Murcia or Alicante we need advice.

We are thinking of moving to this area, we need help.  I am not sure why we have chosen this area but we would appreciate any advice we can get. 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi gringo,

I'm Spanish and live in Málaga town. I´m sorry I don´t know the area of Murcia & Alicante. You don´t give any details of what you need to know!! Why you are not sure why you have chosen this area? What are you looking for exactly? what kind of advice do you need? The best pieces of advice or comments I think I can give you, following the spanish news about real estate in that area are:

1- There are many-many properties currently being built in those areas and much more even planned for the next years.

2- New more transparent laws may be expected in Spain and Murcia Region and Comunidad Valenciana region, to avoid future townhalls corruption, so really be careful about getting information of possible future legal changes in land use, as some projects could be denied. Also some townhalls may not be assuring water to all urbanisations.

3- Ask in this forum exactly what you need.

 

Regards

 

 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Welcome Gringo.  This is a big area you've chosen, Murcia to Alicante.  Murcia, the district, is only just becoming built up and a housing infrastructure put in place whilst the bit in between is a well established area.  Alicante is a fairly large city with lots of history (walled castles etc) with lots of areas to choose from on the outskirts (most Brits live in the villages/towns outside the city and "little Englands" have been set up all over the place).  Cartagena, to the south, is not so Anglified and also has a historic feel about it.  Murcia district appears set to be the largest golf course in the world and a lot of places being built use this a selling point, either selling property as part of a golf course or close by.

In between you have Torrevieja, a fair sized town in which the foreigners now outnumber the Spanish and most of these are British or Irish but with a fair smattering of other EU citizens.  Around and about Torrevieja are many towns and villages which differ from each other to a great degree.  San Pedro, to the south, is still very Spanish whilst Quesada, to the North, has a foreign population of some 80% of the community.  Even around Quesada, smaller places such as Rojales, Almoradi, Doña Pepa etc. have their fair share of Brits.  There are tons of places even if you pick a smaller area such as between Torrevieja and Alicante (a distance of some 40 miles via motorway).  Guardamar, La Mata, La Marina, Santa Pola to name just a few.  All these areas have a good infrastructure in place and large supermarkets seem to be on every other street corner.  Murcia district is still more open but it looks like it is heading the way of the other costas with the amount of building work going on.  Torrevieja has the added advantage of having one of the most healthy climates in the world and is highly recommended for people with respiratory problems such as asthma (must be something to do with all the salt in the air from the lakes).

Of course, you may not want to be near the wonderful beaches of the Mar Menor, Orihuela Costa, Torrevieja, Guardamar del Segura and all others in between.  Inland has the towns of Murcia, Orihuela, Elche and many others which are cheaper but, of course, further from the coast.

Have you been to the area at all?  If so, go again and get a hire car.  Look around the places and ask questions from those who live there.  If you haven't been, book a cheap flight and there are plenty of properties for rent on this and other sites at quite reasonable prices.  You will also get to know other people living there and get  opinions from them as well.  Once you have looked at the areas, you will know which places to avoid which is just as important as knowing which one to pick.

IMHO, I am not enamoured of the Murcia district as it does give the impression of being a bit barren (this is where all those who have moved to Murcia jump down my throat and tell me I'm wrong, but I did say my HUMBLE opinion).  I am also not too chuffed with the southern part of Torrevieja nor the centre for that matter, but I do like the northern part (north of the salt lakes) and just love the orange and lemon groves on the roads leading to La Mata, Guardamar and Quesada.  You also have great views of the sea in one direction and the mountains on the other.  Have a good look around at your own pace. Depending on what you are looking for, you will find properties of all budgets from studios to villas.  And now is a very good time to buy.

 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi bobaol

Thanks for your info.

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

You're welcome.  Oh, and one thing I forgot.  If you can, visit at various times of the year.  For some, the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter can be unbearable, especially if you are more inland.  On the coasts (or nearby) you tend to get cooler breezes in the summer but the real shocker was how cold it can get indoors during the winter.  Spanish houses tend to be built not to retain the heat which is lovely in Summer.  I do, however, remember my wife tucked up on the sofa with a quilt around her, a fan heater on her feet and two other heaters surrounding her in February a couple of years ago.  It was freezing getting up to go to the loo so having inverter type aircon which give cold in Summer and hot in Winter was a real boon.  These are not expensive (I bought my 2 at Carrefour at 190 euros each and had them fitted for 300 euros so 680 euros was money well spent) but I haven't (as yet) had an electric bill which will probably bring on an early cardiac arrest when I do get one.  Good job the air is so healthly around there.

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi

I need advice badly

Thinking of coming over for a week while waiting on completion but on looking on rental site they are asking me area.

Can anyone tell were I hould stay close to sierra golf balsicas murcia out of Playa Flamenca , Play flamenca T, playa flamenca P, san jose, villa martin,  ther are a couple others i cant remember but none that jump out that i recognise.

sandra

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Me again Bobaol

Have you ever delt with MASA International or heard how they are to deal with?  I would also like some info about secondary schools in the area.  We are kind of looking for a resale because we think we will get better value. 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Gringo, MASA are a big company that have a good infrastructure in place.  I haven't heard any really bad things about them but they are a company who have certain properties to sell and will push these if you go on an inspection trip.  Be wary as they will show you what they want to show you.  You will be looked after well, I assume, but, like all these big companies, they work with certain developers and will be reluctant to show you any other properties.  They are, after all, paying for your trip, your meals, your accommodation (they get it back later, by the way, by hitting you with a bill for about 400 euros or so) so they have to sell one of their properties.  I would not say do not go with them as I had a very good tour around when I was looking to upgrade my property.  They will arrrange deposits, solicitors, insurance and all the other gubbins that go with buying a property.  My only advice would be to arrange your own independent solicitor.  The one they recommend will be one that works with the developer and with MASA.  As the developer and MASA will be their biggest clients, you can guess at whose side they will be on if anything goes wrong.  Also go in with your eyes open.  You will see some pretty shoddy properties which will be given the hard sell so make sure you check them out fully.  Remember, show homes bear little relation to what you will get (as an example, we were shown a lovely semi-detached on flat land with a wide street in front.  When we asked to see the actual build in place, it was a row of 6 terraced houses on a steep hill with a 10 ft street between the front and the back of another block).  Also check to see what is already built in the area.  Many fine views across the orange groves to the sea have been destroyed when a 6 storey supermarket gets built in front of it (Don't laugh, it happened to a lot of people in Blue Hills who had older property looking down to the coast.  A big Mercadona built 20 ft from their balconies scuppered that lovely view).  If you can, look at at the actual building site and try to envisage what is already there and what can be built there in the future.  Are you looking for a holiday home or a permanent place?  This does make a difference as you may be looking for somewhere with good nightlife, bars/restaurants etc if it is a holiday home, but you may want a quieter area if it is permanent.  Believe me, a place with lots of tourists and holidaymakers gets a bit of a bind after a while when you want a quiet night in.  My current location is brilliant for holidays but have chosen a quieter community for when I move over permanently next year.

And Sandra, if you are looking for somewhere close in Torrevieja so you can travel to Murcia easily, Playa Flamenca and San Pedro del Pinatar are to the south and right on the coast so you have good access without having to negotiate most of the dreaded N332 through Torrevieja.  Villamartin is to the South but inland but has good access to the motorway leading down to Murcia.  There is, however, a toll booth as you enter the motorway which is between 1.80 euros and 2.95 depending on the season (bit of a nuisance when you have to pay it to get both on and off the motorway).   If you can find a place near San Pedro, this will give you unhindered (and free) access to the motorway down to the Murcia region.

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

We want to relocate to Spain.  We want somewhere a bit quiet but not to quiet because we have teenagers!

 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi Gringo,

I would suggest you do things slightly different.

If your main concern is your family and the area you live in then i would suggest you find the area you are happy with first and then choose the house after.

If it is something that you are looking to do sooner than later and you are able to finance the move in the near future then go for a resale.

This will give you a true picture of the place in which you are going to live.

Instead of someone saying there will be a school there and shops and bars there,if you can see and touch them you can make a more educated decision.

Don,t get me wrong off p[lan is fine for the longer term but with a family you will maybe not want to wait for the infrastructure to arrive.

As for schooling,unless your children have a good level of spanish they may find it difficult to go straight into a mainstream secondary school depending on there age of course, the younger they are the quicker they pick it up as they will be taught in Spanish,there is of course the international schools that teach the English curriculum but you will have to pay for the pleasure.

Frow what Bobaol has said i am guessing he is moving to a Euromarina Villa in Dona Pepa,Quesada,Costa Blanca,that would be a good place to start your search as it does tick all your boxes,the infrastructure is there and there are regular school buses,plus there is great fracilities and amenities already in place.

I am not sure a Insection trip with one of thye big boys will service your needs but i would say that wouldn't i

You need to get out speak to people who are alredy living here as they will give you the truth about the area,you need to get a feel for a place and i am not sure you can do that by spending 4 days staring out the window of a car.

Hope this helps

Regards

Georgia

 

 

 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Thanks Georgia all the help we cn get is of value to us.  We want to do this before the end of the year.  We are afraid if we don't get on with it we will stall and end up not doing it.  We are very keen on this life changing move.  Only one of my girls is still in school and we are doing a basic spanish course at the moment but it is a brain drain just now as we are finding it a struggle.  We plan on going over in a few weeks to have a look around and look at some places.  Our problem is that we will need to work and can't be on holiday for the rest our lives so we thought about renting for the first few months to get settled in.  Bobaol said something about there being a lot of places for rent which sounded encouraging but we think that we will need to go there to get any further in our quest.   

                                                                                                    Thanks again

                                                                                                                     Gringo

 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Thankyou very much bobaol

I have got a place in playa flamenca (just waiting on confirmation) a week in july for 380 euros which i think is very reasonable for that time of year.

Your reply gave me encouragment that im in the right area thanks again

By the way gringo they do longer time rentals if you want to look at their site (eos - Im I allowed to put their web address on?????)

sandra

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

regarding what BObaol said about MASA inspection trip. We have booked an inspection trip with MASA mainly to get a feel of Spain and the areas and we will only buy if we want to. However I was worried about the "bill" MASA hits you later that Bobaol described. What is this for and what do they say it is for and is it legal. Obviously if we feel we are going to recieve this bill we will not go with MASA. Also we have booked a later flight back independently and intend to look at properties once MASA as dropped us off at the airport. can MASA find out about this and can they do anything thank you 

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Bobaol,

You said about Masa ...   "they get it back later, by the way, by hitting you with a bill for about 400 euros or so". Whatever did you mean, please ? We have been on numerous inspection trips (Masa, Atlas, Iberian, Parador) & never had any "bill" because we didn't purchase. Please elaborate as it's obviously concerning some members. Thank you.

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi Gringo

MASA - My experience is that they don't charge for inspection trips. They DO charge about 400euros IF you choose to take their 'move-in' services. Worth every penny in my opinion because they arranged bank accounts, liaised with the builder for us, helped us arrange water, electrcity etc etc,  held our hand throughout & the whole thing was painless.

Good luck in your search.

Lizy

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know

Hi, we went on a trip with MASA and had a great time.  No hidden costs whatsoever.

Regards M

 Spam post or abuse? Please let us know