Lorca Resorts

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    • #55711
      Melosine
      Participant

      Because not only has this has been reported on previously but compared to problems mentioned with some other ‘golfing’ urbanisations in Spain in the past thought it worthy of giving an update.

      Today a party of local residents were invited to inspect Lorca resorts Golf and Spa which is being built in our area and because we all own homes we know now what to ask about..expect we did forget about community or green fees !!!

      Must admit I am not usually impressed by the golf urbanistions but I am by this one.
      Perhaps Katy would like to take a trip to Lorca next year, presuming it is playable, and give her opinion of the course. It’s only little further than Desert Springs Katy.
      Good points.
      The 2 courses, an 18 and 9 hole, are very well designed and are in a fantastic setting surrounded by 1,000’s upon 1,000’s of undulating metres of green belt land.
      All greens ready for use and fairways prepared.
      The courses and first building phase of 5 blocks, fronted by 3 swimming pools, are expected to be completed and legalised ❓ ❓ by this December.
      Maximum 22 apartments in each block. Each block having two lifts.
      Show apartments with above average fixtures and fittings.
      Integral heating/aircon.
      All apartments have and will always retain, views. The lower ones of the pools, parts of the course and mountains and those higher up of Lorca as well.
      Because of the undulating land when phase 2 begins next year, the building of the club house and hotel, will not be visible from the apartments unless one expressly visits the site.
      A honest salesperson who said that the whole complex with more facilites, supermarket etc , will take at least another 10 years to complete as per the scale model and only then IF the economic situation permits.
      Permission to use irrigation water for 10 years thereafter water will be recycled from residents usage via the desan plant that is now being installed.
      Golf course and facilities (when completed) will be available to non residents.

      Not so good points.

      2 bed ground floor apartments we saw were small. About 78 sq m including a large terrace. Fine for holiday use but for residential ???????????
      Asking price high. 2 bed flats 270,000+ and 2 bed penthouses 350,000 +
      Exterior painted in the dark terracotta colour which makes them appear dark in the inner courtyards and ground floor flats would need the lights on permenantly in the both the kitchen and 2nd bedroom.
      Price for a plot size of 1,200 sq.m on which to build a detached property would cost iro 800,000 + cost of build.. think only lottery winners or Spanish mayors could afford these.

      Must admit if I were looking to buy on such a resort I could well be tempted by what I saw today. As for the asking prices. Well although people, mostly Spanish apparently, have bought just how many have been sold remains unanswered so it’s possible that there could be some bargains to be had.

      Having read this through it does sound like sales schpill and I apologise for that because I am in no way involved, don’t even play golf anymore, just thought it maybe of interest to golfers.

    • #99335
      petej
      Participant

      @Melosine wrote:

      Not so good points.

      2 bed ground floor apartments we saw were small. About 78 sq m including a large terrace. Fine for holiday use but for residential ???????????
      Asking price high. 2 bed flats 270,000+ and 2 bed penthouses 350,000 +
      Exterior painted in the dark terracotta colour which makes them appear dark in the inner courtyards and ground floor flats would need the lights on permenantly in the both the kitchen and 2nd bedroom.
      Price for a plot size of 1,200 sq.m on which to build a detached property would cost iro 800,000 + cost of build.. think only lottery winners or Spanish mayors could afford these.

      Must admit if I were looking to buy on such a resort I could well be tempted by what I saw today. As for the asking prices. Well although people, mostly Spanish apparently, have bought just how many have been sold remains unanswered so it’s possible that there could be some bargains to be had.

      Having read this through it does sound like sales schpill and I apologise for that because I am in no way involved, don’t even play golf anymore, just thought it maybe of interest to golfers.

      Dont know much about the place and not a golfer but sounds like silly money in this day and age?

    • #99337
      katy
      Blocked

      They are having a larf aren’t they. Sounds like the same old projects they have been churning out for years. Remember Polaris World. Those prices beggar belief for a development so far inland. I also doubt that spanish are buying into it. I am suprised that the junta is allowing yet another project in a water starved area. All they need now is a B list celeb to front the sales and a few rumours of footballers etc. buying there 😆

      I won’t be playing there, no plans to go back to Spain in the near future…not even for a week 😀

    • #99340
      Melosine
      Participant

      Agree the prices talked are silly money pro rata but the actual golf course is as different from a Polaris World concept as chalk is to cheese and that was what I was attempting to get across.
      In a perfect world I would have preferred it to be just a golf course and club house but then nothing and none of us are perfect.

      Wouldn’t call barely 10 mins from the coast actually that far inland Katy. Not one hundred pc sure but believe we were told one could see the Aguilas from the penthouses. Certainly half a mile further on one can see the sea just from the driving on the road.

    • #99341
      katy
      Blocked

      Obviously I can’t comment on the golf course but we have been disillusioned by all the courses that have been opened with the sole reason to sell property. All the rest of the project is just the same as all the marketing from every other golf development. We weren’t fond of Desert Springs either.

      These places never attract golfers they wan’t a bit of life too and also the chance to play a different golf course every day.

    • #99342
      Melosine
      Participant

      @katy wrote:

      Obviously I can’t comment on the golf course but we have been disillusioned by all the courses that have been opened with the sole reason to sell property. All the rest of the project is just the same as all the marketing from every other golf development. We weren’t fond of Desert Springs either.

      These places never attract golfers they wan’t a bit of life too and also the chance to play a different golf course every day.

      Agree Katy all the ‘golf courses’ we have seen here appear to us to be nothing more than overly large putting greens overlooked by monstrosities of buildings . Flat and boring. Why people from UK would want to play on then beggars belief so I understand your desire to only play on them one time.

      Because this one is on undulating land one can only see a couple of greens from the road, in fact we were amazed to see all 27 greens in situ, I thought you might find this course very pleasing to you. It is very much in the British style, differing only by the 5 small apartment blocks pushed to the side. All future building will be hidden behind the hills.
      As to where it is situated once again a great deal of thought has gone into it. It is midway between the town of Lorca and Aguilas. Barely 10 mins in either direction.
      Plus Lorca, which is about 5 times the size of Guildford , is an an amazing town to visit. The ancient and modern being fused in almost perfect harmony.
      Apparently there is to be a shuttle bus between the two towns from whose train stations one can get to almost any city in Spain. So one won’t even need a car it would appear.

      A few years down the line I think it might be a place worthy of consideration, dependent upon a more reasonable price structure of course, for those who desire this style of life.

      Who knows Katy even you might be tempted to play there….one day 😉

    • #99344
      katy
      Blocked

      I would prefer to see it when it is finished. All these projects set off well but specifications are quickly changed. Remember the facilities that Polaris was going to have 🙂 I would think if the landscape can hide 4 storey buildings then it is going to be very steep 😉

    • #99345
      Melosine
      Participant

      Have no idea,Katy, how many storeys the hotel and club house will be but one certainly cannot see the apartments from the selected site.
      As I stated only these are in the pipeline for building. All other facilites ,supermarket, spa and health club to mention but two will not be built until circumstances permit. Possibly 10/15 years hence.
      At least they are trying to give an honest appraisal of the situation which is better than promising the earth and delivering sweet FA.

    • #99346
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Melosine, it seems you too were taken in by what was presented to you. 🙂 It is sooo typical of what thousands have been tempted by AND signed up to…and well, you know the story. 🙁 NOTHING would make ME believe any sales pitch coming out of Spain ever again, even if I saw it with my own eyes, especially the bit about nothing else being built around it!! However, only time will tell and maybe you can report at a later date that the developers lived up to their promises. It’s gotta happen one day, hasn’t it?

    • #99349
      katy
      Blocked

      I would never buy anything not fully completed, even in the UK. but especially in Spain. Even when they do get finished there are unpleasant suprises, an extra block pushed infront of yours, the sun may never be on the terrace. One friend bought in La Reserva….their large terrace has a pylon infront.

      We all fall for slick presentation now and then. We bought off-plan in Kingston on Thames as a bolthole. The development did fulfill all its promises but we found out that upmarket bars, restaurants by the river also attracted a lot of noise…we hadn’t thought that one through :mrgreen:

      Every week I read the Sunday Times property section and every time I am drawn to the same 2 ads’ one in St Kitts and one in Barbados, both sound great. Each week I have to give myself a talking to. 😳

    • #99350
      katy
      Blocked

      Another two examples of the strength of marketing a dream:

      Friends came out to Spain looking for a holiday home. They had a budget of 18 million pesetas (lots of apartments at that price then). They went around with an agent, saw a few and were then taken to look at La Reserva. Not even a block of concrete had been laid. They called in with the brochures, full of the “dream” ooooh we can choose our own tiles and kitchen units 🙄 Within a few hours they had put down a deposit. They went over their budget by at least 10 million pesetas. Not only did they have to wait 2 years to holiday in it (when they could have bought something visible within a month…they got the pylon!

      Another friend decided to move full-time to Spain. One afternoon they were about to buy a nice re-sale villa close to Las Brisas. Next morning they reserved a plot on the road to ístan. Looked wonderful up there….cos nothing had been built. It was going to have a exclusive country club atmosphere, 5* hotel….get the drift 😆 3 years later they got their villa, totally lacking in privacy, about 20 steps to the front door. For the next 3 years they lived on a building site whilst apartments were being built, partially obstructing their view. They did sound wonderful in the brochure :mrgreen:

    • #99353
      Anonymous
      Participant

      There are lots of instances like those Katy. Unfortunately, even if just one real gem came up, I’d miss it cos I couldn’t believe it.

    • #99359
      Melosine
      Participant

      Appreciate ladies that people can be unknowingly co-erced into seeing things through rose coloured gafas and because of that I have reported what I saw. Not what I heard.
      So personally would never recommend anyone buy anything until completed and even then it’s not neccessarily problems free.
      To be honest with you all we went soley to see the greens because our bermuda grass isn’t as good as theirs.

      When I said nothing could be built in front of these particular apartments, which are built on an slight incline, was because approx 10 metres in the front of all the 5 blocks are a long line of swimming pools which are already installed. The other-side of which is at the edge of and near to one of the greens on the golf course. So unless they demolish what has already been installed then nothing can be built infront of them.
      Hopefully there will be sufficient planting between the course and pools otherwise privacy could become an issue. Not to mention inept golfers aiming for the pools!!

      Of the sales pitch that all future builds will have front line views I have made no comment because none have been built.

      Because where they state the next facilities are to be built , in a dip behind a big hill that has lots of forestation between it and the apartments, I can well believe that building work won’t be noticable. But if neccessary I will stand corrected.

      We are next invited, in December, when those who have already bought have moved in. Be interesting to see how many flats are occupied. And of what nationality.

      Their plan of inviting local residents is that, if ever we so desired, they would be prepared to purchase our properties in exchange for one of theirs.
      In theory sounds great but in practice we would lose heavily particularly at the prices they are quoting at the moment. So reserve judgement on that.

      Anyway will report further on what I SEE not hear . Be imho good or bad.

    • #99360
      Anonymous
      Participant

      Will be interesting to see what you think of the development later Melosine. Always a good move on the developers part to keep the locals onside too.

    • #99361
      Melosine
      Participant

      In this present financial climate, most definately,Claire.
      Future visits I will take photo’s.
      Never know might one resident ( or more) might be captured on camera.

    • #99362
      Anonymous
      Participant

      😆

      I hope it is as good as it sounds. It would be the start of confidence building.

    • #99363
      katy
      Blocked

      Yes, keep us informed 🙂

    • #99377
      Melosine
      Participant

      Sorry Mark, was undecided whether or not to put it in this thread.

    • #99416
      Anonymous
      Participant

      The whole lot is mired in controversy & litigation. Nothing can be built around what the developer owns as it is protected land ,as was the land that it is being built on! The re-classification of the land to ‘urbanisable’ is the subject of legal action with the guardia saying that they have categorical proof of where the money came from to pay off for the re-classification. Seprona is involved ,as well as a few others, as the original land was classified as protected as a nesting site for protected eagles amongst other things . The original group was bought out a couple of years ago , except this site, which was left with Trinitario Casanova the owner , as it was the subject of legal action & they didn’t want anything to do with it ! He has already faced court action with the prosecutor calling for a 7 year prison term for IVA fraud , which is still ongoing.
      I know a couple of estate agents that are regularly asked to take on for sale this resort & will have nothing to do with it. One said to me a few weks ago that not a day passes that he doesn’t have them on the phone or e- mailing re : selling them.
      As he said to me , “they are living in a dream world 1,3million for a villa !!! I can build them a 3000m2 mansion for that , all legal, state of the art & 700k change ! ” ” & that’s without all the ongoing legal ramifications which will be about for donkeys years .”
      You’d have to be brave to buy there.
      What I want to know is how they managed to obtain irrigation water for 10 years when I, & my Spanish neighbours ,along with all the other members of the comunidad de regantes , are subject to restrictions on amount & usage . ( Well I do know actually, but proving it’s another thing ! )

    • #99419
      Melosine
      Participant

      Interesting Gus. Don’t know about the eagles but do know about the protected turtles.
      They certainly are living in a dream world with their price structure . Particularly so because we think the design of the villas, as per plan, are horrendous.
      Must admit in this immediate locale there are no restrictions on usage of our irrigation water. Mind you we did have to pay a heafty price to join the group.
      It was mentioned they had purchased another well (now own 3) which might have something to do with the dam they built at the top of Old Lorca Road. Must inquire.
      Anyway consensus of opinion from all who went ,Spanish and English, is don’t think about buying until everything is completed ,probably not in our time, but in the meanwhile enjoy a round of golf .

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