Newbie From Florida

Hi Folks,
My wife and I will be moving permanently to the UK sometime in the near future.  I am a US citizen and she is a UK born citizen and a naturalized US citizen.  She moved to the US 12 years ago and we met 7 years ago.  We will be visiting the UK for 3 months this Summer and will be looking for a small place or even a caravan in a park to purchase. 
After we return (or maybe just me because we don't know if she has to be in the UK or not), I will see about applying for a Family Visa. 
We are both retired except she works part time as a realtor here in Florida. 

Hi Folks,
My wife and I will be moving permanently to the UK sometime in the near future.  I am a US citizen and she is a UK born citizen and a naturalized US citizen.  She moved to the US 12 years ago and we met 7 years ago.  We will be visiting the UK for 3 months this Summer and will be looking for a small place or even a caravan in a park to purchase. 
After we return (or maybe just me because we don't know if she has to be in the UK or not), I will see about applying for a Family Visa. 
We are both retired except she works part time as a realtor here in Florida.

Hi Dino, welcome to the forum. 

Glad you found us, we'll be happy to help you with your visa questions when the time comes. The good news is that your pension income counts towards the financial requirement, as well as your wife's, and savings over a certain amount (16k gbp) can be used too.

Welcome!
Where are you thinking about?

Where are you thinking about?

We will be going to County Durham.  The only time I've been to that part of England was a couple of years ago during parts of December/January.  I have to say, it was pretty chilly for this Florida boy.
 
My wife has been checking out places to buy there and it appears that it is cheaper than many other areas in England, so I guess there's not much employment in that area, which shouldn't bother us because we can get by with Social Security and pensions.
 
Would owning a caravan in a park qualify as an "adequate place to live in the UK" and "a partner or family member who’s living in the UK permanently?"  We're thinking that it won't.

A caravan in County Durham?  What about the seaside?  I'm notorious for bashing the North, but that sounds tough for a Florida boy.  There's no alligators, that's for sure.

Sorry , I just Googled it and there are some beaches there and they look fine. 

As you were...

Beaches don't hold much of an appeal to me anymore.  We were looking at Witton Castle Country Holiday Park as one possibility.

Hello from a fellow Floridian! I get what you're saying about the beaches. When you live there, they can lose their appeal, but when I last went back home after a few years in the UK, I embraced Clearwater Beach and relished in that sun and sand like never before, haha!

That looks nice.  Cool drone footage on their web site.

Another Clearwater Florida girl here!

And yes, never went to the beach when I lived there but now that I live in the land of grey and damp, I spend as much time on the beach as possible when I visit.  I didn't realise I lived in paradise when I lived in Florida!   

Yes, owning the caravan will tick the box for having adequate accommodation.

The harder obstacle is the financial requirement for the visa.  You'll need either £18,600 a year in pension income or savings of £62,500.  And the fees for the visas are a very real obstacle.  Be prepared to pay a minimum of £10,000 in fees over the next 5 years.

Welcome! We will be neighbors, I too will reside in County Durham.

When we were in Country Durham visiting, we attracted the attention of a policeman because we were trying to find our way.  He ended up offering us a ride to our destination, better than an Uber.  Really nice guy.

Also a recent transplant from Florida - Tampa area. Don't miss a thing about it. The heat especially. Nor the beaches. Would much rather do a coastal path walk here than fry on the sand there.

Also a recent transplant from Florida - Tampa area. Don't miss a thing about it. The heat especially. Nor the beaches. Would much rather do a coastal path walk here than fry on the sand there.

Give it a few years.      For your sake, I hope you never do miss it though.