Could you live in Spain and work in the UK?

It is understandable, when polling Brits on why they haven’t yet moved to Spain, that the most common reason given is employment. VIVA is the first to advise caution when buying property in Spain, and so we also understand that such caution is paramount when considering moving to Spain…

Despite recent improvements, the Spanish job market is still comparatively weak, so for many Brits tempted by the allure of bright blue skies and the warmth of a Costa del Sol morning, the cold, hard reality of cash and career is the stronger pull.

For Brits, finding work in the UK is not just easier because of connections, qualifications and the ability to speak the same language – finding a job in the UK is easier for many young Spaniards, too. Unemployment for the under-25s in Spain remains more than 40 per cent; in the UK it is below 25 per cent.

But while the job market in the UK is more attractive than Spain’s, the same cannot be said for the property market. In London, for example, it would take a single person 29 years earning the average London wage to save enough for a deposit for a mortgage in the city, according to recent analysis by Rightmove.

And for those unable to buy in London, the next option – to rent – is becoming increasingly unaffordable, too. Rents in the UK capital rose 7.5 per cent in 2014, while wages rose by around four per cent. As a result, more and more youngsters are not only looking into the house share market, but even the growing room share market.

That’s right: adults working full time in London are so increasingly priced out of the city that the only way they can afford to live and work there is by sharing a rented room with a stranger. Room share website SpareRoom.co.uk has reported a 71 per cent increase in searches for bedroom shares in London and elsewhere in the UK over the past two years.

“We know many couples are sharing rooms in house and flat shares with other people to save money, but there’s also a rising number of single people sharing rooms now, too,” said SpareRoom.co.uk Director, Matt Hutchinson.

“Few people would choose to share a room, but the harsh reality is that London’s housing crisis means rents are becoming increasingly unaffordable,” he added. According to similar room share website Kangaroom, bedroom shares now account for around 10 per cent of the London rental market.

Think about that for a second. One in ten adults living in rented accommodation in London shares a room with another adult, just so they can afford to live in the capital. Moving outside of London and commuting in is not always a viable option either. Any money saved on rent is soon eaten up on travel costs, with the average commute from nearby towns into central London costing more than €3,000 per year.

So how can Spain help?
Destination commuting is a bold step to take, but it may just work for some people. A destination commuter lives in one country and works in another, hopping on a flight or a train at the beginning of their working week, living in temporary accommodation Monday to Thursday, and heading back home before the weekend begins.

For people able to earn good money in London, it is an increasingly viable option to snap up an affordable property on the Costa del Sol, bulk-buy cheap easyJet flights from Málaga airport in advance, and enjoy the benefits of a London salary while living amid the beauty of the Costa del Sol.

With the pound still strong against the euro, destination commuting might not be as fanciful as it first sounds. However, with a strong internet connection, a Skype account, a laptop and a job where the bulk of one’s work can be done anywhere provided they are ‘plugged in’ to their colleagues, email and the office Secret Santa list, perhaps remote working will be the true way forward for the stressed, stretched Brit of tomorrow?

After all, firing off an email, spreadsheet, report, article or design while sprawled around your own private pool in Marbella is far more appealing than a two-hour commute under grey London skies, or being forced to share a bedroom with a complete stranger, now, isn’t it?