The houses on either side of my casa de pueblo in Montejaque (Málaga) have both been sold this month.
If this had happened during the 18 months of sometimes noisy building work, I would have understood, but not now, when the drills, lump hammers and tile cutters are silent.
In actual fact neither house was occupied full time.
The first house to sell was the property to the right. The vendor has asked me not to write too much, so I'll leave it at that. Just to say that I understand that my new neighbours will be a Polish couple, who fell in love with this tasteful and stylish property the first time they viewed it. I've met them and they are buena gente (very nice people).
The house to the left is an old, surprisingly large village house in need of renovation. It was unoccupied but visited on a daily basis by one of the Spanish owners to water the large number of outside plants and to do a weekly clean. The new owners, two Spanish ladies, don’t live in the village, and I understand they’ve bought it as a weekend house.
House sales on the up
After 14 years of stagnation, caused by the financial crisis of 2008 and then the Coronavirus pandemic, the housing market in this area has picked up sharply. Since the turn of the year nearly a dozen houses have changed hands in Montejaque alone.
Buyers come from a range of countries, including Canada, France, Netherlands, Poland, UK and USA, as well as Spain. Prices range from under 100,000 to approaching half a million Euros.
Recently opened Andalucia Country Houses have played a prominent role, as has long-established local estate agent Montejaque Holiday Service. Most houses, however, are sold privately or using the traditional “corredor” system. Corredores (independent “estate agents”) typically charge a 2.5% commission, compared to the expensive 5% charged by agencias inmobiliarias.