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Author Topic: My retirement blog.  (Read 401096 times)

Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #330 on: August 21, 2018, 05:59:13 pm »
Ha ha. Shouting in Afrikaans or English would baffle them.

I still live north of Porto in Viana do Castelo. I love Porto as it is vibey and pretty with super fast metro trains every 8 minutes that take you to corners of the city. No car needed. Cost about € 1,25 for 20 km.
AND most people speak good English.
I was going to move there but the rent is about € 100,00 more than in Viana for the same type of flat. Yes, 90% of Porras live in flats. I lived there for 2 months only.

As to TV here. We have a TV box with over 200 channels and it also has Nat Geo, Sky TV, Discovery, Euro news and many more English channels.

Portugal is really trying to get citizens to learn English. Cinema movies are no longer dubbed to Portuguese but subtitled. In schools English has become a compulsory second language here 2 years earlier since 2016.

I often read that forum but see that the few people that answer tax questions get it all wrong and this infuriates me. I have learned so much on UK and Portugal tax plus cross border tax over the past 4 years but I cannot answer them as I am still a rookie here from a shithole country.  :)

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Oversix

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #331 on: August 22, 2018, 07:56:19 pm »
Well it just shows you that there is money to be made :money: if you into tax laws and speak their language
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yozzi

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #332 on: August 24, 2018, 12:46:02 pm »
Orca, are there any websites that you used re Portuguese residency, visas, etc that were really helpful? Will access to Portugal change much after Brexit next March as I have a UK passport so could be an idea to get any applications sorted now before all this kicks in.

As I said we hope to travel there next year and see and weigh up all the options and stay for a short period of time extending this further the following year and then who knows we could make it a permanent move if things work out
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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #333 on: August 24, 2018, 06:49:13 pm »
Aha Jozzi. You expedited your move here after reading my latest post in the Shout Box.  :D

I am a member of an expat group here that sends monthly bulletins out on the latest news and advice on various matters. So I get most of my info there plus the 2 forums where one can ask questions.

BREXIT:  So far what has been concluded is that any EU member in the UK at May 31/2019 will get Settled Status. Any EU member entering the UK after this date until May 31/2021 with the intention to stay will be given Indefinite Leave to Remain that will lead to Settled status and PR.

The reason I mention that is because Portugal is reliant on UK immigrants and their money. They will reciprocate with the above at minimum but the consensus is that they will not have a cut off date.

Why do you ask about a visa? You don't need one but if you have a non EU member wife then she can get a 12 month visa from the Portuguese embassy. If you do require a visa first ask me here (not PM) as I can give you info on how to fast track it for free. The embassy will not tell you this. 
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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #334 on: August 24, 2018, 06:52:06 pm »
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yozzi

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #335 on: September 07, 2018, 10:42:55 am »
Hi Orca sorry for the late reply had issues with my laptop! No I didn't see your blog on another site but have followed your diary here and I want to have a look at various options in Europe like Spain or Portugal and who knows maybe do a permanent move in the near future.

My Brexit query was on assumption that my UK passport will be somewhat nullified once they leave the EU next March but I agree there may be a grace period for UK passport holders to move around the EU without too much hassle.
Thanks, I've used those websites before and they're pretty useful and another one I like is www.spanishpropertyinsight. com although it's obviously about Spain but very informative
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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #336 on: September 20, 2018, 08:17:23 pm »
Another big move ahead. Our kids have decided that we can no longer stay in a city where people our age do not speak English and will never have friends. This is very true and frustrating for us.

We are to relocate to Wales where rent is cheaper. UK rentals are ridiculously high compared to Portugal but they have a plan.

They will look at rent to buy properties and we will purchase 50% and they will pay the remaining rent costs.

This is a win win situation where they can buy more shares in the property over time and end with 100% shares. We pay utility bills and council tax only.

I have always stated that I do not want the shackles of property ownership to keep me stuck in one area as I like to explore countries. I have done that now and wish to settle down in my old age and plant some herbs and veggies and pickle them for a hobby. Some rollmops and pickled fish will be great to experiment on. It will keep me occupied.

Our plan is to leave around April next year after our internet and TV contracts have expired and my wife has completed her short term scans for recurring cancer.

This will be a start of a whole new ball game of red tape and bureaucracy to get settled status in the UK for me as an EU citizen and my wife as a third country citizen. I will post our experience here for those who may follow. 
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Mr_Dividend

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #337 on: September 20, 2018, 10:03:50 pm »
will be interested to hear about your experience. Spent a few weeks in the UK a couple of months back and liked everything about it - my wife though is still more interested in Portugal.  If we do the UK though, we would probably have to have part-time jobs - which I think could be fun.
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Patrick

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #338 on: September 21, 2018, 07:23:53 pm »
Orca I love seeing your updates. So many people just talk about the what if's but you really do put things to the test!

I've been watching "How to live mortgage free" on Netflix lately. There's some great ingenuity there from people to save a fortune on living costs, while having quiet decent homes. Well worth a view.

While I'm all for the nomadic life at the moment, I can see a point in time when I'll want to settle somewhere, and my wife wants a farm, or at least so she says. What she describes is actually a personal petting zoo.

In the meantime I'm learning Portuguese so I can get the passport one day. I'm probably at 3 year old level at the moment so I still have some way to go!

Do you think the integration would have been better if the family was able to speak the language there?
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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #339 on: September 21, 2018, 08:58:06 pm »
My stocks have not been doing well over the past 2 and a half years. They have actually been negative and we have been withdrawing our living costs from them. Not in dire straights yet but have to watch our budget.

Getting menial jobs in the UK is easy as most locals do not want to do them. My wife has already organised a school cleaning job that will pay £ 500 pm for 3 hours per day and she will be paid during the 3 month shutdown. One of my daughters is doing that as a second job.

The £ 500 would pay for a drab one bed flat. But then again most residential flats are a drab face brick building that all look alike but the people live inside where it can be very modern.

We go to Wales every year to visit our kids and love the greenery, hills and quaint farms. Even the road signs look like someone threw alphabet soup at them. How on earth they manage to pronounce the words is beyond me.

We love Viana do Castelo as it is very picturesque and busy but we will never learn the language at our age but if we did then we would stay put as it is so cheap to live here. Going down south to Lisbon or the Algarve will be far too expensive but English is understood by all.



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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #340 on: September 22, 2018, 06:51:11 pm »
Here is proof that alphabet soup was chucked at the signs.

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Nivek

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #341 on: September 23, 2018, 10:46:59 pm »
 ??? ??? ??? :wtf:
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yozzi

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #342 on: September 24, 2018, 12:56:23 pm »
Orca, I've often thought about going back to live in the UK for the summer months and then living in Spain or similar for the winter months in an area where the climate was decent all year round but I wouldn't want to live in the UK during winter as the cold would really get to me. I know properties are geared up for the cold with central heating but it's still bloody cold and gets to extremes at times.

We have moved here to Hermanus and people still complain about the cold weather but I tell them they haven't even seen a winter until they've lived in Northern Europe!

Where you are in Portugal is there not an expat community in the area as I've always found that the Brits get everywhere and it's very unusual not to find them even in your part of the world. 
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Orca

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #343 on: September 24, 2018, 08:51:05 pm »
No Brits or any tourists here pal. We up in the very north near the Spanish border. On the very odd occasion I get to hear English spoken and like a drug I would approach them just to be able to converse in English.

The summer months here are so hot and humid comparable to Natal north coast. It is even worse but drier down south in the Algarve but the Brits love it.

We spend Christmas in the UK most years and I love the feeling of the ice cold air on my face. It is like I have returned home where I belong as a European. A dega vioux perhaps as I was born in icy Finland.

This is just my personal thing so don't judge me on this and I respect your love of SA and I too love SA and that is why I am still invested in SA.

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Yman

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Re: My retirement blog.
« Reply #344 on: October 15, 2018, 03:12:23 pm »
Orca
Nice to read that you wife is well again, well enough to take up a job, very nice.
What is the name of the medical aid you are with?
You are still invested in SA, with which broker?
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