Keeping in touch - so important when moving home to live in overseas property
In all the excitement of buying an overseas property and moving home, it is all too easy to forget that once you are living abroad you will want to stay in touch - as much with friends and family back in the UK as with world affairs and local affairs. This is even more critical if English is not the main language in the region where you have bought your new overseas property. But wherever you will be living abroad, do a little research before moving home to find out the best ways to stay in contact.
Postal services to and from your overseas property
After living abroad for a little while, the UK postal system may seem the epitome of efficiency! Even in countries with a reliable postal service, you may find you are not on a delivery route if your new overseas property is in a remote location. Instead, you have to open a post office box (P.O.Box) and collect your mail yourself. And if you are moving home to an apartment block in a foreign city, post will probably be delivered to a central lobby, not to each door.
Itīs good to talk, but it can be expensive when you are living abroad
In some countries, landline local calls are free. This can be handy, but not of immediate benefit to Brits when they first start living abroad, especially when this arrangement usually means you need a special account or an extra line installed in your overseas property to make international calls - and they wonīt be cheap. There are sometimes, but not always, low-cost alternatives available. Look for companies which route your call via another telephone service provider when you tap in a code before the international number.
Mobile phones donīt usually like moving home
Your current mobile phone may not work in your overseas property. Also, roaming charges, while expected to be replaced by a monthly charge, still apply on some networks. As a result, many Brits living abroad in their overseas property find it cheaper to subscribe to a local mobile phone provider. If you own a latest generation phone and are moving home, you may find you need only to insert a new SIM card for use in your new country (and you can keep you old SIM card for when you visit the UK). Check out www.0044.co.uk to find out the alternatives open to you.
Get Internet access to your overseas property
Internet services are now available around the globe so you should be able to arrange installation for your overseas property. If you are used to high-speed access, however, you may find moving home takes you back to the slow days of dial-up, as connection speeds vary considerably. A cable Internet connection (often with telephone and television service) may solve the problem in some overseas property but it may be available only in major cities. When living abroad you may need to change your current email service. Free web-based email accounts such as Hotmail and Yahoo can be handy when moving home as you can access your emails from your new overseas property, an Internet café or any other computer with Internet connection - no matter where they are located.
Most Brits living abroad have access to some English language media
Wherever your overseas property or holiday home is located you should be able access some kinds of English language media while living abroad. This is probably most important if you are moving home to a country where English is not the main language. The Internet, of course, provides immediate and convenient access if it is installed in your overseas property, but British national daily papers may also be available. So, too, may the BBCīs World Service (see www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice), and UK terrestrial or satellite television. The BBC also publishes numerous country profiles (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/country_profiles/default.stm) which include details of English language media available to Brits living abroad.
