Expat' resources for Spain

Expat' resources for Spain

Cost of life in Spain

in Madrid

accommodation: 625 euros inclusive (taxes, air con, shared swimming pool) for a 45 sq.m in the town center

public transportation fares: Tube/bus 5.80 euros for 10 tickets or 1.10 euros each

food prices: I would say 200 euros. Vegetables are quite cheap.

health prices: I used to work as a self employee when I was in Madrid, I had to pay 150 euros per month

eduction prices: Education is free, well you’ll always have to buy books and pencils

energy prices: I don’t remember the oil price (I’ve got to check); for the electricity it was arount 12.5 euros per month.

common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone): Internet 39.90 euros per month for a 1Mo adsl line Telephone (Telefonica): 20 euros per months (that’s expensive as Telefonica hasn’t got any competitor) Television: We didn’t have to pay for it Mobile phone: That’s expensive, we used top up plans

prices of a good menu in a traditional restaurant 12 euros for a regular meal in the town center, with wine bread and coffee included

prices of a beer and of a coffee in a regular pub A beer: 1.5 euros A coffee: 1 euro

In Casares, a small municipality on (but not very affected by) the Costa del Sol, Andalucía, Southern Spain. In fact I live at the very top of town (435m up) with a castle for a back wall.

accommodation prices Zero: Lucky enough to have bought outright with no mortgage.

public transportation fares (tube, bus etc ...) What public transport? OK, there’s a bus twice a day into Estepona at about 1.50 euro. Not only do you need a car, but one with low gears.

food prices(per month, how much does it cost you?) About 400 euro monthly for a family of five.

health prices (for those who need medical insurance) Paid for through my Social Security by my employer, though it costs them about 29% of my salary.

eduction prices (if you need to pay) Free, except for books and materials, which the regional and local government help with - See Los Reyes Magos visitaron Casares on the blog.

energy prices (oil, electricity) Diesel for the car about 0.97 euro per litre at the moment. Electricity about 30 euro bimonthly, gas (butano) now 11 euro per bottle which lasts 2 months.

common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone) Just signed up for ADSL (not yet working - Any tips out there for getting an ADSL router recognised by my laptop?) at 36 euro monthly; TV - zero; Water 3, yes THREE euro bimonthly; Telephone (currently) about 100 euro bimonthly, but expected to fall drastically when I go ADSL; Mobile 20-40 euro a month.

prices of a good menu in a traditional restaurant Menu del día from 7.50 to 11 euro (One of Franco’s innovations I am grateful for)

prices of a beer and of a coffee in a regular pub cerveza (tubo or caña) 1 euro locally, coffee 50 cents to 1 euro locally. Double these prices on the ‘Costa’.

Miscellaneous Union dues 36 euro annually (but saves me at least 25 euro on doing my tax declarations) Car insurance about 180 euro annually for a 250cc bike. Cinema tickets 5 euro per person.

Barcelona

My prices are for us, 2 married people, prices are in euros accommodation prices

monthly: 850 for 2 bedroom 65 square m flat - 20 minutes walk from work

public transportation fares (tube, bus etc ...) 50 a month - these are 10 travel tickets

food prices(per month, how much does it cost you?) 450 a month - this is 3 meals a day and snacks but doesn’t include eating out which we do a few times a month

health prices (for those who need medical insurance) 100 per month

eduction prices (if you need to pay) 100 per month for spanish classes

energy prices (oil, electricity) common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)

100 per month (electricty, gas, water, mobile phone etc.) no internet or phone prices of a good menu in a traditional restaurant 50 for the two of us.

prices of a beer and of a coffee in a regular pub each Beer: 3E coffee 2E, I don’t really know exactly

In Barcelona, Spain in the central part of city that borders with Eixample and Montjuic:

accommodation prices I pay 1200 euro a month for 65sq mtrs, all newly renovate flat (was rented as 85 sq mtrs; they measure the walls in total sq meters). However: I also paid a deposit (6 months) of 7200 euro plus 1st month rent, plus agent fee: in total 10,800 euro before they would even give the key. This is not some rare rip-off but NORMAL here and a common requirement from non-spanish nationals. Fridge and washing machine (not included). Same size flat for about 800 month can be found in poor condition or non-central.

I have been looking for one year for a 150-170sq mtr spacious flat in good condition, central, and am willing to pay 1600 a month. I can’t find one.

public transportation fares (tube, bus etc ...) Cheap. 2 euro for single rides. I buy metro cards in rides of 10 for 6.90. It includes buses, trains and even Ferro Carrils. Taxi: about 20 euro from airport to central Barcelona. You can take a taxi within most destinations in the center for about 10 euro.

food prices (per month, how much does it cost you?) I spend about 200 a month on modest food for home cooking (no meat included). It can be done cheaper for one person.

health prices (for those who need medical insurance) 600 euro a year, full-coverage, LaCaixa (best insurance in Spain). It is not necessary to have separate health insurance here. Socialized government healthcare is free but has long waiting lines. My appointments take 3-6 weeks to get. Medications are very cheap.

eduction prices (if you need to pay): Language classes: 300-800 a month from known schools

energy prices (oil, electricity): My Fincasa charge me 75 euro per month. Fixed.

common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone) DSL internet 40 euro a month Phone line (that allows outside calls and unlimted local) 31 euro a month Phone bill, without call rates, will stay stable at 80-100 a month with Telefonica.

Cellphone: I signed up for a 7 euro a month service, and 0,08 per call. Bill ends up about 35 euro p/m even without calculating the call rates... Don’t ask how. This is Telefonica.

prices of a good menu in a traditional restaurant Normal is 8-15 euro per plate (2 star, average). Appertizers or desert not included. Non tourist areas. Snack-bars with take aways are about 5 euro per snack (ex. pita, dorum). Tapas run from 2.5 to 5 euro per piece.

prices of a beer and of a coffee in a regular pub Very cheap. Cava (champagne) 2 euro a glass average. Beer about 2 euro, and coffee from 1,10 to 1,80 euro. These prices are in non-tourist areas. In tourist areas, double or tripple the price.

Property in Spain - Property Portal with a searchable database of properties to buy and rent in Spain.

Arrival

The first thing you need when you arrive in Spain is to register on the local town hall (ayuntamiento) register (padrón) for which you will need a rental contract. With the padrón you then need to get a NIE (Numero de Identificacion del Extranjero). It takes a week to get the NIE number.

If you are a non-EEA citizen and staying for more than 3 months you will need to apply for a residencia at the nearest comisaria de policia nacional. It will take 45 days to get the residencia card, so apply well before your visa expires.

You won’t be able to open a resident’s Bank account without your NIE. A non-resident account can be opened with just a passport.

How to get a job

The INEM (public employment service) can help you to find a job. You need to be inscribed. INEM

Have a look to the Eures network: Eures

You can look for ads in newspapers: la Vanguardia(Barcelona)

You want to work as a self-employed? There is a very good discussion about how to be self-employed on this spanish forum (in this particular case, it’s how to a self-employed webmaster but you can easily adapt to another job): Self employed in Spain

And there are a couple publications that post job listings – a lot of English teaching – like The Broadsheet (nationwide) and InMadrid (uh...in Madrid). The latter has a website - www.in-madrid.com.