking for some employment in the future but definately not immediately.

Well that's one major hurdle over I guess others will be along with all the details re Residence, Health Care, Tax issues etc.

Exactly, so many things to clarify and understand on top of the basics like location and schooling etc. I have been looking online for an agency or advise service to perhaps provide me with more info to the many questions we have. I don't suppose you know of any such services?

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. I am the Concierge for the Spanish section and thought that you might find it helpful to know that the moderators for the Spanish forums are Fred James and Bevs, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

I'm afraid not, I live in Madrid and while I'm sure such organisations exist I don't know any but...

I think all you need to do is be patient as this forum has many regulars who will give you all the details you need.

Hi Rosemary,

Thank you for the warm welcome and information. I will be in touch if I need any further help. It's early days and lots of research and decisions to be made.

Cheers

mfh - I will sit take your advise and sit tight for more info

Cheers

we spent 4 years researching the implications of a move and visiting areas in Spain, then once we had decided where it took 6 months to arrange housing,banks, moving our possessions and setting up in spain including getting the kids in school. It is the information gathering, looking at the implications both long and short term (social and financial) that takes the time as well as finding a location that meets the whole families needs. Then a very long list of things that you need to do before you leave the Uk and as soon as possible when you get to spain. On top of that you need to start learning Spanish and I wish I had worked harder on that aspect!

Wow so all in all almost 4 and a half years from your initial thoughts until your actual move. From what I have read and hearing it from you I think it is essential to start learning the language as early as possible.

If you don't mind me asking were your kids primary school age when you made the move?

you could up sticks and move tomorrow and be in your own place by the end of the month- but thats not the way to do it.

You need to research the areas you want to make sure it does suit the whole family, check out the property prices etc etc.

For a rough idea consider costa blanca. The areas and urbanisations around Torrievieja are practically another UK within Spain there are so many ex pats. Its only 45 mins or so from alicante airport with lots of public transport available. Flights to and from the UK are numerous even in the winter months.

Although nowhere near the coast ourselves, a friend in the village works offshore on the north sea gas rigs. He does 2 weeks on and 3 off, such are the flights he books his 6 months in advance and so far this year has only missed one due to the weather between the rig and the mainland.

I think it took so long because I needed a lot of convincing to move, also there are so many beautiful places to live in spain. Yes my kids were primary school age one was 6 and the other 10. They both went straight into primary school at the respective age year which meant my son was technically held back a year as he went from year 2 in england to year 1 in spain but my daughter went straight into year 5. It was hard for my daughter my son nots so bad as he started almost from the begining, not sure I would put a 10 year into state education again. The research of what to do and indeed setting up does not take long. With the kids its finding somewhere the family will be happy and supported when you are away and I would say that its much easier for the children when they are younger.

Thanks very much for the example location. This sounds just like the type of place we would be looking for which could ease the transition for my wife whilst I'm away working. As you say, we won't rush into this and do plenty research to enusre we find the right place.