18 Feb 2024 7:26 AM:
Hi. First of all, a bit of history, I bought my first property in Spain in 2001, in Ronda (Malaga). Having discovered Andalucia the year before, my then wife and I thoroughly researched the area around Ronda and viewed lots of properties. The one we bought had literally come onto the market the day we viewed it. We were smitten and within half an hour had agreed to buy the apartment.
We had no regrets. In fact, two years later, J and I bought a house around the corner for me to do up. I was about to retire early from my career, aged 55, so was still young enough to do most of the work myself. These two properties are/were in the Barrio San Francisco, to the south of the town.
Fast forward to 2005 and I was divorced and got the two above-mentioned properties as part of the settlement. With my new lady, M, we bought a do-er upper in the centre of Ronda, in Barrio Peñas, which I was able to work on once I'd retired.
In the intervening years I sold the house in Barrio San Francisco to fund another project.
My next purchase was in 2011 when I bought a chalet in the campo outside Ronda with my new wife, R. We still live there 13 years on. We are both residents of Spain and NOT subject to the 90 day rule.
By 2019 I had also sold the apartment and, in 2020, used some of the money to buy an old house in Montejaque, a small village not far from Ronda. Through the pandemic and lockdowns, I reconfigured this house and brought it back up to scratch. It's now up for sale.
As you can sense, I have no regrets at all about buying property here. I've not had a bad experience yet.
As for the costs, I don't recognise the figures quoted by others. They seem very inflated. Here in Andalucia the associated costs connected with buying a property have never exceeded 10%, often less. I don't get clobbered for tax, partly because I am a resident and largely because I have a good gestor (fixer). The fact that I am a fluent Spanish-speaker also helps when it comes to dealing with the bureaucracy.
All these properties have "earned their keep" at various times, when I have rented them out, either to tourists or long-term. I don't agree that renting is a hassle. Getting a tourist license is straightforward, especially if you use a gestor, and registering with the local police is also not a problem.
Tax returns are also not a problem, if you use a gestor. Mine, Daniel, charges me 50€.
As for selling on, I have always made a profit. At the moment prices are rising again and houses are shifting.
So, I would recommend buying property here, but then, I'm a hispanophile. And a committed European. I shall be applying for Spanish citizenship and a passport this year. I'm fed up with not having the vote in national, regional and European elections!
This message was last edited by PablodeRonda on 2/18/2024.
Thread:
Does anyone regret their holiday home purchase?
--------------------------------------