Young family moving to Kerava

[Christian77]

If I can learn Danish in 1½ years without schooling I am sure I could learn Finnish.

I like your attitude. See you at kielikoulu.

We have the same situation here in Denmark with eastern Europeans. I am sure there is something though. I am only planning my business once we have settled down but it is always good to be able to have work on the side whilst studying. I am not too worried about the work issue as I am flexible when it comes to that. I have worked in many different fields over the past 20 years. Besides a !"#¤% job is better than no job at all.

And if you can get a job where you rub elbows with natives, it will be huge boost to your learning. Just make sure that you won't communicate in English. Switching the language later will be hard. Just try to switch using Finnish at home.

So positive we will stay even though there are some people with negative comments on this forum that clearly have nothing better to do with there time.

Welcome to Finland. You won't get sugarcoating here. You asked "town house". They don't exist here. Searching for omakotitalo, erillistalo and rivitalo gives couple of hits. If you opt for council housing it is apartment in a ghetto.

Thanx Upphew. My wife and kids speak Finnish at home so that is a plus. We are not going the council housing way, from what I have been informed. You are right with the rubbing elbows part, that is what got me started off here in DK. Neither looking for sugar coating but there is no point in putting a sour taste either. See you at language school them... good luck.

[Mook]

I must have missed that...

You just hang out with the wrong crowd in the posh parts of towns...

You mean up the hill in sariolanmäki?

here is an international school and kindergarten (as posted on this site)

I wouldn't bet on that.


There's one daycare, Kiddihouse, that does a bit of English (all the teachers are Finnish) and another one (speilhaus?) that does the same in German.

The nearest international school is in Vantaa. Still, since your wife is Finnish, your whole family will also be considered such.

[Christian77]

I know you´re just after some preliminary info before a future move, but you´d be smart to do some serious reading of previous posts in this forum. There are a bunch of "I have the skills, I will get a job, a !"#¤% job is better than nothing, I learnt language X so I can learn Finnish" posts. None of those things are impossible, but the odds are against you. Getting all defensive about Pursuivant just shows how badly you may be prepared for the culture shock that is Finland.
You think people are being nasty and negative, it´s being harshly realistic in the hopes that at least one out of 100 prospective immigrants will do their homework more properly due to the reading the forum.

Thanx. I am fully aware of the culture shock... We are there 2 to 3 times a year. In the start it will be tough, fully aware of that and I am sure this forum will help me a lot as it has so far. I was not fishing for sweet comments either but there is no point in dishing out the negative from the onset. Our sole reason to moving to Finland is for our kids and the family we have there.

[Flossy1978]

Gees.... not all council housing means ghetto areas. I know Helsinki and other larger areas have lumped their council housing into areas altogether and they can be quite crap areas, but there are also other city areas who don't. Other areas have integrated their council housing in with private housing, thus no 'ghetto'. And you can really see the difference between this type of council housing and the council housing which is all lumped together making areas less desirable.

You should get your wife to apply now if you want housing. Have her talk to the city housing department. The rent will be cheaper and since you have children and both aren't employed, your chances to get somewhere would be good. At least the cheaper rent will be helpful as you set yourselves up here. Then when you've got everything worked out, you could move out of the council housing and afford to pay more for something more permanent.

I've met foreigners where one person is a Fin and they organised council housing for when they returned to Finland (these were families). The got it and when they were settled they moved out and on to better things.

It's worth looking into it if makes things a bit easier and cheaper.

[Upphew]

Gees.... not all council housing means ghetto areas. I know Helsinki and other larger areas have lumped their council housing into areas altogether and they can be quite crap areas, but there are also other city areas who don't. Other areas have integrated their council housing in with private housing, thus no 'ghetto'. And you can really see the difference between this type of council housing and the council housing which is all lumped together making areas less desirable.

You should get your wife to apply now if you want housing. Have her talk to the city housing department. The rent will be cheaper and since you have children and both aren't employed, your chances to get somewhere would be good. At least the cheaper rent will be helpful as you set yourselves up here. Then when you've got everything worked out, you could move out of the council housing and afford to pay more for something more permanent.

I've met foreigners where one person is a Fin and they organised council housing for when they returned to Finland (these were families). The got it and when they were settled they moved out and on to better things.

It's worth looking into it if makes things a bit easier and cheaper.

Other people who get council housing: winos without credit rating, teenagers who have fuxored their credit rating, immigrants that don't have credit rating, people who can't afford anything from free markets... so no, they are not necessarily ghettoes, but they have more people who you don't want to have as a neighbour.

[Pursuivant]

Also, to make the misery of the proletariat be felt by the owning classes, the cities have been acquiring flats here and there, so you can have a "good area" with all owned flats and then one "social case" in the middle. Good luck if you score one of those, thats a "keeper". Theres also the big "landlord companies" such as VVO, SATO and the insurance companies that have rentals.

And yes, they're not all ghettoes, but people living in them make them such.

[cors187]

Getting all defensive about Pursuivant just shows how badly you may be prepared for the culture shock that is Finland.

Fins are not like Pursuivant

[cors187]

Ive done a lot of work in kereva and tuusula, kereva is a nice place,only 35min to helsinki.

[cors187]

Our sole reason to moving to Finland is for our kids

Finland creates social retardness?.
Thats the negative on the plan there.

[rinso]

Getting all defensive about Pursuivant just shows how badly you may be prepared for the culture shock that is Finland.

Fins are not like Pursuivant

They don't express themselves like he does, but they do think alike.

[Liam1]

f I can learn Danish in 1½ years without schooling I am sure I could learn Finnish.

Hi Christian
I also learned Swedish in just over a year and I also have a Finnish wife, but Finnish is not sticking as easily! Could be that I am getting to be an old dog and Finnish is a new trick, but it is more difficult as it has virtually no links with English and also Finns are not used to hearing words mispronounced so look blank when you say something slightly wrong!

Good luck as self employed - I personally find that any work skilled or unskilled is very expensive here so despite the apparent influx of Estonian labour, there may be opportnities if you are offering your services directly to customers - perhaps your wife can also help with the customer service as she can answer quotes etc and check whether the customer is confident in English (I'd expect many are)

[Adrian42]

As mentioned I am a carpenter and floor sander so I am sure there is someone out there looking for my services. How is it to open your own business in Finland and is it a good idea if I don't speak the language.

Opening a business in that job field when you don't speak the local language sounds like a bad idea.

I'm also not too optimistic that someone else is looking for your services when you don't speak Finnish.

I will start language school as soon as possible

Use the time until next spring to learn as much as possible before you arrive.

Hi Adrian42. Thanx, I am aware of that. I plan on going to school to learn the language as fast as possible. If I can learn Danish in 1½ years without schooling I am sure I could learn Finnish. We have the same situation here in Denmark with eastern Europeans. I am sure there is something though. I am only planning my business once we have settled down but it is always good to be able to have work on the side whilst studying. I am not too worried about the work issue as I am flexible when it comes to that. I have worked in many different fields over the past 20 years. Besides a !"#¤% job is better than no job at all.
So positive we will stay even though there are some people with negative comments on this forum that clearly have nothing better to do with there time.

Thanx once again for your help.

The truth is somewhere in the middle, and you should be prepared for both positive and negative situations.

The problem is that for the !"#¤% jobs you are competing against a gazillion Estonians with good Finnish language skills - if you can't make use of your qualifications in a job you are not in a good position.

Your prospects are clearly better than for the average "I have no qualifications and I don't speak Finnish - where can I find a job?" question here.

I am also optimistic that in the long run you will find a suitable job that matches your qualifications.

But in the beginning, you could be lucky and find a job quickly, or you might have problems finding any work at all during the first 1-2 years.

Make a reasonable plan B for that case. How are the job opportunities for your wife? If she can easily get a job early and her salary would be enough to pay your bills, that might be an option. Or perhaps there are options for you to go back to Denmark and work there for a few months while your family stays in Finland in case you struggle to find work in Finland? Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.

And if you have time before next spring, it will definitely increase your chances of finding a job when you use that time to start (with the help of your wife) to learn Finnish.

[Christian77]

I must have missed that...

You just hang out with the wrong crowd in the posh parts of towns...

You mean up the hill in sariolanmäki?

here is an international school and kindergarten (as posted on this site)

I wouldn't bet on that.


There's one daycare, Kiddihouse, that does a bit of English (all the teachers are Finnish) and another one (speilhaus?) that does the same in German.

The nearest international school is in Vantaa. Still, since your wife is Finnish, your whole family will also be considered such.

Thanx Mook, must have misunderstood the post I read. It is no matter though. My kids will grow up speaking English and Finnish anyway. But it is an advantage that my wife has spoken Finnish with them from the start as I have picked up some words here and there. Not that I could hold a conversation but any start is a better than nothing. Will start school asap.

[Christian77]

Gees.... not all council housing means ghetto areas. I know Helsinki and other larger areas have lumped their council housing into areas altogether and they can be quite crap areas, but there are also other city areas who don't. Other areas have integrated their council housing in with private housing, thus no 'ghetto'. And you can really see the difference between this type of council housing and the council housing which is all lumped together making areas less desirable.

You should get your wife to apply now if you want housing. Have her talk to the city housing department. The rent will be cheaper and since you have children and both aren't employed, your chances to get somewhere would be good. At least the cheaper rent will be helpful as you set yourselves up here. Then when you've got everything worked out, you could move out of the council housing and afford to pay more for something more permanent.

I've met foreigners where one person is a Fin and they organised council housing for when they returned to Finland (these were families). The got it and when they were settled they moved out and on to better things.

It's worth looking into it if makes things a bit easier and cheaper.

Thanx Flossy1978. Valued info, I like that. We have been in contact with family over there and they are researching for us too. You understood my point I was trying to get at. It is not our plan to stay in an apt for long, just as long as it takes. My wife has also been researching job opportunities of there and they are positive for her.

[Christian77]

Gees.... not all council housing means ghetto areas. I know Helsinki and other larger areas have lumped their council housing into areas altogether and they can be quite crap areas, but there are also other city areas who don't. Other areas have integrated their council housing in with private housing, thus no 'ghetto'. And you can really see the difference between this type of council housing and the council housing which is all lumped together making areas less desirable.

You should get your wife to apply now if you want housing. Have her talk to the city housing department. The rent will be cheaper and since you have children and both aren't employed, your chances to get somewhere would be good. At least the cheaper rent will be helpful as you set yourselves up here. Then when you've got everything worked out, you could move out of the council housing and afford to pay more for something more permanent.

I've met foreigners where one person is a Fin and they organised council housing for when they returned to Finland (these were families). The got it and when they were settled they moved out and on to better things.

It's worth looking into it if makes things a bit easier and cheaper.

Other people who get council housing: winos without credit rating, teenagers who have fuxored their credit rating, immigrants that don't have credit rating, people who can't afford anything from free markets... so no, they are not necessarily ghettoes, but they have more people who you don't want to have as a neighbour.

Hi Upphew, thanx. We have checked that out and that's not what we are after at all. Appreciate your help.