About the author:  Hi, my name is Paul. I moved to Spain 4 years ago with my wife Esther and two children Raul and Katrina. We have set up our relocation company to give poeple the chance to receive the help we wished was availiable but never got.  www.spanish-sol-solutions.com

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So, how did we decide to leave Croydon & swap it for Jerez de la Frontera?

Apart from the obvious reasons, if you know either of the above places mentioned, we really stumbled across Jerez by pure chance.

We had talked a lot about moving to Spain one day but we didn't really know whereabouts.

My wife is from Valladolid, northwest Spain, which is a nice lively city, it's where we got married & we have visited the city many times. We very nearly ended up buying a derelict house in the village where my parents in- law live, about 45 minutes outside of Valladolid. The idea was for us to live with my in-laws while I worked on the house, along with some help from my brother in- law and the plan was to learn Spanish both practically & by taking classes.

This plan nearly came to light had it not been for a 2-week holiday in Rota, Costa de la luz, Andalucia. In truth neither my wife nor I had heard of this town so we looked it up on the map to find it was very close to Cadiz. A friend of hers had a family apartment to rent out and she told us that Rota was a nice, friendly, typical Spanish town.

So, we decided to go and that was in September 2001.

Having hired a rental car, we ventured out to the surrounding costal towns like Chipiona, Sanlucar de Barrameda & El Puerto de Santa Maria, each being pretty seaside towns & the latter more of a busy, historical fishing port. Eventually we drove inland to Jerez, we loved the drive, the rolling hills with fincas & cortijos dotted amongst the olive groves and acre upon acre of vineyards. We found getting to Jerez no problem but navigating all the one-way streets & actually trying to leave the city was quite an enduring, frustrating & difficult experience but it did not put us off!

It was the time of the autumn festivals and without knowing it both my wife & I were falling in love with the place. The city centre had (and still does have) an ambience of historical wealth and the feeling of a city that was alive and that its people were proud of who they were & where they lived, the enthusiasm of people just talking in the street always brings a smile to my face and even more so now I can understand what they are talking about.

We went back into Jerez three times in all; it was like a magnetic attraction. We meandered around the back streets at siesta time, like all good tourists do. We sat outside in terrace bars, enjoying wonderful tapas and watching our son run around with Spanish children waiting to watch a puppet show, there are no language barriers when you are only two and half years old.

This was a city that didn't overwhelm you, a city that intrigued you to discover more.

To me it felt more like a large town.

It didn't take us too long to realise that we had found a place that we both thought would be a great place to live, an enigmatic city with culture, ambience, a place that was lively but with plenty of plazas (squares) where you could relax with a glass of beer or wine & watch your children safely play in car free zones.

All this, and just 15 minutes drive to the nearest beach; it really was possible to have your cake & eat it!

Spanish Solutions was set up to help people like ourselves, primarily people who want to purchase a property & want to live in Spain on a permanent basis but we use exactly the same ethics & professionalism for those wanting to purchase a holiday home or a second home to let.

We have actually been in the business of buying & selling property in England but when moving to and buying in Spain you enter into a dangerous & potentially costly, minefield if you do not hire a lawyer, and one that speaks English if you don't speak Spanish. We strongly recommend you do this and that you hire an independent lawyer rather than one used by an estate agent, should you be buying from one. We can also recommend independent Lawyers & Notaries.

Another piece of advice is that if you are not 100% sure of exactly where you want to live, do what we did & rent first, 3 to 6 months should be enough time. Again, we can find you a short-term rental if required.

Our aim is to alleviate the unnecessary relocation problems, experienced by many people who don't have the right help & guidance. Fore-armed is Forewarned.

We have the experience in the purchase process & know how the property market works.  We've made the move successfully and with our help, you can too.

We want to help people looking to come to this area, we live here, we work here & after 4 years we know the Cadiz Province very well.

No one offers you the whole package or service that we do, we don't take a large commission for finding you a property and then say thanks, goodbye, now get on with it!

This is a business but we offer a very personal touch, through our After-sales Service & our Members Area, we want to stay in contact with the people who move or have a second home here for as long as they need us to. The Members Area has been set up to put people in contact with each other, no matter where they are within the Cadiz Province to share helpful information as well as being kept informed by us on what's going on, Spanish classes, organised trips or just about anything that could be helpful.

If you are looking to move to Spain, take a look at our website and see if the Cadiz province and our services are right for you!