Relocation & Expat Coach

Bureaucracy!

The next couple of months were time consuming, stressful, worrying, and exhilarating!  Meetings, envelopes full of paper, forms to sign, bureaucratic  language, paperwork ... all kept us very busy while time was marching onwards.

As we had not expected to find the property of our dreams on the first trip to Madeira (or maybe not expected to want to live there) we felt unprepared to actually progress our dreams, our plans, and buy this property.

Some days we nearly gave up!  When dealing with the Financial Investment industry in the UK, we found that the paper trail, the expectation that the client talks the same language, the volumes of information that we could not understand, the frustrations at delays through no obvious reason, all brought up the feelings of stress and worry! 

At all times, we kept positive - the photographs were available for us to look at, the typography we had ordered and paid for, the exchange contract - these were available at all times to remind us of our decision!  The benefits that we were looking for, and the constant communication from Martinho, meant that we weathered this process.

In hindsite (always a wonderful thing) we would have been more prepared if we had gone to Madeira with our finances sorted and in a position that we were ready to purchase a property.  The reason we didn't - we had done so much research over such a long period of time, that at times we believed that we would never find the environment or property that we would want to buy.

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.europeancoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Tip nine - buying property and getting a mortgage.

During our reserarch - on the internet, through agents, attending exhibitions - we had always found that the advice given was to find a property to buy before you emigrated.  The importance of this is multiples, and includes:

• the credit rating that you need to get a mortgage, if you need a mortgage
• the financial support you may require to ensure that you can organise your mortage
• somewhere to move into on your arrival
• somewhere to send your property (furniture, crockery, cutlery, clothing, etc.) to
• a place that you can call home, on your arrival

Now is the time for you to make a decison and decide exactly where you want to move to:
- be specific about:
     - the area/environment in which you wish to live
     - the type of house that you want to buy
     - the price that you want to buy at ... the money you want to spend
- how you will measure that everything you want in a property will be there?
     - who do you need to involve in this decision?
- agreed / action-oriented - what do you actually need to do to ensure that the house you buy will suit your own requirements?
- realistic - be realistic about what you need to do to make this happen.  How much time will it take?  What paperwork do you need to have?  When will you be able to visit these houses?  How long will you need to stay to ensure that the house you select is the right one for you?  How do you get the mortgage?  When do you need to apply?
- time framed - clearly document what time you can allocate to visiting all areas, selecting the right area for you/your family, negotiating to buy it, organise the finance.  Build your expected timeframe around the time that you have available.
- exciting - It is true that it we cannot live, dream, breathe, be engulfed by our goal, it probably won't be achieved.  Now that you know what you have to do to purchase your new home, holding onto the excitment of your dream, your goal, your aspiration, will allow you to address each element of your emigration.
- recorded - at no point in your whole process is it more important to capture the detail.  Write it ALL down!

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.europeancoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Exchange of Contracts ...

The end of June saw Barbara returning to Madeira to exchange on the purchase of the property at Ribeira da Vaca.  I travelled on my own and was met at the airport by Martinho.  It was during this trip that we truly realised how lucky we were in our selection to work with Martinho (Madeira Property Centre).  He collected me at the airport, had found me accommodation in Paul do Mar, ran me around to all the appointments he had organised for me:

• residence papers for both of us
• tax registration for myself
• opened a local bank account
• exchanged contracts to purchase the property, with contracts in both Portuguese and English.

We are on our way to owing the property we have dreamed of owning for the last 5 years!  I flew to Madeira for a long week-end, and it was a week-end of highs and lows - being on my own made the experience un-nerving; but moving through the process with the help and support of Martinho made all the difference. 

Over the same time I was able to re-visit the property to confirm that the decision we had taken in our first trip there was the decision we wanted to take.  Another beautiful day found me wandering around the property and the buildings, finding bits and pieces that we had not seen before.  The most important part of this trip was to really confirm that this was the property we wanted to buy before I signed the contracts (in both English and Portuguese) and paid the deposit.  We had a long conversation before the appointment with the couple selling, the solicitor, and myself.  Martinho was a fabulous support, explaining each moment of the process as it occurred.  I found this a huge benefit.

What a simple way to work through a process made more complicated by the fact that I still didn't speak the local language. 

I flew back to the UK, arriving at London Gatwick at midnight, on a high! 

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.europeancoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Back in the UK and decision time!

Having spent many hours investigating a new environment, on our return to the UK we knew that we had found the place we wanted to move to.

So in June 2008 we spent time with our Financial Advisors, reviewed our financial position and made a decision that we would buy the property in Ribeira da Vaca.  We had the deposit in our bank account but had to be absolutely sure that we would be able to release the balance within the required timeframe.  One of the things we knew was that from the exchange contract date we had 90-days to complete.  If we were unable to complete the couple selling this property would have been able to retain the deposit.  On the other hand, if they withdrew from the sale, we would be paid double the value of the deposit.

We negotiated for the purchase and arrived at an agreement with the couple selling.  This negotiation was done through our agent - Martinho of Madeira Property Centre - and took a week or so to complete.

As was expected, this period for us was unsettling - after 5 years we had suddenly found somewhere that we wanted to move to.  Through the research we had done in all the countries we had believed we could live, very quickly we had made a decision.  Some told us that we should visit several times before we made a decision, but we went ahead.

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.europeancoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Had we made a decision?

We arrived back at the hotel feeling as though we had made our decision, but ... we were still in Madeira and still had Estate Agents to see.  We agreed that rather than make our final decision, we would see another estate agent the next day.

The feeling of deflation that we had felt at the lighthouse had worn off and we were now feeling a little scared - had we truly made our decision?

The next morning (our last day in Madeira) we went to meet another estate agent in Arco da Calheta.  We were being enticed with 5 acres for only €uro 40,000 - seemed a real bargain.  It wasn't a surprise that he had cancelled our appointment earlier in the week, with the rain we had experienced one night the road required a 4-wheel drive or walk!  Although he did try to get his vehicle up the road, we agreed to park and walk.

In all our experiences of looking at properties, we had always met the owner (who in all but one case did not speak English).    This viewing was no different.

To get to this property we had driven up into the mountains.  The land we were to look at was at the lower edge of the treeline.  It was explained to us that we could only build a woodern structure and that for every tree we felled we would need to plant another.

When we got there the first thought that came to mind was 'mountain goat'.  We were being offered 5 acres on the side of a hill ... yes, it was all up/down and no flat.  Another concern that became very obvious was that the road we were standing on (4-wheel drive only) we the 'main' road to a small village and small hotel.  As the tourism in this area developed, this road would become a lot busier and the property ran along the side of this road.  Therefore anything that was built would not be in the quiet secluded area that we now found ourselves in.   

The smell of pine was fabulous.  Although this was an incredible piece of land it was obvious why the price was so low - building would not have been easy and restrictive to specific requirements.  We had earlier in the week met an English builder who build Norweign Log Houses, so although we knew building in wood, would not be a problem, the idea of building a new house on the side of a mountain was daunting.

We drove back down to where we had left our hire car (a very underpowered 1.2L car for the hills and tracks), and drove on up on Porto Moniz for lunch.  Over lunch we got out our notes and started to work our way through the masses of photographs we had taken (you never get given Estate Agent details), the notes we had jotted down, the memories we had. 

What a fabulous experience this week had been! 

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.europeancoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Tip eight - application!

How do you apply to make your move happen?  Our experiences showed various options available to you.

1. Where have you selected to emigrate to? 
    If you are a European, have you selected to remain in Europe?
    If you are a European, have you selected to move outside of Europe?
    If you are not a European, have you selected to move to another country which requires a visa?

2. How can you find out how to apply to make your move happen?
    Have you decided to buy a property?  If so, who is your Estate Agent and what services do they offer?  If your selected Estate Agent does not offer any additional services, who can they refer you to?

3. What would happen if you were to approach your own Embassy/Consulate in the Country you have selected to emigrate to?

4. Who did you come across when you were doing your reseach?

5. What exhibitions have you attended, where you met someone or a company that could help?

Now is the time for you to make a decison and approach someone:
- be specific about what type of help you need
- how you will measure that everything you need to do to be able to emigrate will be done
- agreed / action-oriented - keep this list up-to-date.  What do you actually need to do to ensure that the person/organisation you select to approach will help you?
- realistic - be realistic about what you need to do to make this happen.  How much time will it take?  What paperwork do you need to have?
- time framed - clearly document what time you can allocate to getting together all the paperwork, information, etc. that you require to make this happen.  Build your expected timeframe around the time that you have available.
- exciting - It is true that it we cannot live, dream, breathe, be engulfed by our goal, it probably won't be achieved.  Now that you know what you have to do to make it happen, holding onto the excitment of your dream, your goal, your aspiration, will allow you to address each element of this hint and tip.
- recorded - at no point in your whole process is it more important to capture the detail.  Write it ALL down!

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.internationalcoachinginstitute.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91

Another day ... another property!

The following day saw us back with Martinho of Madeira Property Centre and in a little village called Ribeira da Vaca.  Slightly further north than we expected to buy, but as we explained to Martinho - we were in Madeira and really wanted to see all the properties that we could.

We met in Ponto do Pargo and drove north for a few kilometres - around more winding and twisting roads - further away from the developed areas.  This appealed, as we are looking to live here and not vacation here!

We parked and saw the house!  What a green surrounding.  We walked down the track towards the house thinking about our options ... our choices ... our requirements ... our absolutes ... our compromises.

We walked down the steps at the side of the house and what a view!  OK - but we were not buying this house to vacation in it, we planned to live here!  So we started to look through the house and the grounds to see what we were truly being shown.

As we had talked Martinho into showing us this house in a gap in his schedule, we didn't have long.  On our drive back to Funchal we talked about the house and couldn't find a reason not to buy it - so we turned round and went back. 

After passing the pig sty which we both agreed would go ... we walked around the grounds.  Sounds grand, but not at all.  We understood that this house came with a lot of land and that ticked one of our boxes.  It had a shed - another box ticked.  The house itself wasn't big - another box ticked.  It was a renovation project - and another box ticked.  As we were walking around individually we found that we were mentally ticking all the boxes. 

Standing away from the house we found that with all the overgrowth you really couldn't see what was there.  So we had to get up close and really look at the layout of the house - a single story and a double story building.  It was fairly obvious that it was a traditional house built many, many years ago.  We later found that it had not been lived in for about 10 years, and this explained the state of the toilet and shower block (an obvious add-on). 

After many hours of wandering around, sun shining, beautiful views, incredibly fertile land, we left and drove into Ponto do Pargo.  We sat on the wall at the bottom of the lighthouse and talked about our own individual feelings about the house.  In our own minds we had both said 'YES', but not wanting to put words into each others mouths - we didn't tell each other. 

This gave us the opportunity sitting with the sun on our backs, looking due west, to talk about the positives and to raise the concerns.  After a couple of hours, we both agreed that this property ticked all our boxes and more. 

WOW!  What a feeling - after so many years, so many disappointments, so many challenges, we both felt a little deflated.  We had in a very short period of time found both the location we wanted to live in and a property!

Want to make a success of your plans to move?  Want to work with someone who will not judge the reasons you want to make your move, who will not guide you down a specific path?  You have this opportunity to work with a qualified and accredited coach who has done it!

Just email Barbara on barbara.dalpra@nyasa.co.uk!

Find Barbara's biog on http://www.institute-of-coaching.org/coach_referral_service/display_detail.php?trf=91