Mac's Poll - Let's Vote

Lizzie said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 4:11 PM

I really, really hope that no one who reads this forum would be crazy enough not to rent first.

RENT SCREAMED OUT LOUD!!!! Learn from the mistakes and heartache suffered by so many. Rent first, find an area you like, get used to the way of life out there (it's not 100% holiday mentality, you have to live your life each day).

Rent first and you have options. Buy and you could be trapped.

I wish, wish, wish that my parents and ourselves had rented and we wouldn't be suffering as much now. So many friends love Spain but wish that they could move around to different areas....only those who rent or who win the lottery can do that!!

Don't believe all the rubbish on A Place in the Sun and other programmes!! Rent first and TRY BEFORE YOU BUY!!!

Baz 1946 said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 4:43 PM

Be very handy if the folk that wished they hadn't bought would throw some light onto the types of places they bought and cant sell ie: apartments/large villas/bungalows/ out of the way places etc.

Tariq said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 7:40 PM

the price(38,000 euros) i am paying for 2 bed room village house have to say buy with any decent place to rent costing 500+ a month and you can not change any thing in a rented place to your own taste .

lister said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 7:46 PM

We are a family with 2 children.We have been renting villas in various locations in Murcia and Alicante for about 6 years. We love this so much we have been saving for a long time with the hope we can eventually buy. We find if you rent on mainly residential locations, with only a select few that gets rented out to holiday makers, to be a better place, due to it not been closed up in the winter months, which we do like to come as well as the summer. Research is very important. When we buy,we hope we choose right, because it would be for the use of our own holiday home, and hopefully to spend more time here when we retire.

Tamara said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 8:42 PM

I agree with Tariq - when you see the house you want to make your home .... BUY BUY BUY! I knew the area I wanted, fixed to see 4 houses on one day with an agent, and bought the second one I saw. Good price, and I didn't want to waste 6 months rent money down the drain and risk losing the home I loved then and love now.

But obviously if I hadn't found the perfect home, I was under no pressure to buy, and might have rented while I carried on looking. But I don't agree with this fixed RULE about renting first. Horses for courses etc.

Mac75 said:
Friday, February 15, 2013 @ 8:57 PM

Tamara you have a point, if you see the house of your dreams and you fall in love with it why not go ahead and live your dream. Obviously one is happy with the area or one wouldn't even be looking in the area to buy. So what are the risks? If you are not in a community and don't have to deal with community problems and you've checked the build structure, why not jump in at the deep end, you can't always prepare for everything nor will you discover everything in six months or a year. Personally if I was convinced I knew the area well enough that would be sufficient for me to make a decision on a purchase as long as I was comfortable with the price. But for those who don't know the area the only step would be to rent first get to know the area and buy later.

Nick Otter said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 4:49 AM

I was not going to buy as we did not want to move till 2013 but found a perfect penthouse in La Quinta and made a rediculous offer and they accepted, as I was paying in dollars it turns out that if I had waited the dollar dropped 10% and so my place would have cost over 10% so really no one knows the best option, who would have thought that the exchange rate would have made such a difference.

Karen Watson said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 7:43 AM

I think it depends on the price.. So bang bargains to buy now but in the area we bought we all paid over €200k and you can current rent them for €500 a
So if you fancy trying out Spain it's a no brainier to rent for a fewonths even if you can't be there all the time. That said if you fancy a bargain these very same properties can be picked up for less than €100 k as some people who bought just can't manage the running costs.. Which are about €12k p a including the mortgage which is a bit much for a holiday home that you went out for €450 per week and only get about 8 rentals !

Bruce said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 8:52 AM

Clearly it is important that you know the area fairly well before you consider buying anything. Most people would spend several holidays and know the area they like before deciding to retire overseas.

It would be folly to visit Spain for the first time and buy a retirement home while you are there, but it is unlikely that there will be many people silly enough to do that.

If you have visited Spain or any of its islands like the Canary Islands and decide that living retirement in such a place appeals to you, then make sure that you visit at different times of the year first, so that you get experience of what it is like.

Living in Spain during winter months when the weather may not be so good is entirely different from being there during your summer holidays. On the other hand, somewhere like Tenerife for example may be busier during winter months because of the good climate all year round.

Consider the effects of global warming and the changes that are predicted to happen during the next 20 years or so. It may very well influence where you choose to live.

When you know well enough the area that you like, then without doubt you should buy your own home if you can afford to do so, particularly if you own your own home now.

You have to give yourself the very best chance to enjoy your retirement in Spain or its islands and if you are living in somebody else's property you may never feel that you are properly 'at home.'

I think that perhaps a female partner generally has the desire to make a proper home for living in more than males do, but then if the lady is happy the man will be happier too.

Investing in a property now, with there being so many bargains around does make sense and will greatly increase you chances of enjoying your retirement in your own home, rather than living in a property that belongs to somebody else.

As long as you do your research first!

DJF said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 9:25 AM

This home ownership is so British and so wrong if you retire out here. Why is property always looked at as an investment for the owner or family. Germany has thrived on rented property as the laws for landlord and tenant are sensible and strictly adhered too.
If you you have sold up in the UK and have a nest egg, rent, rent, rent. You can make it your own, rent unfurnished or partially furnished, so owners will remove that which you don't want making room for your favourite pieces.
If you put all your nest egg into property can you go to the travel agent , put a roof tile, a window frame and a house brick on the counter and say "I want to go on a cruise please", of course not, you cannot spend property and enjoy your retirement. Then there is all the maintenance, build standards are not as high as in the UK and look at some of the nightmares there with Wimpy etc.
An Englishman's home is not his castle anymore. There are plenty of British owners desperate to rent and go home to dear old Blighty for family or benefits reasons the trouble is their rental income expectations are unrealistic. They cannot expect the tenant to pay for the mortgage and more, don't be greedy owners and complain when you are back in the UK with an empty Spanish property. Spanish computer systems are now linking with each other and with the rest of Europe including the UK and if you collect rent you need to pay tax on the income. Higher rent, higher tax. I have rented since 2007 and have never regretted it, been on world cruise and can go on any holiday I fancy whenever I fancy, plus travel around Spain. Unless you are mega rich don't bother to buy!

Louise said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 9:31 AM

We've just bought and to be honest we hadn't really even thought about renting. The area we have bought is a traddtional Spanish town but with about 500 expats of various nationalities. We have been visiting for around 6/7 years and have made lots of friends and we have visited at different times of the year so know what the weather does roughly! We fell in love with a house and went for it as it had had alot of interest! Yes you did read that correctly! We will be keeping a house in the Uk so we won't ever be 'stuck' in Spain if we felt we had to go back to the Uk. We move in 3/4 months and we can't wait! :)

Elaine said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 9:32 AM

Buy if you are seious about the move to spain. We bought 2 years ago and are enjoying holidays at present and watching the house we have bought grow into our home of the future. It is making the rat race of working more bearable knowing you have your home waiting for you. Just to clear mortgage and have some savings in the bank and early retirement in the sun. Planning and wanting to fulfill your dream. We have been going to spain for the last 20 years so we knew where and what we wanted to buy. Opportunites of picking up a cheap property are better now than they have ever been. A rented home to me can never be turned into a real home but everyone has their own choice but spain is the place to be for a better quality of life.

Michael said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 10:09 AM

We found a rather sensible option, we have arrange a rent to buy private mortgage with a vendor, so we are now tenants and in 5 years after paying our low monthly rent the property becomes ours and we have the right to sell the option in the mean time. Best of both worlds and ties down a sale price. Everything has been completed with a Lawyer and signed at the Notary with a note on the deeds. While looking for this sort of deal we found six other suitable properties that would accept this type of agreement. Anyway we now have a lovely holiday home near Baza that we can retire to as soon as we've had enough of working !

Chris Stevens said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 10:26 AM

Hi,we will definately be renting on our retirement.We did actually put a deposit on a house on a "viewing trip"back in 2009,but,unfortunately,owing to my partners ill health,and me,being made redundant within a few months of doing so,we could never complete the deal,anyway,the point is that the property we chose has now devalued from what we were going to pay.
Now I am due to retire in a few years time,I will be on a very limited income(basic state pension),but,my small terraced house here in Devon wil be paid off.Now,I know from previous experience how much rent I can earn from letting out my little house,and from what I`ve seen,and read from the good people at EOS and various other sources,I can get a fairly decent property,in and around the Murcia area,where we`d like to be,for approximately liitle more than half that ammount,a thought well worth considering,wouldn`t you think?
And,as has been said before,with the added benefit of being able to return to the uk if things really don`t work out.

wodger said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 11:31 AM

Yes Chris Stevens,very sensible, we take out " long term rental " (which means a minimum of 3 months) & drive over for 3 months at a time whenever we wish. Happily we are mortgage free in the UK, we could rent out our house for 3 times the rent we pay for a 3 bedroom villa in Spain if we wanted to, but we don't as our kids like to come home from "the city" & invite friends down for weekends. We also like to spend part of the winter in the Tatra Mountains in Poland, & help out at harvest time on the family farms in central Poland. So it would be a bit of a worry leaving a property empty in Spain. If we get fed up we could rent in Portugal or the USA instead one year.

Michael said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 1:10 PM

We found a rather sensible option, we have arrange a rent to buy private mortgage with a vendor, so we are now tenants and in 5 years after paying our low monthly rent the property becomes ours and we have the right to sell the option in the mean time. Best of both worlds and ties down a sale price. Everything has been completed with a Lawyer and signed at the Notary with a note on the deeds. While looking for this sort of deal we found six other suitable properties that would accept this type of agreement. Anyway we now have a lovely holiday home near Baza that we can retire to as soon as we've had enough of working !

Michael said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 1:13 PM

Hi

Not sure why my comment has repeated, it was not me !

Clive Bradley said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 1:25 PM

Having read all the above comments, no-one has mentioned what would happen after one of you dies. What about the crucifying tax that the survivor has to pay........?? No £325000 inheritance tax threshold here, as in the UK. Tis a miserly low 16000€ in Spain. This in itself should put you off buying. Only the foolhardy would 'sell up' in the UK, and then buy here.

David said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 3:53 PM

Rent. No capital tied up. More ready cash to enjoy. No brainer.!

mac75 said:
Saturday, February 16, 2013 @ 8:44 PM

Very good point Clive

Val White said:
Sunday, February 17, 2013 @ 11:17 AM

I chose to rent over here because I couldn't afford to buy as I was only renting in the UK. I have been renting my house over here for almost 18 months and very happy here.

craig said:
Sunday, February 17, 2013 @ 11:44 AM

we have found an area we like has friends and contacts out there have visited at differant times of the years, walked through and around the village, driven around the area, viewed lots of properties around and inthe village, and found one we like- a lot- size and price is right for us or will be once we sell here, we intend to buy asap even though we won't be moving till the start of next year

Michael said:
Sunday, February 17, 2013 @ 12:25 PM

Hi

Not sure why my comment has repeated, it was not me !

Reflect said:
Sunday, February 17, 2013 @ 7:28 PM

I would say that if you have:-
1. Done your research;
2. Checked out different areas;
3. Found a place that ticks 8 out of your 10 boxes;
4. Pay a bargain price of under 100,000 euros;
If you can afford it, then Buy it, hopefully you and your family will get years of enjoyment and its yours to share with whoever you like!

Rob said:
Sunday, November 30, 2014 @ 12:25 PM

I am considering moving over as after divorce and splitting the assets with ex I cannot afford to buy anything here in TQ devon that I would consider living in,too old for uk mortgage at 67 though I still work and renting is costing me 1K a month all included, climate causing me increasing problems as damp and cold affect my hands which as a pro-guitarist is not what I need.Renting would seem to be a good option as I would have a decent sum to back me up plus £750 a month pension.I have been tempted by the fact that I could buy a nice looking home for 40/68,000 plus euro but is investing at the moment wise? not worried about leaving anything to kids as they aren't interested.Ah decisions .

Robert Edwards said:
Saturday, February 7, 2015 @ 1:55 PM

Laws governing the rental of holiday homes in autonomous regions of Spain
Rental laws for landlords in Spain are changing continually and will continue to do so this year during 2015 as each individual autonomous region in Spain interprets the law in different ways. This leads to much confusion amongst property owners or letting agencies. Here is an update on the current situation:
...leadingpropertygroupspain.com/en/2015/01/laws-governing-the-rental-of-holiday-homes-in-autonomous-regions-of-spain/

Lucia said:
Friday, February 20, 2015 @ 6:21 PM

We are a Spanish couple who lives in UK, as much other many others we have came to work, the unemployment is high in Spain and we have to pay the mortgage of our flat in Spain, where nobody is living there.
What we would love, is do a long term exchange with someone who wants to go to Spain, and we live in their house, and in this way save the money of the rental, it is really hard pay a rental here plus the mortgage there.
Serious people please, any location in UK would be considered.
lumila @ hotmail . es

Thanks.

dd said:
Wednesday, March 18, 2015 @ 1:41 AM

Has anyone else noticed that the "comments" above from "UK" residents don't flow naturally, not to mention the grammatical mistakes. They seem to read better if I imagine a German accent from a WW11 film. Is this site part of a con?

Kevin said:
Thursday, April 21, 2016 @ 1:56 PM

What about renting in Spain and rent out your home in the UK?
I would think that most rentals in the UK would pay for a long term rental in Spain.
If for whatever reason you need to return to the UK, no problem.