Inside Sweden: City v countryside – where's the best place to live?

Hej!

We're in the process of selling our old house and buying a new one, and figuring out where to live is getting harder and harder every day.

Previously, all our homes have felt temporary. Like many of The Local's readers, we've for years lived a life made up of boxes and suitcases, moving from country to country and city to city. Now for the first time we're looking for a place where we can settle down – if not for good, then for a long time.

But how do you decide?

That farm house in the countryside, surrounded by beautiful scenery, with an incredible kitchen, wow factor and a lot of house for the money – but which also needs a new asbestos-free roof and has far too many mice for comfort?

The typical Swedish villa in a small town, no-frills but reliable, a manageable garden, nice neighbours and close to a preschool? Safe, but... boring?

Or a city apartment, close to everything but small and expensive?

The closer we get to needing to make up our minds, the harder it gets.

Where in Sweden have you chosen to live, and why? Or if you haven't settled down yet, what kind of place would you like to live in? City or countryside?

The krona is at an almost record low against the euro, which is good for you if you’re a freelancer getting paid in euros but spending your money in Sweden – less good if you’re paid in kronor and planning a visit to a Eurozone country.

It’s been on a downward curve for a while now, and last year we asked an expert how foreigners can protect themselves against the tumbling krona.

If you have savings in kronor, now is not a good time to buy anything abroad – better to wait until the krona has strengthened. But if you have savings outside of Sweden in euros or dollars, and have been planning on making a big purchase in Sweden, now might be the right time.

To protect yourself against future fluctuations, it can be helpful to have savings in multiple currencies. You could for example keep one bank account in your home country if that is allowed and one in Sweden – or an account that lets you have a combination of currencies, such as Wise and Revolut.

Or, you can be like me and scream in horror at your Excel budget spreadsheet in the hope that it will somehow have an effect on your dwindling savings.

On the latest episode of The Local's Sweden in Focus podcast, out today, we talk to an expert on the Swedish healthcare system. We also suggest five new Swedish lifestyle trends international media can pretend is the new lagom or hygge. Which fake Swedish concept would you pitch to the world?

This week we also interviewed a British man who is trying to move his paralysed Swedish wife back home to Sweden, but is being blocked by bureaucracy, and we interviewed an expert on EU politics about how people who want Sweden to stay in the EU should fight any Swexit challenges.

We published the latest issue of our monthly newsletter for Indians in Sweden and the latest issue of our weekly Politics in Sweden newsletter (members can update their newsletter settings here to receive future editions in their inbox).

Thanks for reading and speak soon,

Emma Löfgren
Editor, The Local Sweden

Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members that gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences.