Living In Spain Archives - Page 2 of 2

The Cost of Living In Spain and Traveling Europe

I’m ‘baring all budgets’ in this post to let you know that if money is your biggest obstacle to moving or traveling extensively abroad – you’re about to get real pumped!!

Before we made our decision to move to Valencia, Spain my husband and I had to crunch the numbers and I tirelessly scoured for blogs and information about the cost of living in Europe. The problem is that everyone has a different idea of “cheap” and “expensive” as those are relative terms. I couldn’t find an answer to this that satisfied my need to know “how much will this cost?!!”

Your girl Escobar almost forgot to take her coca leaves (for altitude sickness) out of her bag at the airport in Peru! #lockedupabroad

In order to make this blog post purposeful and informative, I’m just giving you the actual numbers. How can you make a life decision without knowing the costs?

This is a transparent look into our finances but I’m so passionate about sharing it and documenting it for 3 important reasons:

1. I showed this spreadsheet to my kids (ages 7 and 9) so that they can understand what life costs. It brought about really great questions and important learning for them.

2. Our priorities as a family are to do things together and those travels and adventures cost money. If we want to go out to dinner, a movie, and buy popcorn – we can’t ALSO go on vacations. Now the kids have some ownership over our money-making decisions and are learning to prioritize with us. See here how they chose to address Christmas gifts this year:)

3. You can do the things you want to do in life if you prioritize them. Our apartment is small but in the heart of the charming old town (cue House Hunters Voice over chick), we don’t fill it with stuff, and we walk everywhere.

So without further ado. Here’s the cost of our life in Spring Hill, Tennessee – where cars and square feet abound:

TENNESSEE

$2000 House (4 bed/2.5 bath)
$900 2 Cars
$ 360 Health Insurance
$135 Car Insurance
$100 Boxing Membership
$135 Burn Workout Membership
$300 Gas for Cars
$230 2 Cell Phones
$60 Internet
$60 Electric
$60 Gas Bill
$40 YouTube TV TOTAL: $4,380

VALENCIA, SPAIN

$110 US Phones (we kept these for business purposes)
$1100 Apartment (2 bed/1 bath)
$50 Internet
$50 Soccer Team
$330 Health Insurance
$175 Bank: “Managed Treasury” in Nashville (The bank receives and deposits our US checks)
$15 Sabadell Spanish Bank Account
$25 2 Cell Phones
$80 Electric
$22 Gas
$ 240 Language Class (2 people 3 hrs/week) TOTAL: $2,197

So – how’s my dirty laundry smell?

Now you fully understand “how we afford that”.

As you can see, our European dream is LITERALLY half the cost of our Tennessee life. I promise you that I didn’t make these numbers up to come to this. Of course we had start up costs like buying bikes and locks, new bedding, the visa applications (see visa costs here), realtor fees, and the plane tickets to get here. But these start-up costs will balance out as we save money over the next months.

I have not included food in this breakdown. Some people eat out a lot and others cook at home. I left this off as each family is different and this cost is a variant that you can calculate for yourself using a really clever site called Numbeo. This site allows you to compare the cost of living in cities all over the world. Numbeo has prices broken down into categories like common grocery items, healthcare, transportation, and gives price comparisons on everything from domestic beers to McDonalds meals. They also take a look at crime, traffic, and quality of life. Here’s a Numbeo screenshot comparing Valencia, Spain and Nashville, Tennessee.

A reminder that if you choose private schools, most are located in the suburbs and require transportation. That is a budget game changer. We chose public schools – read what’s best for you in my blog on the subject here.

We wanted 3 things out of this move: For the kids to speak Spanish, to travel and bond as a family, and to have a better work/life balance. Our monthly budget reflects those priorities.

For some of my former high school students reading this (over 1,300 of you!): I hope that you write out your monthly spending then write out your life priorities/goals. Compare lists. Make adjustments. I think that most adults will tell you it took them too long to do this and if you can do it early on in life – you’ll be more fulfilled.

If you have any questions – reach out. I hope your family budget reflects what’s most important to you. It’s never to late to start! $uerte amigo$…

October 16, 2018/by Kate Hickey

School in Spain: Deciding What’s Right for Your Kids

Max and his teacher Gema the day before school started.

As the mama bear, this was really all I could think about. I was SO nervous about my kids daily life and the decision around the right school for them. I will tell you now – this was the scariest part of the move that turned out to be (I’m writing this on their 12th day of school) just fine. Not to say I didn’t bawl at drop off on day 1. My kids are newly 7 and 9 years old. I think that each child is different and each age presents unique challenges. You know your kid, your comfort levels, and you’ll pick the right school.

There are 3 types of schools in Valencia – and the whole of Spain: Public, private, and “concertado”. Ultimately, we chose public schools and I’ll tell you why:

PRIVATE SCHOOLS

THE BAD: They’re expensive!! High enrollment fees and expensive monthly payments. We had the money but we didn’t want to strap ourselves and not be able to travel in Europe. Also, private schools are usually conducted in English and our biggest reason to move here was to have the kids immersed in the language. We knew that they wouldn’t be pushed to learn Spanish as fast in a private school.

Finally, and our last straw – they are all (but one) in the outskirts of town. This means that we would need a car OR they would take a bus, with a hefty price tag, and this would make for a very LONG day. Pick up around 7:30am and drop off around 5:30pm.

THE GOOD: The education and facilities are great! Most public schools – not so much. Also, there are still opportunities for language acquisition as your kids will be with lots of Spaniards, learning Spanish on the playground and in social settings. The quality of education will likely be a bit better. If your child is a superstar or perhaps of middle-school age, already fluent in 2 languages, etc – you’ll want them to keep a high-caliber curriculum. We just wanted our kids to be loved, supported, and immersed so we weren’t really big on a challenging curriculum/tons of homework.

You will probably be with like-minded expats and well-to-do families. This didn’t matter to me much but I think you might want to consider your social scene as it’s a big part of your life.

If you want to have language choices that you select (minimizing Valenciano, maximizing Castellano, etc) you can make those decisions with private schools.

Biking to school on the first day.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

THE GOOD: They are local, so if you enroll early enough (in May) – you’ll be a short walk from school…which is important as you might be going there 4 times a day because of siesta. Although, we choose to keep our kids in school all day – even during the long lunch break/siesta so that they can play with friends.

They will be completely immersed in the Spanish language. Most teachers don’t speak English at all. This seems scary but it will quickly become normal and your child will adapt. I’m watching my kids grow EVERY day and it’s incredible. Also, they’re free! Lunch is around 4 euro a day and you have to buy books, but that’s it.

THE BAD: The facilities are not glamorous – especially compared to US standards. Some don’t have playgrounds, most are old buildings, and there are no frills.

The enrollment process is more involved and it’s hard to get into schools when you first arrive. The Spanish school system is based on points. You get points for being registered with the government (but everyone has those), points for being an alum (that doesn’t help ex-pats!), points for where you live, and points for siblings going to the school. It’s a bit tough to navigate the Spanish bureaucracy and school is no different. We stayed patient and we had help from a friend with this so it wasn’t too bad. If you arrive after May – you better be standing outside the school in early September ready to beg to get your kid in school – IF there’s space. *My kids are in two different schools because there wasn’t room.

CONCERTADO

THE GOOD: Concertado is the Spanish form of charter schools. They are usually Catholic and there is usually about one concertado per every 2 public schools. There isn’t a huge difference between concertado and public schools – only the religion. It really depends on the one you choose and what’s close to your house.

THE BAD: They are hard to get into, just like public schools. They cost but it’s a very nominal fee. Only 20% of what a private school per year.

The hard part is – you can’t pick a school before you pick a house! It’s frustrating but if you time it right – get your visa by May and have your apartment picked by then as well. May is when the schools open up their extra spaces and they fill up quickly. If you enroll your kids in May you can “relax” and enjoy a LOOONG summer with the kids getting acclimated/traveling. If you’re more adventurous or inexperienced (like us): Arrive in August and the MINUTE that school’s open in September – be standing there with all your paperwork ready to enroll. That landed us in 2 different schools and only a 15 min walk from our apartment, but it was a bit of a gamble.

Sam in front of her school before starting segundo grado primaria

For our family, the first year is about language acquisition – not stellar instruction. It’s about learning new norms, meeting new friends, and learning to deal with change and a new language. Your kids will do great wherever you send them. They are braver and much more formidable than you. Have faith in them and try not to impose your fears on their malleable little minds. Best of luck and let me know if I can help you in any way.

You got this!

Kate

Great list of private schools in Valencia here.

Another super helpful resource for schools/links: Moving2Valencia

September 26, 2018/by Kate Hickey

Living In Spain, Moving to Spain

Setting Up Your Spanish Life Part 1: Bank Account and Cell Phone

Before arriving, I thought our first week would be stressful and I would be in a constant state of loser-tourist-map-holding. I am the worst with directions.

I was so wrong! It was an exciting and invigorating week. The kids were in awe of everything, people were so accommodating with our shotty Spanish, and we had a blast walking everywhere and building our stamina for our new pedi lifestyle. If you’re nervous about getting everything together – don’t be – it was easy and fun if you pace yourself and remember that from 13:00 – 15:00 you HAVE to chill at home because nothing will be open….siesta lifestyle baby;)

BANK:

Pretty easy: Email Maria Luisa Soto Torres at Sabadell to set up an appointment. She will respond very quickly and she speaks English and has lots of experience with Brits and Americans alike: SOTOMARIALUISA@bancsabadell.com. There are many Sabadell bank branches but her address is Avenida Cardenal Benlloch, 11, Valencia 46021 and all you’ll need is a passport. You need the bank to be your first step as you will not be able to get a cell phone without a Spanish bank account.

Thanks Maria for the heads-up on the Valencia vs. Madrid game at Mestalla. ¡Viva Valencia!

Some people will tell you that you need a NIE card or NIE number (which comes in your Spanish visa while you are stateside before the NIE card which you will have to get in Spain) – this is not true. Bring it if you have it, but it’s not necessary to open the account. You don’t need a lease either, just a passport.

You will pay your landlord, cell phone, and likely your utilities using your Spanish bank account so be sure to save or pass along your “IBAN” number once you receive your account info. We got a debit and 2 credit cards with our account and the account itself costs 30 euro quarterly. We want to use the debit so that we’re not nicked every time we withdraw from a foreign bank but we won’t be using our Spanish credit card as there are no reward points like with our CapitalOne Visa from the states. However, there is no interest on the credit card so it’s personal preference really.

Sabadell has a lot of partnership banks so you’re able to use most ATMs in Europe for free – as long as you withdraw over 60 euro. Just to name a few: CajaSur, Caixa, and Bankia.

I can’t say nice enough things about Maria Luisa at Sabadell. She sat down with us for 45 minutes, gave the kids sticker pages, and even called City Hall for us. She helped my hubs and son get tickets to the Valencia C.F. futbol game too. Such a sweetheart. She will answer your emails right away.

CELL PHONE:

There are lots of great cell phone options. Pepe Phone is very affordable and our landlord uses them for our internet which is lightning fast. Their plans are around 20 euro per line per month. We went to VodaFone and are currently paying around 60 euro for both phones with great data/minutes. They also provide streaming TV channels if that’s your bag.

You will need to bring a bank account IBAN number as well as your passport. Likely, do not expect to walk out with your new phone as the phone company will need to verify your information and that takes around 24 hours, so choose a branch that is close to where you live. We completed the whole process in under an hour. You can choose to lease a new phone through the cell company (paying every month) or they will just give you a SIM for a phone of your choice.

Of course we had to figure out what the heck a “fartons” was (donut) and try some local horchata at the market. Churros and chocolate? ok. That too.

So how did I find lil Miss Spanish Maria Luisa at the banco? Facebook! Definitely join a Facebook Expats group if you haven’t already. It’s great to get ideas of places to eat, local things happening, and to find out who’s trying to rent an apartment with a doberman and 29 euro…eye roll. Very important: Take the “advice” with a grain of salt. So much of it is one person’s ill-prepared experience, is very outdated, or is something that happened to someone’s cousins, grandma’s friend.

So that’s where we started, one thing each day. Of course, contact me with any questions and I’m happy to help. If you’re stateside and thinking “omg. too much to deal!!” No worries just bookmark this and re-read this when you’re actually in Spain… “tranquila amiga” 🙂

August 28, 2018/by Kate Hickey