WHEN Callum and Jemma McGlynn saw their mortgage suddenly doubled thanks to the UK’s housing crisis, they realised their life wasn’t their own anymore.
So the Hertfordshire couple made a decision most families can only dream about. They packed up their home in the UK, took their two children, and walked away from Britain altogether – trading mounting bills and pressure for an off-grid existence – and, today, their reality couldn’t look more different.
Now, the family lives in a modest farmhouse surrounded by 60 olive trees and three-and-a-half acres of land in rural Andalusia, Spain, far from commuter traffic, deadlines and the spiralling costs that once dictated their lives.
The move wasn’t just a relocation. They say it was an escape.
The family-of-four told The Sun: “It felt like we were working Monday to Friday just to pay off our bills.
“You’re just constantly stuck in a cycle of not being able to do anything.
“We were just existing and not being able to live”.
After several scouting trips to Spain in search of a fresh start, the couple finally struck gold near the sleepy town of Cantoria, snapping up a crumbling property for just £35,000 (€40,000) – instantly wiping out their mortgage back home.
The couple had been house-hunting just as Rachel Reeves’s explosive warning about a “£22 billion black hole” in the nation’s finances was dominating headlines and spooking households across Britain.
The stark phrase – used to describe a massive financial shortfall the government said it had “inherited” from the previous administration – sent shockwaves through family budgets as fears of rising costs took hold.
Snapping up their century-old home that same year, the McGlynns unknowingly sidestepped what would soon become one of the most financially punishing periods for UK homeowners.
But when they bought the property in September 2024, the derelict house was far from being ready to move in – in fact, it was “unlivable”.
So they spent months pouring time, sweat and long weekends into renovations to make it safe and comfortable for their children.
They said: “The property is structurally completely sound, there was a lot of dust but it didn’t take much to get it into a liveable state.”
By June 2025, the transformation was complete.
The once-abandoned farmhouse – empty for 20 years – has now become their rustic haven and their true ticket to freedom.
Inside, the property is a hidden treasure trove, packed with character and charm – from striking Spanish tiles to a marble staircase that feels more mansion than modest farmhouse.
‘We’re not working our entire lives to pay bils’
But one thing was a priority for the family, as Jemma says: “We needed to move somewhere where we could reduce our mortgage.”
Their previous payments had soared to a “sky high” £1,300 a month – even after trying to cut them – but now their regular outgoings are minimal.
Their annual council tax is £240 a year, the same as what they once paid monthly in Britain every month.
Car insurance is just £170-£260 (€200-€300) a year instead of about £1,000 annually in the UK.
They have even installed solar panels at the farm in sunny Spain, meaning their electricity – previously £150 a month – is now free.
They also say fresh organic market food costs about a tenth of UK prices because it’s locally produced, while rain-capture systems help them avoid water bills.
She adds: “Now we don’t have to work our entire lives just to pay the bills.”
The couple, who had recently launched a tech company before leaving Britain, say rising living costs meant it was no longer enough to sustain them.
Now they work remotely from their phones and laptops while continuing to grow the business without financial pressure.
This means they get to spend every day with their kids, something they thought would never be possible in Britain’s cost-of-living crisis.
‘We’re not lining anyone else’s pockets’
But life on the farm does keep them busy.
They spend mornings hiking with friends, tending the land and learning new rural skills as they go.
They recently harvested olives from their trees and took them to a local press to produce their own oil – another cost they’ve cut out.
They say: “You have to learn to just dive into things like cutting trees – you just have to learn how to do it.”
The move, they say, has transformed their outlook.
They added: “The move has given us freedom to make choices.
“The lie we’re told is ‘you must get a job, you must get a mortgage,’ but actually that is not the case.”
Because of their visa, they can only stay in Spain for 90 days out of every 180, so they use the remaining time to travel, something they always wanted to do with their kids.
Just take the risk because it’s a risk that’s going to pay off. Even if it doesn’t, we have not lost everything; this is irreversible
Callum & Jemma
They say they’ve now integrated into the local community and know several other Brits nearby trying to build similar lifestyles abroad.
Their children, aged nine and seven, are home-schooled in both English and Spanish – something the couple admit is “not for the faint-hearted”.
They say: “Doing up the house, homeschooling and trying to plan the next 90 days has been difficult, but everything is ours.
“Everything we now do is for us and for our family, and for us, it’s not to line anyone else’s pockets”.
Jemma added: “It’s harder than you expect, you have to work a bit harder for everything, but the rewards definitely outweigh the hardship”.
Callum said: “Just do it, we’ve only got 80, 90 years on this planet, why not?
“Just take the risk because it’s a risk that’s going to pay off. Even if it doesn’t, we have not lost everything; this is irreversible.
“People will judge you, but if you don’t try it, you’ll never know.”
UK housing hell
Britain’s cost-of-living crisis is meanwhile still crushing hopes, with millions saying they feel stuck, skint and shut out of the life they want.
Shocking figures from the New Britain Project reveal nearly half of Brits (48 per cent) feel they have little control over their lives — while 45 per cent say they’re not living up to their full potential.
And in a damning verdict on modern life, a staggering 76 per cent reckon things are worse now than in the past.
The housing nightmare has fuelled frustration for years.
Soaring prices and sky-high deposits mean more young adults are stranded at home, with the 2021 Census showing over half of under-23s still live with their parents.
Getting on the ladder is becoming a pipe dream for many.
The average UK house price hit £285,000 in March 2023 – rocketing to an eye-watering £735,254 in pricier areas.
Even scraping together a deposit has become a mountain to climb.
Research shows the typical first-time buyer deposit has tripled – from 5 per cent of a property’s value in 1989 to 15 per cent in 2019.
As a result, buyers are forced to save for years longer and hand over bigger chunks of their wages just to stand a chance.
Property site Zoopla found 42 per cent of under-40s who don’t own a home have given up entirely, thanks to runaway prices.
But there is hope for people out there willing to take a risk like Callum and Gemma – who now chase the sunshine instead of their paychecks.
