Does anyone have any thoughts on which country is best to move to with regards to work and way of life etc.
I nearly moved to Spain 2years ago but my wife was not ready yet, but since then her mother has moved there and lives in Mijas.
My own mother has lived in Villamartin area which is south of Torrevieja, for over 3 years, so i know the areas well especially my mothers area.
We have 2 children 7 &9 my concerns are the huge influx of immigrants and the ability of the state to cope with legal and non legal, although i realise in the UK we really are handling it bad. Also things like water and electricity , it might sound a strange thing to say but shortages have been know to be a problem and in years to come it could get worse. Have they started to make provisions for this?
Italy i have know idea about, so my question is do i go to country i know nothing about and have know one there or some where i have family but i know has some problems(still better than here)?
Im a plumber by trade but one of those people that can my hand to anything depending on whats needed. We have set a time scale of moving next summer so we can make proper plans and my wife can finish a child teaching course.
any help would be most grateful, but please dont start telling me about the crime im fully aware.
I think one of the main reasons people return to thier home countries after moving abroad is the fact they miss family and friends too much.
I don't know anything about the the infrastructure in Italy and I have never heard about water or electric shortages there so am not sure if they fare any better than Spain in this regard.
I would have thought that having young children the idea of having both grandmas closer by would have swung it for me, what made you chose Italy as an alternative? Have you visited the country and liked it especially?
Of course if you move to Spain you are going to add to the number of immigrants that you are already concerned about!
I guess lots of research over the next 12 months is the answer, good luck with whatever you decide.
My vote would be Spain
I don't know anything about the the infrastructure in Italy and I have never heard about water or electric shortages there so am not sure if they fare any better than Spain in this regard.
I would have thought that having young children the idea of having both grandmas closer by would have swung it for me, what made you chose Italy as an alternative? Have you visited the country and liked it especially?
Of course if you move to Spain you are going to add to the number of immigrants that you are already concerned about!
I guess lots of research over the next 12 months is the answer, good luck with whatever you decide.
My vote would be Spain
Ahh yes i did realise i would be adding to the numbers 
Italy came up in a conversation several times with a friend of mine, i have never gone there but have always wanted to, the food and drink is very much to my liking, I used to sell wine before.
Having both grandmas around is good yes but wifes mum is 5hrs drive away so it easier for her to fly here, so we could move a bit further south and be inbetween.
Just looking for other families who are still there and what areas to go to.
Italy came up in a conversation several times with a friend of mine, i have never gone there but have always wanted to, the food and drink is very much to my liking, I used to sell wine before.
Having both grandmas around is good yes but wifes mum is 5hrs drive away so it easier for her to fly here, so we could move a bit further south and be inbetween.
Just looking for other families who are still there and what areas to go to.
Do you speak either spanish or italian? If you need to work then I'd say that an understanding of the language is essential.
I know that there are Brits who have lived in Spain for years and only ever speak english but alot of them are retired and live on "British urbanisations" mixing only with expats.
I think you will be seriously limiting your work options if you can only work for the expat community and can't communicate with suppliers etc. I don't know anything about Italy but in Spain there are alot of Brits who can "turn their hand to most things".
As sue said the answer has to be lots of research in the coming year.
I know that there are Brits who have lived in Spain for years and only ever speak english but alot of them are retired and live on "British urbanisations" mixing only with expats.
I think you will be seriously limiting your work options if you can only work for the expat community and can't communicate with suppliers etc. I don't know anything about Italy but in Spain there are alot of Brits who can "turn their hand to most things".
As sue said the answer has to be lots of research in the coming year.
no i dont speak any language at the moment but i all ready have a Spanish dvd which we intened to learn from and i will probable take lessons here to. This is not a half hearted wim, we nearly bought a post office francise 2yrs ago so what ever we end up doing we do it properly.
Italy is just a sounding board type of thing.
Id like to know what people who live there think what there area will be like in 10-15 years time that interests me.
Italy is just a sounding board type of thing.
Id like to know what people who live there think what there area will be like in 10-15 years time that interests me.
I have lived in both countries and am presently living in Spain.
It has already been mentioned that language may be a barrier if your intention is to work, but I believe less so in Spain. My plumber lives on the Costa Blanca and is originally from South London. He seems to have no difficulties in finding work or ordering supplies, even though he barely knows enough Spanish to order a pint of beer.
The point made that there are many retired Brits living on urbanizations that lack the motivation to learn the language is also true; but these are the very people that have to deal with English speaking tradesmen when the need arises.
You will probably not get a lot of work from the Spanish (or Germans, Swedish, Russians etc.) as each tends to deal with their 'own'. So your desire to learn Spanish is probably greater now than it would be if you lived here.
The downfall of most British tradesmen here is that they want to charge 'British' prices. If you can compete with other nationalities on price and quality, you should have no problem.
Spain would be my choice .More Brits More work.
It has already been mentioned that language may be a barrier if your intention is to work, but I believe less so in Spain. My plumber lives on the Costa Blanca and is originally from South London. He seems to have no difficulties in finding work or ordering supplies, even though he barely knows enough Spanish to order a pint of beer.
The point made that there are many retired Brits living on urbanizations that lack the motivation to learn the language is also true; but these are the very people that have to deal with English speaking tradesmen when the need arises.
You will probably not get a lot of work from the Spanish (or Germans, Swedish, Russians etc.) as each tends to deal with their 'own'. So your desire to learn Spanish is probably greater now than it would be if you lived here.
The downfall of most British tradesmen here is that they want to charge 'British' prices. If you can compete with other nationalities on price and quality, you should have no problem.
Spain would be my choice .More Brits More work.
Just to throw in my two penneth about living in Mallorca. Been here nearly 2 years and its excellent.
As previously said the main reason for going back to Britain is missing f & f but the second is finding difficulty financially. Here there is a great demand within the (very large) expat British community for reliable tradesmen so I believe you would do ok there if you focus on the British 'enclaves'.
The language 'problem' would curiously be partly solved by your children who you could anticpate becoming adequate in Spanish (if they go to a Spanish school) within about 3 months (at their ages) and pretty fluent (well beyond GCSE level within a year. This was my experience anyway. Now I have a moderate level of Spanish but still have my son make the call to people like mobile phone companies and so on!!
Here we have no water shortages (at all) and the electricity is very reliable. Even in the worst electric storms we rarely get a break in supply and then only for seconds.
As previously said the main reason for going back to Britain is missing f & f but the second is finding difficulty financially. Here there is a great demand within the (very large) expat British community for reliable tradesmen so I believe you would do ok there if you focus on the British 'enclaves'.
The language 'problem' would curiously be partly solved by your children who you could anticpate becoming adequate in Spanish (if they go to a Spanish school) within about 3 months (at their ages) and pretty fluent (well beyond GCSE level within a year. This was my experience anyway. Now I have a moderate level of Spanish but still have my son make the call to people like mobile phone companies and so on!!
Here we have no water shortages (at all) and the electricity is very reliable. Even in the worst electric storms we rarely get a break in supply and then only for seconds.
hmm not sure about Mallorca but then i only been there on holiday, my brother spent 6 years on Ibiza which is different granted, but even he said that he prefered the main land. But i suppose yes its something to think about.
I,m actually getting into underfloor heating and solar so not sure what kind of demand you would get on Mallorca, but thanks its always nice to see replys from people who are making a go of it instead of winghing.
I,m actually getting into underfloor heating and solar so not sure what kind of demand you would get on Mallorca, but thanks its always nice to see replys from people who are making a go of it instead of winghing.
I think that installing solar panels would be one of the few exceptions where you would not be able to get by with no (or 'DVD') Spanish.
As far as I know, grants are often available for house owners wanting to change to solar panels, and unless you can help with the applications for these grants then your market could be limited.
Under floor heating also has a limited appeal as unless you are going to do new builds or complete renovations, I cannot imagine many people wanting their entire (tiled) floor ripped out and replaced.
As far as I know, grants are often available for house owners wanting to change to solar panels, and unless you can help with the applications for these grants then your market could be limited.
Under floor heating also has a limited appeal as unless you are going to do new builds or complete renovations, I cannot imagine many people wanting their entire (tiled) floor ripped out and replaced.
i have already said i will be learning Spainish, and as for underfloor its almost all new build because of insulation required, i,m currently doing 2 listed barn convertions and they have been taken bake to shells.
Never said it was going to be easy if i wanted that i could sit on my arse in UK and soak up the benifits that Blair is giving out.
Never said it was going to be easy if i wanted that i could sit on my arse in UK and soak up the benifits that Blair is giving out.
Approx 19,000 brits live in Italy does not seem that many!
does not seem that many!
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