Jono2000

Nope, that's typical costs for an all electric apartment in the UK.
The govt credits me £60 a month subsidy, soon to end, but that's the sort of figure many many UK consumers are swallowing....

https://www.theguardian.com/business...lf%20of%202023.


A brief Google search will confirm this...
​​​​

Moses2013

What’s the average electricity bill per month?

The government has not published its estimates for 2022 but British Gas estimated average electricity billsOpens in a new window by household type to be:

• Flat or 1-bedroom house: £781.87 per year, or £65.16 per month
  
• 3-bedroom house: £1,156.27 per year, or £96.36 per month
  
• 5-bedroom house: £1,632.79 per year, or £136.07 per month
  

These numbers are based on the average annual electricity use for those household sizes.

The average electricity bill per year for 2021(Opens in a new window) was £769, based on annual consumption of 3,600 kWh/year. However, energy prices increased in April 2022 and again in October. The new totals are based on the October rates, so they make look different to your bill. The price cap is predicted to rise again in April 2023. You can contact your supplier if you're going to struggle with payments.

Jono2000

OK, do remember they are assuming gas central heating, which is unavailable in modern blocks of flats... With electric heating at this time of year most people will be paying North of £200 per month.

Ronnyone

I think the point is that even in Spain you still need to heat your place for at least 3 months a year and electricity is very expensive here unless you were lucky to get a good fixed deal before last year- also we have the Tope de gas operating which was meant to finish in April but now looks like it will continue in some new form. 14• in Spain during the day probably means its warmer outside than in your property due to all the tiles and small windows. Also most Brits require AC in the summer months and that is just as expensive as heating and given the fact that the last 2 summers saw many places hitting 40° plus its hard to see people wanting to be in Spain in August.

christmasoompa

See my post above - I’m not on mains gas, our heating is all electric. And just in case it wasn’t clear, I’m in the UK too. I think your costs are extortionate compared to what I pay for a much larger (400 year old with single glazing!) property.

Moses2013

I'd agree with extortionate, especially for a 2 bedroom apartment. I must admit that we are careful how much we heat now and this winter hasn't been too cold, but still seems too high. Back on topic and OP, even if you were lucky to make a profit, capital gains tax is higher for Brits now and make sure it really is the area you see yourself long term. I don't see how you can get away with it and you'll be taxed on worldwide income if setting up a business. I'm over 1000 kms away from Estepona and can't comment on builders in that area, but in any case you will have to do it the Spanish way (like it or not).

Lou71

We have built two houses in Spain and on the whole, it's worked out very well for us.

We first bought land back in 1998 and built a house of about 100 square metres. It was inland on the eastern side of Malaga but the house was disappointing (not well enough insulated and too far inland) so we sold it with a decent profit and bought another house nearer the coast - still east of Malaga.

We then bought another plot close by and built a house of about 100 square metres but made sure we had cavity walls with foam insulation and double glazing and it's 100% better than the original house back in 1998.

Both plots are rustic (much cheaper than urban plots) so the procedure is very different from urban land in Estepona but I would say that the most important thing is to get the design and the insulation right. Reverse cycle aircon and solar hot water are a must too, particularly if you want to rent it out.

So my verdict is it's very doable and although I agree it gets cold here in the winter, it's nothing like as cold and miserable as the UK and of course the winters are short but the summers are very long.

I can't help re the company versus individual question but it's best to speak to a lawyer about that.

Renting out during the summer is an option as long as you have a pool but you will need a licence. Again, not difficult and we managed to sort it out for a friend without too many difficulties - reverse cycle aircon is a must to obtain the licence.
.
So if the land checks out with permissions etc the next step will be deciding on build size and cost of construction.

Jono2000

Yes, agreed. Will need both heating and cooling.

​​​​​I wonder if solar has some answers?

Moses2013

The thing with urban land is that you can not always decide on build size. Ok, you either have a minimum and a maximum but regulations seem more strict now. We only have a 600m2 plot but now you have to build a minimum of 100m2 and not more than 25% of total surface can be foundation, things like solar are mandatory and you need 20 plants like bushes where we are. Before it was no problem to have smaller home and less regulated. The design is quite open, but speaking to neighbours even the type of stone for a garden wall is controlled now.

Lou71

​​​​​Instruct a lawyer to visit the town hall and find out how much you can build and check for permissions. The architect will liaise with the town hall throughout the entire process and will be fully aware of build size etc. It certainly isn't something we ever had an issue with but we had a good architect and a good lawyer.

Fred James

Don’t waste good money on a lawyer for this unless you hit a legal problem. Your architect is probably more used to dealing with this. Usually the rules for building on urban land are very clearly defined.

Moses2013

I suggested to do this before paying a lawyer/architect and buying the land. As mentioned, with the address and cadastral number you can go on the local geo portal or send an email asking for the building regulation documents for the plot. Involving an architect now is a waste of money and you might quickly realise that it's not worth buying the plot if the building regs aren't what you expected.
The architect will ask for €500 to send the same email
https://ayuntamiento.estepona.es/ayu...o-garrido.html

Lou71

Fair enough, but it's not something I would personally risk, particularly after the problems we have had with building in Andalucia, albeit with rustic plots.

Moses2013

But why risk? All you are doing is asking the official body in advance before wasting money for information on a plot you might not end up wanting to buy.
Best example are people wanting to build a tiny house with pool and they buy the land (using a lawyer and I always recommend that). After they bought the land (all was fine) they hire an architect and pay the architect to ask the same question to the technical architect at the town hall: Are tiny houses allowed, can I build a 8m x 3m pool? Answer no and you've wasted thousands.
Just saying that it's cheaper and easier to send an email to the town hall architect and ask what you have in mind before paying. Our town hall has this information on their website which you can download in a few seconds.

SanNico

To give you an idea of winter running costs, in the summer I'm paying around 125 per month with the AC running. Autumn, winter and spring it's around 60 per month. My gas bill hovers around 50/month (100 for 2 months) from April to December and 200/month for the winter. I'm not big on heating the whole house, just the downstairs. In fact my bedroom was 14 degrees when I woke up this morning.
I also bought 3000KG of wood which should last the rest of the winter. That cost me 375. Our fires are the cassette type with fans, not open fires.

I live at less than 100m above sea level near Valencia so it's not a cold area, the house was built in the 70's and improved in the 90's. Double glazing everywhere, pitched roofs with lower ceilings. Finally, I rarely work from home so these bills are for a mostly unheated house.

In summary, winters here are not warm and utilities are not cheap. Although from what I hear the UK has gotten a lot worse than Spain in that regard.