Living abroad........?

Question

I am a pensioner who has been advised to go and live in a warm dry climate for the benefit of my arthritis and weak chest. I have no other languages, not a great deal of money and do not want the exercise to be too complicated. Spain is the obvious choice and there are communities of Brits. there, which would ease the language problem. However I am not really keen to live by the beach on the Costa Del Fish and Chips. In fact I don't care if I never see a beach again. There are places like Malta and Cyprus, but I do not know if an island climate would suit. I will have to rely on public, not private health facilities. Can any kind person with RELEVANT EXPERIENCE advise me please?

Answer 1

Did you see watchdog last night? I guess not.

There's a huge argument kicking off in spain because they government is ordering the demolition of any bulidings where proper planning permission wasn't given.
Many thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of brits bought property and corrupt councils gave permission and it turns out it's worthless, so apartment blocks, villas, houses are under the threat of demolition.
The goverment is on a mission and it seems they don't care who owns it, what happened, who will loose money, the buliding is going to be ripped down regardless.

I can comment from experience in Cyprus because i have (older) family and friends living there and i can tell you it's a brilliant place to retire.
Why? Well, as a brit you get lots of perks such as double tax relief on your pension, many things you might buy come with massive tax benefits too, the link to the Uk really does work for you.
The weather is fantastic because it still has recognisable seasons, many people from the UK find a country with heat every day of the year get depression, we expect to see changes and our body has adjusted to that.

Everyone speaks english, the drive on the right side of the road (our side.lol) so you can communicate, get around and live there without that feeling of being isolated.
BUT, when you've been there a while you can start to embrace the different culture, there is a language to learn, you really have everything without the drawbacks.

And best of all, hang on a few years and i'll probably be your next door neighbour!

Answer 2

Hello,
I live near the city of Valencia and wouldn't advise you to come here. The weather is very humid and doesn't suit everybody. Living in Spain is great but if you cnnot speak the language you would be better in Costa Blanca or Costa del Sol. However , Javea is a couple of hours from Valencia and it has an ex pat community and English speaking doctors. Someone told me that it has the healthiest micro-climate in Spain. It's really nice up market area.

Answer 3

We moved to France (Normandy) 18 months ago, we did not speak the language and found it hard going, we can now converse, the climate is a little milder than UK but not much, the living expenses though are smaller, We have just found out that we don't have to pay the local council tax as we are retired, there is some glitch in the health service for none retired but that doesn't affect us. The local population have made us feel very welcome and they are very friendly,the laws on house purchase are very strict and you will not get ripped off. We bought a 5 bedroom detached house in 3/4 acre, a huge garage that accommodates our caravan, two cars and a working area, it is more like an aircraft hangar, for £80,000, wouldn't change it for a moment

Answer 4

I can't really advise you but I am sorry about your arthritis. Be careful if you go abroad. There is no NHS and very little in the way of Social Services if you need help in the home or personal care. Some parts of Spain are full of elderly people, struggling with ill health and disabilities.

Answer 5

i have never look into the problems (visa - entry permits etc) i would face moving to another country but if i had to move to a warm dry climate i would consider a very small town around brownsville tx or some where along the new mexico border!!!

overseas i think i could i would pick a very small town in corsa or sardegnia -- i travel 3 weeks through that area this fall and i thing i could live there (i like you only speak english)

advise before i made any move i would spend one full winter there as a visitor before i up and pull stakes and moved!!!

Answer 6

i'm Irish yet I lived in Swizterland for 8 yrs whilst i became right into a baby and enjoyed it, very worldwide kinda city met magnificent human beings from all walks of existence, plus i will talk French now so as that's an advantage. After my degree i'm hoping to trip and could definately evaluate residing overseas lower back. Sorry to hearken to you probably did no longer appreciate Spain prejudices are no longer cool!

Answer 7

I do hope you find a place as I understand about the arthritis and living with someone who has asthma. I could never go abroad because I would miss the grandkids too much.

Answer 8

I have asthma. Many of the countries have a lot of older buildings. These have some sort of mold or fungus that gives me attacks. Just FYI Italy does so I'm sure Spain does also.

Answer 9

Be careful if you buy in Cyprus. When Turkey invaded, they took properties belonging to the Greek Cypriots and now they are suing them for the return of them , and winning. So if you buy from a Turkish vendor, it may not be theirs to sell, and you will loose the house.

Answer 10

Malta is mostly English speaking