We are off on our trip on Thursday. I feel as though we have been “duped” already as we were told the agent could find “anything we wanted”. The last contact with the agent showed that they had nothing in our price range, in fact the nearest was 15, 000 Euros above our budget, should make it an interesting trip!!!
I have been looking at many 2 bed apartments that are well within our price range (both new and resale, most furnished too!!), and to be fair, we will try to get some taxis to some of them while out next week, but am not hopeful due to contacting sellers and not knowing yet where we will be staying. We are also looking to go out again in the Autumn half term.
My main question is this. With a new build, you have to make sure the relevant licenses, bank guarantees and the like are in place and also the habitation certificate when completing. What are the main things to be looking out for on a resale? Although some properties have been built for 5 years or so, what do we look for to make sure we don’t buy something that is still in dispute (I realise our independent solicitor should help guide us)?
…. contacting sellers and not knowing yet where we will be staying.
Mark
Mark – The agents you are going through don’t seem to let anyone know where they will be staying until they arrive at the Airport in Spain. I do know of some hotels they use regularly so will pm you with the details.
As you won’t have a lot of time, if you see something you are interested in I think a Gestor (working from a Gestoria in any Spanish town) may be a good move here, for little cost. They can do much of the leg-work for you at a modest fee. Or remember this for your next trip.
Look forward to hearing how you get on 🙂
I, let Suzanne let you know, what is a Gestor. Which area of Spain are you looking in ?
New and old will have their plus/minus points in different regions of Spain.
e.g, an old built in Murcia may be of a poor quality to old built in Costa del Sol etc.
Just my opinion but I would look for a resale, something that was built around year 2000 or before. Because the market was different then and they had to try harder, also corruption hadn’t yet become endemic. OK. may be a little tired but things like a new kitchen don’t cost a fortune and should be reflected in the price.
Hiring a good lawyer should prevent any suprises! but I think it is also useful to give your Lawyer a list of things that concern you. If you are buying into a property that has a community, ask to see the minutes of a couple of AGM’s if there are any major problems you can be sure they will have been aired. Lastly, don’t just rely on one agent, if they say they don’t have anything in your budget..why not? if it is realistic, browse the area you are in. Of course run the place past this forum…just incase and don’t rush to put down a deposit it is a buyers market, take your time…oh and good luck, it is worth it if it works out 🙂
Some very valid points by everyone, thanks. Some of the resale properties we have been looking at are from the 2000 period Katy, and very nice they look too.
We don’t have a lot of money to spare and are looking for a toe hold in Spain prior to moving lock, stock and barrel in about 4 years time. We are preferably looking for a 2 bed apartment within a community. The company I work for has an outlet in Murcia, so that sort of area would be good (which is where we are supposed to be going next week).
I hope no one says this is a bad move but we have just put a deposit on a property in murcia built by Taray. These are supposed to be good builders and the property is not ready for two years so hopefully will go up in price. We went with the idea of looking at resales as people had said this was better, but we did not see any we liked
Are Spanish agents open on a Sunday? I have read somewhere that we will be collected from our hotel on Sunday and returned to the airport. Our flight isn’t until 22.30 that evening and I don’t fancy spending 9 hours or so in San Javier airport when I could be doing something more constructive.
Just my opinion but I would look for a resale, something that was built around year 2000 or before. Because the market was different then and they had to try harder, also corruption hadn’t yet become endemic.
Oh – how correct Katy is. Funny thing is before I read this thread I had just posted on another
The other thing at the moment is that people are steering clear of a lot of new build – Benalmadena will be the next Marbella once they finish with Alhaurin. Quite simply if you are looking to buy anywhere on the CDS I would steer clear of anything under 8 to 10 years old and do not touch new build at any cost. Marbella is just the tip of the iceburg.
To you and to all who are looking to buy in Spain at the moment, DO NOT think about new or newish build. It will be overpriced and may be the next established build declared as not legal and have it’s building and First Occupancy Licences revoked.
Although all publicity about this type of thing centres on the CDS at the moment, there are a lot of examples in Murcia area that are starting to come out of the woodwork with construction going on without licences on Rustico land where the constructor is hoping to get retrospective licences etc. There also seems a lot of “off plan” sales going on there where no licences yet exist. Beware!
Are Spanish agents open on a Sunday? I have read somewhere that we will be collected from our hotel on Sunday and returned to the airport.
Simple answer is NO. (There are some agents who will arrange viewings on a Sunday if they can be bothered and some that are open because they are in the local Supermarket complex which opens on a Sunday during July and August)
The reason you will be collected and taken to the airport on an inspection visit is to make sure you cannot get free time. You will not be allowed any time to make contact with other agents, lawyers etc during opening hours on your visit. Best go home without buying on any inspection visit and if you like the area then return on your own.
Yes, we are contracted to be with the agent from 10am – 5pm (plus one hour off for lunch allegedly). Anything outside of those hours is ours to do as we please whichalso hopefully means browsing a few windows and having a look after hours!!
You don’t say what time you arrive on Thursday but don’t forget that agents do not open Saturday afternoons (if they open in the mornings) and a lot close in the afternoons July/August as well. A lot of the agents now tend not to Siesta, working more like a 10-6 basis Monday-Friday.
That is certainly true of the CDS
If you browse an agents window on a Friday evening, you are unlikely to get hold of an agent who would be prepared and able to show you any property on Saturday and Sunday.
Inspection trips have been arranged this way for years and the agents will be past masters at making sure you don’t get the chance to view / buy elsewhere! And the “lunch” will probably get bought by the agent at a Tapas Bar on the outskirts of the area as “the next one we are going to see is this way as well!”
Use your trip to gain ideas of the area and what may be available and return on a further visit under your own steam with more than 1 working day to browse.
Having read what I have here, I would avoid an inspection trip…
Really think you would be better off having a holiday to the area, outside of July/ Aug (when things open for longer) and spending some of that time looking in estate agents windows etc..or search the internet and email/ ring agents before planning a visit over here…you can rarely turn up and ask to view the same day as if the agent does not have the keys, the owner, owners mothers aunt, etc, the agent and you will all be there at once so thats a lot of people to get the agree to a time!!
Why not look at much older properties as well? Research different areas if you need your money to go a long way…use the web to help you. It sounds like you have time so don’t be pressured into anything, instead enjoy visiting Spain with house hunting the added cherry on the cake!
Hola Mark – There seems to be a problem with typicallyspanish.com today. The article was about Toxic Toothpaste, being distributed in Spanish Hotels, Hospitals & Airlines.
Resale properties never look as good as the ones shown in a glossy brochure with slick wording and false promises. Problem is 2 years later you usually finish up with something less attractive than the ones you were looking at.
Inspection trips have been arranged this way for years and the agents will be past masters at making sure you don’t get the chance to view / buy elsewhere! And the “lunch” will probably get bought by the agent at a Tapas Bar on the outskirts of the area as “the next one we are going to see is this way as well!”
It may well be that after discussions with our rep on the way to the hotel we decide to pay for our stay and go independent. The agent has already told us there is nothing in our price range, so really we are wasting each others time.
@heatherpsk wrote:
Having read what I have here, I would avoid an inspection trip…
Really think you would be better off having a holiday to the area, outside of July/ Aug (when things open for longer)
The intention is to come back in the October half term for a week and hire a car for ourselves.
Resale properties never look as good as the ones shown in a glossy brochure with slick wording and false promises. Problem is 2 years later you usually finish up with something less attractive than the ones you were looking at.
I personally would prefer a resale property, it has had time to settle and any faults to become apparent. Plus i’m tight and a lot of them come furnished :).
At the end of the day, we don’t wnt anything spectacular, but it has to be functional and fit the purpose. We just want a toe hold in the property market before moving in a few years time.
We just want a toe hold in the property market before moving in a few years time.
Why do you want to buy now if you are only moving in after some years ? Renting it out will not cover the costs of the property as the rent market is completly saturated. Renting it out long term will bring less money and you will have problems getting rid of the renters once you want to move in. Leaving it empty will deteriorate the property and cost you money.
My opinion : just buy the property when you need it, not before. In the mean time you can get interest on your cash or if you were not planning on using your own money, you will save the monthly mortage.
We want to buy in the next few months so that we are settled for Spring next year. We want the apartment primarily as a holiday home for us and our family, any extra rental incomes would be a bonus and not a necessity.
It would be a good opportunity for us to make frequent visits to the area and find areas that we would want to settle when we finally make the move, much better than being in the situation of having to find somewhere fast. It also means that when we come to move, we don’t have to wait to sell our house in the UK and can take our time with the transition.
The company I work for has a presence in the Murcia area, so if a job should come along at an opportune time, it would also enable me to take advantage of that.
There are many pluses and also minuses to our buying a Spanish property, all of which we need to address fully before committing.
Have you though about renting somewhere whilst you look for the right area etc…
Add an additional 10% on top of the asking price to buy here.
Rental prices are fairly cheap, often work out better than the mortgage you would pay if you brought a property of that worth. You could save money overall by renting for a year whilst “trying out the area” and also save yourself the pain of trying to resell a property when the market is slow…house next door to us has been on the market since we moved in,nearly a year…not that we are not lovely neighbours just they were both over 80 and we live in a very small place, with snow in winter…
As Heather said, I’d also highly recommend a rental whilst your looking for the right place.
I’ve been going to the Asturias, 6+ times a year for 9 years and we’ve just bought a place. Going over that frequently allowed us to get a map and travel to every village within the area we were looking and mark it as a yes / no / possible – you can always change whats inside but can’t what’s outside.
If you dont have time to take a long-long break and get around, then the rental option puts you in-situ and you’re even better placed to make an informed decision.
Also means you get to notice the private sales that come onto the market.
I think it is so important to rent first particularly if you are” First in ” as such with no relatives or friends in Spain to advise and guide, and also if you intend to live there permanently after selling up in the UK, of course it is generally accepted that you should not buy during the Honeymoon period as it takes time to adjust to a new country and its different culture etc.and
I would say that if at all possible 6 months should be the minimum time to rent ,the benifits of this would most certainly outway any rental costs ,for example the now intense summer heat and even flies seem to be an issue for a lot of people resulting in large numbers of Brits returning to the UK to escape the tempreatures during the summer months, simple things like mail delivery’s and dealing with the delightful Telephonica are other examples that seem to cause people difficulties.
On the other side walking along the beach during the winter months in your shorts and enjoying a meal with friends overlooking the harbour certainly make a powerful case. The point is you can speak to a dozen people and read a dozen books on the subject ,but ultimately this is a personal decision and one that only so much advise can address ,effectively the only way of course is to experience the area yourself over a period of time and make your mind up once you have properly road tested an area and the lifestyle .
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