Where to Live in Limassol Area

[alliebella6]

Hi Everyone,
I am in the process of arranging to move to Cyprus in the very near future and was wondering if anyone could advise the best places to settle in the Limassol area. I have to be in a reasonable distance to Alassa, where both my parents and sister live. This is due to my sister being very ill and the fact my father is now not well, and needing to be there for my mum. It will just be myself and husband coming out, though he will be working away most of the time and will be on my own. Use to this, as was living in Hong Kong for 5 years some time ago. We are coming out next month for a month to look around. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Allie

[Higgi]

Hi Allie. My husband and I moved over here in June this year and we rent a 3 bed bungalow in Erimi. It is a lovely village with a nice atmosphere. Its on the main route into Limassol, which takes about 10 minutes in the car, and from what I can see on the map its not too far from Alassa. Episkopi is just a couple of minutes drive away where there is a good supermarket, doctor, police station etc etc. It has quite a few expats but is not 'touristy' (for want of a better word). We love it here and looked for a long while to find a suitable place and this is it for us. I see houses for rent in the area often. If I can be of any more help message me again. Deborah

[alliebella6]

Originally Posted by Higgi

Hi Allie. My husband and I moved over here in June this year and we rent a 3 bed bungalow in Erimi. It is a lovely village with a nice atmosphere. Its on the main route into Limassol, which takes about 10 minutes in the car, and from what I can see on the map its not too far from Alassa. Episkopi is just a couple of minutes drive away where there is a good supermarket, doctor, police station etc etc. It has quite a few expats but is not 'touristy' (for want of a better word). We love it here and looked for a long while to find a suitable place and this is it for us. I see houses for rent in the area often. If I can be of any more help message me again. Deborah

Hi Deborah, Thank you for your reply. It's good to hear from someone who has moved over to Cyprus recently. We are really excited about moving over and I'm researching as much as I can at the moment. My husband is away until the beginning of October, so doing most of the sorting out on my own. Starting to get quotes in for removals and shipping now and selling the larger items we are not taking with us. Did you find properties to look at through an agency or ones that were advertised locally? As we rent our property here, there's not too much for us to sort out this end and we can move out fairly quickly. Is there anything you miss since you moved over there, apart from family? Have you found it fairly easy to get phone and utilities to set up? Any help would be appreciated. Many thanks. Allie

[Veronica]

Originally Posted by alliebella6

Have you found it fairly easy to get phone and utilities to set up? Any help would be appreciated. Many thanks. Allie

If you find a rental property through an agent part of their job is to go with you to the Electricity board to get the electricity put into your name and get it connected.
They would probably also go with you to the Cytanet offices if you asked them to get the phone connected for you.

Veronica

[Veronica]

Just out of interest are you sure the place where your parents live is called
Alassa and not Khalassa?

[Veronica]

Ok I have it. Its the same place. Khalassa is the old spelling for it.

[Higgi]

I sympathise with you on doing most of the packing yourself!!. My husband came over here 3 weeks before me and unfortunately I got stuck with the last stage removal bit - the worst bit... However, we had the complete pack and wrap service and I hghly recommend it. A bit pricey but well worth it as it took all the hassle (well, most of it) out of it. We also rented our property in the UK so we could move quickly and we firstly came over in April for a week to Paphos initially, as that is where we thought we might like to live. We viewed lots of properties over several days which I had arranged over the internet before coming - just put cyprus rental properties in google.. We soon realised that where we were looking was going to be too far away for my husbands job and so we drove over to where his boss suggested (Erimi, Kolossi) and bought the anglo advertiser newspaper! We phoned several agents and a few private ones and found this house. It was a private rental and we have a cypriot landlord who is brilliant. Luckily the lady who was in the property before us was still living with friends and she helped us with electricity and water bill changeover. Being foreigners we had to pay a deposit of around 15 euros. We have had to have a special wireless internet connection as we had no landline but if we had had a line in phone connection would have been easy through cytanet (BT equivelant), just by going to their shop. Their deposit is 150 euros.
Do I miss anything apart from family? - Yes. I am having difficulty getting a job at the moment and our house, as lovely as it is, is quite remote. So without neighbours and work colleagues I, personally, havent made many female friends and I miss that. I had a busy job in the UK and a good social network so that is the only down side for me at the moment, but its early days too. So, if you fancy a bit of shopping and a coffee when you come let me know!!
Deborah

[alliebella6]

Originally Posted by Higgi

I sympathise with you on doing most of the packing yourself!!. My husband came over here 3 weeks before me and unfortunately I got stuck with the last stage removal bit - the worst bit... However, we had the complete pack and wrap service and I hghly recommend it. A bit pricey but well worth it as it took all the hassle (well, most of it) out of it. We also rented our property in the UK so we could move quickly and we firstly came over in April for a week to Paphos initially, as that is where we thought we might like to live. We viewed lots of properties over several days which I had arranged over the internet before coming - just put cyprus rental properties in google.. We soon realised that where we were looking was going to be too far away for my husbands job and so we drove over to where his boss suggested (Erimi, Kolossi) and bought the anglo advertiser newspaper! We phoned several agents and a few private ones and found this house. It was a private rental and we have a cypriot landlord who is brilliant. Luckily the lady who was in the property before us was still living with friends and she helped us with electricity and water bill changeover. Being foreigners we had to pay a deposit of around 15 euros. We have had to have a special wireless internet connection as we had no landline but if we had had a line in phone connection would have been easy through cytanet (BT equivelant), just by going to their shop. Their deposit is 150 euros.
Do I miss anything apart from family? - Yes. I am having difficulty getting a job at the moment and our house, as lovely as it is, is quite remote. So without neighbours and work colleagues I, personally, havent made many female friends and I miss that. I had a busy job in the UK and a good social network so that is the only down side for me at the moment, but its early days too. So, if you fancy a bit of shopping and a coffee when you come let me know!!
Deborah

Hi Deborah, Have had a look online at places for rent though only to see what is about and prices. Having had a look at the 2 bed places, have decided they are too small for us and are definitely going for a 3 bed house or bungalow. Husband would like something with a pool, though I'm not too sure about it. Just the cost of having one that worries me. How's the job hunting going? What sort of work you looking for? That would be good to meet up for a coffee and look around the shops. I know what it's like to move to a new place, have moved 10 times in the past eleven and half years!!!! (Husbands job). Can't believe we are moving to Cyprus. Didn't think we would be doing anything like this until we were older. We are both in our late forties. My parents have been out there since 2001, when they decided to retire. It takes a while to meet people, especially if you aren't working or have any young children. All mine are grown up now and two have children of their own. That's one of the things are I am going to miss, not seeing the grandchildren as much. Though my plan is to return to the UK every July and August to spend time with the family over here. If you would like to keep in contact then I could send you my email address.
Allie

[Higgi]

Hi Allie,
We looked initially at 2 bed places and now have a 3 bed bungalow with a pool. Pete does all the maintenance on it which is a deal we made - I'd do the housework, and he would do the outside.... If you pay for pool maintenance it would cost about £100 euros per month. Not entirely sure how much it costs us cos we're still waiting for our first electricity bill (the pool pump) but the chemicals (chlorine, algicide and Ph balancer) have probably cost us about 80 euros since June. Luckily the previous tenant left the pool vacuum cleaner and attachments. Its quite time consuming and has to be chemical tested daily and topped up accordingly. It needs hoovering 2 or 3 times a week and of course the electric for the pump. However, in the hot months it has been a godsend and of course its great to have when visitors come etc etc. Depends on if you are going to have the time and inclination to clean and maintain it yourself to make it cheaper or can afford a 'pool' man. We are also around your age with our children grown up and so as you say making friends with younger children is always easier. It would be good to have your email and we can keep in touch and meet when you come over. If I can help with any other advice or tips let me know. Job hunting is dire. The language is the obvious biggest problem. I am a nurse with a lot of years experience but of course in the hospitals a lot of the patients are Cypriot and its been a big barrier. A lot harder than I had hoped. But I am still plodding on and something will come up I am sure - even if it means changing careers to do something in Macdonalds!!...
Take care
Deborah

[alliebella6]

Originally Posted by acornvilla

Hi Allie,
If you are looking for somewhere near Alassa, Lania (north on B8)
is a beautiful village to relocate to and only 10 mins from your family, panoramic views of the Troodos and light cool breezes in the summer, great location with taverna / cafe / shops /P.O. artists studios.
<snip>
We are having to relocate to the other side of the island next year because of my husbands work so we are having to sell our house , which will be very sad as I love the area and the people of Lania, but I would recommend the mountains to anyone , only 20 minutes to the beach and the lovely walks around the vineyards, I fell in love with the area as soon as I saw it and we had been looking for a long time for that special place , not like around Limassol as you could be stuck next to a building site for years .
hope you find what you are looking for.
Tina.

Hi Tina,
Thank you for the info on Lania, which is one of the places we have short listed to look at. We are staying in my sister's apartment in Alassa while over there, so wont need accommodation when over. We are looking to rent a 3 bed house or bungalow, without a pool, long term. Initially looking at renting partly or fully furnished when we get over. At the moment we are in rented accommodation over here, so not much hassle to relocate. Just getting all the quotes in for removals at the moment. Do you get much or any snow fall in Lania and if you do are the roads passable? We are looking at getting a car out there when we finally move over and wondering, if we moved into the mountains, would it be best to get a small 4x4.
Allie