Have you been to Javea and fallen deeply in love with the georgious sea side village on the mediterrenean? If so, you may want to consider making a life changing decision and move to the Costa Blanca permanently.
If youre an EU citizen moving from UK to Spain, Germany to Spain or any other full member of the EU is barely any hassle at all. You have the right to come here, settle down and get yourself a residencia. If youre moving to Spain from outside the EU you need to check the regulations for VISAs from you specific country but generally Spain is one of the least restrictive countries in Europe.
Laws and technicalities are of course only one side of the coin. The practical concerns such as where to stay, what schools to send the kids to, where to get a job and how you would fit into the lifestyle will usually fill up much more time than the basic legalities.
A Place To Stay In Javea
Before deciding on any specific house or location in Javea or the surrounding the area, you should take your time considering exactly why you are moving and what lifestyle you are hoping to settle into by doing so.
If you simple want to move your current life to a sunnier, cheaper and more chilled place, one of the urbanisations near the Javea Arenal will be a good choice for you. Those parts are largely expat ghettos, you have english shops readily available and the beach with all its amenities is just round the corner. Obviously, such a solution doesnt involve much integration in the actual spanish society and in theory you can fairly easily get by without ever learning any spanish beyond hola and gracias.
Javea long term rentals are plentiful in the english / expat parts of town with a huge range of spanish rental villas and downtown Javea rental apartments to choose between. The pricing is generally higher in the urbanisations and on the Arenal than in other parts of town as the offers cater almost exclusively to expats of various nationalities. Still, compared to Northern Europe rental prices in Javea are still relatively low with apartments nearby the Arenal starting at around 300euros/month for long term contracts and smaller villas in the urbanisations starting approximately at 600euros/month.
If youre in the opposite ditch and want to leave your lifestyle behind, integrate in spanish society and become a true mediterrenean citizen, you will be much better of looking at long term accomodation in Javea old town, the historic centre. Townhouses and apartment in Javea oldtown can be found at bargain prices, especially if you take a trip here first to go round looking for yourself. Living in Javea old town moves you straight into the pounding heart of a vibrant spanish village. You will find yourself woken up by crazy fiestas all through the summer, after a while you will barely bat an eyelit at the sight of bulls rampaging through the narrow streets and soon you will be having dinner outside in the narrow streets with your friends whilst yelling hola que tal at everyone passing by.
The old town solution takes alot more courage and determination, as you are the one required to change your ways to fit into the community and enjoy your stay, as opposed to life on the arenal where everything is adjusted to your unaltered desires in advance. Speaking spanish is a must and if you dont prior to your arrival you should arrange for immediate and intense schooling. There are plenty of option for learning spanish within walking distance where ever in oldtown your new casa may be located.
The third part of town, the Javea Port, is perhabs the compromise between the expat ghettos and the traditional spanish options mentioned above. The port is vibrant, has most of the shops and facilities you need and rental accomodation on the Javea port is generally cheaper than on the arenal, though not as cheap as in old town. You will find big south american communities living on the port lending extra latino vibes to the already charming area at the foot of Montgo national park.
Once you have decided which type of area you prefer for your future life in Spain, try hunting the internet for some promising looking options. All long term rental agents you encounter will be more than happy to take you on a guided tour of some of their available apartments or villas in Javea. Some rental agents will also be helpful in guiding you based on your needs and wishes, provide assistance with the formalities of the move and be able to recommend you gardeners, pool maintenance and cleaners if you require such services.
A couple of the trustworthy and serviceminded Javea long term rental agents, that I have personally had dealings with and as such feel comfortable recommending are Villamia and Renvida. There are dozens of others, so have a look around the net for more options. With a stack of promising properties in hand time has come to book a working holiday in Javea to see them all and hopefully choose one you fall in love with. Allow yourself as much time as possible to get a feel for the area and remember, the listing prices are a guidance rather carved in stone. Once you have the perfect house to build a future in, make sure you negotiate and haggle a bit to get the best possible price.
Schools In Javea
If you have kids that need to be sent to a school whilst living in Javea, there are basically two options: A dedicated expat school like the Javea International College or one of the communal spanish schools. A communal school may sound scary and intimidating, but in fact the level of education is rather high in Spain and the schools are of good quality. The communal school on the Arenal and to some extend the port school as weel, whilst spanish, are very used to non-spanish speakers entering the classes.
It obviously depends how old the kids are if its adviceable to send them into a spanish school without speaking spanish. If theyre just about to graduate its most likely a bad idea, if theyre just starting they will pick up the second language in no time.
The expat schools are said to be of brilliant quality and using more northern european teaching methods than the spanish ones. An obstacle for many would obviously be the rather excessive pricing as they are private establishments, but that should be a decision made based on your wallet and your wishes.
Getting A Job In Javea
It may sound harsh but if you are plotting to move to Javea whilst reliant on relatively quickly finding a job, reconsider or at least think very very hard about what youre doing before committing to a move.
There are jobs to be found but they are few, hard to get and generally offers very low pay. The unemployment in Spain is extremely high so you will find tough competition for every type of gig and naturally if your spanish isnt perfect and/or you dont have any experience or references locally you may find yourself being passed over by someone more qualified.
The best advice to give is to secure the job in advance. Go jobhunting whilst on extended holidays in Javea. Write from home to business owners that may have jobs matching your skills. You could be lucky but its far from easy.
Another option of course is to create the job yourself. Several people are selfemployed doing cleaning, maintaining gardens, setting up satelitte dishes or running beach bars. If you have some entrepeneural drive its perfectly possible to pave your own way like that, but do some proper research in advance and arrive with enough funds for a prolonged startup phase. Nothing moves at high speed in Spain, apart from bulls.
To be continued …
