Especially among Britons there is a commonly shared dream to live in Spain and an often well constructed plan to retire to Spain – the dream usually consists of having a lovely villa with sea views and spending all day enjoying the sunshine and the plan usually is focused around financially achieving the dream! But there is much more to a successful transition and in this article we reveal the secret to living and retiring happily in Spain.
We cover everything from ensuring you’re in a practical frame of mind before you go rather than in a dream like, rose coloured glasses state (!) to explaining all about expat flu and how to prevent boredom creeping up on you especially if you’re planning on retiring…trust us, we’ve witnessed it many a time!
Okay, so first things first – moving to live in Spain and work, or planning to relocate and retire in Spain are realistic ideals for many of us – especially if we are European citizens because then we have the absolute right to go and make a new life in Spain. But you need to make sure that Spain is all you think it is…have you spent a lot of time in Spain at different times of the year and in the location that you think you would like to live in? You need to know how hot it gets in the summer and how cold and wet it gets in the winter – this will not only help you ensure you can stand the extremes but it will guide you when you come to buy or rent a home.
If you buy a home that is open and airy it’ll be nice and cool in the summer if you keep all the doors and windows open, but what about in the winter, it’ll be tricky and expensive to heat. Knowing what Spain is really like will not only help you when it comes to picking a property in Spain but it will help you make sure you can get everything out of your new life that you want to get out of it.
The next thing you need to think about ties in with this – and that’s ensuring you pick the right place for you. If you want night life, a social life, employment opportunities and plenty of other expats to socialise with then don’t go and buy a remote finca! Spend time really thinking about what it is about a new life in Spain that appeals and then pick your location accordingly.
Having done all of these things and found your perfect home, you now need to make the move in a considered way. Don’t think ‘no going back’ – think ‘making a go of it’…if you think ‘no going back’ then you might inadvertently burn social or even economic bridges and make it difficult for you to change your mind at a later date! However, if you set out with the intention of having a damn good go at making your new life work, chances are you will make it work!
So…you’ve moved in and now you need to build up a social network fast. You need to get working on your Spanish if you haven’t already and you need to get out and about and meet people. Even if you’re not friendly (!) you need to make an effort! Whereas back home you could look up an emergency plumber in the phonebook when your pipes burst at midnight, in Spain you’re going to need to rely on your friends and also the business people you make contact with along the way.
The next top tip is be friendly but not overly friendly! Usually the first people you meet and hook up with don’t remain your friends forever because initially you’re tempted to cling to anyone who speaks English whereas as time goes on you’ll root out likeminded people and be more selective about who you hook up with…
There is a common series of emotions that you go through when you move abroad – initially there’s the stress and the euphoria that actually come at the same time – these are then often replaced with feelings of frustration and doubt, sometimes this can descend into extreme negativity if your move doesn’t go well or you end up with housing or employment issues for example and it is critical that you re prepared for negative feelings within the first 2 years of moving overseas. This is the emotional aspect of expat flu which also sometimes exhibits itself with an odd series of physical ailments as well!
If you can get through the ups and downs of the first two years you’ll live or retire happily to Spain and life will become an enjoyable routine enjoyed with friends.
Finally the point I want to touch upon is boredom in retirement. While those of us still working may dream of being able to laze around all day, ignore the alarm clock and not be answerable to anyone…this holiday like attitude to retirement soon descends into extreme boredom. After all, there is only so much pottering you can do in the garden and so many books you can read in a day. So – oh dear, here it comes – you need to get a hobby, get interested in something, get involved in something and use up some of your free time constructively, otherwise you run the risk of climbing the walls or worse still, the classic expat retiree problem of sitting round, moaning and drinking too much!
Seen it all before you know!!!
So, if you take on board at least some of this advice, chances are you will discover the secret to living or retiring happily in Spain and make a great life for yourself.
