not too cold, not too hot... any advice

Hi,

I'm looking to buy a small villa somewhere in spain, and after everything i've read on this forum, the truth is that it IS cold in winter, but also that it can also be very hot - I'm in Seville at the mo, and June-Sept all inclusive are just punishing. Even the locals here admit summer heat is just too much.

I'm looking for recommendations for areas/towns that are not too cold in winter, while not crazy hot in summer / general advice eg. is it always the case that inland is colder in winter, or do you know exceptions to the rule ?

I don't need to work (well, I work from home over the internet), can speak a bit of spanish, so I don't need to choose areas where I can get work/I don't need an expat community to 'survive'. (Although it's always useful :-).

I just want my own 4 walls in an area that is quiet without too many weather extremes - rural is fine too.

Jon.

We went once to Seville in August and nearly died.  I have never experienced heat quite like it.  It was awful.  We were glad to get back to the coast where the heat actually felt incredibly bearable.

I think with villas they always feel colder than say an apartment or a reasonable townhouse, only because it is much more difficult to effectively heat a villa.

Even though I do moan about the cold in winter (particularly January) it's normally indoors that's the problem.  It's normally better outside.  The coastal areas do provide a decent balance, and the freezing cold (well, not quite freezing) and searing heat don't last too long.

Only having lived on CDS and in the Manilva area particularly I can't really compare with anywhere else but it's definitely not that bad here.

Now, just going to warm myself up by the fire a little

Justin

It's true.. why visit Seville in the summer - instead  just put the oven on 300c and stick your head in it for 10 hours, and save yourself the airfare ? Seriously, it's mad here.

I take your point about the coasts.. thanks.. and keep warm!

The heat never bothers me - you can always find shade, have a swim, put the A/C on etc.  It's the winter that's not good in Spain.  But as has been said, invariably it's OK when you're out during the day - it's the evenings and nights that's the problem.  Which I reckon is largely due to the Spanish construction methods, poor insulation and lack of design to deal with the issue.

If I were you I would look for a better constructed property where you don't have large open areas that are impossible to heat with better insulation and doors that fit etc.  I'm told that there are houses being built in a few places to Scandanavian design - but I haven't seen any myself. 

Justin is right Manilva is very temperate however we can be in Marbella and you can look down towards Manilva and the weather can be very cloudy most  Weather  fronts seem to come over from Gibraltar through Sotogrande and hang around a bit ,also the vegatation is very green from Manilva onwards so they must get more rain I guess.

I  have noticed  the Sierra Blanca mountains give Marbella a Microclimate effect and the clouds just seem to be held back somewhat behind particulary LA Concha

I can honestly say I have never felt cold in Marbella but we have a very well constructed apartment which faces south thus gets maximum sun all year round and sea breezes in the Hot summer months

Here is a picture of La Concha

Regards Rod

Come to Mazarron Country Club on the Costa Calida Jon.... our climate is perfect with mild wintersand mid to high 30's through July and August we get more sunshine than any other part of Spain.... approx 321 days a year in fact.

Barry

This message was last edited by Fighter2 on 22/11/2011.

If mainland Spain is not good try the Islands

Here in the Canaries it is pleasant nearly all the time, OK we do get rain but no frost or snow.

C

Acer - good point - open plan houses look great.. but heating would be a nightmare. I might have to budget for improving the heat efficiency.

Rod/Justin - it looks great down there - thanks for the tips.  La Concha looks amazing - what a pic.

Barry - I know a bit of the Costa Calida (around Mar Menor), but I haven't looked further south.. thanks for the tip off.

Comanche - Canaries looks interesting - a really balanced climate.. great suggestion.

Thanks all for replying - I can do a bit of homework now.

It's been an absolutely glorious day down here on the coast today.  I was even breaking out into a bit of a sweat in the sun earlier

Justin

I don't give advice as to where to live as that's a personal preference.  What suits one person might be anothers version of hell on earth.

Two bits of advice when searching for a home is take a compass and check what way the windows are facing.  You need winter sun to heat up the house during the day.  I was lucky and my house faces East, I also have windows in the side so as the sun moves it heats up the house.

Look at the windows, how deep are the windowsills.  That should be an indication on how well the house is insulated.  Mine are miniscule so all that lovely heat goes as soon as the sun goes down.

That's a good call about making sure the house is facing the right direction.  It also pays to plan ahead with solar heating panels - they're improving all the time and more effective in Spain and work more efficiently on your roof if it faces south.

Great tips.. thanks Acer and semijubilada.  There's obviously more to this than just location in spain, and lots that can be done wherever the house is.

Where I live now satisfies all those considerations plus the insulation qualities of my Ático apartment, with 100 sq metres of terrace with sea and mountain views.

johnzx - all great points.   Lots of votes being cast for the CDS so far...!!

I have a question on your insulation... I wouldn't mind living in an apartment, but the biggest thing for me is sound insulation.. I have lived in a few different apartments in spain, and I have never found one that I couldn't hear the neighbours.  They never seem to be built with accoustic insulation... just breeze blocks on top of each other with air between them.

I think some people can tolerate this more than others......is your place well sound insulated.. ?  This is why I've always leaned towards having my own 4 walls even if that means being more remote (ie villa on cheaper land).

Are any flats in spain well specc'd for sound insulation ?

That's a cracking story - shinning up the crane to check on the build progress..good on ya ..

Well that's reassuring - some flats in spain are well built - I guess it varies between each build/developer/architect, and by cost too.

Do you mind telling me which town you are in (maybe private message me if you don't want it public).  I'd like to build up a list of recommended towns down there and take a look around.

Cheers,

Jon.

Royal Golf in Riviera on the Costa Del Sol is very well built the walls are so solid you cannot drive a normal nail in you have to drill then use a screw to hang the pictures etc.

I was fascinated watchng it been built the amount of steel and concrete was phonomenal we have had no damp and no cracks in the six years we have owned it some Spanish builds leak like a sieve our Management company tells me ,look at the design of a place before you buy and think about the shared walls.

Also rent or buy in a non Spanish area as the Spaniards are very noisy I have found out by reading some posts also find a smaller community as some can run into the hundreds of apartments.

Rod

Rod.

The construction of Spanish buildings is such that in almost all cases you cannot drive a nail into the wall, to do so would result in a hole as the ‘brick’ (which is of tile like construction) would fracture, and the plaster coat is usually very thin.

The CDS is an earthquake zone, that is why all the construction is steel and reinforced concrete.  Unfortunately that tends to make the transfer of noise a problem.

My neighbours are mostly Spanish and, as I said,  I have no noise problems.

My experience is different Johnzx, I've found the Spanish are very noisy and their different lifestyle can also be an issue.  We used to own a place in a small block which was built in a tiered style up the side of a slope.  But the flat above flat's terrace was over our bedroom and regularly sometime after midnight they would return from their frolics and have a drink on their terrace, scrawping their chairs across our ceiling in the process. 

After a while I had a chat with them and fitted some cushioning material to the bottom of the chair legs, made little difference.  We also had to put up their washing machine overflowing a couple of times.  But the biggest problem is the way they let their dogs bark incessantly - they don't seem to hear it.  Lovely people but you need to be very selective where you choose, particularly if you're a light sleeper !!!

That all sounds a bit negative, whereas we really enjoyed living in a Spanish community.  But you live and learn and if we ever owned a flat again it would be on the top floor !!!

I did say I live in an Atico (top floor Penthouse)  I choose not to buy on a lower floor.

I have put pads on all my furnature to prevent noise for my neighbours and we have quite a lot of the floor covered in carpets.

We don't have any dogs in the block