moving to spain

hi all, 

my name is mal, i am 57 year old male, ex army(20 yrs), been a single dad forever lol, my kids are grown now and got there own lives , so am looking to follow my dream and move to the sun to pop my clogs,

so i am looking for a lpace to settle, prefer southern spain and by the beach,  but am open to suggestions, all i need will be 2 bedrooms,  either a flat or a small house, somewhere to catch some rays would be nice lol, 

i will live on my army pension , but am willing to work part time ,

any help or advice would be greatly appriceated ,  tar

Firstly, welcome. Ex-Army myself (30 years) and we have had property in Spain for nigh on 15 years and have lived here permanently for the last 4.

Secondly, how well do you know Spain? It is a big country and, as you've said you'd like to be near the beach, the Costa stretch all the way from Gibraltar and around and up past Barcelona up to the French borders so there is a huge area to choose from.

Would you be renting or buying? I would suggest renting to start with. Then you can move around easily if the place you picked turned out to be deserted off season or is noisier than you want or they build multi-storey carparks in front of you or any of a thousand things. If buying, there are one bedroom flats going around here on the Costa Blanca for around €30,000 or less but, of course, they are not right on the beach, mainly 15 to 20 minute drive away. Property is very cheap here at the moment and 3 bed houses are going for around the €100,000 mark or cheaper but, beware, taxes are very high and the transfer tax is now 10% depending on where you buy (Spain is many different "countries" which set their own rates for taxes and so on so look into that carefully. Buying in this area would add a minimum of 15% on the actual buying cost).

A big problem would be healthcare. At 57, you would not be entitled free access to the Spanish NHS so, if you have problems, you would need private healthcare which can be expensive. You will only get the NHS once you have reached pensionable age in your own country. You can, of course, live here for less than 6 months a year and retain residency in UK but anything over 6 months you become liable to officially sign on as an EU foreigner living in Spain which means foregoing UK residency. You would also be liable for Spanish income tax but, as you have an Army pension, it wouldn't attract any tax as it is already taxed in UK.

There are many Brits working over here. mainly in the service industry which is quite poorly paid (about 4 euro an hour) and getting any other type of job would be difficult unless you speak fluent Spanish. So saying, the vast majority of Brits living in Spain are not old and crusty pensioners (like I've just become) and many have a good life over here.

Cost of living is cheaper (except electricity which will be about the same as you pay for electric/gas in UK) but water rates, council tax, car tax and so on are much cheaper.

Don't be put off. We love it here. We live on my Army pension and, with the current exchange rate, it gives us a good standard of living. Unlike just 5 or 6 years ago, virtually everything is available here and Spain is (slowly) coming into the 20th Century and will probably come into the 21st in a decade.

Look around, read some of the comments on other threads here in the Moving to Spain and Living in Spain categories. There is some good advice on there but you'll also get a lot of comments from those for whom it's all gone wrong. Too hot, too cold, missing family, Brit communities (or, as they like to whimsically call them - ghettoes) and not exactly the all year round holiday they were looking forward to.

Best of luck and I can assure you there are thousands and thousands of us who have a great life here.

Hi mal,

A good place to start would be by looking at property beach side of the A-7 between La Cala and Puerto Cabopino on the Mijas Costa, this stretch has a boardwalk, that other than for some unfinished sections, connects the two resorts. You didn't say if you intend to rent or buy, but no matter, this doesn't detract from the area.

Good hunting.  

You only have to  have private healthcare for 1  year, then you can pay 60 euros a month ( Up to 65, then its about 175 euros) into the Spanish health service , which will cover you for all conditions, and when you get your state pension ,  you will get free care , though not free prescriptions. If you are on very expensive drugs, it could be be a big chunk out of your budget, if your pension is modest.

with the state pension age rising, it  will mean a few years at the higher rate, but at least it will cover existing conditions.

There are a lot of Englishmen living in the zone that Hephaestus said, also Calahonda and Atalaya. This all is in Costa del Sol between Fuengirola y Marbella. The zone of Mijas costa is mountaneous so there are houses with good views from there, Fuengirola is quite plain. Also the zone depends on what is important for you to have near - the proximity to the sea for example but the first thing is to decide the budget also regarding the expenses on purchasing - the transfer tax is from 8 to 10%, but normaly all the expenses with all the taxes and the Notary Deed is about 10%...The prices are lower when the home is farer from the beach...now Spain it getting out of crisis and the prices have already grown like 13%. So you decide first the location, if you drive, you might not need a beachfront apartment. 

Don't confuse Mijas with the Mijas Costa, which by definition means the Mijas Coast, the Costa Del Sol is an all embracing description of Malaga and all things south. Just to give you some idea of price, a front line beach, 2 bed duplex on an urbanisation in Calahonda would set you back circa €250,000, however I don't have a clue on long term rental costs. You could get to Calahonda by taking the train from Malaga Airport to Fuengirola and then walking across the road and getting the bus, this costs circa €5.00 inclusive. 

This message was last edited by Hephaestus on 19/06/2015.

You can buy a nice 2 bed villa on Camposl for around 45,000 euro's or rent for around 300 EU pm  fantastic community to live in good luck..

If it comes down to money then that's very good info windtalker, I'm sure that the OP will have a good look around prior to making a decision, however a 10 minutes drive to the beach is a fair old walk.  

In the 9 year's I have owned a place in Spain I have never come across a 2 bed villa with parking space on the beach with the obligatory sea view for 45,000 euro.

No problem, perhaps the OP will be tempted to buy inland, or not.

Campo:-  You only have to  have private healthcare for 1  year, then you can pay 60 euros a month

Cauition:   I believe that only applies to some Regions but not to all.

And,  " If you are on very expensive drugs, it could be be a big chunk out of your budget, if your pension is modest"

The maximum prescription charge on the Spainish Health Service is dependent on one's income.  I believe an annual income up to 18,000 euros p.a.,  would  mean, 10% of the cost of the medicine, with a max prescription charge of UP TO 8 euros p.m.  That is what I pay, no matter how expensive the prescribed medicine is..