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Good Luck tony and Hope the move is well worth your while, if you need anything ask

Julian

Hey Tony,

i would just say go for it, book 5-7 days in Malta and look at various properties ask loads of questions with everyone not just agents  and do as much as possible  whilst your there. We worked out various costs involved before we went and decided 3 months was ample enough time to prepare and you get 90 days out there to find your feet too.

Leaving for Malta  mid March, selling as much as we can before we go, planned for dog to travel out there with us and signed for a fabulous property which had we come home without we might have procrastinated a little. Cant wait until we arrive, have learnt so much from the  forum and my client and her partner out there. Good luck

Welcome Tony. Contrary to previous poster (who apparently has not previously and does not yet live here) I very much advise that 5-7 days is not long enough to learn about living out here. I think that many others would also agree.
(Especially if that is one's first experience of Malta.)
A short holiday in a hotel or with friends does not give anyone the insight they need unless they believe everything an agent tells them!
Anyone thinking of moving and residing here should take the matter seriously and not base their decisions upon the experiences of a short holiday or a couple of short visits.
(And there is only one agency on the islands I would use or recommend. Most of them are sharks and will tell yo and try to get you to take anything so they can claim their commission.
In practical terms one has far longer than 90 days to 'get on one's feet'.
An EU citizen one has the right to reside and work in any EU country.
Residency is to inform the authorities of one's intention to stay but in practicable terms many go beyond this. (However, this is NOT advised.)
Genuine job seekers have 180 days in which to register their intention to reside.

Due diligence, planning and preparation are the keys to a successful move. (Depending upon one's responsibilities of course.)

Read this for info: https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=370643
and this: https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=425461

Then, please, ask your questions 

on the contrary we have been planning for 5 months and have done a massive amount of research. If we had have had more than 5 days to spend out there then we would ( due ro hubbys work restrictions) we had to return. However our whole time was viewing properties and getting our bearings on the island. Not a holiday and we certainly havent looked through rose tinted glasses at this. Its not something we did lightly as you have implied.

You are quite right ' we are not in the country yet' I was merely offering a personal experience as everyone is entitled to see it from more than one persons persepective.

Shame you wrote this post, I have found the forum to be particularly helpful in our planning stages. We have had a very good experience of an agent and I will stand by that comment, it appears too many on here are keen to tar them all with the same brush, again its offering more than one persons experience. I am a great believer that there is good and bad in everything so I also look for the positives. I would advocate that anyone doing a deal in a new country should do their research thoroughly and be extra cautious and vigilant when ever transactions are involved.  Fortunatley I dont have blinkered views like some but that doesnt mean to say Im a gullible woman either.
But thanks for that!

I agree, it is the range of people's opinions and information that make this forum so informative.... and that includes my own.
The main issue though is that information should be correct and if possible based upon experience and that can only be gained by being here or having established connections.
We know that many websites give inaccurate information or the information has not been updated and that includes Government and other authority sites. I would also argue that no amount of research fully prepares one for the realities of life, particularly when moving to another country.
Many people do move here, based upon a holiday or other short visit experience and many, sadly and to their great cost, find that all is not as they expected.
It is better to be realistic than present false impressions.
I do not expect everyone to like what I post, far from it but I call it as I see it.
If people don't like it then they ignore it, as I ignore others but not when it comes to inaccurate information.
No one for a minute suggested you were a guillible person either.
I wish you and everyone else who moves here the greatest of good fortune, I am sure you won't let me, in stating my views, experiences and opinions, affect that.
I also hope that you found the following useful:
https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=370643
and
https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=425461

I have to say I moved here, and live here permanently, without months of research.

I had previously had 3 short holidays on the island, the latest some 5 years prior to my move and at the time the thought of living here had not even crossed my mind.

I may be an exception, but I was 2 months from deciding to leave the UK to actually moving here, and that included deciding which country to live in

I do agree you need  a short trip to find accommodation etc before moving, I fitted that into my 2 months!

I think its a personal thing,and we are all different, If it feels right, do it. 

It's funny how views can be misinterpreted, believe me its happened to me, Im not in Malta yet either and can understand the excitement of a new challenge and wanting things to work, i feel that myself, your both right of course as I'm in the same boat and anxious for information.

I have been to Malta many times as a tourist but this time (tomorrow) I have rented a private apartment and thanks to Mick who organised a meet, will be meeting (I hope) many expats.

Trouble is now I'm not looking for the positives anymore, I'm looking for the negatives and i do hope that my feelings are wrong. This has happened by talking to many people over the past few months.
Im usually a very positive person but this move, when it happens, will be for retirement.

I chose to come out in Winter to "experience" the worse conditions.
I hope that this visit will be the defining visit and then we can either start for real looking for an end date of leaving the UK OR looking at another place and it all starts again.

I do have 3 countries in mind but my favourite has been Gozo BUT thats from visiting as a tourist!!

For now both myself and my wife are looking forward to meeting many people who have gone through the same as we are starting.

Funny really, when we moved to the isle of lewis we knew nothing of the place and bought a property on a whim, we had 13 fantastic years but it did make us realise that you have to work at it and settling in doesn't happen overnight, if the weather was like Malta on the Scottish Islands we would not even be considering moving elsewhere.

For everyone reading this who is at the start, the only advise i would give is read through as much as you can and join other groups too, you may get different view on different groups. Avoid joining groups that are run by estate agents as they are ALWAYS rosy and give the wrong impression.

Thats my 2 pence worth, but its just MY view.

Agree with all stated above by socialwhirl and g4jnw and a lot depends upon personality, adaptability, resources and responsibilities, children etc. I have been fortunate enough to live and work in many countries, not just in Europe and I still say one needs to know the 'cons' as well as the 'pros'.
Malta's inherited bureaucracy and their way of doing things can be very interesting (and frustrating) at times.
One needs to be prepared to be confronted by many illogical arguments when dealing with officials as well as excuses that insult one's intelligence.
As for agents, apart from the agency owner, most if not all, are self employed on a commission only basis and are only interested in getting what they want, not what you want.
Also be prepared for any advance overtures via emails to prospective employers, businesses etc. to be ignored. In general the Maltese prefer and in many cases only do business 'face to face'. There are a great many pluses to living here; just be prepared to confront the negatives and those one will not find out about until one has lived here for a while.