stay in uk

georgia

yes, I was also appalled at those insults against our brave servicemen on their way home. Everyone i've spoken to feels the same. Part of being a 'free' country though means everyone has a right to protest, should we ban those we don't like?.

I'm not pretending for one moment that the UK doesn't have it's faults, it's just that in the nearly 7 years of experience i've had of the Spanish system, I realise just how good our UK system is in comparison when it comes to property purchase.  Things like lies, corruption, lack of regulation, poor or slow justice, betrayal of trust etc, obviously happen in the UK also, but on nothing like as grand a scale as in Spain. Many of the low-life are indeed from the UK, and operate in Spain 'because they can'.

The current situation speaks for  itself.  Yes, change is being forced by financial collapse in some sectors, bad publicity (Priors springs to mind!), and people like Suzanne doing a wonderful job raising petitions to highlight the ugly truths. Cases against the awful developers are being won at last, so there is hope, and I think will benifit residents and non residents alike in the long run?

 Don't let us think there is no corruption re planning in the UK, I know different. Maybe not on such a big scale as Spain but it is there .Also there are dirty deeds done by people in power, even up to MP level. The only difference is they have "legalised" their dirty tricks but they are still dirty.

As for the "free country" business. Yes free for our enemies to ridicule the country and protecters of the country that gives them a life that is obviously better than the one in their own country. I am not racially prejudiced, just prejudiced against these cowards who know they are untouchable in the UK due to the soft attitude of the government no matter what their colour or religion.

Guess we will have to agree to differ about those things.

Acapulco

I think we are saying much the same thing in some ways, but looking at it from different angles.  I see the untouchable cowards as the low-life who have screwed so many decent people. Due to the soft attitude of the Spanish government when it comes to corruption and lack of regulation, those who are happy to cheat and lie have been allowed to get away with it.  Not least because many in so called high places in Spain have also been part of the corruption and lies!

 Spain has mainly caused it's own downfall in the property business by greed, corruption, lies, lack of regulation, and poor justice. At least it's out in the open now, and the guilty parties are slowly being flushed out. With the damage caused by them and the recession, hopefully lessons will be learned. I find it hard to believe that many are happy with the situation in Spain as it stands today?

Acapulco,

Well said!  I agree wholeheartedly.

i agree completely with tweety5. after 9 years here, i think the people who get on best  are those who cheat and lie and live by their own dubious rules. i wish people would stop running the uk down. it,s nhs is the envy of the world-why else do some ex pats nip back for treatment they are no longer entitled to, by giving a false address to the uk health authority? in every aspect apart from weather( and don't forget the freeze in winter, fry in summer here)taxes-  income tax, inheritance tax, regulation, consumer rights, food, fuel,choice- in everything,utilities, clothes, consumer goods, all are better in the uk. don't answer this by giving your ridiculously cheap council tax in spain as an example- this is negated by all the other expenses in spain. if you have suffered an injustice in spain, the likelihood of putting it right is very slim, and probably down a long, slow, tortuous, financially draining, stressful  route.after 9 years the best advice i could give to a would-be ex pat is, don't sell up and move here. spain is fine for holidays; rent a villa for a few weeks every year, when the cimate is at its best, say may or september, then you will have the best of both worlds and none of the stress.

Campasol,

                     why are you still in Spain if there is so much wrong here and the UK is so great?

Today is our 1 year anniversary and we love it here. O.K., it's not perfect but nothing is but  for us there is no contest, Spain wins hands down and despite the awful exchange rate we find living here is still cheaper than the UK and there is no doubt that people in general seem happier over here than in doom and gloom UK.

Maybe some people just expect to much from life.

I agree Acapulco. We've been here nearly 2 years now and although there have been difficulties, we are still happier & healthier than we were in the UK.  I think it depends on what boxes you need ticking when you move over here. After 6 months the feeling of being on holiday goes and the reality that this is your new life gets a hold, and that can take some adjusting to.

We would not have been able to take early retirement and live in the UK because the cost of living was too high, here we can (even with the exchange rate) and there is no doubt that we feel our quality of life is far better than back in the UK.

We are popping back for a quick visit later this month and I know that within a day of being back in the UK I will be looking forward to getting back on the plane for Spain.

At the end of the day it's not for everyone.  We have seen a huge number of people return to the UK as they have been unable to earn a living here anymore.  Some have left frustrated with the difficultly in understanding the systems here, especially for running businesses (I got caught out myself and have been landed with a huge tax bill, which came as a total surprise).

It does take a good two or three years to know if you really want to stay here.  It is a different way of life and it has its ups and downs.  It's not perfect but nowhere is.

I respect anyone who has at least given it a go, even if they then find it's not really what they wanted.  It does take guts to move to a different country with a different language, be far from family and have to make new friends.

Healthcare is a big issue for expats.  We hear mixed stories about this with some people having very bad experiences, especially in not really understanding what's going on and many therefore return to the UK to a system they understand in their own language.

I was in the UK for a few days last week and I appreciate the good things that the UK has to offer.

I wouldn't personally say one country is better than the other to live in, they are just different with their own pros and cons...and I'm not even thinking about the weather.

Justin

We are in Spain a lot these days but I do like where we are in the UK &, for the time being, we will be keeping both homes. I, personally, like the best of both worlds. (Not so my husband as he wants to relocate to Spain permanently).