Survey finds Spain is where British expats are happiest

January 24, 2012 – 10:25 pm

Brits happiest in Tenerife and Spain says survey

British expats are happiest in Spain, followed by Canada and Germany, according to new research which also examined their cost of living and financial well being.

The survey by Lloyds TSB International also found that overall British expats are far happier in their adopted countries than in the UK.

Overall, 68% of those asked said that they felt happier where they were than in the UK, although for certain countries this figure was much higher. Spain ranked number one for expat happiness, with over three quarters, 75.9%, of Brits living there saying they are happier than back at home. Germany also rates highly on the happiness scale with 71% saying they are happier than in the UK.

Source: ExpatForum.com

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do, Weather | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

More expats planning to stay abroad

October 27, 2011 – 2:24 pm

In February, Lloyds TBS International released a survey that suggested 67 per cent of expats had no plans to return to Britain – compared to just 56 per cent when the same survey was conducted six months before.

Now, research by the company has revealed that even more people (69 per cent) are planning to stay abroad permanently, with 15 per cent saying they have cancelled plans to return in just the past year.

A combination of improved financial prospects and the belief that quality of life is higher overseas seemed to be the main motivation behind expats’ decision to stay. Despite the financial hardship that many expats, particularly those in Europe, have suffered due to adverse currency fluctuations since the beginning of the economic crisis, 64 per cent said they were still financially better-off abroad, with only a quarter saying that the cost of living was higher.

Nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) per cent said their quality of life was higher, with 51 per cent agreeing that their new home was a better place to bring up children. Many expats also felt safer abroad, with just 13 per cent saying that their neighbourhoods in Britain had been less dangerous.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

New savings accounts for Expats

October 4, 2011 – 9:56 am

New offshore accounts for Expats

Offshore savers are set to benefit from a new choice of offshore savings accounts while accessing accounts by mobile is also being made enhanced as two major banks target expats.

Nationwide International, the offshore subsidiary of the UK based Nationwide Building Society, has launched a new range of savings accounts.

Source: ExpatForum.com

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Inspirational, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Expats set up action group to fight Nordic banks.

September 15, 2011 – 9:05 am

Expats launch scheme to challenge Nordic banks

Expats who bought into unsuccessful equity release schemes and now face losing their properties have set up an action group to fight the Nordic banks behind the schemes.

Tempted by the offer of a salary for life and an inheritance tax reduction, organisers of Equity Release Victims Association, Ian Sherdley, 69, and Euan Armstrong, 73, used their Spanish holiday homes as collateral to buy into the equity release schemes.

The schemes were sold by independent financial advisors working the expat communities along the Costa del Sol on behalf of Denmark’s biggest bank Danske Bank and Nordea Bank SA.

They were told that if they took out full mortgages against the value of their Andalucian homes, which were fully paid for, and then gave the money to the bank to invest, their inheritance tax liability would be reduced and they’d receive a small lump sum, as well as a monthly return on the bank’s investment which would cover the cost of the remortgage and provide a small salary.

Source: The Telegraph

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Holiday, Inspirational, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Tax rules reforms by UK treasury

August 13, 2011 – 10:22 am

New UK treasury rules affect property owners in Tenerife.

New UK treasury reforms could see retirees who live and own property abroad able to spend up to a third of their time back home each year without paying any tax.

The new laws, to be implemented in April 2012 if they are passed, wll allow British retirees living abroad to be back in the UK for 119 days of the year before they are liable for any local taxes. This will come as positive news for many expats who live and own properties in European destinations such as France or Spain, but still spend a significant part of the year back in the UK seeing friends and family or for medical issues.

Under current regulations, expat retirees are only able to spend up to 90 days in the UK per year before they are deemed ‘resident’ and charged tax. Not only will this number of days be extended in the new laws, it will also allow those who have been home for under 90 days in the last 2 tax years able to retrospectively ‘claim back’ their extra days – in other words, they will be able to spend 182 days total in the UK next year before they are charged tax.

Chief executive of tax and investment planning firm Blevins Franks, David Franks, said the reforms would be a welcome relief for both British expats living abroad, and foreigners who own property in the UK and spend significant time there. “The new rules are a major advance in providing certainty for individuals who have homes in the UK and visit there frequently, so we hope they will be implemented”, he said. “They are still at the draft stage at the moment, but they have been welcomed by tax practitioners and so we do not expect any major changes.”

Hopefully, those expats in Tenerife will  be able to take advantage of the new rules when necessary.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

End to the expats problems when buying homes in EU?

June 21, 2011 – 12:30 pm

Guarantees for ex pats buying in Spain and Tenerife via ELRA?

EU parliament vice president Diana Wallis MEP has commended a pilot scheme that promises to end the probems experienced by expats when buying property in Spain,Tenerife and other EU countries.The scheme, set up by the European Land Registry Association and funded by the EU, allows for the purchasing procedure to be settled in the buyer’s home country and under the protective laws of that country. It also guarantees compensation for unknown restrictions and violation of the contract by the seller. Currently piloted in Holland and Spain, the Cross Border Electronic Conveyancing (CROBECO) scheme means that a Dutch buyer of Spanish real estate can apply Dutch law to the contract and ask a Dutch court for compensation from the seller if he later finds out there are unknown public limitations, such as retrospective planning laws, affecting the property. Pilots with other countries are expected later this year. Diana Wallis MEP (Liberal Democrats, UK), who has long campaigned for an EU-wide guarantee of legal certainty when buying cross-border, said: “I feel more and more convinced about the work of the Land Registry.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Poor planning causes problems for British expats

April 19, 2011 – 4:45 pm

Josefina Cruz, councillor for public works and housing unhappy with Expats in Andalucia

Josefina Cruz, councillor for public works and housing, referred to British expats as ‘a group of people who are not of this country, who have settled here illegally in our territory…who are now demanding us to solve a problem that they have been responsible for creating’. She made the comments during a parliamentary debate last month.

12 Britons who own illegally built homes in the Valley and who belong to the organisation Abusos Urbanisticos Almanzora No (AUAN), campaigning for the legalisation of property in the region, are now collectively suing the councillor for alleged discrimination under Article 510.2 of the Spanish criminal code.

Maura Hillen, president of AUAN, said: “The members of our association who have made this complaint are victims of the chaotic planning system in Andalucia, which has clearly failed and continues to fail.

“They were assured that everything was alright when they bought their homes and now find themselves immersed in legal proceedings that could result in the demolition of their house.”

Could this happen in Tenerife I wonder?

Source: Telegraph Online

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Pensioners abandon retirement dream due to sterling weakness

December 14, 2010 – 2:46 pm

The value of Sterling against the Euro is concerning for pensioners

Many UK pensioners are being forced to abandon their dream of retiring abroad because of the weakness of sterling, research has indicated.

Specialist currency brokers said it had seen a 28 per cent jump in the number of retired expats who were selling up and returning to the UK during the past 12 months. The situation  is a result of  a combination of the weakness of sterling, in which most retired expats still receive their pension, and rising inflation.

A spokesman said during the past five years the value of sterling had fluctuated by up to 67 per cent against the currencies in popular retirement destinations, having a dramatic impact on the amount of money people had to live off each month.

For people who have retired in eurozone countries, such as France, Spain and the Canary Islands, exchange rates on a typical monthly transfer of £1,175 have varied by 49 per cent during the past five years, varying from a high of 1,793 euros to a low of just 589 euros.

Pensioners Paul and Cherie Ripley have been trying to sell up and return to the UK from Alicante for the last 18 months, having watched the value of their house fall by 50 per cent in the last six years.

Mr Ripley said: “A combination of the exchange rate and the economic crisis has meant that we have lost a hell of a lot of money. The catch is we can’t really afford to stay and we can’t afford to buy back home. The worry on top is that Spanish death duties are extremely fierce and we, like a lot of people out here, didn’t really investigate these extra costs when moving out here, retirement in the sun was a big draw at the time.”

Pensioners in the US have seen a 53 per cent swing in the number of dollars they get for the same amount, while those in Australia have been the hardest hit, seeing the number of Australian dollars £1,175 buys vary by 67 per cent, ranging from 3,112 Australian dollars to just 1,247 Australian dollars.

To make matters worse, around half of people who retire abroad do not have a state pension that increases each year in line with inflation.

Pensioners who retire to countries such as Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, which do not have a reciprocal social security arrangement with the UK, have the value of their state pension frozen at the date on which they left the UK.  But even those who do have an index-linked state pension may still see it eroded in value over time going forward.

The Government recently announced that the state pension would rise each year in line with inflation, average earnings or 2.5 per cent, whichever is greater. But it is changing the measure of inflation that is used from the Retail Prices Index to the Consumer Prices Index, which tends to be lower.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do, Weather | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

British Expats favour British banks

November 25, 2010 – 2:12 pm

British expats favour British banks

British expats believe that British banks are best and many prefer to keep their savings in Sterling, a survey has found.

Their confidence in the British financial system is maintained even after living abroad for many years with 55% of those who have been overseas for over five years still having a UK current account and 80% still holding money in Sterling, the survey from Lloyds TSB International shows.

The survey of British expats, living in France, Hong Kong, Spain, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and the US, also shows that confidence in sterling is high in comparison with other currencies, with four times (44% versus 11%) as many respondents believing that sterling is stronger than the euro for their savings. Only 3% of those now living abroad cite weakness in sterling as a factor most likely to contribute to having to return home early.

‘It is reassuring to see that so many British expats are confident in the future of sterling which, after depreciating over the past few years, has stabilised as the economic recovery has taken hold and measures to improve the public finances have been laid out. In part their behaviour has been a reflection on what has occurred in the wider financial markets with the flight from more indebted economies,’ said Jakob Pfaudler, managing director of Lloyds TSB International.

Gordon Maddock, who has lived in Almeria, Spain since 1995, agrees with the findings of the survey. He decided to move abroad on his retirement and take the opportunity to establish himself as an author, artist and composer. He has since published three books and exhibited art in Germany, Spain, America and the UK.

He holds his savings in sterling and has confidence in its increase over the next six months, whilst believing that sterling remains a strong currency in the Western economy. Maddock also has a current account with BBVA in Spain and has found that bank charges are higher in Spain for all accounts and he would only consider moving his money when conditions demand, rather than for better investment.

For Maddock sterling is also convenient as he has a government pension and has to declare taxation matters in the UK.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

British expats who live and work abroad are less likely to return to the UK

September 12, 2010 – 11:56 am

British expats enjoy Tenerife property when at work or play

British born expats who have worked and retired abroad are less likely to return to the UK with 71% believing that they made the right decision in retiring abroad, new research shows.

The experiences of over half or 58% of expat retirees have been better than expected and the vast majority, some 92% of them do not live in an established expat community, the third annual Nat West International Personal Banking Quality of Life report also shows. Despite a belief that a significant number of British retired expats are regretting their decision to retire abroad and are planning to return to the UK, retiring abroad is very much still a popular decision, says the report that was carried out in conjunction with the Centre for Future Studies. It incorporates expats’ real life perceptions and experiences and gauges their personal assessment, including satisfaction or dissatisfaction, with their circumstances abroad.

The study also shows that a quarter of all retired expats rate their quality of life as excellent and the majority, 67%, are happier now than they would have been in the UK. It also reveals that there are two types of British expats: those who have spent their working lives in the UK and have chosen to retire abroad, the so-called silver expats; and those who left the UK to work abroad and subsequently retired in the country in which they had been living. The latter are often referred to as ‘lifer expats’. Those expats who worked abroad before they retired seem happier with their decision to continue living abroad yet those who have had no work experience in their chosen retirement country are having doubts about their decision to remain abroad.

Overall, silver expats retire in Western Europe, principally in Spain, the Canary Islands, France and Portugal. The lifer expats are spread throughout the world, principally in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and the US.

When it came to choosing locations, surprisingly, 92% do not live in an  established expat community. Of those that do, the majority, 56%, did not consider this to be a determining factor in their decision to locate where they did. This is interesting, particularly when taking into account that silver expats have had no experience of living in the country and are happy to throw themselves into the deep end of foreign life, the report says.  Perhaps that is why so many opt for the prime property available in Tenerife.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, Property, Tenerife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)