Completed - Lots of questions to ask

Hello,

We completed on our new apartment last Friday,  Block 57 - Phase 1

We have a lot of questions (mostly simple ones) that we would like to ask and would really appreciate any pointers for the the following .....

1. What is the approx cost of a taxi from San Javier Airport to TDLT

2. Where are the mail boxes situated

3. Where are the rubbish bins situated (For Block 57)

4. Where are the electricity & water meters situated

5. What would be an average time scale to expect electric & water connections to be completed from the time of ordering.

6. Does it take long for Resortlia to make initial contact with you after completion

7. Does it take long for block president to make contact after completion.

8. How many sets of keys usually come with the property.

9. Are these to be collected from the solicitor

10. We opened a Spanish bank account in December via our solicitor through POA. We need to visit that bank when next in Spain to sign some paperwork and set up online banking and order debit/credit cards. Does it take long for these cards to be issued and are they posted to Spain or UK.

11. With regards to fly screens, if purchased, are the bedroom screens accessible on both sides for cleaning

purposes.

12. Could someone supply contact details for a reliable handyman.

13. There might be a possibility that we would need to rent on the resort for approx 4-6 days in the coming weeks (perhaps end of Feb, beginning of March) and wondered if anyone had anything available.

Sorry for all of the questions. Any help/advise/pointers would be very much appreciated. Many thanks for your help.

Regards

Hi DelandMax,

Congratulations on your purchase and as your neighbours in Block 56, we hope to see you at LTDLT some time.

I'll help with the questions that I can answer

1. What is the approx cost of a taxi from San Javier Airport to TDLT

2. Where are the mail boxes situated

3. Where are the rubbish bins situated (For Block 57)

4. Where are the electricity & water meters situated

5. What would be an average time scale to expect electric & water connections to be completed from the time of ordering.

6. Does it take long for Resortlia to make initial contact with you after completion

7. Does it take long for block president to make contact after completion.

8. How many sets of keys usually come with the property.

9. Are these to be collected from the solicitor

10. We opened a Spanish bank account in December via our solicitor through POA. We need to visit that bank when next in Spain to sign some paperwork and set up online banking and order debit/credit cards. Does it take long for these cards to be issued and are they posted to Spain or UK.

11. With regards to fly screens, if purchased, are the bedroom screens accessible on both sides for cleaning purposes.

12. Could someone supply contact details for a reliable handyman.

13. There might be a possibility that we would need to rent on the resort for approx 4-6 days in the coming weeks (perhaps end of Feb, beginning of March) and wondered if anyone had anything available.

Many thanks Duncan, much appreciated.

Hi guys 

welcome (-; we are in the same block been there 3years. Happy to help with anything, catch you when we are next out.

michelle & Ian 

Hi we're in the same block been there for about 2 years if you need anything give us a shout were out 28- Feb for a week Graham & Kristine 

Hello Michelle & Ian and Graham & Kristine.

Thank you very much. Hope to see you in the near future.

When we next go out, we need to visit the bank where our account was set up (Puerto De Mazarron) to sign some papers and organise online banking and credit/debit cards. Basically get the acount up and running.  As it stands, we have some money in the account and will be adding some more to it soon.

We intend to make some substantial purchases while in Spain, furniture, etc, but obviously won't be able to do so by way of a Spanish credit/debit card as we don't/won't have one.

My thoughts on a way around this would be to withdraw cash from the bank on the day we visit. This would have to be several thousands of Euros though. My question(s) would be, will the bank oblige with an on the spot withdrawel request like this and also, will furniture stores, etc, be comfortable with large cash purchases.

I ask these two questions because I am unsure if the Spanish way of life accepts this kind of thing. Thanks for any advice.

get a halifax clarity credit card 

Great exchange rate on euro purchases and also cash withdrawals without a surcharge or currency handling charge.

Normal interest free period applies on purchases but cash withdrawals are charged interest immediately. If you do withdraw cash, make sure you make a transfer to the credit card account immediately to ensure there are no interest charges.

Hi delandmax when we furnished are apartment we took the euros with use and just paid for everything didn't have a problem . Used card in ikea but can choose to pay in Euro / pound Graham 

Thanks Duncan, that card looks to be a good one. Worth looking into. Stores would still have to charge a percentage for purchasing with a credit card I take it.

Thanks Graham, I guess I could contact the furniture store prior to visiting to see if a cash transaction is acceptable. That's the one transaction with the largest sum of money involved and it's a family run store so hopefully no problem.

Hi DelandMax,

No, it's a standard credit card. The price you see is the price you pay. No surcharges for paying by credit card.

The exchange rates are near mid exchange rate i.e. as good as you will get.

No extra charges for currency conversion.

A really good card for making large purchases abroad as long as you pay off the card every month. If you don't, interest rates are comparable to the better credit cards.

I'm not an employee of Halifax or Lloyds TSB.

Don't take my word for it, try the Money Saving Expert

I totally support what Duncan is saying, we have used our Halifax Clarity card all over the world because it is the cheapest way to get cash or pay when abroad. In Spain we use it to top-up our Spanish bank account withdrawing cash from the ATM then paying straight in, then paying off the amount on Halifax the same day. This means we get close to wholesale rate and no charges. We also use it for our larger shops, etc never had to pay a surcharge. However, as many atms and card machines offer a choice of billing currencies  Always choose to pay in euros. 

Jim 

Thanks guys. The bank has now informed us that debit cards are waiting for us when we visit them, so problem solved there. I have more questions to ask and hope that you good people could help out with some more answers.

1.Do we get hard copies of things like NIE, deeds, etc. I have received these via e-mail/attachments already.

2. Are we given boletin certificates for water/electricity or are these certificates just for utility companies use

3. Do you get a receipt for the property tax paid.

4. On arriving at the resort for the first time, as an owner, what documentation, if any, will security require.

5. Where can we locate the stopcock for the property.

6. What key is used for the mail boxes.

Many thanks in advance.

Regards