arkitekt

A few have suggested in another thread I raised that I should rent rather than buy initially. I can think of some advantages of this but I would be interested to hear from anyone living in Spain and renting about the advantages and the pitfalls...

Lionda

Listen to the advice RENT first. You can get the feel of the place and also ask around and speak to people who have bought/rented in the area. It makes sense believe me

Mitzyboy

Well ... the obvious advantage is that you are there on the spot. You can take time looking at properties, you can gain local knowledge, and you can make an informed purchase.

spain

def 100% rent first...without a doubt one of the best bits of advice re moving to Spain !!

cricketman

Not only is renting more flexible, it is a lot lot cheaper!

In Malaga province (Costa del Sol) you can rent a villa for 1,000 euros/month that will cost you 500,000 to buy.

Or a flat for 500 euros a month that will cost you 200,000 to buy

It's no contest!

And if you convince the estate agent to give you a legal long-term contract that allows you to stay between 1-5 years (the decision being yours, not the landlords) then you can live in security and make the place feel like your own.

jdr

Any rental contract is valid for up to 5 years if the tenant wishes to stay, unless a holiday only let is written into the contract at the beginning.
Although just recently they have eased things a bit for the owner.

cricketman

You'll find that a lot of estate agents in the Costa del sol will want you to sign a holiday let contract. In this case, legally you're not even supposed to use the property as primary residence.

But given that there are 1000s of empty properties, if you insist on a proper 5 year contract, I cant imagine them saying no.

arkitekt

We have now more or less decided to rent, thanks for the advice

jdr

You won`t be sorry, at least you can move around until you find what and where you like.

Spanish John

Generally you will sign an 11 month rental contract,usually a months rent as a deposit and its supposed to be illegal but the agent charges a months rent as a finders fee.In some instances you can rent with an option to buy and in most cases any rent that has been paid will be reduced from the purchase price,that way you can see if you like the house/area before buying...

lynnxa

why would you sign an 11 month contract?

I certainly wouldn't

I have never paid a finders fee to an agent, and except for one mistake when we were still wet behind the ears, have never paid more than one month deposit

just about everything is negotiable - especially at the moment

in any case, it doesn't matter how long the contract is for, provided the agreed notice is given by either party, it can be terminated

the single most important thing to bear in mind is that the contract MUST be in Spanish

if, as some contracts do, it has an english translation on it - get it independently checked if you don't speak good Spanish - the translations can sometimes be iffy at best & downright misleading at worst!

jdr

Agreed, but the only way the owner can terminate within the five years is if rent is not paid or he needs the place for his own residence.

lynnxa

I forgot about that bit

and they actually have to move in too, don't they?

craigslist1

i would rent short term 3 months and look around for owners willing to sell,not estate agents as you can buy from owners for half the price of whats in estate agents windows something that would have cost 200,000 before costs 100,000 now i think its at the bottom now,and those prices will stay there another 3 years,but then they will double again dont forget all the taxes,and dont buy near the beach which will be torn down as they are illegall
i would not buy as investment as there are thousands of empty apartments which will take 10 years to fill

jordan

The tenant's entitlement to a compulsory extension of five years is provided by section 9 of the Urban Lease Act 29/1994 only to housing tenancies defined by s. 2 (1) of the mentioned Act, which provides that it is deemed housing tenancy that lease that rests on a habitable dwelling whose paramount purpose is to satisfy the tenant’s need of permanent housing.

Therefore, regardless of what has been stated in the rental agreement the tenant is entitled to the extension of the lease if he or she is using the leased house as a permanent abode or main residence.
One may think that terms of a rental agreement have any effect in the legal regulation of the lease but the law is clear; the fact of whether the tenant is using the property as main residence is the only ground to being entitled to this extension.

Some landlords have been dissuaded from letting properties because of what they consider to be penal or unfair Act. The Government has responded to the decline in tenancies by amending section 9 (3) of the Act, although it is still not easy to tell what effect this switch will have in the long term
Before 19/2009 Act ‘the mandatory renewal of the lease did not operate if at the time of its formalization, it was expressly stated in the agreement the need for the landlord to occupy the rented house before the expiration of the five years term to use it as permanent abode for himself’ By the amendment of this subsection the statutory extension will not operate if the landlord need the rented property for himself or for his or her relatives within the first degree of consanguinity or adoption or for his or her spouse, on the assumption of decree absolute or null marriage.In order to exercise this option the agreement shall provide that exception and the landlord shall serve a notice informing about the relative who will occupy the property and the reasons for it .