Justin meets...

Listen to Justin's Interviews (Podcasts)

We bring you regular interviews with leading figures in the real estate business in Spain.  We pick their brains and and find out what they think about issues ranging from the state of the market to the colour of their underwear (well, maybe not quite that far!).

Scroll down to see who we've interviewed so far....

If you're wondering what in the world a "podcast" is then lets ask wikipedia for a definition:

"Podcasting is the method of distributing multimedia files, such as audio or video programs, over the Internet using syndication feeds, for playback on mobile devices and personal computers."

You can listen to the interviews right here, right now...for free!  Some of the later podcasts are only available in the members area.  You must be a registered member of Eye on Spain to listen to those.  The recent podcasts are available to listen to on this page.

Interviews in the "Justin meets..." series

18 March 2007 - Justin meets Maria Luisa de Castro

Recently, Justin met up with Maria de Castro to talk about some of the legal aspects around buying a property in Spain.

Maria has been a regular and very popular contributor to Eye on Spain for the past two years and her insight and guidance has helped many members out of difficult situations.

In the interview we also had her brother Nacho, also a lawyer, who was giving his own take on certain matter.  Nacho is very strong on administrative law so his contributions in the interview give a real insight into what he deals with in the courts all the time.

At some point too we were joined by Nacho's dog and you'll probably be able to hear him in the background now and then!

Some of the topics covered In this interview are:

• About Maria
• How to find a good lawyer
• Does a lawyer's location matter?
• Is it safe to buy in Spain today?
• Illegal property, what should someone do?
• The truth about bank guarantees
• The licence of first occupation and what you need to know
• How to change your lawyers and who to report them to if unhappy
• Spanish mortgages and bank reposessions
• And lots more....

 This is a 45 minute interview but anyone buying or thinking of buying a property in Spain should listen to.  There is some great advice here.

Click the play button below to listen to the interview now:

Or, right-click here to download the mp3 file

Contact Maria de Castro

Calle Ancha 30, 2º
E-11201 Algeciras
Tel.: +34 956 657 003
Fax: +34 956 664 643
Mobile: +34 652 195 554
email: mldecastro@costaluzlawyers.es
www.costaluzlawyers.es

12 October 2007 - Justin meets Mark Wilkins

This week Justin met up with Mark Wilkins of The Rights Group to talk about the Spanish property market but particularly about completing on a Spanish property.

The Rights Group (“TRG”) was established to assist clients, who have a limited amount of experience of Spain, to short circuit the process of deciding with whom to work. Through their network of contacts they can help you to determine who is best to represent your interests in Spain. 

This is a great interview with Mark.  He gives some excellent advice to those completing on their properties in Spain.  Some of the items discussed are:

• The current market
• The safest place to buy in Spain
• Over-priced properties
• Is it a good time to buy in Spain?
• What to do if you can't complete on your property
• Try before you buy
• Advice on buying safely
• Points to consider on completion
• Don't leave the __________ until the last minute
• The notary
• The importance of the habitation licence and utilities
• The 10 year guarantee and what it means to you

And lots more.

Click the play button below to listen to the interview now:

Contact The Rights Group:

Spain:  +34 600 343 917
Email:  mark@therightsgroup.com
Web: www.therightsgroup.com

07 June 2007 - Justin meets Darragh MacAnthony

Justin recently met up with Darragh MacAnthony, Chairman of MRI Overseas Property.  Darragh has built up one of the leading companies in overseas real estate employing over 1,100 staff in 48 offices worldwide.  And he is only 31 years old!

As if that wasn't enough Darragh recently bought Peterborough football club and is enjoying his time as the Chairman of the club.

When Justin met up with Darragh some of the the questions he asked were: 

• How did he set up and build his business?
• Was he crazy to invest money in a new TV station? 
• What is the long term plan for MRI?
• Where's hot to invest at the moment?
• Has the negative publicity of the Spanish property market affected his business?
• and so much more.....

This is a really interesting intreview giving a rare insight into Darragh and his companies.  It's just over 30 minutes long and well worth listening to for anyone with any interest in overseas property. 

Log in to listen to the interview now.

Or, if you're not a member yet then click here to register first and then log in.

29 May 2007 - Justin meets Inez Rix

Interview is with Inez Rix of Direct Auctions in Spain.  Inez has spent the last week with the ITV crew from the Tonight with Trever McDonald program as they interviewed her and filmed one of her unique Spanish property auctions.

Today we bring you this exclusive interview with Inez where we discuss various aspects to do with the following:

• What were the ITV crew up to in Spain last week?
• What's the truth about the current state of the property market in Spain?
• What sells what doesn't
• Property pricing discrepanices and lack of benchmarking
• The Marbella situation and unlicenced developments
• Working, living and lifestyle in Spain
• Inez's top purchase tips
• and so much more.....

I really enjoyed interviewing Inez.  I like here "tell it like it is" attitude and her genuine honesty.

Just a couple of things, the whole interview is 61 minutes long (ouch) but it's well worth listening too.  Lot's of great discussions and insights. Secondly, this was a rather unplanned interview, no notes or preparation, so it's more like two people having a chat!

Inez will be appearing on the "Tonight with Trevor McDonald" program on ITV on Friday 1 June 2007.  Don't miss it!

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Or, if you're not a member yet then click here to register first and then log in.

14 March 2007 - Justin meets Patrick Robinson

Interview with Patrick Robinson, mortgage consultant for Marbella Mortgages in Spain....and yes, that is a real picture of him, he was very scary to interview!  Not eveyone is a shark here you know ;)

Most of us probably don't want to spend too much time thinking about the mortgage that is actually going to pay for our dream home in Spain, but it's such an important consideration to make.

That's why we dragged in Patrick to ask him everything you need to know about Spanish mortgages. 

In the interview Patrick explains what criteria you need to meet to get your mortgage approved, the different types of mortgage products, interest only options, non-status options and loads more.

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Or, if you're not a member yet then click here to register first and then log in.

24 October 2006 - Justin meets Mike Knivett

Interview with Mike Knivett, MD of Sunseeker Homes, one of the top agents for Polaris World property sales.

You cannot possibly have missed all the publicity on the TV and in magazines promoting Polaris World resorts and today we take the excellent opportunity of interveiwing one of their top agents to find out what it´s really all about.  We ask Mike all the questions you´ve probably ever had about buying a Polaris World property. 

If you have any interest in Polaris World or Murcia then this is a must-listen to interview.  I have to say I was very impressed with Mike´s honesty and thoughts on the whole Polaris World concept as I myself have always had my own doubts.  Have I been converted?

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Contact Sunseeker Homes:

UK Freephone: 0800 082 0099
Spain Tel.: 0034 952 838 693
Email: info@polarisworldspain.com
Website: www.polarisworldspain.com

08 October 2006 - Justin meets Chris McCarthy

We kick off our podcast series today with an exclusive interview with Chris McCarthy, Managing Director of Viva Estates.

Viva Estates is one of the largest, if not THE largest, real estate company on the Costa del Sol.

Chris and his company recently severely rocked the real estate market here by announcing that they were reducing their resale commissions to an amazing 2%...down from 7.5%!

We therefore thought it would be a good time to sit down with Chris and ask him not just about how he sees the property market in Costa del Sol and the rest of Spain, but also his thoughts on living and working here.

This is an exclusive opportunity to jump inside Chris's brain and understand the market from one of the top insiders!  I managed to corner him for over 40 minutes... 

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Contact Viva Estates:

FREEPHONE from the UK: 0800 298 9594
Call from elsewhere: (+34) 952 899 190
Llamadas en Castellano: (+34) 952 059 707
Email: info@vivaestates.com
Web: www.vivaestates.com