crookesey

1) Running a holiday letting business at arms length is nigh on impossible, you will need an agent, cleaner, laundry and repair person. Even if your agent and everyone else is honest, you will make next to nothing, your net rent (if applicable) will be subject to tax, as will all the weeks not let, based on the tax man's assessment.

2) Prices have fallen, this is true, but so have rentals, I know of an apartment that has reduced from it's €399,000 purchase price to €185,000, the rents have reduced to circa half of the pre crash asking prices, I was there circa 18 months ago and the place was virtually empty.

3) We Brits have got to start and think like other folk where property ownership is concerned. You could most probably get your 8 weeks p/a for circa €3,500, so why go to the expense and hard work involved in owning a property in another country?

4) I rest my case.

missile

The age old .... why rent / buy.

There are many pros and cons and we each have our own priorities.

To date I have not lost any money on property I have owned in Spain or UK and saved a lot of rental. Perhaps I have been fortunate?

Wish I could say the same for my other "investments"

I would suggest financial consideration is only one (al be it important!) consideration. Owning a holiday home ties you to one location, which may not suit OP in the future.

cricketman

I have rented 3 different flats in 3 cities over the past 6 years and not lost a penny

Depends what you are looking for of course

The almost 10% property sales tax puts me of buying in Spain. The flat I rent out would cost at least 500,000 euros to buy. 50,000 euros would be the sales tax, or 5 years rent. No brainer, especially as that includes comunidad and IBI which is another 200 euros per month

Oh and we are moving again next month, just a few streets away, because we can. Good job we didnt buy!

missile

In my case, I have not lost and I have saved the money I would have paid out on rent.
Each to their own, I prefer to own the roof over my head, but as I said earlier I would not buy another property in Spain.

IamStu

I see the benefits to buying at the moment but there are always the pitfalls! I own a property in Granada which fortunately for me still has equity, though it has lost much of it.
Can property really drop much more?
http://elpais.com/elpais/2013/11/04/...54_660000.html

cricketman

If I had bought back in 2007 in Barcelona when I first arrived in Spain, then I would probably be back in the UK by now, because I wouldnt have been able to move out of the city when I needed to due to work.

And then I wouldnt have been able to move to Asturias for lifestyle reasons

Buying a house can be a prison sentence when there is pretty much no housing market in Spain at the moment, especially for second hand properties

I would only buy if I knew I wanted to stay that house for at least the next 10 years, or maybe even for the rest of my life. If that were the case, then now is a very good time to buy.

sam54140

these examples and the glut of "illegal" properties (300,000)
are further evidences (sales taxes, inheritance taxes, etc among others) this market is still dead for a few years unless the gvt provides big changes to the real estate taxation. but the glut (way too much supply, not enough demand) is there and is big.
Spanish real estate (with exceptions as always) has yet to drop 25% or so. how long it will take is anyone's guess

cricketman

You don't know if your property has any equity in it until you actually try to sell it

Where I am, the same properties have been up for sale for the past 3 years or more. Some have dropped their price slightly, others havent, but almost none are selling. Therefore they have no value. Your property is only worth what someone will pay for it

IamStu

Absolutley! However, in my case I was advised if I wanted a quick sale, to put it on at X€. In other words, sell it below market value. This figure would still suggest equity!

alilever

Because we saw possible properties and might well proceed. Yes - I know about Carmenes del Mar in La Herradura and this was mentioned by our lawyer. Actually, La Herradura not completely ruled out - did see a possible property there and it's only a 1 Euro bus ride to Almunecar. Did plenty of research before choosing lawyer too. Just collecting as much info, advice, opinions as possible....replies already helping with the thought process : )

alilever

Thank you.

Fred James

Be careful about assuming you will be able to let the property in Almunecar.

There are a huge number of properties which are only used for 6 weeks in the summer and the town is populated by 10 times as many people as during the rest of the year. They are almost all Spanish.

You might get some rentals during that period but for the rest of the year very few people go there and there will potentially be thousands of properties available in the off season.

alilever

Thank you Fred. I think renting it in the summer would be a bonus for us, as initially we weren't too worried about renting at all. While we are still working - for the next few years, it would be mainly us using it out of season, so might work out OK. However, as one of the repliers said - if we can afford to have it as a home from home, and not rent it out at all, but have our own things .... would be preferable. As we've seen a few apartments - confined to one or two buildings - feel tempted to see what happens to the prices over the next few months.

sam54140

Hi,
based on your experience, what is the inflow /outflow of British expats currently ? say, for 4 coming in, 5 leaving but still owning a house ?
I guess it's hard to judge "like that" though. Just what's the impression, the feeling.

IamStu

Just a thought...are you looking at what agents are holding by way of pricing the market?
May I suggest you contact some of the Spanish banks? La Caixa for example are holding many properties they´ve aquired through building firms going bust.
I know this as my bank manager sometimes calls asking if I´d be interested? Often the prices are very low indeed and the properties quite exceptional!