Living abroad tips and hints for money savers

droopsnout

The pound had a good day yesterday, as you probably read/heard. It got to 1.155€, but as I write is standing at:

1 GBP = 1.15087 EUR
1 EUR = 0.868910 GBP

Note to any new readers: These figures are inter-bank trading rates, not the rate you'll get at a Bureau de Change.

donny-gal

So if you buy low and it goes high, you lose £'s.

And I believe prices in Spain will not go up rapidly like they have in the past. DG

droopsnout

donny-gal wrote: »

So if you buy low and it goes high, you lose £'s.

Whether that's good or bad for the purchaser depends on where s/he lives at the time of the sale of the house! (And intends to live after the sale, of course).

If I pay 200,000€ for my house and sell it for for 250,000€, I make a profit of 50,000€.

If I buy the house when 1€=£0.87 then in sterling it costs me (£0.87 x 200,000) = £174,000. If I sell the house when 1€=£0.70, then I receive (£0.70 x 250000) = £175,000.

In this example, I make either 50,000€ or £1000.

If I continue to live in the Eurozone, I'm happy. If I want to move back to Poundland, and if the exchange rate is as shown, I'm not too chuffed.

Francophile

gallygirl wrote: »

So are you like me & can't understand why you have to leave it because your heart & brain says 'but I live here '

I don't find it as bad on short trips as I don't get time to get truly settled but over the summer we usually spend 4-5 weeks there and I start to get depressed about a week before I return home. I just don't want to leave. I have to try to consciously not think about going home as it just ends up spoiling the end of my holiday.
Where do you have your 2nd home?

chalky_75

Very quick fill in--- My DOH and I bought a house in the Almeria area of Spain 5 years ago. ( It had always been my husbands dream to get rid of bleak English winters!! ) I was reticent wondering if we would tire of going to the same place.

For 3 years we just holiday tere as OH was still working. Loved it- never wanted the holiday to end. 2 Years ago OH retired and we followed the dream __ Oct --May Spain. May -- Oct in the UK. With a short visit home at Christmas.

We have 3 children aged 30, 28, 22. Whom we love dearly. Complicated situation . 30 year old just happily married. 28 was independent but after a relationship breakdown has now moved back into our family home. 22 year old has always lived at home but is very independent and loves having the house to herself ( and of course her friends )

Our problem is the transition--- And amazingly we are at polar positions. My Doh finds it hard to settle when we first go to Spain and misses home. Once he settles he does not feel the same. I miss Spain so much when we come back here. It really is difficult because we are very much people who do not want to spend time feeling sad but it does affect us. It would be so much easier if we felt the same about the same place.

Does anyone else have the same problem -- and if so what compromise have you come to ----

We are now considering having a car in both places so that we can maybe do a 2 month turnaround so that the time in the UK in particular isnt so long without a visit to Spain. At the moment we ferry our van over and back and just manage for the Christmas break -- buses etc.

Thanks for reading !

donny-gal

Hi Chalky
We have a similar situation. I settle well anywhere quickly. DH likes Spain when in England and vice versa!

Gets very down in bad weather, but doesn't want to move to Spain permantently. We both enjoy driving and will drive over for 6-8 weeks either way. DG

chalky_75

Thanks Donny Gal

EdInvestor

Maybe you should try a 9month/3month split rather than 6/6.

chalky_75

That would be soooo much worse but thanks for the thought

EdInvestor

chalky_75 wrote: »

That would be soooo much worse but thanks for the thought

Why?

You said

My Doh finds it hard to settle when we first go to Spain and misses home. Once he settles he does not feel the same. I miss Spain so much when we come back here.

So if you spent 9 months a year in Spain and 3 months in the UK, he would be settled for most of the year and you would have only a short time to miss Spain.