Six years ago we boarded a plane with our two-year-old twins heading for a Spanish adventure. I was 30 and Susan just 26 at the time. We were making the move that most normally make much later in life.
Our preparations during the previous eighteen months before we moved should have made our Spanish adventure start relatively smoothly, although that turned out to be quite far from reality.
Those you who have watched our Spain Uncut video series will be familiar with our story but if you haven’t watched it yet then read on. I hope some of the points here will help you on your way if you too are planning on moving to Spain.
Over the past few months I’ve seen more and more people talk about moving to Spain to live and work. It’s as if people are once again warming to the idea. Many are doing it with just a few Euros in their pocket, throwing all caution to the wind and just doing it.
Although I applaud them for their bravery, I also think they are crazy. We’ve seen so many people have to leave Spain, we’ve seen families broken up and some very desperate people. Moving abroad to any country is a massive commitment and a life-changing moment, but I do worry about those that haven’t really thought it through properly.
Let’s take the case of schooling.
Why do so many people think it’s perfectly acceptable to put an English speaking thirteen year old into a Spanish school without knowing any Spanish at all? Would the parents themselves be comfortable in a room of Spanish speaking people only? How much would they understand? Nothing is the answer. So why do it to the children?
Parents often think that they are doing the best for the kids by bringing them to Spain. Think hard about this. It’s a totally different learning style, a totally different language in a totally foreign environment. It’s the reason we see so many teenage expat children hanging around here with nothing to do. They don’t go to school, they don’t have jobs. They have become wasters.
Starting at a younger age most expat kids can do well in a Spanish school, but dumping young teenagers into a foreign school will do them no favours whatsoever. If you want the best for your children think very hard about this. You may think that by moving to Spain you will give your kids a better quality of life, but by screwing up their education you will be undoing all of the benefits of moving to and living in Spain.
You may need to consider the cost of an International English speaking school for your kids. If your kids are older and you need to do this, but can’t afford the 1,000 or so Euros every month then....don’t move. That’s it.
Will you be looking for a job?
We are still getting many people on the forums looking to move to Spain hoping to find a job. Unless you already know someone who will gladly offer you a job (called “enchufe” in Spain) then you may as well forget it.
There really are so few jobs available that basing your entire move on hoping to find a job is crazy. It’s just not going to happen. Even if you do find one you won’t get paid very much and job security is generally low.
A couple of years ago I met the editor of an English newspaper on the coast here and he told me that he was paid 1,000 Euros per month....and that’s the editor of a newspaper! And a couple of months later he lost his job as the paper went out of business.
Instead, consider setting up your own business. This is crazy too but you have more chance of earning a living if you can really service the needs of people here yourself. The systems in place for running your own business are not so straight forward and it is expensive, so you will need to do plenty of research into this before you move over.
There are grants available for new businesses too so this may be something you’ll want to look into.
Where to live
After schooling, choosing where to live is probably the second most important decision. Do you want to live in a city (more opportunities), a quiet village, near the sea, in the mountains, in a closed expat style community, etc.
If you have young kids and you want them to integrate well then you really need to get amongst the Spanish. Look for predominantly Spanish communities and not the more remote mainly expat communities.
Also, don’t blow all of your money buying a property. There are so many places to rent at the moment and very reasonable rates. It takes time to know whether you want to live in an area. Rent first, try it out for a while. If you then want to plant some roots chat to a local estate agent.
Learning Spanish
I was in Italy recently and I found it really frustrating not being able to get my point across properly, especially in the pharmacy one day.
How on Earth do people survive in Spain without speaking any Spanish? I know many Spaniards speak English these days but they don’t all speak English, and it doesn’t come across well if you don’t even make the effort to speak a bit of Spanish.
Most of the Spanish parents we know from the school DO NOT speak English. How could you ever get to know these people if you can’t even communicate with them? I know the Spanish aren’t so interested in making new friends anyway, as they rely more on the families, but still, at least we get invited to their “days out” being the only “guiris” that actually speak Spanish.
And how do parents talk to the teachers about their kids’ education??
How do expats converse with the electricity company?
I often get asked to translate something or make a call for someone, and I don’t generally mind, but if you seriously want to live in a foreign country then you must make a big effort to learn some of the language.
“I’m too old to learn Spanish” is NOT an excuse....and being too busy is definitely NOT an excuse either.
Make the effort. There are always courses everywhere, language-exchange groups, etc. There is no excuse and you will enjoy a much better experience having some command of the language.
The safest place on Earth
We often hear expats talk about how safe it is along the coasts of Spain and I cringe when people say that. They let their kids roam free, they leave windows and doors open and the walk around with their wallet hanging out their back pockets.
Is there crime along the costas? Of course there is and you’d be naive to think any differently. There have been several gang shootings around Marbella for example, paedophiles hiding out in Spain on the run from the UK, hold-ups at the banks and more.
With unemployment so high now the number of burglaries and muggings has really rocketed. Just ask my neighbour who’s a local policeman.
Many expats think that nothing happens here because they live in a bubble. They never read the Spanish news and the English newspapers generally don’t report everything you read in the Spanish press.
How many expats reading this can name the leader of the opposition party in government in Spain? And what party does he represent? If you watch or read the Spanish news his name is in it every day. Can you name him?
Talking to an older Spanish friend the other day, he was telling me that he remembers the days, going back just 10 years or so, where everyone in the village always left their front door open and they were always in and out of each others houses. I personally thought that that’s how it still was but he said it’s very different theses days, people are more scared and you won’t find so many open doors any more.
Anywhere you live there will always be crime, dodgy people and perverts. It’s no different in Spain...and please don’t try and argue this one with me.
I’ve even recently had some problems here with some people and even had to report them to the police, only to find that their friend was the one I spoke to at the police station and therefore they had a good laugh at me. I had to take some other more extreme action to get a problem sorted. Yes, these things happen everywhere, including Spain.
Why so negative?
This may all sound very negative but I’m not trying to put you off moving to Spain. I want you to be as prepared as possible. I want you to really understand that Spain isn’t paradise and the answer to all your problems. It can be but it isn’t for everyone.
I haven’t mentioned this before but we nearly moved back to the UK this year. In fact, at one point we decided we were going to leave, just like many others we’ve met over the years.
But in the end we’ve decided to stay, for now, mainly because our kids are so happy here, they love their Spanish school, their friends and they love Spain! I personally never say never.
It can be very tough in a foreign country, especially when it comes to making a living. Your options tend to be more limited especially with language constraints. I actually bumped into some friends I haven’t seen for a few months recently and they were of the “I would never go back to the UK if you paid me” variety. However, they told me that they are struggling so badly that they may need to return now before they burn up what’s left of their savings. I hear this quite a lot.
I’ve previously covered what I love about Spain and most people who want to move here already know this.
Property you can now afford
On a more positive note, there has also never been a better time to hunt around for property. Prices haven’t been this low for many years and you can pick up some incredible bargains if you talk to the right agents. Most of these properties are finished in up-and-running communities so many of the off-plan nightmares of the boom era have gone.
A lot of the fly-by-night estate agents went out of business a long time ago and we are left with some of the best now who have survived on their established reputations.
Enjoy it
I do love living in Spain and many of our expat friends are the same. But, with just some words of warning I hope that those of you who are looking to move here, you may be able to enjoy a much smoother ride that those of us who have gone before you.
Be prepared, be sensible, bring plenty of money, be safe and enjoy it.
Don’t forget to check out our Spain Uncut video series. We are offering a 50% discount for our 6th anniversary week. You can get access to it for just €23 today instead of the normal €47. It’s got all the advice you should need for a happy and safe move to Spain.
Wishing you a very happy life in Spain!
Justin