The Final Move

Ok, I've threatened it many times but now it is coming.  After a particularly harsh week, I finally told my bosses to take their job and shove it!  You know the story, lay off people and put more pressure on those remaining etc.  Finally got too much and walked out after arguing with a new .....etc etc and really boring.......

Upshot is, told the estate agents in UK to stick my house on the market.  Moving to Spain on a permanent basis in February (only 3 months away) so now is the time to put all the advice given and taken into practice.  Not quite the time scale I envisaged (I had wanted to move a couple of years ago but finances and all that other boring stuff got in the way).

So, first thing is to look for a removals company that get my stuff over there at the end of January (had already booked a flight for then so try and fit it in with that).  Next, sort out my pensions.  Bit concerned that my plans of a couple of years ago won't quite go to plan because of the Euro being so strong so won't have as much as I hoped.  Plus, being only 60, won't get a state pension for another 5 years.  However, in the fortunate position of having 2 private pensions but looking at how much the chancellor wants in tax this won't keep me in luxury. 

Contact relevant authorities regarding E106 or whatever.  SWMBO is over 60 so gets an E121. 

Next, the unfortunate one, our cat.  Yeah, yeah, why get so dopey over a cat.  Well, my daughter found her in a gutter almost 18 years ago and we have kept her until we find a good home for her.  18 years later, still here.  Have been advised that it would be a terrible thing to bring her over due to maybe catching things and not lasting (which I'd hate to happen, and we do have lots of feral cats in the area, witness the c*** on my artificial lawn every time we visit) so hope my daughter will take her in.

Next, have quite an old car (2001) but in excellent nick.  Would love to drive it over with delicate stuff in the back (It;s a Zafira so plenty of room) and flog it for a few hundred to someone coming back if possible then buy another (legal Spanish one) when I get there.

Every weekend from now will be taking stuff to the rubbish tip and trying to clear out the  garage, garden shed, spare room etc.

So a busy time, but after the initial shock of realising I'd burnt my bridges by telling the bosses what to do with their,.....back to the boring stuff....................and the decision made, am now feeling rather nervous. 

Upshot is, will no longer be a visitor but a permanent expat.  Oh My God.  What the hell have I done?  No going back now, though.  Not eating humble pie for those load of (......back to boring stuff.....). 

So, lots of work coming up, Christmas should be interesting this year.

Oh, and I have to tell my Mum I'm leaving the country.  That's one thing I'm not looking forward to.

Wish me luck.

Good luck! I'm sure you won't regret it.

My wife and I did exactly the same thing, dropped everything a moved to Spain. We both quit our jobs at the same time and got a one-way ticket and haven't looked back since.

Alex

Good for you, Bob.

You have offered so many people so much great information and advice already; I'm sure "The Final Move" will furnish you with many more wonderful insights to pass on to those who may follow you. Keep a diary!

Good luck.

Bob

Great post, so so similar to us, infact I've just got the wife out of bed to read it, wish you all the very best, you will need it, keep us all posted as to your progress.

Our cat was only 16, so pleased he went to Sues mum.

And yes telling my mum was the hardest bit

S

Bob, Good luck. I've read and enjoyed your posts in the last few years. You're bound to be nervous. Who wouldn't be? Having said that, I wish you all the best for your future in Spain. I imagine it will be difficult telling your mum but hopefully you will still see her as often as you can and no doubt speak to her on the phone many times each week or else you will be in BIG trouble! Yes the exchange rate is awful right now but I think it has started to move in the right direction although I would be pleasantly surprised if it ever got back to the 1.40's from a couple of years back. Brave decision and good on ya...

A  great post Bob!

I´m sure you won´t but many people tend to compare Spain with the UK, which of course it is not. An understandable mistake, because we all grew up in in a totally different atmosphere but very wrong! Took me quite a while to adjust to the manaña attitude and I still find some things frustrating

I never cease to wonder at the rugged beauty of the country and only wish I had had the courage to make the change years earlier!

Although I am proud to be English and enjoyed a reasonable life there, I have no desire whatsoever to return to the U.K. and will always be grateful that I can spend my twilight years here, close to the very beautiful lagoon of the Mar Menor.

May I wish you and yours the very best of luck and enjoyment here, permanently.

P.S. My Mum found it a bit hard in the beginning but ´phone calls every week and a couple of visits did the trick!!

Go for it Bobaol

You'll find it frustrating at times I/m sure, but stick with it

Have fun & ENJOY

Good Luck

Great stuff Bobaol

You've just got to do it.  You can um and ah over things for too long and never get round to doing the things you want to do in life.

We see it a lot with people that we know that would love to set up their own business but don't want to leave the comfort of their jobs.  I can understand that but sometimes you just have to say "to hell with it" and do it anyway.  One life...so live it.

Keep us posted on progess, although I'm sure you'll be just fine.

Justin

P.S. My mum took it very badly and 5 years later she still does!

Congratulations Bobaol - sometimes you just need that last push to commit to the move!

Like many who have already posted, I took the plunge and sold up everything to come out here and have never regretted it.  Making money is the only bit I haven't mastered yet (and my Spanish is still work in progress) but I just love it here.  Waking up to clear blue skies almost every day never fails to amaze me!

Getting rid of a lifetime's of bits and pieces can be quite emotional, but it also makes you realise what is important and what is not. 

Looking forward to hearing about your move.  Good luck.

Contact relevant authorities regarding E106 or whatever.  SWMBO is over 60 so gets an E121

As SWMBO is entitled to an E121, you should qualify as well as a dependant.  That's my understanding but no doubt Newcastle will confirm.

Perhaps this is the best way to go about this final move, quick and without time to really worry about what you're doing.

Good luck!

Not going to bore you with every little detail but just a quick update. 

Several trips to rubbish tips and charity shops over the weekend.  Place still looks full and half a dozen car loads of stuff to be binned (opened one cupboard and found about 200 VHS tapes gathering dust) doesn't appear to have made a dent in the piles of stuff we have.

Furniture shipment almost arranged.  Not taking everything but items such as display cabinets, dining table, big bed and personal stuff will be going.  The rest will probably go to my daughters or down the charity shop.  Not taking the living room suite as it is far too big so that will go to my daughter.  Welsh dresser, dressing table, other beds etc they can fight over.  Son-in-law coming up to have first dibs on garden equipment and enquired about a skip for the stuff in the garage (why do we lock up a couple of hundred quids worth of junk in the garage and leave the car worth thousands on the driveway?).

Signed contracts with the estate agents today who gave me the welcome news that the market is picking up (quite substantially) and houses are selling very quickly (we live in a very popular village and houses go within weeks rather than months).

Contacted insurance company about cashing in insurances a year early and, again, got the welcome news they are worth more than I was expecting and will only lose about 1500 quid by cashing in early when I was expecting 10 grand or so less.  Checked my pension companies and one of them confirmed they will pay my pension to a bank in Spain at commercial rates, so that's another good thing. 

Work a bit of a funny atmosphere as I work out my 3 months notice but am ignoring most of the bosses.  Big boss asked me to withdraw my notice (especially after accountants gave me a marvellous report and profits up 5.8% in the year as opposed to negativity in similar businesses).  No chance.  Have made the decision and we are going but did keep my options open and have said I will hold on for a couple of weeks to think about it but the date on my original resignation letter will stand, which he accepted.

Her 'indoors still worried about the important things like the cat.  Am visiting Mum next week to tell her I'm moving which I'm not looking forward to. 

Ho hum.  Getting there but still tons of things to do.  Still very nervous and "have I done the right thing" going round and round.  I've worked solid since I was 15 and, after 45 years, gets a bit of a habit.  Pensions quite good but will still be only half what I'm getting now but should be able to do a bit more than simply survive in Spain.  Next on the list is pensions at Newcastle to see about E121, E106 etc. 

Absolutely freezing here in the Midlands at the moment so that's another thing I won't miss.

Oh, almost forgot.  The better half is busy transferring all our old photos to CDs so we won't have to take the dozens and dozens of photo albums which will go to my daughters.  Judging by the amount of photos, she may be some time.

 Hi bobaol

Well, you are making the move eh?

It's a tough decision leaving family behind and one that we haven't made yet, so still communting 5/6 times a year for now.

Packing up a house and getting rid of stuff must be hard.

It would be for me as I am a sentamentalist and that old settee that has served me well for the last 20 odd years, would bring tears to my eye when it waves goodbye!

I wish you luck with your move and hope your cat is going too, else it will miss you terribly!?

Yes, me & cats, cant' help it!

Well, yes, Fibby, we would have originally have taken moggie but, after some advice, was advised against it.  She is pushing 18 (come next February) and have been told she probably wouldn't last long what with the amount of cat flu and other nasty things there.  We do have a lot (and I mean, a lot) of feral or semi-feral cats in the area and would hate to take her across and find she doesn't last long.  I would rather try and find her a good home her first.  Trouble is, one daughter has a big (oldish) dog and I don't think they would get on.  My other daughter lives in a flat and, again, wouldn't like that for her.  Plus they both have young kids and, every time they visit, the cat runs upstairs and only comes down when they are out.  I suppose at 18 she has her habits as well (totally runs the house, as they do) so will look for a good home in a month or so.

 Ahhhhhh poor moggie!

I am sure you will find a kind person to re-home her, it will be a hard thing for you to do.

You you have made the right decision though, as you say, at her age the move might not be good for her.

Hope you find somewhere nice soon.

Kind regards,

 Great news bobaol. 

Temp. here in Murcia 13 deg. early going up to 25 deg. Wonderful! We made the move in August and have left behind the grey Nov. skies of Scotland for ever!

You do know don´t you that if you are not yet 65 and your wife is over 60 and she is therefore eligible to be on the Spanish Health system, you are automatically eligible too. Just make sure you have 2 sets of triplicate forms from Newcastle. Our 11 year old is also on as a child. 

Best wishes

Dont know if it will help you or not and after so many bad news stories flying around in general but, my family used Gap Solutions SL from Benejuzar to move over to Spain and were super fantastic. Phil and Tracy, company owners, were really helpful in many ways during our move not just with the removal of physical items but with plenty of advice and suggestions. If you need their websire address or their contact details let me know. All the best with the move.

Well, a couple of weeks gone by and not quite at a standstill.  HIP done on the house (what a waste of money that seems, even the estate agent and bloke doing the HIP seems to think so), already had a "sniff" from a potential buyer moving into the area but can't do anything until the HIP is approved (couple of days, I'm told).

Things being packed, wrapped in newspaper and put into boxes (I knew the shredding basket from work would come in handy one day).  Ordered some extra furniture for outdoors to take with us as it seems so expensive in Spain, sun-loungers etc.  Furniture will be collected mid-January and will be delivered to Spain first week in February (hope so as we are just there for the week).

Completed my pension papers and ticked the box that says "commute the maximum".  Commutation is tax-free whereas, if I take the full pension, Gordon and his ilk will take tax off it. 

E121 for the good lady has been applied for.  Should get the forms in the next few days.  Was told I can apply for an E106 but to wait until my last month as it is very time-dependent for when I move over.  Yes, I can be a dependent on the wife's E121 until I reach 65 so E106 not that crucial.  However, the good lady has a bit of a medical problem which may mean a new, bionic knee so I hope that can be sorted before we go (appointment next week).

Didn't get to the rubbish tip at the weekend as I came down with the dreaded "man-flu".  Only consolation is that the good lady now has it so she can see how bad "man-flu" really is, but, of course, hers is the watered-down female variety and not the savage thing that attacks us men.

At work, normally at this time of year I am negotiating rebates on insurances, maintenance contracts etc.  and usually save the bosses a fair bit.  This year I've gone for the highest bidder.  Hope that doesn't sound too bitchy?  Actually, I just took the easy option and renewed the existing contracts without fighting for the rebates.  All the people who work for me, 27 women (and, no, it's not as nice as it may sound) seem genuinely sorry I'm leaving and several of them have said they'll put their notice in as well but I've told them to hang fire as jobs are not that easy to get nowadays.  Lots of contracts (such as phones, mobile phones, drug contracts - I work in a doctors so not the Class A and B stuff -) are in my name so I'm cancelling and putting them in the partnership name which has kept me busy. 

Plan to fly over first week in Feb to take delivery of furniture then come back.  Hopefully, the house will go quickly we will move over at the end of February.  Planning to drive over with a full car and swap the car in Spain for a Spanish reg one (I understand that there are some dealers that will take my UK one off me in part exchange).  Insurance company have confirmed my insurance will cover me for 3 months on La Contingnon and the tax and MOT is valid to end of August so that should give me time to sort if out. Only decision to make is whether to ferry to France or Spain (Bay of Biscay in February?) and drive from there.  Plus on taking the car is that all the odds and ends we have left over can be stuffed in the back.

Financially, should be OK.  Will have a couple of pensions totalling £2,000 a month coming (before Gordon steals his tax bit) and will have no debts as all mortgages etc paid off and no rent to pay.  With about 100 grand in the bank plus my commutation payment as fall back we should be able to do a bit more than exist in Spain unless the old quid crashes big-time against the euro (If you'd told me a couple of years ago it would fall below 1.40 I wouldn't have believed you.)  Our plans then were based on the "doom-laden" scenario of the pound falling to 1.25 (you have to laugh otherwise you'd go hysterical). 

Still very nervous.  As I mentioned before, I've been working since i was 15 so this will come as a bit of a shock.  Still trying to find a home for the moggy and will keep you posted on that.  Not nervous about living abroad, you understand, as we have lived in foreign countries for most of our working lives but was always getting a pay packet at the end of the month.  This time, just relying on the pensions coming in.

Wish me luck and I realise that many, many people have already done this but it doesn't make it any easier.

 Well done Bob,

We have only just got back, weather was so nice when we left. Bit of a shock getting of the plane to pouring rain and gale force wind.

I hope everything goes well for you.  It might take a bit of a time to adjust but I am sure you will be just fine.

Keep us posted

Take care Pat  

Great News Bob & SWMBO,

As one chapter ends
Another begins for you
Enjoy all the things
You've been looking forward to
 

A very happy retirement to you 

And don't forget.................     When you get to retirement, you switch bosses - from the one who hired you to the one who married you.

Hope you stay on EOS Bob and thanks for all the great info, directions etc. etc. you gave us when we were in buying our place (had it almost 3 years now and still loving it) 

Sooooo happy for you now it's all going to happen at last. ENJOY xx

This message was last edited by Candyfloss on 01/12/2009.

This message was last edited by Candyfloss on 01/12/2009.

Congratulations on taking that final step.

You certainly seem well prepared and have done all your homework.

Wish you well for the future.