young family looking to relocate.

Hi everyone.
I'm Kelly (32) my partner is James (28) we have a 3 year old son Hayden.
Were considering moving to Spain from the UK.
I suffer with fibromyalgia and endometrioses.
Over the past 2 years I have gotten really poorly.
I find that I feel alot better in the summer months here in the UK. Built unfortunately for most of the year I am in terrible pain from the damp and cold.
If we sell our home in the UK and buy a cheaper property in Spain we would have a substantial amount of money left over to live on if need be.
Ideally we would like to get jobs but wouldn't have to worry too much if we struggled to find anything for a few years.
At the moment this is all a pipe dream. Obviously we need to do a lot of research into areas,job,schools ect before we do anything!
This is why I'm here on the page. I have fallen in love with Torrevieja and the surrounding areas.
Please bare with me as I don't know anything about your lovely areas.
Sorry my introduction is so long winded!
Kelly

Hi and welcome. This is a lovely area with lots going on. It is certainly a great climate for those with asthma and rheumatic type problems.
The only problem would be your access to health care. You can't get free healthcare unless you are over pensionable age, registered disabled or, in the case of your son, under 18. That means you and your partner would have to take out private medical insurance which can be expensive if you have pre-existing conditions. There is a system where you pay into the Valencia region health system but that can't apply until you have been here for more than a year.
Jobs are quite difficult to come by in this area as unemployment is running at 24% and up. For any decent job you would have to have a good command of Spanish but, on the plus side, there are quite a few jobs going in the Quesada area due to the high number of non-Spanish living here. These are, generally, seasonal though and are snapped up very quickly.
I would strongly advise you to rent first, at least for the first year. 2 or 3 bed places go for less than 500 euro (about £360) a month.
There are good schools in the area once you have taken up residency. Unless you pay for a private school it would all be in Spanish which would be no problem for a 3 year old as they pick up the language very quickly.
Best of luck and hope it all goes well for you. I can thoroughly recommend Quesada and there are some excellent bargains to be had on property, both rental and purchase, at the moment, especially with the pound being so strong.

Hi.
Thank you for your reply
Its such a shame that the job prospects are not so good
I have worked at Royal mail for 16 years! So I don't have any qualifications ect.
I'm definitely going to start learning Spanish asap! At the end of the day if we dont move to Spain then at least I have a new skill

Hope you make it and come out your health will improve as weather much better here with the salt lakes and nicer relaxing days Lots of nice areas and beaches to enjoy.
Good Luck anyway

My friend, Although a lot older than you, had the same condition as you and that is what decided her and her husband to move to Torrevieja. She could not go out in Uk if it was cold or windy. Moving here changed her life. She had ten wonderful years here. However she was of pensionable age so had an income therefore it would have been easier for her to make the decision of moving. You must weigh up all aspects before deciding. All the best.

Lots of good advice above, but you really need to have an income, like a pension, or to set up your own business. There are things you can do, but with fibro (my daughter also has it) you don't want to be on your feet all day in a restaurant or bar. However, there are businesses such as those based on the internet you can run from anywhere, so maybe look at something like that. There are not too many young English families here now as they all went back during the recession when the property market collapsed, so most of us are retired - though very active! It is a great place to live, and your little one will be fluent in Spanish by the age of five. You will need to learn (take a look at www.shortcuttospanish.com which is a great way to learn. Please don't be tempted to buy a bar or any business until you have found your feet. Truly most of them fail. But do your homework, and you can have a wonderful life here. Good luck!

Hi if you really want to learn spanish, you,ll probably need to live in a more spanish enviroment than a heavily british populated area (most of the coastal pockets of us brits ) that way you,ll have to speak Spanish and you should find property will be cheaper,i think its fair to say we pay a premium for being in an expat community,one thing for sure most people feel better living here,unless you get into the demon drink,good luck,me i,m a brit in Playa Flamenca love it

As many have told you be very careful as we have a holiday home and have had it 15 year but we were surrounded by people who can over and had to work because they were looking for the greener grass.
Now they have all gone home because work dried up and had difficulty selling there villas .
Sorry to say they all ended up living in or in flats and they had nice homes before they came or so they say.
So rent first and see for yourself everyone can give advice as my mam said words are cheap.
Good look