About drewmckee

Currently Lives:

Citizen of:

Some Forum Posts:

Portugal: Selecting a bank & transferring money:

Robtrev, I recently went thru this as well. As an American I wanted to have a local bank in the Algarve and transfer money from my U.S. bank. My real estate agent (expat) recommended using Novo Banco (https://www.novobanco.pt/site/) and I have been happy with the service so far (over one year now). They have a good website (in English) and an excellent APP for iPhone. As for the transferring issue, I used GCEN - Global Currency and Exchange(https://gcen.co.uk). They worked well...but I might have been able to find a better exchange rate if I had hunted a bit more. However, my real estate agent had a history with them and I wanted to use a trusted service. I only used them for the transfer of funds to purchase my house. After that, I simply use my U.S. ATM card and withdrawal money from the ATM and deposit it in my Novo Banco account. My monthly expenses aren't that high and I get a better rate through the ATM card (visa) than I did with GCEN. Yes, there is a $5 fee (or something like that) but I did the math and it is better/easier to just do it this way (in my opinion). Drew

Portugal: Electronics - US to PT:

Lfunston, We bought some local 110/220v stuff. Other things to consider beyond just to voltage is the the TV format (NTSC vs PAL) and frequency (50hz vs 60hz). I have been living overseas since 2009 and am always extremely careful to buy dual voltage, worldwide stuff....look at the little sticker on the plug area, you might be surprised how many items you have are already dual voltage. Drew

Portugal: Portuguese TV:

Picareno, I'm an American in Praia da Luz and I've used Netflix on my iPad. The available programing is a bit different that the U.S., but it works. Drew

Portugal: Permanent Relocation Investigation:

Donschall1, Sounds like a great adventure. I recommend you check out Praia da Luz, Lagos, Portugal. My wife and I have a vacation home there and rather enjoy it. The Algarve in general is excellent. Make sure to hit the Saturday market in Loule, get there early. One thing you might investigate is the "90 in 180 day rule" for the Schengen countries. I may be wrong, but I think you can only stay 90 days in 180 day period. Enjoy, Drew

Portugal: TAXES IN PORTUGAL:

Kevin, I agree that it is a critical question. But the lovely weather and lifestyle count for something too. : ) Drew

Portugal: Tips on 1st Trip to Evaluate Potential Move:

I can suggest something based on what my wife and I have experienced... We find Praia de Luz (near Lagos) to be a nice area. The real estate is affordable (as is most of the Algarve), people are friendly and has year-round population. I can recommend you email the estate agent we used, Ms. Julie George (jvg17@hotmail.com). Julie is a Brit and very much a no-nonsense type person. We found her to be a wealth of information on everything from housing to shopping. Luz Ocean Club might offer a good place to stay while you look around: http://luzoceanclub.com As others have suggested, rent a car and drive the length of the Algarve. Check out lots of villages. Loule is nice....hit the Saturday market for sure. Regards, Drew

Portugal: Life after getting here.:

Dajo, If I can ask, where are you renting the car for 160 a month?? That is a great deal. Thanks, Drew

Portugal: Is the Algarve reasonable living:

I would agree Countga. These numbers match about what we spend.

Portugal: Algarve Real Estate Tours:

We purchased a home in June using: Algarve Home Sales http://www.algarvehomesales.com We had a great agent Ms. Julie George (English). I highly recommend her. She can be reached at: julie@algarvehomesales.com +351 282 763 902 - office +351 913 469 016 - mobile One thing we noticed during our home search was the complete lack of an Multi-Listing Service (MLS). It does make things a little more challenging. Good luck !

Portugal: Real estate agent:

I just bought a place thru Julie George in Praia da Luz. Very nice agent and took care of things throughout the entire process. I highly recommend her. http://www.algarvehomesales.com julie@algarvehomesales.com +351 282 763 902

Date Joined:

5/9/2016

Total Posts:

19

Posts/Day:

0.06