3 year plan to A place in the Sun

David Flett said:
We are fed up of where we live, everything is overpriced and seem to pay through the teeth for everything, houses, taxes, bills, designer baby clothes etc.
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fixed that for you :p

But most importantly will be work. I currently work offshore in the North Sea and I don’t think I could continue the job I we moved as it is as and when(as in 24hr notice) be at Aberdeen heliport to go away for god nose how long at a time. I’m into IT and computers a lot, this was my last job, but no formal qualifications so about 6 months ago I enrolled in some courses to get me started
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though for a more serious reply - ref: the above - if you're just starting out in IT and don't have much real experience then it probably isn't a good idea and you might be better off sticking with your current job, Spain has fairly high unemployment, lower salaries and you'd be taking a big hit anyway going from off shore work to some entry level printer monkey job in IT. You can surely make it back to the UK in 24 hours form Spain, especially if you relocate near an airport. I'd keep the (presumably six figure) offshore pay rather than take up some low paid IT work in Spain.

If you want to move to some sunny place with lower cost of living and lower salaries then it is much better to do it keeping your existing job if possible - like working from home for an existing employer or getting a stint in their office over there but keeping your UK salary. In your case surely keeping a highly paid offshore job vs entry level IT is a no brainer - you're away from your family when you're offshore in the UK anyway, you've just got an extra few hours on a plane at the start and end of it this time.
 
Dave M said:
Would your experience in the oil industry get you into the US? If you've got a career going in offshore oil I wouldn't ditch it for IT unless stopping working offshore is a separate concern (young family growing up etc). Texas probably has better weather and a better future for the sprog.
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I have been looking and we do have a lot of bases in and around America, if I was to get something like that and be on a rotation I would be perfect I’d get equal time at home an away unlike just now I can do up to 4-5 trips per month sometimes so would be a lot of travelling but it’s hard to get a that you want nowadays in oil, not that it was ever busy. So if I was lol a rotation we could handle that but so far the plan is for us both to move/Work and be at home together every night just have to keep looking to see how viable it would be
 
dowie said:
fixed that for you :p



though for a more serious reply - ref: the above - if you're just starting out in IT and don't have much real experience then it probably isn't a good idea and you might be better off sticking with your current job, Spain has fairly high unemployment, lower salaries and you'd be taking a big hit anyway going from off shore work to some entry level printer monkey job in IT. You can surely make it back to the UK in 24 hours form Spain, especially if you relocate near an airport. I'd keep the (presumably six figure) offshore pay rather than take up some low paid IT work in Spain.

If you want to move to some sunny place with lower cost of living and lower salaries then it is much better to do it keeping your existing job if possible - like working from home for an existing employer or getting a stint in their office over there but keeping your UK salary. In your case surely keeping a highly paid offshore job vs entry level IT is a no brainer - you're away from your family when you're offshore in the UK anyway, you've just got an extra few hours on a plane at the start and end of it this time.
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Haha them clothes are just a luxury that I choose to pay for unlike all my inflated bills, when we look at what we could afford where we are looking for the same price the difference is unbelievable. I had a job working in a computer lab for about 3 years building, updating,fixing computers, making up many different cables etc but there was. I formal qualification to it I just learned on the job over the 4 years I was in there. Like I said before I really hope my work can provide some much needed help which I think I’ll need. I am currently the onl earner but if we both got a job while we were over there to make up the difference I don’t think we would be far off the standard of living we want.
 
I've done it three times, twice to different areas of the South of France, once to Mexico where I live currently.

I can't stress enough how helpful it is to have a good job already set up before you move, ideally at an internationally recognised, legitimate company: it removes a huge amount of stress and uncertainty. Both times when I moved to France, I already had everything set up for me work wise. When I moved to Mexico, I didn't, but I had the benefit of being able to live rent free with my girlfriend who already had a decent job over here.

As others have said, there's not a lot of jobs available in Spain, however it's also true that you don't need a high income to have a good quality of life. Instead of looking at the salary you'll be getting, instead look at the taxes, house prices, petrol prices, cost of eating out etc etc and then use that to judge how much you should be aiming for. I'd also consider whether you all really love Spain, or instead love the weather / lifestyle. If the latter, there are many countries which can offer those benefits, without some of the disadvantages currently associated with Spanish life.
 
That is what I consider the most important part of my move, I’m hoping to hear good news from my work regarding staying at the company, maybe move internally. also why I have picked to go through all my courses that I have chosen as CompTia I take is worldwide regocnisable?

We have been looking at our out goings here and what our outgoings might be there and it’s looking like we could be paying half of what we are here, with the plus Of living in a bigger house/villa, private pool etc,

I think a lot of the stuff we have here we wouldn’t even bother with over there due to the lifestyle changes.

That’s why I posted on here to hopefully hear from someone in Spain, we have also found an expat forum which I think we’ll join once I’m home.

We have been looking for a few years now and travelling to places that we thought we would like to move to,

First we thought cyprus, we loved it, a lot of English speakers, drive on the same side ect but after a few trips across, reality set in and we came to the conclusion we’d never be able to speak Greek, stuck on a island, very expensive due to everything being imported, very close to war zone counties and so on. After being to places and lots of research I think we’re stuck on Spain. But as it’s getting closer we need to see how possible it would actually be to do it.
Probably be the biggest decisions of our lives.
 
David Flett said:
@geekman What Kind of work do you do if you don’t mind me asking?
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I work for a US law firm - I do most client / case management type tasks apart from things properly qualified lawyers have to do. I accepted a salary half the going rate for my job if I was living in the US, but I get paid in USD and can work from home. The average wage where I live is sub $500 per month, many people earn less than $200, so I feel considerably richer than what I actually earn, if you know what I mean. It’s also nice not to have to commute with all the associated costs / time. I get out of bed at 6:55, start work at 7, and finish at 4.

I live in a 3 bed new build detached house in a private development which was bought for us by my girlfriend’s parents. It cost £25k - I believe if we were to move down south it would be even cheaper than that.

Mexico isn’t for everyone - I personally love it but completely understand why many people wouldn’t want to move there, particularly if you have children. I just think it’s worth looking outside the usual British expat countries, that’s all.
 
David Flett said:
I haven’t started really looking yet as I have just started to do all my courses and I’m hoping my work will help me out a little bit, as we are planning on waiting 2-3 years before going I think things could pick up, I know also they couldn’t as well just have wait and watch this space really
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Their economy has been in the toilet for several decades, what makes you think that its going to change in 2 years? I have a number of affluent friends with their own families who live in Spain (natural Spaniards) and their own outlook for their country is very poor.

In their own opinion, they believe their own children will need to leave the country to find work.

Of all the countries in Europe to pick, Spain is one of the worst you could choose. For a move like this, you CANNOT put your head in the sand and just hope that things improve in a few years. You need to be preparing now (e.g. your entire family taking language courses) and if things don't improve, all your planning goes to waste.

Do yourself a favour and pick somewhere else.

For your reference, of all the English speaking countries, my Spanish friends also say that the Scottish accent is the worst for them to understand despite them being fluent in English. You will all need to be fluent in Spanish before you move there.
 
ci_newman said:
You will all need to be fluent in Spanish before you move there.
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There's no doubt that having the language will be a huge help, but that is nonsense. Chances of you becoming fluent without being in the country are zero as well.

Agree that Spain isn't a good choice. If you're making a move you need to consider more than the weather and a swimming pool. Being honest your chances of settling into a decent quality of life are slim, moving to an economically struggling country, without work experience in your field, without the language, *and* after Brexit when you no longer have the right to work there. There's a very real possibility that you simply won't be granted a visa, why should a country suffering crippling unemployment gives a visa to some British bloke that wants some sun?

When we had enough of HK 4 years ago and wanted to move back to Europe we considered other countries but wrote off places like Spain and Italy immediately because of the job prospects.

There's a reason why German cities come top in quality of life rankings. Düsseldorf #6 in the Mercer list again this year!
 
@David Flett Good on you for making the decision wanting to leave the UK and try live a better life style. I am doing the same and will be moving to hopefully German or Switzerland end of this year once I pass my other Microsoft Certs.

But I have to agree with others, Spain perhaps isn't a good idea. I have a friend who currently lives in Spain for a few years. I go visit him every few months and he keeps on asking me to move over there lol, I was even offered a job just randomly talking to someone at a bar when they asked me what I do in here in the UK. My answer is always no, its ok for my friend because he's an entertainer, lives in a high British expat area, goes out singing at bars every other night.

But I always said to him, there is no place for me there because everyone seems to live from paycheck to paycheck, hardily any savings and accept doing low paid minimum wage jobs just because they are in the sun. Maybe this is the typical British mindset, "if is always sunny there then it must be good to live" Well in my eyes no. Not when you are struggling to make ends meet.

Every other week there is a bar opening then shutting down in my friends area and then the owners bugger off back to the UK because they realized how much of a struggle it can be. I am career focused, working IT and Spain would be the last place I would want to progress my career. Thats why I picked German or Switzerland. Other place were Hong Kong and Dubai <------ If you want sun 24/7 there you go! :D
 
mid_gen said:
When we had enough of HK 4 years ago and wanted to move back to Europe we considered other countries but wrote off places like Spain and Italy immediately because of the job prospects.

There's a reason why German cities come top in quality of life rankings. Düsseldorf #6 in the Mercer list again this year!
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How did you find moving to/living in Hong Kong? Interested to hear about it.
 
Lopéz said:
How did you find moving to/living in Hong Kong? Interested to hear about it.
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Great experience, very easy place to go, as English is a national language and there's such a high number of expats.

I didn't get a relocation, just had an old work friend contact me and offer a role there. Sold all my stuff in the UK, packed a suitcase and went. Getting an apartment is dead easy, although you have to get used to getting very little space for your money. The living room in my apartment here is bigger than my entire apartment in HK!

I was in IB software dev at the time, and the money is great. You pay an effective <10% income tax, no sales tax either. 2 out of the 4 years I was there everyone got a 10000HKD tax rebate because the surplus was so high...meant most people didn't pay any.

Pace of life is pretty mad, and there's an expectation you'll work a lot of hours. Great party city, good nightlife. I wouldn't go if you can't handle your drink and have a family you want to keep mind, because as a guy you can go down some rabbit holes in the seedy parts of town you might not come out of (seen that happen).

Major downside : The air and sea are rank, main reason we left. You will do your health damage long term living there with the particulates filling your lungs. Some days it's fine of course, particularly after a typhoon, but on bad days.

Main upside : You're earning good money and are located in the biggest travel hub in South East Asia and flights are peanuts. Did weekend trips to Bangkok regularly, Singapore for the F1, backpacking Vietnam/Thailand/Cambodia, snowboarding in Japan, snorkelling in the Philippines. Really miss the travel side of being over there.

I'd recommend it to anyone...except if you have kids...I wouldn't want them breathing that air when they're growing up. Or if you're black or of Indian descent because PC isn't a thing in China and they are super, super racist.
 
mid_gen said:
I'd recommend it to anyone...except if you have kids...I wouldn't want them breathing that air when they're growing up. Or if you're black or of Indian descent because PC isn't a thing in China and they are super, super racist.
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I find that really werid because im black myself and when I stayed in HK for 8 days in 2014, I had no issues whatsoever.

Everyone was welcoming (not as good as Japan) even when I got lost some random Chinese person came, helped me and it happened more than once. When I was on the beach or sitting at the bar I always had photos taken of me like I was some celebrity lol. 2 of my friends who are as also black went a few years before me experienced the same.

I did get funny looks but that was only from the Africans (lucky-lucky men) but I know the reason behind that because I get the same in Prague.
 
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malachi said:
I find that really werid because im black myself and when I stayed in HK for 8 days in 2014, I had no issues whatsoever.

Everyone was welcoming (not as good as Japan) even when I got lost some random Chinese person came, helped me and it happened more than once. When I was on the beach or sitting at the bar I always had photos taken of me like I was some celebrity lol. 2 of my friends who are as also black went a few years before me experienced the same.

I did get funny looks but that was only from the Africans (lucky-lucky men) but I know the reason behind that because I get the same in Prague.
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I heard all sorts of things from the locals, including in the office. Indian people are dirty and smell, black guys are scary and I think they're going to beat me up, several colleagues flat out refused to go on work travel to India (it's dirty), through to the Indian guys I knew getting stopped at the border *every single time* they come back into the country, taxis refusing to pick them up etc. I'm white and never have to deal with that carp, but I think it's worth mentioning, I think it would do my head in!
 
mid_gen said:
I heard all sorts of things from the locals, including in the office. Indian people are dirty and smell, black guys are scary and I think they're going to beat me up, several colleagues flat out refused to go on work travel to India (it's dirty), through to the Indian guys I knew getting stopped at the border *every single time* they come back into the country, taxis refusing to pick them up etc. I'm white and never have to deal with that carp, but I think it's worth mentioning, I think it would do my head in!
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The way some of them they look on the street corner in HK I am not surprised! Even I sometimes felt intermediated when walking pass them over there.
 
Not much to add that hasn't been said already but great choice of location.

I'm planning on doing something very similar in the same timeframe and we've decided on La Cala which is right by where you're looking at.

Beautiful place.
 
mid_gen said:
HK stuff
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Interesting, thanks. I've been stationed abroad in various countries for the past two years (including China and Hong Kong) and I'm finding myself increasingly reluctant to move to a domestic UK office based role when this project ends.

The Mrs lives in Austria which is one option, but HK is somewhere which really appeals to me. Not sure she would cope with the hectic nature although she is a real city girl.
 
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