Barwick

Hi everyone.
This site has been recommended to me to ask anything about our potential ' investment' .
Basically me and my good lady are looking to buy a holiday home - we aim to stay there 3-4-5 times a year or as much as we can ( hopefully more ) , were 44 years old so if we buy now ( while its a good time to buy in my opinion ) we can afford to pay for it as were still working .
We aint looking for owt fancy around 100 000 euro's but to be honest we rekon we can get a pretty good deal as a cash buyer .

Looking for opinions / advice we will need a recommended soliciter , and any other costs we may have not thought of .
We are looking around the Benidorm area - prob not in Beni itself but say a 30 mile radius . I was impressed with inland property because of the amount of land / house you get for your money but reading posts here and talking to people we are slightly wary of the security aspect so may well shy away from this idea and go for the gated townhouse thing .
We have been holidaying in and around Beni for several years so know the area a little bit .
Would really like the Albir or Altea area's but they may be to expensive for us .
Anyway I can start the ball rolling by posting here - so thanks in advance for anyone who reads or can tell me the pitfalls of what we are maybe undertaking .
many thanks john ( Barwick )

Rosemary

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

Albir_Tom

Hiya,

I live in albir. Love it here.

Prices seem to be quite reasonable around albir at the moment.

Altea however is always expensive and it may be a bit of a stretch to get anything more than a 1 bedroom apartment there for 100k although there are the town houses en route upto the church where you could possibly find something and it's lovely up there.

Then there's alfaz del pi where the price drops considerably because it's slightly in land and you may find a bargain for your money.

As for the legalities of buying a home I don't really know as I don't own property here I rent. I would definitely consider taking a few holiday let's first in different areas to sort of find out where you feel most comfortable.

Anyhow here's a link to my good friend Christians website they are a well established estate agents based in albir, take a look and you will get some sort of guide to prices in all the above areas.

Real Properties Homes CB - Real estate agency - Costa Blanca

Happy house hunting.

Cheers

Tom.

shazzabob

go on a viewing trip as it cheap and they will take you everywhere and pay for everything hotels ect just dont buy anything, then come over yourself and hire a car get to know the area your looking in and the other areas around just in case you see aything or anywhere better ,go to the local estate agents in the area chat to them then come home and make a decision , best advice i can give you worked for me, no one in your ear telling you what o buy then.hope this helps

Moses2013

At the end of the day you have to be happy and the buying process is no different to other places. Be aware that the more land you have, the more work you'll have and gated communities usually have high fees. It's personal taste and love the TV show but I would say the further you get away from Benidorm the better. If you have the money, are aware of buying costs, use a good solicitor, know what you want, you shouldn't have a problem. There are plenty of cheap properties in Spain, but not everything that's cheap is a bargain.

Barwick

Hi .
That's a great start , esp Albir-tom , I remember looking at the estate agents lists from the last time we were in Albir , there is a couple of properties of interest , so we will keep looking . Its quite an informative site this and reading comments so far it raises more concerns from good Soliciters to renting first to do we try and get a pool - then how much will that cost for the upkeep - so many opinions and so many contradictions !!
We will keep reading and looking and again thanks for any comments made .
I will keep posting our progress .
regards john

stuboy

If you have 100k to invest I would suggest buying in the UK for following reasons.

Capital appreciation is likely to be greater than Spain.
Rental return will certainly be higher.
It's far close to home and easier to manage
If you intend to rent out the property then be prepared for some quite considerable costs.
If you don't intend to rent out the property you will still have costs.
Re-sale is quicker and cheaper in the UK

Use the rent from the UK to holiday in various parts of Spain until you're absolutely sure you know where you want to be.

Moses2013

They said they want a holiday home in Spain, not investment advice

VFR

The OP also asked about "investment" so Stu's advice is sound.

mikelincs

If the OP buys in Spain then they will be subject to non residents tax on the property as well as the usual taxes and utility costs, using it only a few times a year means that there is always the possibility of something happening while they are not there, and I'm not talking about burglary. We were in the process of selling, and had moved out into a rental property. One day we went back to the property to check it was OK only to find that the neighbour, while having work done on his house had knocked a hole in our kitchen wall, fortunately the builders were still there and repaired it, but it could have been a disaster if we hadn't returned.

johnnyone

If you are buying as a financial investment don't. If you are buying as a lifestyle investment do.

Barwick

Hi everyone and thanks for taking the time to read and post .
It seems that I should clarify on my op , I stated it was an investment - ok we are looking at buying a holiday home - a 2nd home - somewhere to go on holiday many times . Yes in my eyes we are investing our hard earned but we aren't looking to make a profit
now or in the foreseeable future . Sorry if I've misled anyone and please keep giving your opinions and advice .
regards jon

dfjordan

Do you really want to go on holiday to the same place various times a year, for the forseeable future? Do you like the idea of having the place sit empty for all the time you aren't there? I would agree with Stu, in that history shows the most secure investments in property are those in the UK. Invest your cash there; rent in Spain every time you fancy going there, and let someone else worry about the property when it's unoccupied. You may also find that at some time, you'll want to vacation somewhere else.

Albir_Tom

They are right, if you are buying as a holiday home and you can afford the upkeep and it can be left with no worries and stress then definitely go ahead but still have a few holiday lets first before you pick where you buy. If your doing it for a short term investment then don't!! Spain is in a ridiculously bad way at the moment and if it came to the crunch and you needed to take your collateral back your more than likely going to end up pulling your hair out....(at the moment that is) but then there is a different type of investment and that is family, if you are thinking of investing in something you want to keep using for years upon years and then pass onto your family then fair enough... Some people do think like that, your 44 at the moment and who knows in 40 years time your property could be worth a mint but if not you have had your good use out of it retired there etc and left it to family to enjoy memories and all round be kept in the family, to me that's priceless.

But as a short term investment, don't bother don't know weather you plan to buy something where you can extend on or renovate it makes no difference in Spain at the moment.

There is that tiny bit of hope that the country is getting just that little more back on its feet but it's a long way off yet.

Porth

Please Miss he is guilty of a spelling mistake. It is doubtful whether the weather has affected his ability to spell properly!