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Retiring to Cyprus

Last activity 22 September 2023 by Toon

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SteveCornish7
Good morning
We are Steve and Ally, we currently live in Ipswich in Suffolk and are considering a permanent move in retirement to Cyprus.
We have had our house valued and ready to go on the marked in late August when we are going out to the Paphos area for 2 weeks to research the area for locations to move to.
We need to find our what our essential costs will be so we can work out if our pensions will be enough for us to live comfortably there.
I know its a bit like asking how long is a piece of string but some ball park figures will help us to work it out.
Can anyone tell us what our essential costs minus food would be if we purchased and average 3 bed villa with pool in the Paphos area, Water, electricity, local rates, pool maintenance etc......

Many thanks
Steve and Ally
Toon

Car insurance

Road tax
Mot
Fuel
All depend on car make model engine drivers ages and  cover

2 weeks ago
Electricity.. is expensive  we only have a 2 bed apartment and we pay €200 per 2 months with 2 inverter air cons in use but you will need to factor in for a pool pump. That will cost you approx 6 hrs per day at 30-40 c per hour extra
Broadband.. depends on supplier speed and number of user plus usage but typically  €20-30
Mobile Phone contract min €35
Council Tax - this varies with municipality 
Water incl.pool. €50-75 per three months
Refuse Collection €130
House Insurance depends on amount of contents insured  €70.per yr for €15k cover
Toon
Pool maint €80-100per month
anthonyfarrow
Hi Steve
We moved over here in March and bought a 3 bed villa with pool in Peyia, we have so far found the costs as follows (based on historical bills that the last owners left and also what we have received so far.

- Electricity €140 per month ((€280 every 2 months)
- Water €25 per month (€75 every 3 months)
- Broadband (20mbps) €42 per month
- Mobile phone PAYG approx €10 per month (we use WhatsApp to message, call and video call back home for free by using WI-FI)
- Council tax €10 per month (billed quarterly
- Refuse collection €11 per month (billed annually)
- Community charge €35 per month (we live on a private development where the residents are responsible for the maintenance and sanitation of the community)
- Car insurance €20 per month for a large family saloon (this includes any driver and breakdown cover)
- Petrol €70 per month
- Pool maintenance was €100 per month (I now do my own pool which costs approx €25 per month)
- Home insurance €8 per month
- Health insurance €35  per month for my wife and I (we should shortly be entitled to GESY so this expense is short term)

Total for the above is €506 per month

Food and drink is a personal choice and prices like the UK have increased noticeably of late but I still find both supermarkets and eating out to be inherently good value compared to what we were used to in the UK

Lastly we absolutely love our new life in Cyprus and would encourage anyone to take the plunge. The only advice I would give is to rent somewhere for 12 months when you first come out before you buy to understand the area, neighbours etc (paradoxically we didn’t take this advice and have been lucky that this worked out for us but in hindsight it was definitely more luck than good judgement)
Tony
garymc38

@anthonyfarrow Anthony, really useful post  can you tell me who your health insurance is with as 35 Euros sounds a good price to me. Thanks Gary

anthonyfarrow
Hi Gary
It was arranged via my solicitor (we got the cheapest possible cover as we are expecting to be entitled to GESY in the next few weeks and are both only 56 and in good health), I will ask him for the details and drop a note on this thread
garymc38
Thanks Anthony,  appreciate it. Gary
andrewcullen847

@anthonyfarrow I'm 55 moving over did you use the fast track option to get permanent residency and hence gesy

anthonyfarrow
Hi Andrew
My wife has an Irish passport so it is relatively easy for her to get an MEU1 Visa and she also works 2 days per week from home for a UK company (although she is registered for Cyprus tax) hence she is entitled to GESY and is afforded the same rights as Cypriot Citizens (and fortunately as her husband I am also entitled to all of the above) the only exception being that I have an MEU2 permit
Toon
Interesting Anthony .. so I presume your better half pays social contributions as well as tax  and as such pays the gesy element and thus both you and other half have the entitlement
anthonyfarrow
That’s Correct Toon
Jackie53
@anthonyfarrow
Hi, thank you for your post it was very useful.  I am looking to retire out in Cyprus this year  and have already been out to look at property and villages in the Paphos area. I will be moving out solo and would ask is there a particular area of Peyia I should look at to purchase a 3 bed villa with pool, I have many friends and family who will visit but need to feel safe living alone.  I am looking at resale as there are so many negatives to off plan new build and they seem to build many close together with not much land.
Unfortunately Peyia is the one village I did not visit.
anthonyfarrow
Hi Jackie
We purchased a villa at Zalakia F, Petrombey Mavromichali (in the hills above Peyia about 5 mins from the village by car and about 20 mins walk). The reason that my wife wanted to live here is that it is a really good community with a very caring and supportive vibe. It is really quiet and peaceful (no barking dogs etc) and as far as I am aware there has been no break ins or crime whatsoever in recent years.
Most of the owners are British (not sure how you feel about that) but for us it has been invaluable in helping us settle in and being made welcome. It has also been great to help us navigate the challenges of moving to a new country ;everything from administration to finding reliable builders. Ultimately I guess the best you can do is research the area before you buy I.e come at different times of day and night, look at the general upkeep of the neighboring villas, ask about crime stats for the area (Peyia police station should be able to give you a steer), speak to a few of the neighbors and get their view on the area (most are surprisingly honest). Lastly if you find an area that you like try to secure a short term holiday let before you buy (just a couple of weeks) as this will definitely give you the best opportunity to get a real feel if the area is right for you.
I thought Toon has previously done a couple of excellent posts on what to look for when you first move over so it may be worth you trying to find those posts

Hope this helps

Tony
Toon
Definitely the way to go anthony
Jackie53
@anthonyfarrow
Thank you, once again your advice is invaluable .
dvb123

@anthonyfarrow 

Hi Anthony, Thank you for your valuable information. Your property taxes seem to be very low. Are there any additional annual property taxes as mentioned in this website ? 

Annual Property Taxes & Fees in Cyprus.

Local Authority Fees
Depending on the size of the property, local authorities charge between €85 – €500 per annum for regular refuse collection, street lighting, sewerage and similar community services. Communal Services fees are payable to the local municipal authority, where the property is situated.

Municipality Tax
The registered owner of the property is required to pay an annual Municipality Tax, calculated on the market value of the property as at 1st of January 2013. Rates vary from 1‰ – 2‰. Municipality tax is payable to the local municipal authority, where the property is situated.

Sewerage Tax
The registered owner of the property is required to pay an annual Sewerage Tax, calculated on the market value of the property as at 1st of January 2013. Rates vary from 0.5‰ – 3‰. Sewerage taxes are payable annually to the local sewerage board, where the property is situated.


Toon
Peyia doesn't currently charge for sewerage but does for rubbish tax at €135 per annum

Immovable property taxes were abolished in 2017 for all of Cyprus..... However  Peyia charges a Municipality Immovable property tax .. it's very very low
Toon
If on a communal complex ...communal fees are usually paid to the admin / committe or property management company appointed by the committee and vary depending on property and facilities available and can vary between €50-100 per month...

Be aware and wary of comlexes whose management teams may not be performing regarding fee / debt collection site maintenance pool maintenence etc  . Some these days are falling into disrepair or facilities as advertised may not be functional or are functioning at limited times be diligent with your checks....
Some owners who decide not to pay then need to be chased through the courts and that can take time and money ...recoverable from via liens from the defaulting owner or negotiating with the repossessing bank...
Andrew0680

@anthonyfarrow


hi Anthony,  I’m 55 and we are moving to paralimni area next year.

your monthly approx costings are excellent for us budgeting as we’ll be ’retiring’ also but have a 14yr old daughter who is super excited to be coming (!) 🤷‍♂️

We are using the fast track permanent route as we are buying a new build 3 bed villa with pool.


would your costings posted in june last year be about right still for your monthly total or nudging up to €600/month given food, petrol energy because of the Ukraine war ?


Also, could you expand on your mobile phone costs at €10/month - what do you get for that ?

We each have a phone and will be looking for a price based on a similar set up to uk ; free mins, free texts, 6gig data : with EE in uk we pay  £60/month for all 3 of us (€53 based on 1.15fx)


How much ought i to be budgeting for with mobiles do you think ?


loved your comments about caring community feel,  it’s a big part of why we are coming 


no problem if you cant answer anything above, just thought id reach out because we are doing something similar to you guys.



thanks,

Andrew.

SimCityAT


    @anthonyfarrow
hi Anthony,  I’m 55 and we are moving to paralimni area next year.
your monthly approx costings are excellent for us budgeting as we’ll be ’retiring’ also but have a 14yr old daughter who is super excited to be coming (!) 🤷‍♂️
We are using the fast track permanent route as we are buying a new build 3 bed villa with pool.

would your costings posted in june last year be about right still for your monthly total or nudging up to €600/month given food, petrol energy because of the Ukraine war ?

Also, could you expand on your mobile phone costs at €10/month - what do you get for that ?
We each have a phone and will be looking for a price based on a similar set up to uk ; free mins, free texts, 6gig data : with EE in uk we pay  £60/month for all 3 of us (€53 based on 1.15fx)

How much ought i to be budgeting for with mobiles do you think ?

loved your comments about caring community feel,  it’s a big part of why we are coming 

no problem if you cant answer anything above, just thought id reach out because we are doing something similar to you guys.


thanks,
Andrew.
   

    -@Andrew0680


Andrew,


Anthony hasn't visited the website in 6 months. You might be lucky and come back with a response but don't worry if he doesn't maybe someone else will come back with an answer.

Nanny LESLEY

We pay €96 per month for 2 phones and broadband with Primetel.  electricity can be quite expensive so i would say €1000 a month is more realistic to budget for electric,  water,  community tax, car tax, car insurance, food  etc

Toon

We aren't extravagant but live comfortably on about €2k per month for literally everything that's elec water IPT home insurance motor insurance life insurance refuse tax road tax fuel servicing TV services internet 80mbps groceries socialising communal fees  2-3 times a week for eats and drinks. There is of course only two of us and we live in a nice 2 bed apartment...

NB pool servicing will be roughly 80-100 per month incl chems.

Andrew0680

@Toon

Thanks toon, that really helps.

apprecaite you sharing your available funds and living style.

we will have approx €2.5k/month but of course we are 3.


i have an approx €100/month budget quote for pool cleaning from our developer (who is a good guy)  so that fits with your figures. 👍

Andrew0680

@Nanny LESLEYThanks Lesley….!

Toon

@Andrew0680


Oh an we also have a cat who is so goddamn fussy with what he eats .. and we feed two female feral cats too that's also included in our budgeting

Andrew0680

@Toon

clearly an animal lover, man sfter my own heart  - bless ya! 👍

Toon

@Andrew0680


And volunteer for a local cat welfare charity too.....

Andrew0680

@Toon


👍 admirable Toon.


Do you have approx pricing on home insurance in Cyprus ?

Toon

All depends on valuation of property and contents mate there are lots of brokers here ..Abbeygate top quotes pacific Atlantic   email for quotes


Contents alone is cheap  it's the house. Value that bumps it up usually based on sq meterage

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