Why are some expats drawn back to Luxembourg?

RTL Today spoke to some Luxembourg residents about what attracted them back to live in the Grand Duchy. Steve Miller is originally from Scotland and first came to live and work here as a 20-year-old in early 1998.

"It was a very different country then. It's good to look back on the differences because when you arrive now everything's new. You spend so much time concentrating on learning what's new for you that you don't understand that there is an entire history of stuff here that came before you. It's not all useful for your day-to-day life but it is good to know the country that you live in and that things haven't always been the way that you see them now."

Steve had been working for a company in Edinburgh which opened an office in Luxembourg as investment opportunities started to flourish here. Describing the office where he worked, even then, as being "a real melting pot", it was something he appreciated having come from a work environment where colleagues were almost exclusively Scottish.

He initially lived in a studio in Neudorf before moving across the city to Strassen.

Housing was pricy even back then, he recalled. "Rent was certainly comparatively expensive to where I was living in Scotland at the time but obviously your wage is a little bit higher and the cost of living was different. The things you gauge your wages on are a little bit different. Certainly, there were difficulties then with regards to costs and getting on to the housing ladder, but it was nowhere near what it is now."

The dynamic was very different in the pre-mobile phone era and Steve reminisces about the constraints of arranging your social life without the help of technology.

"There was no real internet access, the only way was through a computer at work, if you were lucky," he recalled with amusement. The first email address I had was in the late 90s but the only problem was I didn't know anyone else with an email address."

"So how you would organise your weekends was radically different because no one really had mobile phones, you had to make your plans to meet the people you worked with at the office before leaving on a Friday evening."

Leaving Luxembourg in 2004 after the opportunity to take voluntary redundancy arose, Steve and his wife relocated to Brighton in the UK for almost 10 years, and then to Scotland for another 4 years.

Steve explained that it was ultimately the result of the Brexit referendum in 2016 that brought into sharp focus the advantages of living in Europe. On foot of this historic change in policy in Britain, he subsequently came to live in the Grand Duchy for a second time in 2017.

He cited some interesting cultural developments on his return.

In terms of the music scene Steve, who is a host, producer and newsreader at Today Radio, said the first-time round there was "no Rockhal or Rotondes".

He also observed the huge shift where English had previously been a minority language when he first lived here but that was no longer the case in 2017.

Also, there were the glaring changes in the urban landscape that also surprised him.

"Kirchberg had evolved into the "Las Vegas of office buildings"; the giant roundabout that was on the plateau above Pfaffenthal had been demolished."

Looking forward, his focus this time around is on obtaining Luxembourgish nationality. Citizenship, he said, will be immensely beneficial because of the "flexibility" it allows.

One of the aspects he said he enjoys about life here is the sense of security and rates Luxembourg as a very safe country.

"I think that because there is such a melting pot of people living here that you quickly understand that you are going to have to be a community. Everyone is kind of in the same boat, although that's not the best pun to use in a land locked country! You learn to be a little bit more open, a little bit more conversant and you learn to try things.

"I can walk home at four in the morning on a Saturday night and not worry a single step that something is going to happen to me."

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"Our sons are the reason we are here"

Blanca Asensio Silva, originally from Spain, moved to Luxembourg 14 years ago.

Young, free and single at the time, she initially came with the intention of learning French.

After meeting her German husband at work, the couple and their young son had the opportunity to move to Frankfurt.

After four and a half years living in the German city, the couple reevaluated their needs as a family and the type of settling they wished to raise their children in.

Recognising the family-friendly environment that was on offer here, they relocated to Luxembourg in 2019, just days after their second son was born.

"I think our sons are the reason we are here," said Blanca, citing the superior public healthcare as well as the inclusive education system as the principal reasons that attracted them back to Luxembourg.

"In Frankfurt, it took eight to nine months to find a place in Kindergarten for my son. I went every day looking for a place, knocking on doors. In the end I got a place because of my persistence."

There were no such concerns on their return to Luxembourg with both her children securing school and Maison Relais places without any hassle, she added.

With their hearts set on Mamer as home the second time around, Blanca and her family found the house hunting process "super easy". They managed to find a home to rent that they were extremely happy with within days of launching the search.

While relocating to Luxembourg made sense for the stage the family was at, there are some aspects of life here that Blanca felt underwhelmed with on arriving back. Comparing Luxembourg's social scene to that of Frankfurt, she feels the former is much quieter.

"In Frankfurt it is a busier life, there is a busier social life and that is what I miss most, I would say. Here there are not that many options because things are closed. People stay at home more."

Fitness facilities that allow you to bring young children is something Blanca said she has not found in Luxembourg.

"I miss the activities you can do in Frankfurt like yoga and Pilates that don't cost a fortune. Also, the gyms there that offer childcare while you do your class; there isn't anything like that here."

Luxembourg's international community, as well as the myriad employment opportunities, are aspects that Blanca appreciates as well as "the super clean swimming pools here."

Easy decision to return 

Niall Griffin, who is in his late 30s, first came to Luxembourg in 2012 as a graduate with EY spending almost three years here before leaving in May 2015 to return to Ireland.

"I felt I wanted to be closer to family and also to work professionally in Galway /Dublin."

However, four years later, and looking to develop professionally Niall looked to what was on offer in Luxembourg.

"I decided to return in September 2019 after applying for a job and wanting to leave Dublin. Having started out in Luxembourg I always had a solid base of friends and colleagues and it was an easy decision as the standard of living is better than Ireland."

Some of the positive points that Niall appreciates since returning to live in Luxembourg, he says, is the efficiency of the civil service. "Institutions such as health, education, transport are much better run in Luxembourg."

Niall points to the "better standard of living and higher quality of life" that the Grand Duchy offers.

Its central location and ease of travelling to surrounding countries as well as "playgrounds the size of Disney World" are attractive aspects of life here.

Niall's wife Sally works in the Irish translation unit in the Court of Justice and the couple has a toddler called Fionn.

"Life is good. The supports and infrastructure for having children in Luxembourg are excellent. From huge playgrounds, state-of-the-art creches and the congé parental, they have reduced the pressure of having children that exist in today's Western world."

Some drawbacks Niall has found is the shop opening and closing times on evenings and weekends: "Let the shops open and the people work if they want to!"

Also, another curiosity is unsalted butter. "I heard this the other day but still not sure if it's true that there is no salt in the butter here...not even in the imported Kerrygold!"

Drawing parallels with his home country, Niall pointed to the fact of both countries having strong farming backgrounds, a large financial services industry and very friendly people.

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Legwork 

Relocation services are also seeing the returning expat phenomenon. Country location manager with Anywr Group, Annmarie Wispelweij said that she has worked with "quite a few" expats returning to live in Luxembourg for a second spell, with clients from across Europe as well as the UK, America and India and the Philippines.

"Luxembourg has changed a lot over the last 20 years. We find that the young professionals start here then leave to go abroad and then return to live as their situation changes."

Jobs is the principal reason for being attracted back to the Grand Duchy, she stated, with positions in finance and insurance the most typical.

Often this cohort will be returning to work here in a new job within a new company from what they previously held.

Annmarie pointed to a particular dynamic where young professionals can outgrow Luxembourg, packing up and leaving only to return again some years later, either with a family or on the verge of settling down, realising that Luxembourg is a good place to base themselves.

"The salaries are higher, the quality of life is good and it is a good environment for raising families. They come back at a different stage in their lives. When they are younger they leave because they think that Luxembourg is boring."

She added that she has witnessed Luxembourg evolve over the past couple of decades, notably on the language front.

"English wasn't that common and you really needed to know French to live here. Nowadays you can come very far with just English."

However, it can be a shock to some returning expatriates to see how the housing situation has changed unfavourably, she stressed.

"It's a negative thing that the housing market is so crazy especially for people who are jumping into the rental market now. Their expectations have to be adjusted. Even though they have high salaries, often they may have to live in co-location as they want to live in the city and this is not what they expect. Also, they may come with a cat or a dog and that is more complicated."

She cited the most popular areas for returning expats to want to base themselves is the 'Golden Triangle' of Merl-Belair-Limpertsberg in the city as well as being close to the tram. Neither the north nor the south of the country tend to be in particular demand for this cohort, according to her experience.

With housing stock in such demand, Annmarie reveals that as a relocation service they have good contacts within "90%" of local real estate agents so have ready access to listings before they are published online.

While the age profile of returning expats tends to be in their 30s, she has worked with professionals coming as their "last mission" or empty nesters, if you will.

"We had one US couple who came to do the last couple of years here before retirement as their children had grown up and it was their last chance to travel again for work.

"I always say that it is not rocket science but people returning to live here think they know it all having lived here before but things have changed. Their expectation of housing is the biggest thing."