British Newbies
 

Hi all, thanks for adding us.

We are approaching retirement and looking at retiring to Spain in the next 18 months to 2 years. We have sufficient savings and income but would really appreciate some help in regard to buying property (so we dont buy an illegal one, or not own the land its on etc) and potentially who we can use from a legal point of view - anything that will assist us in making the right choices.

We are looking at Andalucia (Vinuela and surrounding villages) as somewhere to settle. We are keen walkers, love the country side and dont want to be in a touristy area but want a bit of real Spain and somewhere quite. We are also avid stargazers (we have an observatory in the UK) so would be looking for dark skies, but close enough to a village/small town so we are not to far away from civilisation.

Also, any recommendations for estate agents/legal please?

Any help would be apprectated.

TIA,

Richie and Lisa

Re: British Newbies
 

Hi, will you be applying for a visa or have you already acquired EU residency pre brexit?

All the best for your future.

Re: British Newbies
 

The Axarquia is a good choice.

Fortunately, things have moved on a lot since the dark days of the dreaded illegal property situation. This was mostly caused by the incompetence of previous Junta de Andalucia (autonomous regional government) who have now been replaced by a far better administration who have made massive, positive changes.

Rural properties in Andalucia now need to go through a process called DAFO prior to purchase. This is a form of regularisation which means you are legally protected from any future infractions from the town hall. It can cost up to €10,000 to complete the process but the cost is usually met by the vendor. Your lawyer will conduct a pre DAFO prior to signing the compra venta to make sure the town hall will issue a DAFO on the property. So in a nutshell, don't worry about the legality of rural properties per se but do engage a competent lawyer who understands the DAFO process.

The Junta are currently in the process of finalising new planning laws which will override the dreaded LOUA from 2003 meaning it will be quicker and easier to obtain building and planning permission in the future.

The biggest problem for you now if you are British is actually being able to obtain the right visa to live in Spain. Have you checked the criteria?

Do either of you have an EU passport?

Re: British Newbies
 

Hi,

we will be applying for a non-lucrative visa in the near future hopefully. Just trying to sort out how to approach the whole process.

Re: British Newbies
 

Hi,
thanks for the info. We do have the income and capital thats required and no convictions etc. My wife has an EU passport at present but mine is the new UK black/blue passport. We are at the very early stages of our "adventure" and are just wanting to make sure we do it correctly. I understand we are better selling up in the UK before buying in Spain because if we dont then we could be liable for Capital Gains tax via Spain. We may be wrong but thats how we have read it.

cheers

Richie and Lisa

Re: British Newbies
 

If your wife has an EU country passport then you don't need the NLV or the money required, just come here and she registers and you get in as a family member of an EU citizen
Still need the Healthcare, but financially its a quarter of the amount needed for a visa (which you don't need)
But your wife has to show she can support you.

As to selling stuff. YES do so in the tax year before you come over (I took the 25% out of my pension in Dec 2019) and we moved in 2020.
Tax year here Jan - Dec......

I found this after a quick search.
https://balcellsgroup.com/family-mem...RoCcrIQAvD_BwE

Question time now.

What driving licences do you hold??
If UK then (unless the exchange program starts again) you will need to take Spanish driving tests.

Hope this helps.
If Ive got anything wrong, someone will be along in a minute to correct me..

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks.

Yes, we both have UK driving licences so we expect we have to have Spanish Driving lessons. Also, when I say my wife has an EU passport, its the red European Union passport that us Brits had until Brexit. Im presuming you are talking about an EU passport from a current EU country? If so, we will have to have the income and capital that we do have.
Cheers

Re: British Newbies
 

Sadly, a burgundy British passport is no longer an EU passport. I meant an EU passport, like an Irish passport for example. Your lives will be a million times easier if one of you is an EU national.

I trust you know that you can no longer move to an EU state and then take residency like the British did before the dreaded Brexit? You now need to undertake a protracted process through a third party entity while you are still in the UK.

Re: British Newbies
 

Yes. We realise is a long slow process but as long as it is doable we want to give 100%. Its just knowing where to start the ba rolling and who to use. If anyone knows of a trusted source that would be a great start. We do have time on our side which is a good thing.

Re: British Newbies
 

Lot of useful stuff here

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/living-in-spain

Re: British Newbies
 

You probably need to make sure you can get the right visa before buying a property. There are several good lawyers and tax advisers in Torre del Mar but we are not allowed to name them on here.

There are specialist lawyers springing up who can help with immigration matters.

Re: British Newbies
 

You are allowed to make personal recommendations - that is not classed as advertising.

Re: British Newbies
 

Best thing to do is to come to Spain for 3 months ( 90 day) and take time looking around. You will easily be able to arrange a 3 month rental and then use that as a base. 3 months will give you an idea of what to expect and grounds you more than just watching things like Place in the Sun ( not saying you do). You really don't want pay for the Visa process, then the process of residency, then buy a property only to find you are homesick after 6 months. It is very very hard to recoup money on property sales and the Visa process is long and expensive

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks!

Re: British Newbies
 

Cheers!

Re: British Newbies
 

:thumbs_up:

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks. Good advice!

Re: British Newbies
 

You say you want a bit of "real Spain". Have you researched the population statistics for the villages you are interested in? In Viñuela in 2020 over 43% of the residents were non-Spanish (and over 65% of the foreign residents were British). In Alcaucín it is a very similar picture, just over 40% of residents non-Spanish and over 60% of the foreign residents were British. In Puente de Don Manuel there is a parade of shops which includes a British supermarket, British hair and beauty salon,, Britsh café bar, until recently a fish and chip shop although I think they have now relocated, and there is also an Indian restaurant there.

https://www.foro-ciudad.com/malaga/v...cimientoEspana

Just as a comparison, the non-Spanish population of Benidorm is 34.05% - surprisingly!

Re: British Newbies
 

You are right and I've always wondered what people mean with real Spain. I can understand that people want somewhere quite too but be it a village or countryside, it can often be the opposite. Barking dogs, loud machinery and a new pig farm being built. The real Spain is basically anywhere and everywhere.

Re: British Newbies
 

And the villages/campo get their fair share of tourists too, with many villas rented out on sites such as Airbnb or operating as small guesthouses.

Re: British Newbies
 

I'd say that lake gets plenty of tourists? I suppose it's just something you can't avoid and tourists are everywhere these days. Then again plenty of coastal areas might have tourists during summer but it's more relaxed off season . Although I don't mind living rural in Ireland, it's something I wouldn't necessarily want in some parts of Spain. Wildfires are a big worry and I personally feel that when the sun goes down and it's dark in rural Spain, it feels like a lonely place and just not the same. So in one way I'm glad that we bought in a more "touristic" area (only Spanish neighbours), although we aren't permanent residents anyway.

Re: British Newbies
 

Got to agree 100% there..

Living in a more rural area, to me has more downs than ups.

A couple we are friends with live up the CV70 towards Guadalest (one of this areas busiest tourist places) but when one of them was ill, the ambulance could not get to the door.
They live along an unmade road, it stopped on the side of the CV70 and they had to drive the 500m to the ambulance.
Post is also a nightmare, they have to rent a box in the town (4.5km away) and if they order from Amazon they have the parcels delivered to the bar in town...
The water truck can't get to the house so they have to fill those IBC's (white cubes with the metal frames) with the water and then tow it to the water deposit.
And is living in a house with no mains water or electric 'real' or something out of the 1920's?

Sod that, ok they have wonderful views over the valley and down towards the sea but come on, its when something goes wrong that Im grateful we live in a small village and I can call on the neighbours (and them me) if we needed something.
And we are planning on moving in around 10 years to the town and then Im going to stop driving and just sit around with the old boys drinking in the sunshine (well if I ever learn enough spanish) :)

On the other hand, where would you describe as the 'real england' if someone were to ask?
I was born in west london and to me thats real, lots of people hate london and its crowded streets, but not to me.

Its like people posting asking for help with location. My idea of a nice place to live is just that mine, nobody else's.
Why I don't bother with commenting on those threads anymore, unless its for specific info about somewhere I know.

I like cities so real Spain to me is Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia etc, :)

My 2c anyway....

Re: British Newbies
 

Also of course Axarquia as a region of Spain has since just before the pandemic been pushing the region as an area for tourists to visits. They have been having presentations in the UK as far north as Newcastle pushing the area and what it has to offer not just for tourism but to live. In addition A Place in the Sun tv show has been pushing the area in its tv shows. Yes it looks a very rural Spanish area but as has been said visit some of the villages and and they have a very heavy British and Northern European amount of residents. So what is the real Spain in reality? You visit most areas and will find as well as Spaniards, British, German, Dutch and Scandinavian incomers even in quite isolated places.

Re: British Newbies
 

Living rural means for any visitors I have to give them GPS points rather than an address.

Re: British Newbies
 

Wow. That is suprising. I suppose when we say "real Spain" we mean the area and access to rural villages, type of homes and not overly touristy like the coastal towns. A mixture of nationalities would not be too much of a concern as it seems to be the same the world over these days. And having a bit if a potential support network with some expats around would be nice.

Re: British Newbies
 

Ha! Love it!

Re: British Newbies
 

Hmmm, interesting. We will have to do our research. Its just such a beautiful area and ticks lots of boxes. Beats living next to an industrial estate living just outside London!

Re: British Newbies
 

Do you have any details if them please?

Re: British Newbies
 

:goodpost:

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks. I would be looking at dark skies however. I have an observatory here in the UK so I woukd be building one in Spain. Less light pollution the better.

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks. I really appreciate your views and totally understand. The potential fo tragedy is something we are giving a lot of thought to. We would be happy on the outskirts of a village/small town but out of the way enough to give us privacy, dark skies at night for my astronomy but accessibility to local amenities when we want, albeit a short drive if need be.

Re: British Newbies
 

I have used the services of this long-established family run firm in Torre del Mar for both a property purchase and a tax return after I'd sold one property and bought another, and can recommend them highly. Paloma Conde Cabello is their in-house lawyer and her brother Antonio is the tax adviser.

https://www.gestoriacabellogonzalez.com/en/

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks for the info. I will check them out. Do you know if they assist with residency?

Re: British Newbies
 

I don't, sorry. You would need to do the visa application in the UK anyway, then as I understand it make an application to register as a resident when you arrive in Spain.

Re: British Newbies
 

I see. Thanks again.

Re: British Newbies
 

They do yes they did my residencia for me that was the old green card one. They did contact me a few months after introduction of the TIE card system saying they could sort out exchange but by then I had already exchanged green card to TIE myself. They were very good and helpful when I used them.

Re: British Newbies
 

It is certainly a beautiful and varied area and as you say ticks many boxes for coastal and rural living.

Re: British Newbies
 

Thanks. Thats helpful.

Regards

Rich

Re: British Newbies
 

Yes, I've used them too and they are very good. They certainly deal with residency but as previously stated, that is no longer possible for the British thanks to Brexit because you now have to use a third party entity while you are still in the UK.

They are very well versed on DAFO, property law and can offer tax advice too.

Re: British Newbies
 

thanks. Thats great!