Semi retiring to Spain

honeyavalon2 · #1 (**permalink**) 5th July 2012, 06:11 PM

My husband and I are considering moving to Spain, but know nothing about it.
We are both semi retired and have a sale going through on our house. Does anyone have any advice as to wether or not to rent or buy? We would be looking for a 2 bed property and if it was rented have no idea of the costs per month etc or even where we would go to rent from a reputable company.

Does anyone have any advice please.

xabiachica · #2 (**permalink**) 5th July 2012, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by honeyavalon2

My husband and I are considering moving to Spain, but know nothing about it.
We are both semi retired and have a sale going through on our house. Does anyone have any advice as to wether or not to rent or buy? We would be looking for a 2 bed property and if it was rented have no idea of the costs per month etc or even where we would go to rent from a reputable company.

Does anyone have any advice please.

I certainly wouldn't buy yet..... for sure rent for a good while at first until you know exactly where you want to be

if you have a good read of recent threads & the sticky threads above that should answer a fair ew of your queries..... then come back & ask as many questions as you like

mrypg9 · #3 (**permalink**) 5th July 2012, 06:23 PM

No, don't buy until you are sure you have found THE right place to settle.
You say you are 'semi-retired'.....if it is essential that you have regular work -or any work - that could be a very big problem...

honeyavalon2 · #4 (**permalink**) 5th July 2012, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by honeyavalon2

My husband and I are considering moving to Spain, but know nothing about it.
We are both semi retired and have a sale going through on our house. Does anyone have any advice as to wether or not to rent or buy? We would be looking for a 2 bed property and if it was rented have no idea of the costs per month etc or even where we would go to rent from a reputable company.

Does anyone have any advice please.

We were thinking of the Murcia area, also what are sticky threads please

xabiachica · #5 (**permalink**) 5th July 2012, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by honeyavalon2

We were thinking of the Murcia area, also what are sticky threads please

if you are on the main Spain page, when you see the list of discussion 'threads' you might notice that some of them are 'stuck' at the top

we 'stick' them there when they have important info in them & we don't want to lose them

hence the name 'sticky threads'

Alcalaina · #6 (**permalink**) 6th July 2012, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by honeyavalon2

My husband and I are considering moving to Spain, but know nothing about it.

Welcome to the forum!

Just curious, why are you considering moving to a foreign country you know nothing about? Do you have friends here already? Or are you just fed up with the UK?

Hepa · #7 (**permalink**) 6th July 2012, 10:26 AM

Rent at first, then if you do not like where you are you can give notice and move elsewhere.

We now live on a completely different island 200 miles west of our initial destination.

shoemanpete · #8 (**permalink**) 11th July 2012, 07:33 AM

Many people ask the same question and the answer is as always.......rent rent rent! So much flexibility and peace of mind that if it doesn't work out, you just move. Probably too late for you now, but one shouldn't sell up in the UK. Rent it out. You never know what's round the corner and property in UK will always go up whereas in Spain ??? Interest rates in UK lousy, but rental income pays for Spain rental. Now that we get nearly 1.25 to £ our rental income is now more than we pay here.

Good luck.

Quote:

Originally Posted by honeyavalon2

My husband and I are considering moving to Spain, but know nothing about it.
We are both semi retired and have a sale going through on our house. Does anyone have any advice as to wether or not to rent or buy? We would be looking for a 2 bed property and if it was rented have no idea of the costs per month etc or even where we would go to rent from a reputable company.

Does anyone have any advice please.

Leper · #9 (**permalink**) 16th July 2012, 06:42 AM

1. Reputable company from which to rent:- There are some. All of them will present a contract, take a deposit and will come down fearlessly on the accommodation owner's side. Why get involved in a long term contract? Spain has become a renters market and I would suggest spending around 4 - 8 weeks periods in different locations while you are looking around for a place in which to stay longer.

2. Prices are on the drop bigtime re house/apartment/duplex. Unless you fall in love with some place this is not the time to purchase. Employ a solicitor to represent you only.

3. Sorry for stating the obvious:- Spain is a large country with varying temperatures. If it is sun you are after then the "bottom" half should be targeted. Then you have got to decide whether it is coastal or inland you want.

baldilocks · #10 (**permalink**) 16th July 2012, 08:01 AM

Unfortunately, it's a 'horses for courses' situation. To be really successful in your relocation plans, you need to do a lot of research. It is no use hoping that you can use the research of others because each of us has differing needs and expectations.

You need first to list what you want and the type of location:

Coastal (beaches, weather, scaenery, environment, etc)
Inland (towns, villages, countryside, scenery, environment, etc.)
Climate (varies greatly depending on longitude, latitude and altititude - can be well below freezing or over 40-45°)
Accommodation (House [large, medium, small - bear in mind the hoards of visitors!], flat [how many BR and BA, with/without lift], Cortijo [may not have electricity/water - both expensive to lay on] within urbanisation or independent, pool or not)

Once you have your list of desires/needs, suss out the areas/places that are likely to meet your criteria then come and visit. Bear in mind that the nice little coastal village/small town you look at in the summer with a nice thriving centre may be absolutely deserted and half closed up in the winter and vice versa.

Your visit - first off look at the location/area - if you don't like that, don't look for somewhere to live there (having said that, my first sight of this village was not favourable!). Don't just look at the centre - wander into the back streets, look at the surrounding area - are there urbanisations (are they apparently fully occupied or mostly empty and falling into disrepair (inviting homeless or undesirables). You will find estate agents everywhere. Have a look at what they have on offer, the prices, etc. Allow yourselves to be taken (use their petrol!) to view some of the properties (Don't be too shocked at some of them - they may be ruins) it will give you some idea of what you might like to have and some idea of what you definitely don't want. Make lists of what you find and where you find it, the pluses and minuses, the possibles and probables. Then go back to UK, sit down and review all the info you have gathered.

Once you are more firm in your mind about what and where, come out on a serious house-buying visit. There are lots of places on offer. Be critical, e.g. if the light switches are connected to bell wire, the chances are that the whole place will need rewiring, etc.

As you may have gathered, I am not a proponent of renting first, it wastes time and can, so often, cloud your vision as well as delay your action. It costs money to pay out rent while you have your furniture and other goods in storage. Bear in mind that property prices are cheapish at the moment and with a bit of bargaining you can get some very good deals, why put off the day you buy until the best places have gone nd prices are starting to rise?