white sky viewing card skynet?

can it get any worse

does anybody feel like -  this was a bad buy ?

is any body going to be here Aug Bank Holiday from Midlands area  would be nice to hear a brummie accent for once

wish i'd simply spent all my extra cash on buying a bigger property  in the uk instead of downsizing to join the '2nd home clan' 

come on anyone from the midlands out there who feels like me - wish they'd never bought here, if so share your thoughts with me, i'm fed up of feeling i am the only one feeling like this. If someone else said  " me too" at least I would believe I'm not going mad

Mrs Hindsight  :(

Hi Oh-4,

We'll be there from 3rd Sept, and we have brummie accents!!

Would like to know why you think it's been a mistake.

We are pleased with our lot and love Aguilas.

Perhaps we can meet up.

We bought off plan, never again. The completion date slipped and slipped. Eventually the flat was finished and we let to "a nice Spanish couple" who trashed the flat in nine months and left with rent owing. It took eleven man days to repair and renovate the property. The flats are noisy, incredibly small and jerry built. The kitchen fittings seem to be made of cardboard and the bath went rusty in a very short time. I suspect that there were sewage problems near our flat as well.

The never ending building work is dirty and noisy and the developers couldn't care a damn about the inconvenience caused to residents and the fact that the building works make many of the flats and houses unviable as holiday lets. Did you also know that unless you get full written permission from the local council you are not permitted to let as a holiday flat and you can be liable for a fine of up to 30,000 Euros if you do let and they find out ? No one tells you that when you buy, do they ?

Maintenence, for which we paid, is erratic. Passage floors and stairs often not swept and washed, gardens often scruffy.

We dumped the dump about a year ago. We lost some money, but not a major amount and we are SO glad to be out of it.

We live in Spain but I will NEVER NEVER buy a property on a resort again. Once bitten, twice shy....

Nicholas Murphy

At last someone - Fionn- thinks like I do.

Last time I was there (recent) I made myself  open my eyes, I took a long hard look, and wrote down what I saw, to be honest to myself : the days of forever looking through rose tinted glasses and forever hoping 'things will get better, its not that bad etc etc etc'   were now over.

Did I really (at some stage) think this grey concrete 'whatever' you want to call it, was a good idea ? Well I guess the answer is :yes

Why? Who knows, maybe a pipe dream, or was it to be able to say to people "I too own a property abroad" maybe because I am disatisfied with where I live in the UK or what I have. Or was it to  'look down my nose and portray myself as better than the person next to me'. Well if the latter I'm paying for that by the £.  

Seriously though, if I really knew the answer as to why or how I ended up in this mess  I'd be able to share it with the world and help save a few future disasters from ever happening. Sadly I dont.  Sadly I have to address and accept that for me the fact is crystal clear ; a bad bad decision, I could far easily have moved sidewards / or upsized, bought a nice place in the country. But no, I got swept along by watching the tv programmes about living by the sea, investing abroad etc and marketing.

And for what ?

Well nowt, this was a complete and utter mistake, and after doing some back reading on comments previously made here about , damp and dog mess everywhere, plus several references to 'jerry building'  etc, there's no avoiding the fact Fionn's use of the word  'dump'  is spot on.  And let's not forget to mention the sudden (9/8) appearance of a rooftop washing line (are we soon to be greeted by someone ironing outdoors in true washer women fashion  ?)

" PH"   I have to ask how you can say you love it here, how often do you come here?  When I look around me, it all reminds me of something I would expect see the other side of the Berlin Wall or a movie disaster set. If you do not see what others are expressing -  how come. And why have you not moved out here for good and embraced being an ex-pat full on?

Fionn, thank you for being so honest, it takes a brave person to say that, you have made me realise I am not loosing my mind. 

To those who recognise me from my expression of woe and want a hint as to what to get Chris and myself  for our Anniversary, we think a couple of potted lemon trees would be apt for they wouldn't  feel awkward or out of place in the company of a couple  ( i. e   us)  of   very very  bitter lemons. :(

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Navigation: Forum home /  Las Dunas de Cope Don't Panic !!      Email me when someone responds to this thread   Posted by Message (sorted newest to oldest) Saturday, February 10, 2007 fionn Parcela I've made 13 posts Send private message to fionn  There seems to be a good deal of angst on the complex. Hang loose everyone, it will come right in the end. It just takes a little longer in Spain and often we aren't used to the way things are done here. Is this post spam or against our rules of posting? If so please click here to report it

oh4hindsight

I think you need to ask yourself why you bought in the first place. Was it as an investment/holiday home or a combination of the two? As a holiday home you are near some great beaches with excellent weather all year round. As I write this I am looking outside my window in Cheshire and suprise suprise it's raining again.

As an investment opportunity you have to view property as medium term...5/10 years at which point you will make money. Oasis have been brilliant in letting out my apartment with a mixture of short and long term lets.Obviously this helps with the costs.

If you had bought a larger place in the uk you would be looking at a property probably worth at least 20% less than you paid for it!

I agree there are some issues but they can be overcome and they will be overcome.

The build is no different to that of a UK builder. Ask my neighbours who complain to Mclean homes every day of the week!

Could you explain the reference to the sudden appearance of the rooftop washing line???? What's all that about?

PH...I'm glad you are happy. I am certainly not disappointed but I guess its all about expectations. 

Oh4hindsight sorry you feel this way.

I agree with Tony.

It is obvious that we all buy for different reasons. 

We wanted somewhere off the beaten track and typically Spanish. Aguilas - and Las Dunas - gave us that.

Agreed, the building is not of the highest standard, but it's OK. The new parts of the development are looking much nicer, but, as I said before, we are happy with our lot and thoroughly enjoy every minute we have there. Aguilas and its people are charming. We feel priviledged to be part of their community while we are there.

For us it's a great investment. Maybe not financially yet, but even that will sort itself out in time.

Looking forward to Weds.

Thanks for reminding me. Nothing good has happened in the meantime. How wrong could I have been ???

Tonydolman

Hi

After reading your comments you have made me feel slightly better, though I still think this was a mistake and if I could turn the clocks back - we would have opted to upsize in the uk.

Washing line question : some 'nice' family  (nationality not known) has decided to bring  2  free standing  'popup rotary lines' and have them on their sloarium/roof.
I dont think this is appropriate ( and I am sure others would agree)  this is not the image one expects to see : baby nappies, under garments etc.   My reference of displeasure to this is clearly :  the purchase of a solarium plot was to aquire a scenic view, not  a  view of  laundry. Let's face it ; washing is normally followed by ironing, hence the comment re outdoor ironing ( which has taken place for the 4th time this week ). Come to think of it -  I dont think I have ever seen such conduct being portrayed in Eastenders - get my drift ! 

PH

Hi

OK what do you know that the rest of us don't  - re your comment on investment :  "maybe not financially yet but even that will sort itself out in time"  and how often do you visit ? enought to make you consider selling up in the uk ?

Enjoy Wednesday, how long you staying for this time / when do you return home  ?  -  just incase I am back earlier than expected - see below.

To Both

Well I have to catch a flight back to the uk later today, so I shall look forward to reading any responses to the above, sadly wont be around for a bit as have to attend a funeral in Rugby, fortunately not family but a dear friend never the less. Both your comments were appreciated by the way :)

Oh-4

Good luck to you oh4hindsight.

I posted a message of hope, kindly reproduced here by some happy soul, in February 2007. Well, what has improved ? Not a lot. No mini golf, the planned "commercial centre" five years late (?), many of the gardens, especially those close to the main road, poorly maintained, streets not swept, passages not washed, the dog poo problem, the weird and ugly "extensions" some people have built in their gardens, the washing lines, the unsightly stuff being stored on balconies and so on.

Given that there are around 800,000 new unsold properties available in Spain at the moment and over a million resales the chances of selling for a decent price are slight. Probably the only thing to do is to wait and hope, but it will be sometime before the Spanish property market stabilises. In the meantime the Spanish banks will be cautious about lending and may want a fairly hefty deposit.

There are no answers, except perhaps, to enjoy it as much as you can. You might as well.

Greetings from a woman who enjoys ironing outside in glorious sunshine in the privacy of her own solarium,  with a spectacular and uninterrupted view of Aguilas, castle and sea, I value the opportunity to be out of doors as much as possible whilst in Spain and really can't see the harm in ironing on my roof  - I also sunbathe naked and anyone who does not like what they see should simply stop looking! I tried ironing naked once but with disasterous consequences!  but enough of that story.

By the way I don't  understand the reference to Eastenders but then I don't watch TV.

It is a shame that some people feel disappointed with Los Dunas de Cope and feel unable or unempowered to go through the official channels to get things resolved e.g. Gesisur or the president could surely take action against clothes lines that do not fit with community rules (it may take time but they usually follow through)

Yes we wish we had realised when we bought in 2006 that the building work would be dusty and impact on rentals (our agent didn't mention it but why would they, they wanted a sale) and we were too naive to spot some of the problems - learning comes from experience and experience comes with mistakes.

We bought our apartment as an experiment prior to moving to Spain in the next two years and like most of the other postings on this site we have learned a few things in the process - our main learning is that we are not suited to community urbanisations primarily because individual values and standards mean that there are different ideas of taste and social norms; one person's solarium clothes airer is another's plastic plant pot, satellite dish or ceramic wall plate etc. Standards of property maintenance etc. vary. It  also seems very difficult to get people to unite, focus and prioritise on really important key issues that need resolving, people seem to get sidetracked into individual grumbles and this gives the developer and our administrator too much wiggle room. We are stronger as group than as individuals and I really think we need an owners' network and a website that only owners can access.

Our experience has not put us off moving to Spain but we are looking for a property that is a few miles from a town.

I have emailed Jose Carillo  today with a list of things that we think need attention and some suggestions for improving the dog fouling problem. We have also asked about a feasability study for heating one of the swimming pools so that it can be used all year round. I intend to give constructive feedback to Jose every time we visit Los Dunas  and believe that this in time will help improve our community, though I have said this before and on this site, if we want to improve our urbanisation we need to work together in partnership with our administrator and if that does not work find a new one.  I also think that we are unlikely to attract renters or new buyers if we keep using this site to complain about what is wrong.

We have just come back from a wonderful two weeks in Aguilas, there is still work to be done and like most people on Los Dunas we did not expect it to take so long or be so dusty, but the end is in sight and we are hopeful that by next year all building will be finished and the new road laid, and gardens finished and repaired. Things are a lot better than this time last year so the signs are encouraging.



The naked washer woman of Los Dunas (and no I don't have a rotary clothes airer)

 

to the previous writer - aka - the naked washerwoman -  shame on you, and your attitude

i think your arrogant reply basically confirms all the other references re dunas de cope being an all round mistake for the near majority, or should i say those with some decorum/principles.

so here's a taste of your own medicine as you clearly have a chip on your shoulder so pardon the punn : but as they say when it rains it pours,and, if only you had a rotary line then you could shove it where the sun dont shine before someone else does.

maybe now youll think twice before responding in such a pompous holier than thou attitude, and do yourself a favour  : enrole in anger management classes or youll find it very hard to fit in anywhere.

sally

Well, this thread just makes for better and better (and more entertaining!) reading...

There is a school of thought that says that that which most annoys us is usually the very thing which we don't like about ourselves. With that in mind SallyP I think it's interesting that you're accusing someone else of being "pompous"; not mention "arrogant" and "holier than thou". The general tenor of your postings so far has been fairly despairing of the (perceived) lack of standards of your 'common' neighbours and their general behaviour and yet here you are, when faced with someone poking a bit of gentle fun, threatening to shove a rotary airer up their a**e! True colours will out, eh? I take it the anger management classes you are recommending are the very ones that have worked so well for you? ;-)

D.

Sally
Thank you for your feedback,  my sense of humour clearly seems to have caused you some anger and distress, and I apologise if the first paragraph of my posting caused you offence. The remainder of my posting however does not deserve your personalised attack on my  intentions, character and principles. Please don't take out your disappointment and anger with Las Dunas de Cope on me.

In the spirit of advice giving which you so generously started in your last posting which was directed specifically to me, I would like to return the favour  - and advise you that it is generally unwise to put anything that could be construed as a threat in writing and even more unwise to post such a thing on a website!  You might find it useful to check out the terms and conditions for membership on the Eye on Spain website. 

My attempt to at humour may not be to your liking and I apologise for that, but at least I did not suggest anything as crude as ramming a clothes airer up someones anus.  This comment rather undermines your view that it is I who should be ashamed and have more decorum and principles.


I guess we won't be arranging to meet up for drinks when we are both in Spain??

Amanda

Sally P, shame on you. The post you made on 19th September was uninformed, crude, vulgar and ignorant. I suggest you apologise.

This message was last edited by fionn on 9/22/2008.

Amanda

I too apologise, my only excuse, and it is an unforgivable one, is like most people am feeling fed up to the back teeth of the state of the place,moaners and people pointing the finger at me .As i am around alot i have coped the brunt end of other peoples jibes about/against other people if that makes sense. 

so my sincere apologies for the upbrupt manner i spoke to you, i did not read your comment as if it was written in humour, i did read it like it was written to wind me up even more, but as you have said that was not the intention and that it was written to be funny, which you have explained and apologised for ; though clearly you did not need to apologise as it was written for humour ;which i now understand but didnt at the time.

anyhow, my apology still stands, i was rude, and i think rather than taking anger management  classes what i really need to do is get away from here fore a while so i dont keep getting bogged down with all the hassles here as its affecting my rationality on things. when i come back i'll either be happy or in the frame of mind of being stronger and able to cope with the selling  process  ( well its my folk who want to sell up/move back to the UK , and i am cushioning/juggling all their problems tho' clearly not that well)

so to everyone who thought my response was a poor one, i also apologise to you as well, i have no excuse only an explanation - fed up with the place and wish i could turn the clocks back for my folk

i hope everyone accepts the apology, if so put me out of my worry and let me know , yes i did fly off the handle and i shouldnt have done so and i am very very sorry.

     why is everyone having a pop at sallyp ?


     cant see any reference to 'bottoms' on any of her views but i can see rude words like "anus"  &   "a**e!"  assigned to  2 respondants.

     surely if those associated with the above mentioned replies to sallyp assumed  "anus & a**e!" that is their own assumption and not the fault of sallyp for she did not state any such words, a conclusion drawn is that of the person drawing the conclusion.

     sallyp : you have MY respect for apologizing despite absolutely not mentioning anything to do with bottoms. though if anyone/thing should be pulledup for rudeness it should in my opinion be those mentioning the "A" reference words ! you definately did NOT

     can somebody tell me: are we not allowed to have opinions/share our thoughts for fear of upetting somone? if so then the world has gone mad and freedom of speech has been traded in for not being able to have an opinion for fear the truth/observation may offend. If so then what is the point in all of this if all we can do is only pussyfoot around what is narking people? if we dont address the narks with honesty then how can we move forward to better things as all we will be doing is typing politenesses and the issues will still be there.

feelthelove

Aren't you all losing sight of what's important ? Whilst arguing and backbiting amongst yourselves the situation continues to deteriorate. Mar y Casas still don't respect the rights of residents, the maintenence is neglected, and nothing is done.

United you stand, divided, you fall - and so does your investment.

To SallyP:  Apology accepted - thanks, you really do sound fed up and stressed and that must be awful, maybe something like life coaching could help in terms of setting goals and getting some sense of control and positivity on what has turned out to be a very negative experience for you. It is a shame our contact/communication got off to a bad start and I wish you well with your sale.

To Feelthelove:  It was Sallyp's comment to me.......  "if only you had a rotary line then you could shove it where the sun don't shine before someone else does" on her posting 19th of Sept which sparked my response of 21st Sept. and whilst I agree the word anus was not specifically used, I believe that where the sun don't shine is a common euphemism for anus/bottom etc.  I am unaware of any other explanation for what that expression might mean. I have apologised to SallyP for my ill advised humour which provoked her and and she has apologised to me for her posting of 19th of Sept;  so I think it would be wise to close this subject. (sorry if you think the word anus is rude I thought it was a medical term and the least rude of all the potential options)

Regarding honest comments on this website, I agree that we need a forum for open and honest communication about problems with the development , administrator etc. but am concerned that airing all our problems and negative experiences on a public forum that potential buyers and renters may look at is likely to have a negative impact on sales and rentals.  I think we need some sort of private forum that only current owners can access, Gesisur did have this on the agenda for 2007 AGM but nothing has yet happened and there are bound to be some issues about our administrator controlling the forum?

So if anyone out there agrees and wants to set up a private forum for owners I would be happy to help, support and contribute.

Good wishes
Amanda

Fionn I agree and thanks for your support.
Are you still an owner on Las Dunas I think I read in one of your postings that you sold your place? but I may have misunderstood or confused you with someone else?
Amanda