[Anonymous]

Nigel Farage has apparently done an interview with the foreign press including El Mundo. He said that Spain will end up like Cyprus and that the 750,000 Britons in Spain should “get their money out and get back home as soon as they can.”

El Mundo are reporting this as part of a current of “hispanofobia” in the UK, referencing the recent article by Jeremy Warner in the DT arguing that Spain is insolvent.

It’s interesting reading the 240 comments on the article. Most of them are in the vein of “Brits go home”. 😯 It doesn’t surprise me. Spaniards have a love/hate relationship with us guiris.

The very last thing Spain needs is for the Brits to go home. Spain needs more Brits (and Germans and Dutch, etc.) than ever to come here, buy homes, spend their money, creating jobs and wealth in regions with very little else going for them. The longer it takes them to realise this, the poorer they will be.

[DBMarcos99]

Ha! He’s done this last year, and twice already in the last couple of months. The last time was particularly ironic as the troubles at the Co-op became public…

To be honest the average Russian tourist spends 159 euros per day (as per the Brit 93), so I don’t think the Spanish are going to worry too much about that area. And given the conversations I’m hearing Brits are still booking their trips to see the sun.
As for Brits selling houses – well prices are low now, but it may be a good time to sell as the euro is still strong against the pound… Let the Norwegians and Russians take advantage of lower prices.

But did no-one tip Nigel off? Brits do not read El Mundo. Maybe El Sur in English, or even El Pais in English…. but he should have kept to the Mail or Sun 😆

[Anonymous]

Farage is an upstart. He says he has a powerful German wife at home and he should keep his neurosis to himself.You don’t buy high and sell low. If you are comfortable in Spain and can survive you have less heating bills and lower food prices. A home is to live in – provided you are not in negative equity sit tight.!

[katy]

Well UKIP is around 20% in the polls now and is receiving donations from the City.

Cheaper heating bills in Spain tell it to the Marines 😆

[Anonymous]

Whats special about UKIP Katy ?UKIP’s agenda will do nothing good for property owners in Spain or Brits who want to join them. If we could revert to EEA (European Economic Area ) on better terms maybe that is an option but you don’t need UKIP to do it.UKIP is a pressure group -if we voted OUT then UKIP- period ! Farage admits it -he does not want a seat in UK parliament But people vote UKIP for a lot of reasons ie they are angry about Gay Marriage that all the main parties vote for ! Its a protest vote Or they are angry with present Government for the price of food in the shops but are more angry with Labour for mishandling our economy leaving a pile of debt.So they vote UKIP.UKIP is a logical nonesense anyway -If Scots vote for independence UK does’nt exist anymore anyway does it ! What do you really want Katy ! I worry about secession of Catalonia for Spain because I think the Spanish are a strong people and should stick together but apart from that when I look around Spain I think it a better place to live in – I like plenty of light – even in the colder parts of the North you get more light than most of UK – its a warmer climate except in the interior where you get more extremes. I like wine and despite increases in taxes its much cheaper than UK . I like sea bathing and in Spain and the islands you can do this for much more or very much more of the year. There is an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables. If you live near a big city there is a lot of cultural life.The buses are like coaches and its cheap to get around. On the whole the people are friendlier and happier for an outdoor climate for much of the year and enjoy themselves very simply much more easily than you can in cold grey England. Today we had a beautiful sunny day in Kent but the sea temperature is 10deg C .

[katy]

come on….tell me where in Spain you can swim most of the year 🙄 June to September only. fresh fruit and veg…sometimes but they continue to sell stuff until it’s ready to walk out of the shop. Cold is relative and in winter CH is still needed in Spain and energy unit costs are higher. If you like living there ok but your justification is flimsy, sounds like more tripe from sales agents.

When Farage says get your money out of Spain I would say he is spot on!

[Anonymous]

Katy loves anything negative !

[katy]

So negativity is pointing out the truth then..that you can’t swim for about 6 months of the year! that the people aren’t always friendly, good and bad like any country in the world… I think you don’t know the place very well and are in holiday mode with rose tinted specs 🙄

[Anonymous]

I work wherever I go katy and to be able to go to a beach and bathe every day is such a great plus. I pity and sympatise people who have spent ‘hundreds of thousands’ at the wrong time and such error can permanently sour your view of everything. But if you have not spent more than you can afford and you have bought somewhere to live who cares what it is worth ?. Indeed you cannot take it with you. So for heaven sake take off your dark glasses and just enjoy it !!! I long to be back but not until Nov 1st as I was there until 30th April. . In Uk apart from my day work at home I work in a restaurant in the evenings so I sleep well but miss the salt water -its so good for the skin and muscles and general health. But for the extended winter in UK would have been back in UK late March giving time for a week or two in June & September -if only the Spanish legislators were more sensitive to the needs of us Northerners and allowed us extra weeks No Residente when the need arises PS I am a UK state contribution paid pensioner 69yrs) !!!

[katy]

work wherever I go katy and to be able to go to a beach and bathe every day is such a great plus

Are you sure you don’t mean Florida or the caribbean 😆 Of course the weather is better than the UK but it’s not tropical. I lived there 15 years and never swam in the sea after September until May. You are still working at 69 😯

[Anonymous]

Yes Katy I do things that I enjoy – I hope you enjoy your life too ! It continues unusually cold in SE England – with continuous winds from the North that I have never known for so long .You are in a better place if you are in Costa del Sol. but in the final analysis its not about money if you are happy with the people around you.

[katy]

What planet are you on 😮 I live in the SE and it has been warm and sunny (21C) for at least 5 days. If I was 69 and felt like you do about Spain I would be out there permanently!

[DBMarcos99]

@katy wrote:

What planet are you on 😮 I live in the SE and it has been warm and sunny (21C) for at least 5 days. If I was 69 and felt like you do about Spain I would be out there permanently!

Sunny and nice maybe, but most of those days in London/the SE there has been a chill wind and generally 16-17 has been the daytime temperature, with a chilly temperature at night. But it does look promising, yes the temperature does now get above 20C in the early afternoon and if the minimum night temperature can increase from the current 7/8C there won’t be any complaints from this quarter! We need a bit of warmth after an incredibly cold Spring.

[angie]

Summer in the UK is great when it arrives which it has for now, lush, green, warm, and entertaining friends who are not worried about property prices right now, well, not in the South of England Friends of ours in Spain have to move out of their house and into their small casita because it’s too darned hot upstairs in the house, and air con costs them a fortune, then of course they return to UK during July/August as they can’t stand the heat 😉

Ah Blighty, it’s good right now 😛

[Anonymous]

Coastal areas have been very chilly(12-13C max most days recently) -this spring /early summerI have been over to France today and we had some good sun late and the wind eased. I feel you have a very sour view of Spain Katy -I am not even sure if you have property there. If not what is your purpose of posting please – to sour it for everybody else ?

[katy]

I don’t have a property there anymore, sold it thank god 😀 I think 15 years there entitles me to comment when someone is posting about swimming all year round and other untruths. It maybe too cold to swim in the sea all year round in the UK. but I can live with that 😆

purpose of posting here…to cut the bullshit from people like you

…and why are you singling me out on this thread ❓ remember what MG said

I always chuckle at the ‘people are friendlier and happier’
The same rules apply all over the world, small towns and villages = friendly folk, big cities = miserable sods.
Energy costs are high. I’m not trying to run Spain down but many of these tired old clichés are out of date.

There are also many others on here who don’t own a property 🙂

Anyway this thread is about Farage…vote UKIP, you know it makes sense 💡

[angie]

There are large numbers of disillusioned Tories who are going to vote UKIP, us included. So fed up with lying Tories, impotent Lib Dems, and crazy Labour, all of whom broke most of their election promises, detached themselves from the voters pdq, and just look after themselves. I’m not having a go at anyone on the Board, it’s just how we feel right now. Sorry if it offends people and no we can’t be swayed at present! 🙄

Farage wants to divorce us from Brussels, (bloody good job too), stop mass immigration (again bgj too), he’s a good talker and he makes a welcome change from the bickering other Party leaders, they need a shot up their posteriors, there, I’ve said it. 😯 Local Tory Councillor thought he walk it at recent local elections, did no electioneering door to door, lost by 20 votes including our 2, lol 😆

[Anonymous]

I think this thread topic is only relevant to this site in so far as the input is useful to property owners in Spain and intending ones. People who only want to post exclusively about UK and to post negatively about Spain are off topic and should not be posting.this stuff. It it is surely correct to make crticisms of the way the Spanish are doing things with THE POSITIVE PURPOSE OF TRYING TO IMPROVE THINGS! – Difficult that is but all we can do is to communicate what we think to people who have more influence in helping people who have a property investment in Spain and that will assist that country to get its act together ! . I am not posting further on this thread because of sour irrelevant comments by primarily one person!

[angie]

Ptr, my main concern and that of some others, is that there was so much mass mis-selling of Spanish property, hence the reason I post on here to warn newcomers who might be looking in. Why? Because it’s already happening again.

Now with SPI there still has to be counter arguments, if people still go ahead with their eyes wide open then good luck to them, it’s their decision, but I for one would hate it if just one person said, oh, in 2013 I bought a property because I read here that I must get in before it’s too late or similar, and now I regret it.

I can prove that 6 years ago even ‘experts’ were saying the market wasn’t as bad as people say it is, another ‘expert’ came on here briefly and said Spanish property prices would rise 10% per year from 2009, complete garbage which may well have cost people their equity, or most of it, many have been stung since then.

Now if people want to move to Spain for lifestyle and prepared for any eventuality and happy in the sun, that’s fine, if they don’t wish to hear of potential pitfalls that’s ok they don’t have to read topics and they can foe those of us who post what to you seems negative. We also have plenty of good reasons to like Spain which have been posted if you look back, I also know of people stuck in Spain, and also others who make a go of it and draw the positives, and others who plainly enjoy it.

Regulate the property industry in Spain, cut the bull, only sell legal title, cut transaction costs, speed the Courts up and Spain can improve it’s tarnished image. There, said it again, phew, rant over 😡 😛

[Anonymous]

Your post is quite positive Angie and fair comment.Indeed caveat emptor ! But Katy says my writing about lifestyle things like sea bathing are ‘untrue’ . How can one take seriously anyone who calls you in effect a liar for things you have done and seen with your own eyes WHO HAS NOT SET FOOT THERE FOR HOW LONG ?What is the point ! Indeed the Canaries had a good winter.Well lets draw the curtain on this.

[angie]

Look Ptr, many people who post on here including me have strong views, we do argue sometimes quite vehemently about each other’s point of views, I’ve been called all sorts of things including: liar, agent, bitter, mad, what’s my agenda too, and worse I’m sure, some probably hate me for my views, however if you take the cautions I try to make people aware of, as others also do, in many ways that can only help long term. We would really be pleased, (hard to believe) if Spain really could clean it’s act up, it has enormous problems if it doesn’t and enormous potential if it does.

Now, regarding katy, she absolutely knows her stuff about Spain, has helped others with advice for many years, shared same bad experiences with other groups as well as intransigence and shilly-shallying from bureaucracy, had battles and come out winning as we did too, speaks it as it is, like me, black and white, and some of us upset those who make their living or have personal interests. Logan is another one who speaks it as it is, others have come and gone or pop in occasionally.

If I was a new buyer going to Spain and knew little of the hazards, I’d seek advice from katy, logan, mg, gary, dartboy, itsme, sorry if I’ve missed anyone unmissable, fuengi as he writes a blog as an agent, and now Chris etc even a few agents are more transparent now than they were 😛

Curtain or line now drawn from my position, but will expect the odd battle or two sometime from some, Politics! 😉

[Author]

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