Germany?

debtfreewannabe321

Hi,

Thought someone here might be able to answer a few questions about Germany. DH wants to transfer out there so that we can make extra money to pay off our debts, and also because he hates his job here...however i've heard conflicting stories about extra pay out there, dh assures me it is £500+ extra a month (we have 3 kids) and i've been told by a friend it is half of that maybe a little extra. Also if living costs are higher we may be worse off?

Also what are the family accomadations like, i think we are entitled to a 4 bed, will this be a house or will it be an apartment?

ds1 is also at boarding school, mainly paid for by army and we have been told they will help pay for flights back and forth each term, does anyone know if they pay the full amount and also do they help towards whole family costs coming home once or twice a yr?

I just wanted to know as much as possible before we commit to a transfer. If it is not going to benefit us financially then we will choose elsewhere to look. However DH is really selling it to me at the mo, as we would be right near so many countries i have wanted to visit!

Any help/advice greatly appreciated

DFW x

helsee

im in germany and there are some financial benefits but i wouldnt transfer for that alone tbh. LOA has been cut and theres talk of cutting it again. However you can claim german kindergeld (about 350 euro a month extra for four kids) and you'll have less expenses.Whereabouts in Germany do you look to be? i love it out here but its a big move, lots to consider!

helsee

to add im in a huge 4 bed/2 bath quarter and german quarters tend to be to a higher standard than uk ones BUT quarters are scarce out here as theres not enough to go round!

Bettybigboobs

I tried it, and came home with my toddler just didnt get away with it at all. LOA has recently been cut, and is going to be again shortly. A few friends of ours have put Germany as their pref postings, purely to reduce debts etc, and have totally regretted it because the money isn't as good as planned now. The cost of living is more expensive, although you do get petrol coupons so thats cheaper than the UK. You do have to weigh up the pros and cons seriously before making your decision. Also remember there is nothing to do on Sundays as everything is closed, everywhere and everybody is a smoking zone, which i didnt feel comfortable around...after a night out i stunk of fags, and felt like my lungs were black lol (drastic, but i didnt like it.) And the turks are thieving scum bags, and quite alot in the area we were at!

helsee

Bettybigboobs wrote: »

I tried it, and came home with my toddler just didnt get away with it at all. LOA has recently been cut, and is going to be again shortly. A few friends of ours have put Germany as their pref postings, purely to reduce debts etc, and have totally regretted it because the money isn't as good as planned now. The cost of living is more expensive, although you do get petrol coupons so thats cheaper than the UK. You do have to weigh up the pros and cons seriously before making your decision. Also remember there is nothing to do on Sundays as everything is closed, everywhere and everybody is a smoking zone, which i didnt feel comfortable around...after a night out i stunk of fags, and felt like my lungs were black lol (drastic, but i didnt like it.) And the turks are thieving scum bags, and quite alot in the area we were at!

lol did you have your washing line robbed? im in a hiring in a little village so have had no issue but a friend of mine on patch has had a lot of things taken....and cant put her bins out til the vans come as people rip them open to look for stuff to take or to recycle.

the loa is up for review....its not def being cut.It went up a little this month but its not enough in itself to say yeah come to Germany.

The smoking thing is a bit rank i agree, especially as a none smoker i really notice it.

sundays....some things are open...swimming pools, ice cream parlours, parks, tier parks, kids soft plays etc.You have to adapt to the german ways somewhat. Germany can be a superb posting with a ton of opportunities but its not for everyone.

DuckEggGingham

Germany is not the "loaded with perks" posting it once was. We have been here over 12 years and things have definitely changed! Cheap cigs and petrol is about your lot! lol The Loa did have a tiny rise recently but thats because the FFR was adapted and because we have been awarded approx 0.33p to help with winter tyres which are now law after there having been some confusion. If you do decide to try for a German posting I would advise you to buy your winter tyres in the UK because as the year goes on in Germany the prices start to rise a lot and garages do become out of stock. It sounds a strange thing to have to factor in when thinking about moving but dependent on your car you could be looking to pay €800 - €1000 for winter tyres.

The cost of living is getting expensive here just like anywhere though. It actually works out cheaper right now for a lot of us to get an Asda shop brought over (they do not deliver to BFPO) once a month or so via a shipping company then it is to shop here for food. I can food shop for cheaper in the UK despite having a lot of German shops nearby and of course the infamous robbing naafi I know if I lived in the UK I could cut our grocery bill by half.

Jobs for spouses are few and far between right now if you are looking to work. They do post a few still but due to the rise in costs here and the lowering LOA lots more people are going for them. I think the last I heard 64 applicants for one job vacancy. Its a competition that's for sure! Lots of people are resorting to doing Ann summers, Virgin Vie etc but that is saturated now. Childminders always seem to be advertising spaces which in one way is good but in another makes you wonder why no one is needing these spaces.

We are looking to buy in the UK now and for me to head back and "set up life" ready for leaving the army. One of the reasons we want to do this quite a few years before we need to time wise is because we would be better off with me living in the UK with a job and the cost of living being that little bit more manageable. I love Germany and have enjoyed our posting, the many years of it lol! But if I had a choice, I would not be here now because its getting pretty tough.

You will get Kindergeld with the 3 kids but in all honesty I am not sure an extra €300 odd a month would make the choice for me....that will soon be eaten up in living costs.

Sorry that I seem to be full of doom and gloom, it is a lovely country and there is a lot to do but please know that you are not going to make your fortune here

DuckEggGingham

debtfreewannabe321 wrote: »

Also what are the family accomadations like, i think we are entitled to a 4 bed, will this be a house or will it be an apartment?

ds1 is also at boarding school, mainly paid for by army and we have been told they will help pay for flights back and forth each term, does anyone know if they pay the full amount and also do they help towards whole family costs coming home once or twice a yr?

Oops I totally missed a couple of your points I wanted to answer with my ramble before! Sorry lol!

The houses are nice, again dependent on your area. Though you may not get a four bed. Many, many with 3 kids of different ages and sexes are in 3 beds. The only people I know with a 4 bed are those with 4 kids or more. There are not enough houses to go around though! You may get a flat for a while but I guess that may be dependent on rank lol Sad but true!

I am not sure about the boarding allowance though I do know there has been some changes to it. As for the travelling back to the UK as a family, that has had a lot of changes to, we can now claim once a year and the mileage cost etc has been changed. The cuts we all hear on the TV affecting the MOD have had an impact here

helsee

the other thing is german shopping....its rubbish!

in the supermarkets i miss bogofs and 3-4-2's as you just dont see them.

german clothes shopping is...different!

debtfreewannabe321

Thank you so much for all your replies, there is a lot to think about there. I honestly didn't think anywhere cuold be more expensive than here for food (obviously there is lol)

I am on the fence atm, I'm not sure where he would be posted (if i find out i will be back here to see if anyone knows that area) i have always loved the idea of travelling, so i would be doing it for that as well as extra money (although after travelling prob not a lot left lol)

DH is only a lance bomb, he has wanted to go to germany since he passed out 4 years ago and i kept saying no, so we moved to the parachute reg which was closest to our parents in london....BUT he hates his job, they are cutting extra pay for paras anyway, and I HATE it here, with the traffic it can sometimes take 3 hours for an hour trip to parents so i never see them anyway....so we're thinking it wouldn't be much different over there support wise (as get none here)

I'd love to sample all the different cultures & visit surrounding countries, do any of you do that regularly, or is a case of once you get out there, there is no money/time to do it?!

DH says that the regiment over there will be returning to england in 2014/5 anyway so we wont be out there forever and he really wants to take the opportunity whilst it is there.....i really hate holding him back (plus don't want to get the blame for ruining his career, you know years and years down the line lol)

oooh sorry very rambling post, am very confused lol. BTW we have a 3 bed here so we wouldn't be downsizing if we did move there and they didn't have a 4 bed. I'd love one though as ds1 is nearly 13, ds2 is 1 and my dd is 2.....dd & ds2 share atm which is ok but don't really want them sharing as they get older.

Thanks again for all your replies they have been really helpful and given me a lot to think about

DFW x

helsee

hi DFW,

regarding the travel and the experience of different places and cultures thats one thing Germany most def. has in its favour. We travel a lot...last weekend we went to Hamelin (beautiful city!), we have also been to Dresden and Cologne...Amsterdam and the north sea coast is four hours away we camped there at Easter....Berlin is four hours away headed there for my borthday. Further afield you have pretty much all of europe within driving distance. Because we are in a hiring not an SFA we have basically become immersed in the local community. My kids can speak resonable German and we have been made very welcome at the local pub and festivals etc.

However we spend a fair proportion of our excess income doing these things so im not sure where you would save money to pay off debts. I think, personally, it would be very frustrating to be out here and have the opportunities there for the taking but not be doing things because the money was needed for bills.

debtfreewannabe321

Hmmm, we are on a DMP at the moment so pay our creditors once a month through that anyway so I guess we could just stay on that and that way we would still have the extra money for ourselves if you see what I mean (although i would put my payments up slightly so that i could pay off debt quicker...) i guess i will have to see what DH's work say now and whether a transfer soon is likely. Now that i have given him the green light after 4 years of him asking you can bet he will change HIS mind now! I kind of see it as a one off chance to live abroad though so am kind of up for it (wasn't last few years as was at uni and having 2 babies and putting older son in secondary school lol, but now ds1 settled in boarding school no reason not to!)