Moving abroad

We moved abroad when my dh was 61 and I was 51. We still had a 9yo at that point and three adult DC but no GC. We were in a Third World country so it was challenging but looking back, it was a wonderful experience and it has sweetened retirement for us.

Provided you have good health cover, I'd jump at the chance, it's not like you're emigrating or anything so permanent.

I would go , not just for the money , but for the experience , and if OH enjoys his work things will be happier

I was 60 and DH was 61 when we got married and moved to Italy ( where he was born) At the time we had 1 be

Posted too soon .We had 1 gd and another on the way. We now have 4 gd and 2 GS between us (and 2 step GC). We can't afford to go back to England now unless house prices pick up here . I would say go and make the most of it. If it is in Europe flights can still be cheap. I'm going in 6 weeks and it's only 60 euro return! We miss the children but they come here and we visit them and have days not hours with them !!?

Go for it Sar53 we did and have not regretted it. We were 59 and just married. You don't say where you are going but make some effort with the language and the rest will follow. Like most things you have to work at it. If you are going abroad to work then it's time limited anyway so look on it as an adventure.
Good luck

If you can come back four times a year that's great - you will see your family a lot more than many of us do who live in the same country! I would support hubby and go for it.

My husband was offered the chance of a job in Norway, which he was very keen to take hoping it would see him through to retirement. I gave up work and moved there with him, although we kept our house in UK but could only get 'home' twice a year. I am a very sociable person but found it so difficult to meet people, not speaking Norwegian I couldn't work and although I did go to language lessons I struggled(not the easiest of languages to learn). I was very isolated and lonely as my husband was out at work 12hrs a day. l missed my daughter, my friends and my old life. I stuck it out for 18months and then travelled back and forth for another year until my husband decided to come back to UK too. If we hadn't have done it my husband would have always wondered if he'd missed out, so I am glad we went, it was an 'experience ' but I was so happy to be back to pick up my old life.

Thank you all so much for your comments. Its good to hear what others think. Until things are finalised, and there is no guarantee it will go ahead, we are not telling anyone. Therefore I have not had a chance to discuss this very big change with anyone.
We will be going to the Middle East so as most people speak English, language won't be a problem.
Part of me is excited the other part is scared.
We will rent out our home so will have somewhere to come back to in the end. Once again thank you.

SAR53 My husband worked for five years in Oman. You will probably make most of your friends from the expat community. Time can pass rather slowly so you need friends to keep you occupied. Many of us would go home to UK in the summer to get away from the heat so it might be a good idea not to let your house straight away. I had a son still living at home at the time and the lawns needed cutting anyway! The winter weather is wonderful and you can lie in the sea on Christmas Day and forget about ice and snow. Hope you enjoy it.

Agree with liaise. You will need respite from the heat so not renting out would be a good idea and saves a possible nightmare of a wrecked house when you get back. Not all renters I am afraid are respectful of other people's property. What an exciting prospect awaits you both. I hope you grasp the opportunity and enjoy the journey.

Sorry I think I posted in the wrong part of the forum, oops !!

You certainly have to go with a positive attitude so that you will get the most out of it, but it's a relatively short time and I think you should certainly go for it. However I agree with Izabella about renting out your house. We have done this a couple of times and I swore I'd never let my own home out again. People don't look after it carefully unless you're very lucky and you can't depend on letting agencies either.

Sounds like a good move.

I don't think you should go. I think I should, in fact I am mostly packed and ready to rock, my life is full of absolutely no adventures at all. What's your husband like for getting along with? got any tips for me? Oh I wish it was me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You say 'my partner' - does that mean you're not married? If so, you might find it difficult, if not impossible, to get a spouse's visa for any Middle East country.

I agree with not letting out your house in the UK, not at least for the first year, particularly as you are planning to return so frequently.

My in-laws just moved a couple of hundred miles north when they retired, never mind abroad, and it was a complete disaster. They were inflexible people, however, so I guess it depends on your disposition as to whether a move will succeed.

As Riverwalk says, if you are not married, you do need to be careful in the Middle East. In some countries there, it is illegal for a heterosexual couple to share a home if not married (I think they assume two men, or two women living together, doing so as merely friends, unless they have information to the contrary).

Go for it. I emigrated to South Africa, with my wife and two daughters, when I was 30. But things were stagnating there by the time I was sixty. My approaching retirement, wasn't looking too healthy. I was offered a two year contract in mainland China, which was an offer I couldn't refuse and would make our future secure. My wife and I took the plunge and were there for the full two years. It was one of the best things we ever did. Besides securing our future, it was a wonderful experience. Travel is the greatest thing in the world. So as I say go for it.

We are not married at the moment but would do so before going, if and when it happens. We have been together about 9 years and have never felt the need to before.
Radicalnan, your comment made me smile. It would be an adventure and it would set us up for our retirement together. We have always wanted to buy a home in the south of France, that may be a possibility.
We would rent out our flat, we have decided that we would have it redecorated and new carpets fitted before moving back. When I come back 3 or 4 times a year I will stay with my DD's, luckily they both have spare rooms and I would be a live in babysitter !!
I will let you know when I have more news, hopefully within the next few weeks.

I would go (in fact I planned to for a year or two after I retired but my had health problems so couldn't) but if you really don't like it after giving it a fair try, don't see coming back early as a failure. I don't have many regrets in life but those I do have involve sticking with things that were making me unhappy because I was brought up to believe that giving up was failure.
I envy you the opportunity.

We are overseas in the Middle East. Wouldn't change a thing for now. It's a great experience, we have many new friends and a broad outlook on life. DH works, I fill my days with friends, interests or just pottering around my home.
As they say, 'travel broadens the mind'!

To answer your question Sar, I've done it and overall it was a very positive experience.

Seven years ago at the age of 55 I worked in Saudi Arabia for six months - not a bundle of laughs admittedly but I knew that before I went.

You won't be isolated - there are so many expat workers and spouses in the ME. Plenty to do, even in Saudi!

What a wonderful oppurtunity to have in later life.I think you should definitely go and enjoy the experience.

We did it when we were in our late 50's - my husband was offer a job and he moved first and I got a flexible leave of absence from my job and went back and forth for the first year before actually resigning and moving abroad to be with him. Our DD had just finished university and starting her career and our DS was engaged. We didn't rent our house out - our daughter lived in it and we stayed there on our trips back home

Our contract was for three years - we stayed for 15! I was able to get a job after living there a year. We did eventually sell our house and buy a condo that we would stay in when we came to visit and it was a great arrangement because we had somewhere to live when we finally retired and moved back home.

It was one of the best decisions we have ever made - it has completely changed our retirement and given us financial freedom. During our time abroad both our grown children married and had their children and honestly this time abroad has had no effect on our ongoing relationship with the closeness to the family. I think it had made us better grandparents in our old age!

It isn't always easy - but the experience changes you and your relationship with husband and family for the better.