The Housing Choice

Spanish property is advertised in terms of areas. That is, the property has a living/floor area and is located on a plot of a certain area. This is usually shown in square meters. This can be slightly disconcerting as it is not easy to visualise, say, a living area of 150m2. The sizes of these areas can also affect the amount of tax you pay

The simplest way of choosing a property is to draw up a list of desired features and whether you want a villa just for family holidays or a permanent home. The most obvious features might be a good view and a swimming pool. Some will prefer a sea view, which will be more expensive, and others a landscape

A swimming pool sounds really luxurious. However, bear in mind that in times of restraint, it costs money to maintain a pool and the usage of an unheated outdoor pool is confined to the warmer months!  In addition, water usage is metered and when the sun is high, evaporation burns off water which has to be replaced. There are also the annual maintenance costs to consider

If you choose an apartment you will probably enjoy the use of a communal pool, but you will pay a premium whether you use it or not. However, you don’t have to worry about maintenance

You might also want to consider the option of having additional accommodation in the form of "under builds" which can be utilised for holiday rental purposes to help you pay for your villa

For anyone in a new country there will be some comfort in living close to the expat community. If you have friends who have been here for a while, this will be useful. The more adventurous could move away from the apparent safety of the expat community into the hinterland. It is likely that you will need to speak Spanish with some fluency if you choose to do this

There have been a number of reports relating to the illegal erection of buildings in Spain. This can have disastrous implications with, at worst, the demolition of the property and the total loss of your investment so you need to be sure that you have got good Spanish legal support.

The most obvious way to discover which area you might want to relocate to is to spend some time there. Searching the net gives you hundreds of pictures of attractive properties but doesn’t give you much of an idea of the area

The property search more than likely starts on the internet. Depending on how you word your search, you will find enough choice to keep you going for a considerable time

The purchase of off plan properties is a personal choice but can be fraught with danger and the risks can be great. Having said that, there are many people who have successfully bought off plan and if you feel confident and can get a good deal it might work for you