Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 4 minutes ago, XTreme said: Both working and still struggling? It's not right is it? As for Pensions....."the most generous pension system is in Spain, where pensioners receiving the maximum State Pension have an income of €2,617.53 per month (£2,287.24). Spain also has low living costs, so pensioners can expect a comfortable retirement with pension income at a whopping 407.40% over the breakeven point." I know a few guys who retired around the time I started receiving my Pension, and they can't believe how little British Pensioners get. They're loving their retirement, and I haven't come across any who've had to continue working as I did. Both of them are on (or very near) minimum wage, son in law works in the hospital, but he does not work for the NHS, it is a contacted out company he works for, so he receives none of the NHS benefits = pension or wage rises. Daughter is 2nd in command at a care home, which is a industry with historical low pay, but that is the way most companies around here....."Minimum Wage Satisfied" is on 99.9% of jobs advertised in this area. I hoped we would be OK in retirement, but that didn't turn out as expected. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 19 minutes ago, Clive said: I hoped we would be OK in retirement, but that didn't turn out as expected. Plenty of others are going to be finding that out! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 hour ago, XTreme said: Plenty of others are going to be finding that out! Some parts of retirement I enjoy, not living by the clock, getting a decent night's sleep, but sitting in the bungalow day after day after day is like being in prison, or back in Lockdown....the less I do, the less I am inclined too. Having nothing much to look forward to does not help either, I cannot say I look forward to 4 days in a caravan in Mablethorpe like I did for 2 weeks in the sun in the Med. ☀ 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six30 Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 minute ago, Clive said: Some parts of retirement I enjoy, not living by the clock, getting a decent night's sleep, but sitting in the bungalow day after day after day is like being in prison, or back in Lockdown....the less I do, the less I am inclined too. Having nothing much to look forward to does not help, I cannot say I look forward to 4 days in a caravan in Mablethorpe lol like I did for 2 weeks in the sun in the Med. ☀ i offered to meet up for a coffee , that was something to look forward to. 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 2 minutes ago, Six30 said: i offered to meet up for a coffee , that was something to look forward to. Missed meeting a living legend......Should have took you up on the offer i can't afford to buy coffee on this pension. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six30 Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 6 minutes ago, Clive said: Missed meeting a living legend......Should have took you up on the offer i can't afford to buy coffee on this pension. me and my nephew are coming up your way next year .. found a pub with rooms near Ashbourne , Royal oak, on Mayfield road, looks ok ,can park bikes round the back out of sight... you know of it clive . 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 minute ago, Clive said: Some parts of retirement I enjoy, not living by the clock, getting a decent night's sleep, but sitting in the bungalow day after day after day is like being in prison, or back in Lockdown....the less I do, the less I am inclined too. Having nothing much to look forward to does not help either, I cannot say I look forward to 4 days in a caravan in Mablethorpe lol like I did for 2 weeks in the sun in the Med. ☀ It wasn't easy coming here when we did! If I'd sold a house in London we'd have come here with a fucking wad. Unfortunately, selling a house in Llandrindod Wells doesn't carry the same financial clout. However, we now look back and realise it was the best thing we ever did when we hear of the predicament many Pensioners are now in back there. As it stands now, our boy in NL has made a fantastic life for himself (he earns huge money) and at last the one in Madrid has finally got his shit together. We just pray that Fatty doesn't deliberately fuck it up so she can go back to Poland! As for us, I'll keep working.....but I'm fine with that. I'd go crazy doing nothing. And in 5 more years the wife can retire with a small Pension from Spain. Both our healthcare is free then, so I'll keep working but only under the radar using an Internet banking service like Revolut to store the dosh. Got it all planned! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 38 minutes ago, Six30 said: me and my nephew are coming up your way next year .. found a pub with rooms near Ashbourne , Royal oak, on Mayfield road, looks ok ,can park bikes round the back out of sight... you know of it clive . Passed it many times, but i have never been in the place, use (when I was at work) to look clean and tidy then. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 50 minutes ago, XTreme said: It wasn't easy coming here when we did! If I'd sold a house in London we'd have come here with a fucking wad. Unfortunately, selling a house in Llandrindod Wells doesn't carry the same financial clout. However, we now look back and realise it was the best thing we ever did when we hear of the predicament many Pensioners are now in back there. As it stands now, our boy in NL has made a fantastic life for himself (he earns huge money) and at last the one in Madrid has finally got his shit together. We just pray that Fatty doesn't deliberately fuck it up so she can go back to Poland! As for us, I'll keep working.....but I'm fine with that. I'd go crazy doing nothing. And in 5 more years the wife can retire with a small Pension from Spain. Both our healthcare is free then, so I'll keep working but only under the radar using an Internet banking service like Revolut to store the dosh. Got it all planned! Good for you. hope everything turns out as you have planned....as I have said before, my dad in law told me years ago to buy a one way ticket out of a England, he was mad at himself for not taking up emigrating to Australia in the early 1960,s. We may have some (tough) decisions to make in the near future, about our future. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 minute ago, Clive said: he was mad at himself for not taking up emigrating to Australia in the early 1960,s. You could get there for a tenner then I think? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 minute ago, XTreme said: You could get there for a tenner then I think? He already had a job lined up with a mining company (Dosco Hollybank) and all he had to do was say yes and sign the paperwork, but he had slight reservations about housing and the area he was moving to, and backed out....said it was one of the worst decisions he made in his life.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 18 minutes ago, Clive said: He already had a job lined up with a mining company (Dosco Hollybank) and all he had to do was say yes and sign the paperwork, but he had slight reservations about housing and the area he was moving to, and backed out....said it was one of the worst decisions he made in his life.. Yeh.....he should have gone for it really. That's why we made the move when w did, it was a big risk but at least we wouldn't be looking back in later years and thinking "What if?" In our case it worked out OK.......but for a lot of people it doesn't. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 9 minutes ago, XTreme said: Yeh.....he should have gone for it really. That's why we made the move when w did, it was a big risk but at least we wouldn't be looking back in later years and thinking "What if?" In our case it worked out OK.......but for a lot of people it doesn't. Dad in law never gave it the chance. Nephew moved with his job to Australia 5 years ago, he says he ain't ever coming back here, except for visiting family occasionally. He says the first year or so was not very good, living in a tiny flat, but he now has a nice place in the suburbs of Sydney and a good job with decent pay. It's working out for him. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six30 Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 hour ago, XTreme said: It wasn't easy coming here when we did! If I'd sold a house in London we'd have come here with a fucking wad. Unfortunately, selling a house in Llandrindod Wells doesn't carry the same financial clout. However, we now look back and realise it was the best thing we ever did when we hear of the predicament many Pensioners are now in back there. As it stands now, our boy in NL has made a fantastic life for himself (he earns huge money) and at last the one in Madrid has finally got his shit together. We just pray that Fatty doesn't deliberately fuck it up so she can go back to Poland! As for us, I'll keep working.....but I'm fine with that. I'd go crazy doing nothing. And in 5 more years the wife can retire with a small Pension from Spain. Both our healthcare is free then, so I'll keep working but only under the radar using an Internet banking service like Revolut to store the dosh. Got it all planned! so your tax dodging then 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 4 minutes ago, Six30 said: so your tax dodging then Sometime in the future yes! Though not on the scale that you're probably doing now of course. The problem with being self employed here is the cost......about €4K a year. And that's before you do any business and start actually paying Tax and VAT! It's not means assessed......so if you earn €10K a year or €100K a year you pay the same. And that right there is the reason why Spain has such a massive black economy......because entrepreneurship is actually penalised. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six30 Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 18 minutes ago, XTreme said: Sometime in the future yes! Though not on the scale that you're probably doing now of course. The problem with being self employed here is the cost......about €4K a year. And that's before you do any business and start actually paying Tax and VAT! It's not means assessed......so if you earn €10K a year or €100K a year you pay the same. And that right there is the reason why Spain has such a massive black economy......because entrepreneurship is actually penalised. i take offence at your first sentence 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 5 minutes ago, Six30 said: i take offence at your first sentence So that's not the case then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catteeclan Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 2 hours ago, Six30 said: me and my nephew are coming up your way next year .. found a pub with rooms near Ashbourne , Royal oak, on Mayfield road, looks ok ,can park bikes round the back out of sight... you know of it clive . That name rang a bell so I just googled it. Me and a friend stopped off there for some dinner and beer one evening which was bloody gorgeous after a walk. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tango Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 Went for another wee bimble again this morning. Headed over to le Chateau de Lastours, which is not far from Carcassonne. It was a bit murky when I set off, but the sun soon burned off the cloud and the temperature hit the mid 20s. There were a reasonable few nutters on the road, but I just let them get on with it in the hopes that I wouldn't get tied up in any accidents they caused. I guess that it was a little under 200km round trip. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckster Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 2 hours ago, XTreme said: It wasn't easy coming here when we did! That's what the spics say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tango Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 Mandy is having a right struggle at work at the moment. A guy that she was working with got promoted way beyond his abilities and he's now trying to micromanage Mandy, even though she pretty much carried him before his promotion. I'm half expecting her to come home one day soon and announce that she's told them all to fuck off! Unfortunately she's got a couple more years before she can start to draw her NHS pension and my pensions are not enough to keep us both. Interesting times! 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 30 minutes ago, Tango said: Went for another wee bimble again this morning. Headed over to le Chateau de Lastours, which is not far from Carcassonne. It was a bit murky when I set off, but the sun soon burned off the cloud and the temperature hit the mid 20s. There were a reasonable few nutters on the road, but I just let them get on with it in the hopes that I wouldn't get tied up in any accidents they caused. I guess that it was a little under 200km round trip. Nice shots Bob.......you still thinking of switching? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saul Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 Just been and ordered my new bike 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTreme Posted October 11, 2023 Author Share Posted October 11, 2023 1 minute ago, Saul said: Just been and ordered my new bike Hornet? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saul Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 Just now, XTreme said: Hornet? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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