What order to do things when moving to Malta?

I believe it's easier to find a job once you are here although there are a lot more agencies you can contact now.  Please read all previous posts about moving here and finding work, if you have never been to Malta before it's advisable to come and have a holdiday here first. Good luck with everything.

Thanks, have been many, many times and have always enjoyed my stay. However a lot of the posts on here that I have scanned through have been quite critical of renting, lifestyle etc so I am a little bit apprehensive!

I think you only hear about the worse landlords on here whereas there are probably a lot of very good ones, we are on our third rental and not had any trouble at all.

Here is how our move to Malta went.

I signed up with a Job agency around 3 weeks before moving over. Was lucky enough to get a job 2 days before arriving. Finding work isn't hard, in my opinion. igaming companies are a pretty good place to start. They pay well compared to other industries. Best job agencies for the industry are betting connections and spot on.

When we arrived we had a hotel booked for a week while we looked for a place to rent. Over 90% of rented houses come fully furnished, we arrived with 2 suitcases. We came with our dog and it was still pretty easy to find a nice place within our budget in Gzira. Be strict with the estate agents, they will most likely start taking you to places they want to get off their books first, (not in your budget, not meeting requirements) be firm on your requirements and they will take you to places that meet them.

You can find private landlords on Maltapark.com and some facebook pages. We found a private landlord and didn't pay any estate agent fees (half months rent). January is a good time to move as temporary rentals often change to permanent rentals as it is easier for the landlord to have someone in full time. Our apartment was a holiday rental before we moved in.

Been here over 18 months now and still loving it. Hope it all goes smooth for you.

I'm pretty much in your same situation! The only difference is that we have a child and that makes things more difficult as she is in school now! So I'm not sure if it would be a good idea to move there before finding a job!

I had a job before I came here but ended up paying more rent than I would like as I was advised that Attard Primary school is one of the best state schools on the island.  Initially stayed in a hotel - you should be able to get something quite cheap as it is not holiday time.  If you can find somewhere to rent from Maltapark that would be your best bet.  It is very likely you will need a car but don't rent from Goldcars.  You can buy and insure a car once you have your ID card.  Schools are great, breakfast club opens at 7.00am and is free if you work; after school club is 80cents per hour, 15 pupils per class with teacher and 1 or 2 teaching assistants.  If you end up paying more for rent than you would like, don't worry too much as most people seem to move after their first 6 months anyway - be warned though, you'll be really lucky to get any of your deposit back (I didn't).  You will need to have an address before you can book your child into a school so I would look at job and accommodation at the same time.  Buses are quite good now, as well.  I've been here 3 years having driven down from Leicester.  Good luck.

If you move before your twelve month contract is up you would not expect to get your deposit back.

Don’t expect to get a refund of your rental deposit. 

Please see excerpts: ‘……On his part, Galdes [Parliamentary Sectretary for social accommodation] promptly reminded him……that many tenants suffer from inordinate increases in rental prices, landlords not offering tenants contracts and abruptly informing them they need to vacate their property just after a few months or abusive practices where deposits are not returned to tenants……’

Source: http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/ … sAO8.email

Fionn it would be nice to read about your experiences living here not just what you have read somewhere.