buying an apartment in spain
Discussion
I’m just back from Estepona.
We rent every winter, the changes over the last year are way beyond what we realised was happening. Some for the better but the crazy amount of apartments going up on every piece of available land is surely going to be history repeating itself.
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale .
Around Cancelada village there are numerous building sites and land plots for sale,it must be obvious to new owners that there will be works going on around them for years and yet they still buy , who wants an apartment full of dust and a terrace view of cranes for 4+ years.
No water for residents but building work continues 4 1/2 days a week.
Journey home an utter nightmare.
Well done farmers you certainly know how to do traffic disruption.
4 hours to Cordoba , 9 to Madrid and finally 14 hours to my hotel at Vitoria. I got to see a lot more of the Spanish countryside than ever before. It is a beautiful country but let that be my choice next time.
We rent every winter, the changes over the last year are way beyond what we realised was happening. Some for the better but the crazy amount of apartments going up on every piece of available land is surely going to be history repeating itself.
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale .
Around Cancelada village there are numerous building sites and land plots for sale,it must be obvious to new owners that there will be works going on around them for years and yet they still buy , who wants an apartment full of dust and a terrace view of cranes for 4+ years.
No water for residents but building work continues 4 1/2 days a week.
Journey home an utter nightmare.
Well done farmers you certainly know how to do traffic disruption.
4 hours to Cordoba , 9 to Madrid and finally 14 hours to my hotel at Vitoria. I got to see a lot more of the Spanish countryside than ever before. It is a beautiful country but let that be my choice next time.
Whistle said:
I noticed all of the fountains are not running and had no water in them last week in Barcelona.
I wonder if this has anything to do with the water shortage.
Although northern Spain should get plenty water from the Pyrenees
Catalonia is in the midst of a 3 year drought. Worst in record. I wonder if this has anything to do with the water shortage.
Although northern Spain should get plenty water from the Pyrenees
indigostr said:
I’m just back from Estepona.
We rent every winter, the changes over the last year are way beyond what we realised was happening. Some for the better but the crazy amount of apartments going up on every piece of available land is surely going to be history repeating itself.
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale .
Around Cancelada village there are numerous building sites and land plots for sale,it must be obvious to new owners that there will be works going on around them for years and yet they still buy , who wants an apartment full of dust and a terrace view of cranes for 4+ years.
No water for residents but building work continues 4 1/2 days a week.
Journey home an utter nightmare.
Well done farmers you certainly know how to do traffic disruption.
4 hours to Cordoba , 9 to Madrid and finally 14 hours to my hotel at Vitoria. I got to see a lot more of the Spanish countryside than ever before. It is a beautiful country but let that be my choice next time.
Yeah, loads of construction generally between Malaga and Estepona… crazy amounts on the top side of Estepona. We rent every winter, the changes over the last year are way beyond what we realised was happening. Some for the better but the crazy amount of apartments going up on every piece of available land is surely going to be history repeating itself.
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale .
Around Cancelada village there are numerous building sites and land plots for sale,it must be obvious to new owners that there will be works going on around them for years and yet they still buy , who wants an apartment full of dust and a terrace view of cranes for 4+ years.
No water for residents but building work continues 4 1/2 days a week.
Journey home an utter nightmare.
Well done farmers you certainly know how to do traffic disruption.
4 hours to Cordoba , 9 to Madrid and finally 14 hours to my hotel at Vitoria. I got to see a lot more of the Spanish countryside than ever before. It is a beautiful country but let that be my choice next time.
Can’t see demand supporting the level of construction over the medium term.
Chris Stott said:
Yeah, loads of construction generally between Malaga and Estepona… crazy amounts on the top side of Estepona.
Can’t see demand supporting the level of construction over the medium term.
When we are out there drive past it most days, I just can't believe how much is not only going up but seems to be planned based on roads in the middle of nowhere, going nowhere, It's also noticeable that it pretty much stops once you get the other side of Estepona. maybe once you start pushing over an hour from Malaga airport it's getting too far.Can’t see demand supporting the level of construction over the medium term.
Indigostr said
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale.
We first drove up to Benhavis in 2000, it was a tiny village and the drive was a winding road through fields with the odd finca. The beachside of San Pedro was just getting going.
2009 was a massive shock to the system, but the market got over it.
I also remember that about 1988, you could buy a 2-bed apartment in Benalmadena Marina for about £15k. Construction on the Costa del Sol is the gift that just keeps on giving.
Now, where that glass of water gone.
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale.
We first drove up to Benhavis in 2000, it was a tiny village and the drive was a winding road through fields with the odd finca. The beachside of San Pedro was just getting going.
2009 was a massive shock to the system, but the market got over it.
I also remember that about 1988, you could buy a 2-bed apartment in Benalmadena Marina for about £15k. Construction on the Costa del Sol is the gift that just keeps on giving.
Now, where that glass of water gone.
Chris Stott said:
https://euroweeklynews.com/2024/02/10/costa-del-so...
Lack of rain is becoming a serious problem and we’re getting a per person 160l/day usage limit.
I don’t think it’s much of a problem for me, but it will be for those who own a villa with garden and pool.
Water will soon be more expensive than wine…. Which will also not be too much of a problem for me
More seriously, there will likely be further implications from this… Spain produces c.40% of Europe’s fruit and less naturally available water will mean a big investment in desalination is needed over the coming years… with a knock effect to power requirements and of course, a corresponding increase in food costs.
Last year was a terrible year for olive production here… Spain produces c.30% of the worlds olive oil and we’ve already seen prices double as a result.
Funnily enough, amongst all the cost of living rises over recent years, olive oil is the one that has jumped out at me from the supermarket shelves. I never used to pay much attention to it, but crikey it's pricey now. As you say, all down to change: Lack of rain is becoming a serious problem and we’re getting a per person 160l/day usage limit.
I don’t think it’s much of a problem for me, but it will be for those who own a villa with garden and pool.
Water will soon be more expensive than wine…. Which will also not be too much of a problem for me
More seriously, there will likely be further implications from this… Spain produces c.40% of Europe’s fruit and less naturally available water will mean a big investment in desalination is needed over the coming years… with a knock effect to power requirements and of course, a corresponding increase in food costs.
Last year was a terrible year for olive production here… Spain produces c.30% of the worlds olive oil and we’ve already seen prices double as a result.
https://euroweeklynews.com/2024/01/01/the-rising-c...
rdjohn said:
Indigostr said
Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale.
We first drove up to Benhavis in 2000, it was a tiny village and the drive was a winding road through fields with the odd finca. The beachside of San Pedro was just getting going.
2009 was a massive shock to the system, but the market got over it.
I also remember that about 1988, you could buy a 2-bed apartment in Benalmadena Marina for about £15k. Construction on the Costa del Sol is the gift that just keeps on giving.
Now, where that glass of water gone.
Took the market round here 13 years to recover from the 2009 crash… we were just about at pre crash prices summer ‘22 before softening a bit since. Next winter we’ll be venturing back towards Benahavis - San Pedro where building work is going on but not on the Estepona scale.
We first drove up to Benhavis in 2000, it was a tiny village and the drive was a winding road through fields with the odd finca. The beachside of San Pedro was just getting going.
2009 was a massive shock to the system, but the market got over it.
I also remember that about 1988, you could buy a 2-bed apartment in Benalmadena Marina for about £15k. Construction on the Costa del Sol is the gift that just keeps on giving.
Now, where that glass of water gone.
We bought our place end of 2013. Paid pretty much what my neighbour paid for his off plan in 1999 (as far as is possible to compare given he paid in pesetas).
It will only take a mild global recession to collapse prices again. There’s so much construction, and some of the pricing is utterly ridiculous. If demand drops, developers will just do their usual thing and declare bankruptcy… which would make me super nervous about buying anything new/off plan from a smaller developer.
k all now. Not ideal as she wants to sell 
Spain gets the top 3 in this article
https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
link to Alicante article https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
link to Alicante article https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
Can’t disagree with Alicante being there because of the beaches that are nearby. The city beach is pretty small though and seriously busy in the summer.
Unless I’ve missed something though, there aren’t many Brits in the city like the article says. Clearly loads if you head south to the Torrevieja area or North to Benidorm and beyond.
Unless I’ve missed something though, there aren’t many Brits in the city like the article says. Clearly loads if you head south to the Torrevieja area or North to Benidorm and beyond.
Phooey said:
Spain gets the top 3 in this article
https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
link to Alicante article https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
Journalists are obliged to write column/inches about stuff. But the number-9 choice of Stockholm is a bit rich.https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
link to Alicante article https://www.travelandleisure.com/best-european-bea...
Of my 30 neighbours here in Spain about 20 of them are Swedish. When we returned on 5th Jan, or neighbour next door was going home to Stockholm in -28C. Last week, another was returning heavy sleet / rain.
I mentioned to a Danish neighbour last May when it was megga-hot here, that my wife and I really fancied a city break to Copenhagen. He said that he could not recommend it at it was only 6C there that day - it is why he was in Spain.
rdjohn said:
Journalists are obliged to write column/inches about stuff. But the number-9 choice of Stockholm is a bit rich.
Of my 30 neighbours here in Spain about 20 of them are Swedish. When we returned on 5th Jan, or neighbour next door was going home to Stockholm in -28C. Last week, another was returning heavy sleet / rain.
I mentioned to a Danish neighbour last May when it was megga-hot here, that my wife and I really fancied a city break to Copenhagen. He said that he could not recommend it at it was only 6C there that day - it is why he was in Spain.
Mrs Shnozz is Danish and the in-laws Copenhagen. It’s pretty much identical weather (as one would expect when you look at it’s latitude) we we have in Leeds. Of my 30 neighbours here in Spain about 20 of them are Swedish. When we returned on 5th Jan, or neighbour next door was going home to Stockholm in -28C. Last week, another was returning heavy sleet / rain.
I mentioned to a Danish neighbour last May when it was megga-hot here, that my wife and I really fancied a city break to Copenhagen. He said that he could not recommend it at it was only 6C there that day - it is why he was in Spain.
We were in Denmark for Christmas. It was a relief flying just before New Year back to Spain.
That said, there are some surprisingly amazing beaches across Denmark, particularly the West coast off Jutland. You’d think this was the Middle East rather than a scandi country IMHO.
Also loved picking fresh oysters off the sea bed in Romo.
Max1111 said:
We have just moved to Ibiza for the year. Depending how things go if we still like it in winter we'll look to buy a place and swap our London house for something that'll be easy to Airbnb when we're not about.
Is anyone else doing something similar with their UK property?
European passport holders I take it? Lucky buggers! Is anyone else doing something similar with their UK property?
We ‘re back after our usual winter stay in Marbella / Estepona & as posted on here, this time we were looking to buy an apartment, this escalated to a Villa after realising an apartment (tried a 160m2 one for 3 weeks with our dogs) was just too restrictive for us vs our home in france.
We ended up in a beachside villa at guadalmina for 6 weeks, quite like that area, one row back from beachfront meant we couldnt hear the A7, easy route for the gym which is important.
That established we started looking at villas and what we’d need to spend to get what we needed and 2m got a fairly decent / ex rental villa that we could do some work on and add some value.
Tbh though, we came away just feeling like we didnt want to be tied to a permanent villa, we like moving around and trying different things each winterand dont want to be tied to using our villa each year, i know we could just rent it out full or part time associated hassles of this and maintenance (when we already have our own large, high maintenance property) just started to feel like a ball ache tbh.
To be honest, we’re only there because the weather is better for winter, we dont actually like spain as much as france, the driving roads, historic quaintness, restaurants etc we much prefer in france, though i prefer the attitude and general happiness of the spanish over and above the miserable french
We used to live near Antibes but moved more toward Toulouse to get a more rural life and to get a ton of space to breath but in this move we ended up with slightly worse weather for winter, so we’re thinking of venturing back to aix en provence area for our permanent living and see if it stretches out the nicer weather long enough that we go back to just 6-8 week winters in spain, as by the time early march comes you definitely see an uptick in tourist english arriving in Estepona.
Anyway, progress was made, even if it was deleting spain as a buying possibility, will still go there in winters as the medical stuff in spain remains brilliant and accessible, which we plough through whilst there..
We ended up in a beachside villa at guadalmina for 6 weeks, quite like that area, one row back from beachfront meant we couldnt hear the A7, easy route for the gym which is important.
That established we started looking at villas and what we’d need to spend to get what we needed and 2m got a fairly decent / ex rental villa that we could do some work on and add some value.
Tbh though, we came away just feeling like we didnt want to be tied to a permanent villa, we like moving around and trying different things each winterand dont want to be tied to using our villa each year, i know we could just rent it out full or part time associated hassles of this and maintenance (when we already have our own large, high maintenance property) just started to feel like a ball ache tbh.
To be honest, we’re only there because the weather is better for winter, we dont actually like spain as much as france, the driving roads, historic quaintness, restaurants etc we much prefer in france, though i prefer the attitude and general happiness of the spanish over and above the miserable french
We used to live near Antibes but moved more toward Toulouse to get a more rural life and to get a ton of space to breath but in this move we ended up with slightly worse weather for winter, so we’re thinking of venturing back to aix en provence area for our permanent living and see if it stretches out the nicer weather long enough that we go back to just 6-8 week winters in spain, as by the time early march comes you definitely see an uptick in tourist english arriving in Estepona.
Anyway, progress was made, even if it was deleting spain as a buying possibility, will still go there in winters as the medical stuff in spain remains brilliant and accessible, which we plough through whilst there..
We have been looking at potentially buying a holiday home with a view to moving permanently in a few years if things work out.
I’m retired and my wife will do so in a few years.
I need to understand the rules/regulations more as whilst retired I’m only 52 (though just about to start drawing my pension). Not sure if that qualifies me to go down the retirement visa route.
Additionally whilst we have a holiday home (and before my wife retires) my wife would ideally like to work from there. Not sure if this can be done short term or whether a nomad visa would be needed.
Anyone get any advice on where to find good information on the current rules and how to make a smooth move ?
Lastly, the main thing holding us back is our dog …. Not sure how easy it is to get there/back with him and how he would find the heat.
I’m retired and my wife will do so in a few years.
I need to understand the rules/regulations more as whilst retired I’m only 52 (though just about to start drawing my pension). Not sure if that qualifies me to go down the retirement visa route.
Additionally whilst we have a holiday home (and before my wife retires) my wife would ideally like to work from there. Not sure if this can be done short term or whether a nomad visa would be needed.
Anyone get any advice on where to find good information on the current rules and how to make a smooth move ?
Lastly, the main thing holding us back is our dog …. Not sure how easy it is to get there/back with him and how he would find the heat.
CAH706 said:
We have been looking at potentially buying a holiday home with a view to moving permanently in a few years if things work out.
I’m retired and my wife will do so in a few years.
I need to understand the rules/regulations more as whilst retired I’m only 52 (though just about to start drawing my pension). Not sure if that qualifies me to go down the retirement visa route.
Additionally whilst we have a holiday home (and before my wife retires) my wife would ideally like to work from there. Not sure if this can be done short term or whether a nomad visa would be needed.
Anyone get any advice on where to find good information on the current rules and how to make a smooth move ?
Lastly, the main thing holding us back is our dog …. Not sure how easy it is to get there/back with him and how he would find the heat.
I think the "retirement" visa you mention is actually the non-lucrative visa. Can't remember the exact number, but you need something like €30k a year in savings/income/pension/investments. You can't work with that visa and you become tax resident. The other option is the golden visa which needs a property purchase of €500k+ non-mortgaged. You can work with that one.I’m retired and my wife will do so in a few years.
I need to understand the rules/regulations more as whilst retired I’m only 52 (though just about to start drawing my pension). Not sure if that qualifies me to go down the retirement visa route.
Additionally whilst we have a holiday home (and before my wife retires) my wife would ideally like to work from there. Not sure if this can be done short term or whether a nomad visa would be needed.
Anyone get any advice on where to find good information on the current rules and how to make a smooth move ?
Lastly, the main thing holding us back is our dog …. Not sure how easy it is to get there/back with him and how he would find the heat.
From the research we've done, it isn't possible as a UK citizen to legally work remotely on an ad hoc basis. The digital nomad visa expects you to spend your time in Spain and become tax resident. The embassy told us ad hoc working wasn't possible. A lot of employers turn a blind eye to this sort of thing and the chances are getting caught are minimal. Unfortunately our employer isn't one of them.
Kerniki said:
We ‘re back after our usual winter stay in Marbella / Estepona & as posted on here, this time we were looking to buy an apartment, this escalated to a Villa after realising an apartment (tried a 160m2 one for 3 weeks with our dogs) was just too restrictive for us vs our home in france.
We ended up in a beachside villa at guadalmina for 6 weeks, quite like that area, one row back from beachfront meant we couldnt hear the A7, easy route for the gym which is important.
That established we started looking at villas and what we’d need to spend to get what we needed and 2m got a fairly decent / ex rental villa that we could do some work on and add some value.
Tbh though, we came away just feeling like we didnt want to be tied to a permanent villa, we like moving around and trying different things each winterand dont want to be tied to using our villa each year, i know we could just rent it out full or part time associated hassles of this and maintenance (when we already have our own large, high maintenance property) just started to feel like a ball ache tbh.
To be honest, we’re only there because the weather is better for winter, we dont actually like spain as much as france, the driving roads, historic quaintness, restaurants etc we much prefer in france, though i prefer the attitude and general happiness of the spanish over and above the miserable french
We used to live near Antibes but moved more toward Toulouse to get a more rural life and to get a ton of space to breath but in this move we ended up with slightly worse weather for winter, so we’re thinking of venturing back to aix en provence area for our permanent living and see if it stretches out the nicer weather long enough that we go back to just 6-8 week winters in spain, as by the time early march comes you definitely see an uptick in tourist english arriving in Estepona.
Anyway, progress was made, even if it was deleting spain as a buying possibility, will still go there in winters as the medical stuff in spain remains brilliant and accessible, which we plough through whilst there..
Yeah, if you’re not planning to live here permanently, it makes no sense to have a €2M property unless you have (effectively) unlimited funds. We ended up in a beachside villa at guadalmina for 6 weeks, quite like that area, one row back from beachfront meant we couldnt hear the A7, easy route for the gym which is important.
That established we started looking at villas and what we’d need to spend to get what we needed and 2m got a fairly decent / ex rental villa that we could do some work on and add some value.
Tbh though, we came away just feeling like we didnt want to be tied to a permanent villa, we like moving around and trying different things each winterand dont want to be tied to using our villa each year, i know we could just rent it out full or part time associated hassles of this and maintenance (when we already have our own large, high maintenance property) just started to feel like a ball ache tbh.
To be honest, we’re only there because the weather is better for winter, we dont actually like spain as much as france, the driving roads, historic quaintness, restaurants etc we much prefer in france, though i prefer the attitude and general happiness of the spanish over and above the miserable french
We used to live near Antibes but moved more toward Toulouse to get a more rural life and to get a ton of space to breath but in this move we ended up with slightly worse weather for winter, so we’re thinking of venturing back to aix en provence area for our permanent living and see if it stretches out the nicer weather long enough that we go back to just 6-8 week winters in spain, as by the time early march comes you definitely see an uptick in tourist english arriving in Estepona.
Anyway, progress was made, even if it was deleting spain as a buying possibility, will still go there in winters as the medical stuff in spain remains brilliant and accessible, which we plough through whilst there..
You can get a lot of rental weeks for the quarter of a million in taxes and fees and the subsequent annual running costs a property line that would cost.
eyebeebe said:
I think the "retirement" visa you mention is actually the non-lucrative visa. Can't remember the exact number, but you need something like €30k a year in savings/income/pension/investments. You can't work with that visa and you become tax resident. The other option is the golden visa which needs a property purchase of €500k+ non-mortgaged. You can work with that one.
From the research we've done, it isn't possible as a UK citizen to legally work remotely on an ad hoc basis. The digital nomad visa expects you to spend your time in Spain and become tax resident. The embassy told us ad hoc working wasn't possible. A lot of employers turn a blind eye to this sort of thing and the chances are getting caught are minimal. Unfortunately our employer isn't one of them.
The NLV referred to currently requires 36,000€ of either passive income ( pension, rental income etc ) for a couple (28,800 for an individual ) or the same in savings or a mix of the two, plus private health insurance as a starter. If you use savings you are required in most autonomous regions to have double the 36k available for your year 2/3 and 4/5 renewals. If you want a bit more info about it, feel free to message me as we’ve just moved down here under the NLV. Be aware that under the Golden Visa mentioned, the property of 500k€ plus has to be in only one name and the partner can piggy back into the visa of the applicant. If the property is to be in joint names then it has to be 1m€ plus in value ( purchased outright no mortgages etc ) Golden Visa allows you to work in Spain subject to the normal rules re working here. From the research we've done, it isn't possible as a UK citizen to legally work remotely on an ad hoc basis. The digital nomad visa expects you to spend your time in Spain and become tax resident. The embassy told us ad hoc working wasn't possible. A lot of employers turn a blind eye to this sort of thing and the chances are getting caught are minimal. Unfortunately our employer isn't one of them.
Rushjob said:
The NLV referred to currently requires 36,000€ of either passive income ( pension, rental income etc ) for a couple (28,800 for an individual ) or the same in savings or a mix of the two, plus private health insurance as a starter. If you use savings you are required in most autonomous regions to have double the 36k available for your year 2/3 and 4/5 renewals. If you want a bit more info about it, feel free to message me as we’ve just moved down here under the NLV. Be aware that under the Golden Visa mentioned, the property of 500k€ plus has to be in only one name and the partner can piggy back into the visa of the applicant. If the property is to be in joint names then it has to be 1m€ plus in value ( purchased outright no mortgages etc ) Golden Visa allows you to work in Spain subject to the normal rules re working here.
Thank you and thanks to eyebeebeIf we retired there full time. the income amount wouldn’t be an issue as that’s less than my annual pension. When my wife retires she would also have above the required amounts. We also have reasonable savings behind us.
For the holiday home idea, for the remote work we ideally would have liked the option to take as an example a 3 week trip with my wife being able to work for some of the time. Her employer is fine with working abroad but it doesn’t sound like that fits the regulations now. I used to work when we went away some years ago but I appreciate things have changed now.
Rushjob - hope you move is going well for you and thanks for your offer for more info. I’ll do a little more reading and then get in touch as it would be great to pick your brains!
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