Confused!
Nov 13th 2021, 9:56 am
#46
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Re: Confused!
I have noticed a few items in the supermarket going up recently - olive oil being one, but we often see quite sharp increases in the price of that due to weather conditions affecting harvests, then the price drops back again. Have not seen any increases in most items, though - bread, milk, instant coffee (Spanish brand), butter, creme fraiche, langostinos, tinned tomatoes, free range eggs all the same. Prices of fruit and vegetables fluctuate all the time with seasonality so difficult to compare those, but price of raspberries, fresh prepared pineapple and grapes seem much the same in Mercadona. Salmon fillets still at slightly reduced price from what they were. Heinz baked beans were €0.88 at the end of last year, dropped to €0.65 and just recently went back up to €0.75 but still lower than they were in 2020. Bought 2 organic burgers in Lidl last week - still €1.99 each, same as they have been for over a year. Chicken and pork in Mercadona seems more expensive than it was but I couldn't say by how much.
When we first moved here in 2006 we started to withdraw €70 in cash every week to cover our supermarket bills (not including wine or other alcohol, we pay for that separately, but it does include laundry and cleaning products). We are still drawing exactly the same amount now, and we still have something left over practically every week to go towards the cost of a meal out. We spend a bit more to supplement that with an occasional order (and I mean a couple of times a year) for British products we like, which we didn't do in the first years when we weren't getting any pension income but the basic spend has stayed pretty much the same which is not bad over 15 years.
The only bill of mine which will go up in 2022 is the house insurance premiums. Water doesn't seem to have changed at all in 15 years, IBI doesn't go up and in fact my Ayuntamiento is reducing the percentage used to calculate it very slightly over the next 3 years so we may notice a small reduction but it really will be a tiny one. I have a fixed rate for electricity and the company are guaranteeing that rate for 24 months. The Ayuntamiento has announced that they will be making local bus travel free next year for over 65s and young people, so we will save a bit of money on that
This graph shows how average salaries in Spain have increased, not by much up to now as inflation has been very low these last few years:-
https://www.epdata.es/datos/coste-la...nizaciones/424
But the Spanish minimum wage increased from €735 per month in 2018 to €965 now, with a further increase to be implemented in January 2022.
https://www.abc.es/economia/abci-asi...8_noticia.html
When we first moved here in 2006 we started to withdraw €70 in cash every week to cover our supermarket bills (not including wine or other alcohol, we pay for that separately, but it does include laundry and cleaning products). We are still drawing exactly the same amount now, and we still have something left over practically every week to go towards the cost of a meal out. We spend a bit more to supplement that with an occasional order (and I mean a couple of times a year) for British products we like, which we didn't do in the first years when we weren't getting any pension income but the basic spend has stayed pretty much the same which is not bad over 15 years.
The only bill of mine which will go up in 2022 is the house insurance premiums. Water doesn't seem to have changed at all in 15 years, IBI doesn't go up and in fact my Ayuntamiento is reducing the percentage used to calculate it very slightly over the next 3 years so we may notice a small reduction but it really will be a tiny one. I have a fixed rate for electricity and the company are guaranteeing that rate for 24 months. The Ayuntamiento has announced that they will be making local bus travel free next year for over 65s and young people, so we will save a bit of money on that
This graph shows how average salaries in Spain have increased, not by much up to now as inflation has been very low these last few years:-
https://www.epdata.es/datos/coste-la...nizaciones/424
But the Spanish minimum wage increased from €735 per month in 2018 to €965 now, with a further increase to be implemented in January 2022.
https://www.abc.es/economia/abci-asi...8_noticia.html
None of that changes the fact that inflation is 5.4% -( and expected to rise)meaning you cant prevent price rises coming in the next few months. Petrol prices are starting to increase rapidly and the fact that there is a planned strike by lorry drivers planned next month means you have to expect price movements. Most people dont think much about it as they simply look at individual items ( Salmon fillets up 50 céntimos- no problem ) but as it occurs across everything it eventually starts to bite
Nov 13th 2021, 10:58 am
#47
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Nov 13th 2021, 2:17 pm
#48
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Re: Confused!
thankyou.
we wouldn’t be looking to work whilst there and live off our savings.
we live a frugal life here with our outgoings around £600pm here without mortgage which we wouldn’t have in Spain anyway as would purchase outright.
if after 5 years and after applying for residency we could always get a job if need be I’m sure.
we wouldn’t be looking to work whilst there and live off our savings.
we live a frugal life here with our outgoings around £600pm here without mortgage which we wouldn’t have in Spain anyway as would purchase outright.
if after 5 years and after applying for residency we could always get a job if need be I’m sure.
BUT....
To get the NLV you will need to show €32,000 of income (Ive heard not savings) because you could spend that and would have nothing left for the renewal (and then you would be asked to leave)
That figure is for 2021 in 3 or 4 years it could be €36,000 or more.
As to your property purchase. There are 3,900 ish under €100,00 in Almeria so that bit is doable, but we have a nice newish (2005) 3 bed, 2 bath flat that the original owners only used once a year and I still had to put €5,000 to update it.
Also your final line "if after 5 years and after applying for residency we could always get a job if need be I’m sure" WRONG the NLV does not allow you to work.
Now once permanent you may be allowed to work I don't know and nor will anyone else BUT.....
My TIE says "Resi Y Trabajo" which means I can live and work, but I have seen one that states "solo residencia" or residency only.
Keep planning but I would visit the Spanish consulates website to confirm all you will need to comply with the visa requirements.
Also come out for a holiday or three or twenty, you say you wont do anything for three years, so you can have lots of fun fact finding trips, get NIE, open a bank account, start to get acquainted with the area you want to move to, find a nice agent, solicitor.
Wow I've just checked how big the Almeria region is, so you will def need to decide on location.....
We took 16 years to buy our place after visiting this area two or three times a year and we drove thousands of KM over those years looking around, we have family here, so it was easier for us and we already had contacts.
But even then we viewed around 30 places before we decided to look at the village we are now in, as it was somewhere that we had not considered.
Nov 13th 2021, 4:25 pm
#49
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Re: Confused!
two flats. They live upstairs and rent out the downstairs. They let us connect to their internet.
Nov 13th 2021, 4:50 pm
#50
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Re: Confused!
Thanks
Nice spot Tarragona!
For the OP I have done a search of that area with the filter set to appartments and a maximum rent of 350p/m.
There are a few to choose from....
https://www.idealista.com/en/alquile...50/mapa-google
Nice spot Tarragona!
For the OP I have done a search of that area with the filter set to appartments and a maximum rent of 350p/m.
There are a few to choose from....
https://www.idealista.com/en/alquile...50/mapa-google
Nov 13th 2021, 4:52 pm
#51
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Re: Confused!
Thanks
Nice spot Tarragona!
For the OP I have done a search of that area with the filter set to appartments and a maximum rent of 350p/m.
There are a few to choose from....
https://www.idealista.com/en/alquile...50/mapa-google
Nice spot Tarragona!
For the OP I have done a search of that area with the filter set to appartments and a maximum rent of 350p/m.
There are a few to choose from....
https://www.idealista.com/en/alquile...50/mapa-google
great advice on here and giving us lots to consider that we hadn’t before which is great
Nov 13th 2021, 4:58 pm
#52
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Re: Confused!
That's brave.
Nov 13th 2021, 5:00 pm
#53
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Re: Confused!
currently thinking we may just buy a lock up and leave sooner to escape to with a view to move permanent in the future.
Nov 13th 2021, 5:11 pm
#54
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Posts: 538
Re: Confused!
You're sounding a bit hasty there!
You seriously need to make sure you can tick all the boxes in terms of meeting the requirments the Spanish government now impose to move to Spain.
They are rejecting people who apply for residency and you could end up with a home you could only live in six months of the year....
Also buying a property in an area that you know little about is high risk!
Better to rent a property, check an area out, get to know the lie of the land from expats who live in the area and then make an informed decision a few years down the line.
You should be able to get an affordable six months rental and start to transition to life in Spain and see how it suits you.
Also, you will start to education yourself about the way things work (or don't) here.
The days of just arriving here and setting up went because of Brexit. This is no longer possible.
Good luck!
You seriously need to make sure you can tick all the boxes in terms of meeting the requirments the Spanish government now impose to move to Spain.
They are rejecting people who apply for residency and you could end up with a home you could only live in six months of the year....
Also buying a property in an area that you know little about is high risk!
Better to rent a property, check an area out, get to know the lie of the land from expats who live in the area and then make an informed decision a few years down the line.
You should be able to get an affordable six months rental and start to transition to life in Spain and see how it suits you.
Also, you will start to education yourself about the way things work (or don't) here.
The days of just arriving here and setting up went because of Brexit. This is no longer possible.
Good luck!
Nov 13th 2021, 6:22 pm
#55
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Re: Confused!
I have to agree with others and before buying anything you should really make sure the location is right first. Only a 2nd home owner myself and there are so many things consider, so better get it right from the start. We are over 8 hours drive from Almeria and it can be very dry during summer but Almeria is another level. With no rain and just dust and rock it might feel depressing. With more water shortages on the way, I wouldn't be surprised when the government decide to introduce extra taxes for holiday home owners who buy in areas with water scarcity.
Nov 14th 2021, 7:59 am
#56
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Re: Confused!
Nov 14th 2021, 9:53 am
#57
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Re: Confused!
Buying a property in Spain with a view to selling it and buying another in a few years' time will be an expensive exercise. You have to pay the transfer tax on purchase (varies between regions, but on average 10% of the purchase price) plus the legal and notary fees. When you sell, estate agents' commission is normally much higher than you would pay in the UK, 5% of the sale price is pretty standard. As the first property would not have been your main home you could not claim the exemption from capital gains tax if you reinvested all the proceeds in another property. Then there is the plus valia tax payable to the Ayuntamiento on the increase in value of the land since purchase (following a recent Supreme Court judgement the Agencia Tributaria has just introduced a new formula for how this is calculated but plus valia tax still exists just in a different form). Then you pay another lot of transfer tax, legal and notary fees on the new property.
The above is very true and easily forgotten by Brits. Property does not function in quite the same way as UK. Most UK homeowners can expect to make some degree of profit from house sales and the cost involved are small. In Spain it is hard to make any real gains unless you are operating with quite expensive properties in desirable areas. Spain has a huge surplus of property to such a degree that squatting is pretty common everywhere and begrudgingly accepted. If can take at least 7 years before there might be any real house inflation and by then most of the profit barely covers the tax and selling costs. Every street has abandoned places. Usually they are family inheritances where the cost of selling and officially dividing money is not actually worth doing- so the places is simply ignored and abandoned.
Nov 14th 2021, 10:19 am
#58
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Re: Confused!
Another expense to mention - if you sell a Spanish property as a non-resident then 3% of the sale price will be retained by the buyer's lawyer and paid to the Agencia Tributaria against any Capital Gains Tax liability (and this will happen even if you sell at a loss). If there has been no capital gain then the vendor has to reclaim the 3% from the Agencia Tributaria and it can take a long time - a friend of mine waited 15 months for her refund.
Nov 14th 2021, 10:37 am
#59
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Re: Confused!
The above is very true and easily forgotten by Brits. Property does not function in quite the same way as UK. Most UK homeowners can expect to make some degree of profit from house sales and the cost involved are small. In Spain it is hard to make any real gains unless you are operating with quite expensive properties in desirable areas. Spain has a huge surplus of property to such a degree that squatting is pretty common everywhere and begrudgingly accepted. If can take at least 7 years before there might be any real house inflation and by then most of the profit barely covers the tax and selling costs. Every street has abandoned places. Usually they are family inheritances where the cost of selling and officially dividing money is not actually worth doing- so the places is simply ignored and abandoned.
The only time we didn't was the last move from Northampton to Shoreham as we could not have afforded a property there. Ended up renting.
Also in this area, unless its a high value property, very few places have recovered the losses from 2008.
Albir has recovered and so has Altea but bargains can still be had in and around the little towns inland.
A neighbour who purchased off plan here in the village and paid around €100,000 in 2005 has his flat up for €86,000 and he has had no interest at all.
The agent said he would be lucky to get €80,000.
We live in the same block (different stairway) and paid €78,000 in early 2019.
One of the last build blocks is all one bed places and has been pretty much empty from new, they are all Bank owned and they are offering them at around €40,000 and they are still not selling..
Ok we live in a small village with no shops or bars, we have a 1.5km drive to the nearest shops.
But its nice and quiet here, the neighbours are nice and the views are amazing.
I think the OP needs to seriously consider the current visa requirements if wishing to move permanently or researches their chosen area before plumping for a holiday home.
Nov 14th 2021, 10:47 am
#60
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Re: Confused!
I bought my former house in Spain in 2003 and sold it in 2017 after developing health problems made us realise that the property and area would be unsuitable for us if we developed permanent mobility problems in later life (it was in the historic centre within original medieval city walls and there was no vehicle access to the street, let alone our own house, plus it was quite a steep climb up from the town centre). I had to have major surgery and my recovery would have been much more difficult had we still been living in that house.
I sold for the same price I had bought for, but did not recoup the amount paid in taxes and legal fees. The good thing was that the house was sold after 3 months, I do know people who have/had their properties on the market for years.
I sold for the same price I had bought for, but did not recoup the amount paid in taxes and legal fees. The good thing was that the house was sold after 3 months, I do know people who have/had their properties on the market for years.