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UK expats in Spain in perfect storm over falling pound
| Published: | 1 Nov at 6 PM |
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Whether on a pension or working for a fixed sterling salary, British expats in Spain have lost 17 per cent of their monthly money due to the post-Brexit sterling crash.
Retirees from the UK who’ve saved all their lives to live in the sun may not have mortgage costs to consider, but private health insurance and utilities as well as property maintenance and suchlike are becoming increasingly difficult to fund. Employed expats with young families are in an even worse situation due to schooling costs.
The obvious answer of selling up, returning to the UK and throwing yourself on the mercy of Social Services may mean you’ve more sterling than before the fall to buy another home, but soaring house price increases over the past few years could mean sacrificing a reasonable quality of life. Adding to the costs of shipping household goods back to the UK is the spike in UK inflation caused by the Bank of England’s recent money-printing quantitative easing.
Inflation is set to continue to rise as importers and retailers factor in the fall in sterling, and projected interest rises and increases in energy costs will fuel a perfect storm of financial difficulty for those on pensions or fixed incomes. Reports from expats in Spain fully aware of the above invariably mention the lies told to the British people in order to ensure the country’s divorce from the EU.
It’s now becoming clear that fixed income expats wherever they’re located are stuck between a rock and a hard place. What hasn’t hit the media yet is the possibility that, in order to reduce governmental expenses, the state pension could well be changed to the detriment of those receiving it.
Already, financiers are warning that occupational pensions cannot deliver their promised results, and that some pension providers will stop trading. It’s the classic Ponzi scheme, with investment payments over many years being used to pay out those taking retirement, leaving the coffers almost empty due to fewer contributions. Bernie Madoff, now serving a 150-year jail sentence, might well be amused to compare his crimes with Britain’s National Insurance scheme.
Retirees from the UK who’ve saved all their lives to live in the sun may not have mortgage costs to consider, but private health insurance and utilities as well as property maintenance and suchlike are becoming increasingly difficult to fund. Employed expats with young families are in an even worse situation due to schooling costs.
The obvious answer of selling up, returning to the UK and throwing yourself on the mercy of Social Services may mean you’ve more sterling than before the fall to buy another home, but soaring house price increases over the past few years could mean sacrificing a reasonable quality of life. Adding to the costs of shipping household goods back to the UK is the spike in UK inflation caused by the Bank of England’s recent money-printing quantitative easing.
Inflation is set to continue to rise as importers and retailers factor in the fall in sterling, and projected interest rises and increases in energy costs will fuel a perfect storm of financial difficulty for those on pensions or fixed incomes. Reports from expats in Spain fully aware of the above invariably mention the lies told to the British people in order to ensure the country’s divorce from the EU.
It’s now becoming clear that fixed income expats wherever they’re located are stuck between a rock and a hard place. What hasn’t hit the media yet is the possibility that, in order to reduce governmental expenses, the state pension could well be changed to the detriment of those receiving it.
Already, financiers are warning that occupational pensions cannot deliver their promised results, and that some pension providers will stop trading. It’s the classic Ponzi scheme, with investment payments over many years being used to pay out those taking retirement, leaving the coffers almost empty due to fewer contributions. Bernie Madoff, now serving a 150-year jail sentence, might well be amused to compare his crimes with Britain’s National Insurance scheme.
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