Why go back to the Uk? Is Spain not cheap enough?

k 5hive, you took the words right out of my mouth.  I was wondering why is it alright to cause arguments and be nasty on here and it's not alright to be "negative"?  Not that I have as far as I am aware ever on this site.  Seems trolldom trys to prevail,  and now I will take no notice of any of this and we will get on with the pros and cons of Spain and UK.  Trolls need not apply!

      "quote Foxilday"
I was wondering why is it alright to cause arguments and be nasty on here and it's not alright to be "negative"? 
      "end quote"

Actual IMHO it is NOT alright to cause arguments or be nasty.

This is one of the reasons I actually post so little these days. As someone mentioned, losts of people have been hounded off this site due to downright bullying and nastines. I also post on another forum where the decline is much the same.

I've even had horrendously nasty PMs from a certain gentleman who is now banned from EoS - why do people have to do this?

Why can't we just be civil and not attack individuals for expressing an opinion?

Lets get back to basic - discuss sensibly and as Harry said try and be objective.

Yes I love Spain, Yes there are things that drive me mad but I try to focus on what I find is good without whingeing about the negatives all the time.

Come on folks - stop fighting and being nasty!

so right pommers.  i just realised according to sox only people that enjoy Spain may contribute on here hahahahahahahahahaha  made my day

lucas 423

I hope you  are stopped by the Police and get everything you deserve. How can you pretend you are on holiday, what proof do you give-return tickets? If you have an accident and cause injury with your UK plated car, on which the insurance will be null and void as you have no tax and mot ( unless you have taken it back to the UK and obtained tax and mot by giving a false address(fraud) i hope the police hammer you and also have  your car crushed. I'm sick to death of people like you who come to Spain, live under the radar, put a virtual two fingers up at the rest of us who take the time and money to do things legally.

I am not entirely sure people realise when they drive a UK registered car in Spain for longer than is legal, that their mot and insurance is void.  Maybe, just maybe this site will do some good in this respect eh?

The trouble is, Insurance companies do insure UK plated cars,no questions asked. I was told by one Insurance company that insurers do not ask if the car has an mot or tax-what happens if the car is involved in an accident-would they pay up?Perhaps if they did  ask the relevant questions it would help the problem. They should refuse to insure UK plated cars, and tell the owner that  unless they comply with the law to reregister their car in Spain they will report them to the police!

I totally agree.  I  wasn't aware that insurance companies didn't ask relevant questions.  When I take my car abroad I inform the insurance company and the length of stay.  Whilst I am not the biggest fan of insurance companies, ie they seem only interested in satisfying their shareholders, I wouldn't like to think I was unisured when driving.  As I say perhaps people are ignorant of this fact, and thus don't bother telling insurance companies they are abroad.  Which legally of course would run the risk of negating any insurance.  I think having a car in Spain for 10 years with or without insurance has obvious problems, but without a valid MOT this of course would cancel out any insurance, unless one drives the car in and out of Spain to the UK for MOT purposes.  Which would seem a very expensive way to run a car.  I would prefer to register it in Spain and save the hassle.

Of all the people we know in Spain only one has said they want to return to the UK and we know that is because she misses her children and grandchildren although her husband has no wishes to return at all, they are under pension age but make a decent living and spend 3 months every year in UK.  Another friend has said if she ever finds herself widowed she would probably return to be near her children. Everyone else is enjoying life there even those with some health issues. However with one exception they are all financially secure (mainly good pensions that seem like a fairy tale to people in the private sector about to or not yet retired) and the one exception is under pension age but hanging on in there with no wish to return, none have any dependants.

Foxilady-even if a car is taken back to the UK for tax an mot, it is still illegal in Spain. If a UK address  is given, eg of a relative,then it is  fraudulent  as the owner is resident in Spain. and is misleading the DVLA as to his address. Being resident in Spain means that legally it must be reregistered in Spain. So you may see UK cars with  in date tax and mot in Spain, driven by a resident, but it is not legal, as he is required to reregister it in Spain.

Good info, thanx Camposol.  Even though I am always legal myself when taking my car abroad, but this is useful info for others that may not know.

It's not so much eye on Spain, more I must not speak ill of Spain for fear of offending of the ones that are having a good time. Get a grip! You must see the news everyday to know that not everyone is having a good time. Or  are you in fact living in another country?

k5ive I think their all living in Surrey hahahahahaha.  Or perhaps doing a lot of duvet ducking from reality!

I do think this is getting a little petty and childish. We do not all have to agree with each other and we should all be able to express our opinions no matter what others think, but slagging each other off is not good for anyone, were does it get you.

K 5ive suggests reading the paper to find out what people think about Spain, personally I would question that view as from my experience of the press, they are only interested in bad news and peoples plights, so would they be interested in those who have made it in Spain or those who are struggling to make it in Spain or any other location for that matter. I assume you will find those who will speak bad of Surrey, but it is not all that bad or that good a place, there are a number of views.

From my position I see both sides, those who have made a success and those who have not. Those who have not been able to make their dream move come true will tend to have a negative view on the whole experience and those who have made it a success will have a positive view on the whole experience.

People are still making the move to Spain no matter what the papers say or what they read on this forum or any other forum, most will make up their own mind on what is best for them. All I can say is, if you are looking to move;

1. then do do lots and lots of research and when you have completed your research do some more,

2.start to learn the language, even the basics will help you settle in and the Spanish like those who try to speak the language

3. if you are buying a property, then use independant solicitors to protect yourself, dont try short cuts, it does not work in the long term.

Dispite all the negitive press, there are still thousands of people making the move to Spain every year, though many that would have bought a property 5 years ago are now looking to rent a property in Spain, keeping their place in the UK and renting that out, once they are settled and then they will sell their UK home and buy in Spain.

"there are still thousands of people making the move to Spain every year, though many that would have bought a property 5 years ago are now looking to rent a property in Spain, keeping their place in the UK and renting that out, once they are settled and then they will sell their UK home and buy in Spain."

The suggestion that people are still rushing to Spain & will sell up in UK/buy here after settling in is interesting since johnzx recently quoted something quite different on another thread - unsure which scenario is well founded !!!

On a broader issue, there appears to be a consensus that economically things are not good in Spain & will get worse. So, my question is (a) how long before recovery & (b) how long before property prices start to rise again ??

Cheers,

Harry

Harry, with respect I think this is crystal ball gazing.  I personally would rent, as at our age it's too risky to buy.  We've already had a bad experience buying in Ireland in 1997 and selling in 2004 at half the price, though we consider ourselves lucky to have sold at all.  If I were 30 years younger i may consider Spain, but then again no as there is no work.  We prefer to hedge our bets now and travel a lot and see the world.  My personal opinion for what it's worth is I believe Spain and a few other EU countries are in this for the long haul and we may see signs of recovery in the next decade.  All the indicators point to this, and this isn't me being negative.  My opinions are based on evidence and what is happening in the eurozone.  This was evident in 2004 hence we got out of  Ireland toots sweet.  The world is a changing place and if I were younger I would probably buy in Asia or Brazil for investment purposes mostly.   We keep our powder dry now with a couple of properties in central London which just keeps rising, thus ensuring we leave the kids something.

Thanks Foxilady - concur that any recovery (including property) in Spain is many years away. Also point taken re your cautionary approach - we would rent for minimum 6  months before considering purchase & this would not be for investment.

Cheers,

Harry

PS sorry to hear about your experience in Eire - had the market crashed by 2004 ??

Harry07

It is founded on information provided via the Real Estate trade, sales in Spain are up slightly on 2010, but there are wide variances depending on location. Costa Blanca started to feel the drop in prices as far back as 2006/7 but a few other regions it only started to hit home in 2009, then other areas have not been hit very much at all. I think the common factor has been the amount of property development for the expat, so areas like CBS has been hit hard with lots of delevelopments started but not finished, then if you look at the Gerona area, the price drop has been hardly anything, not saying they have not dropped, but they have not dropped 45%

Our own experience is showing more people are looking to rent property as our enquiries are up 80% on this time last year but sales are down 30% in the same period. When we question our clients, those looking to rent tell us that they will keep their UK home and rent and if they settle in Spain, then they will sell in the UK and buy a place in Spain, if they do not settle, then they can then come back to the UK and still have a property even though it may have dropped in value.

No two moves are the same, people are now taking much longer to get to a position when they finally move, some are 12 months whereas in the boom, people were making the move after one quick visit when they were plied with drink good food and the sun on their backs, no mention of the pressure selling.

I do agree with other comments about the work situation, there is very little of it around and what is about is short term, low paid and there is a need to speak Spanish. You can not depend on the expats to keep you going as there are hundreds of other expats trying to do the same.

Lots of thought is required before any move is made.

Hello Harry, no it hadn't crashed in 2004 but I was watching the economy in the USA and the trickle had started in the UK and Eire, it was subtle but nonetheless evident.  And as I wasn't keen to live in my home country, hubby was we started to advertise the house we had built by the lake and the rest is history.  If we had left it a couple of years I doubt we would have sold at all, as the house was 3,000 square feet, when you build you tend to build larger lol.  In 2005 we finally accepted an offer half the price of valuation, sorry not 2004.  I have friends in Galway who have had their houses on the market now for in excess of 4 years in Eire.  As the previous poster indicated, and he/she seems to know the market, caution is the word when buying in Spain.  Test drive with a rental first, which is what I wished we had done in 1997, expensive school fees for us hmmm.