# Caretaker / key holder



## macg (Feb 11, 2017)

We are just about to close on our holiday home in Torrox and was considering the use the of a caretaker / key holder for when we are not in Spain, in case of an emergency.
We recently sold our house in Florida and we used a management company there to make a weekly check on the house and also to act as key holder in the event that the house alarm went off.
Is a caretaker / key holder service quite standard in Spain and if so, does anyone have any recommendations for the Torrox / Nerva area
many thanks
Graham


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

macg said:


> We are just about to close on our holiday home in Torrox and was considering the use the of a caretaker / key holder for when we are not in Spain, in case of an emergency.
> We recently sold our house in Florida and we used a management company there to make a weekly check on the house and also to act as key holder in the event that the house alarm went off.
> Is a caretaker / key holder service quite standard in Spain and if so, does anyone have any recommendations for the Torrox / Nerva area
> many thanks
> Graham


:welcome:

I'm not in that area so can't recommend anyone personally.

There are lots of keyholder/caretaker services in Spain. The best advice I can offer is to ensure that whoever you use, you see proof that they have proper insurance & that the business is properly registered.

It's all too common in tourist areas for people to people to just put an advert on a local facebook group & magically become a 'keyholding business'. That doesn't necessarily mean that they are dishonest, but if anything were to go wrong & they weren't properly registered with their own insurance, it's highly unlikely that your insurance company would pay out.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

xabiachica said:


> :welcome:
> 
> I'm not in that area so can't recommend anyone personally.
> 
> ...


Indeed. I know of people who provide such services, being paid cash in hand so not registered as businesses or paying tax on the income, and from living near to properties they are employed to check on I can only say that the quality of the service they provide is variable to say the least. Some are conscientious but others are supposed to make regular checks and hardly go near the place.

Sometimes estate agents provide these services, for a fee. That was the case with one house near the house we've just moved from, and they put a sign next to the front door saying "Keyholder - xxxxxx Properties, with their phone number. We thought that was very ill advised as to us it is just an advertisement that the property is unoccupied for most of the time, a handy pointer to potential burglars.

If the OP employs a keyholder he should also keep a careful eye on electricity and water consumption during his absence. It is not unknown for some unscrupulous people who provide property management services to rent the property out without the owner's knowledge and pocket the rent, because they know when the owner is going to be coming out and when the property is going to be empty.

Personal recommendations from property owners living nearby are probably best in order to find someone reliable and honest.


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## nigelsmalley (Dec 31, 2009)

Lynn R said:


> Indeed. I know of people who provide such services, being paid cash in hand so not registered as businesses or paying tax on the income, and from living near to properties they are employed to check on I can only say that the quality of the service they provide is variable to say the least. Some are conscientious but others are supposed to make regular checks and hardly go near the place.
> 
> Sometimes estate agents provide these services, for a fee. That was the case with one house near the house we've just moved from, and they put a sign next to the front door saying "Keyholder - xxxxxx Properties, with their phone number. We thought that was very ill advised as to us it is just an advertisement that the property is unoccupied for most of the time, a handy pointer to potential burglars.
> 
> ...


Have you considered using a security system connected to the Internet with video cameras that you can access at any time and if the alarm goes off. The best of both worlds. Use the keyholder to make checks and respond to an alarm activation.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

nigelsmalley said:


> Have you considered using a security system connected to the Internet with video cameras that you can access at any time and if the alarm goes off. The best of both worlds. Use the keyholder to make checks and respond to an alarm activation.


I don't need a keyholder, I live here. You don't sell security systems by any chance, do you?


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## nigelsmalley (Dec 31, 2009)

I used to live in Spain but now back in the UK for family reasons. I did sell security systems from time to time and was always amazed that absentee owners of properties do not even have security systems. These systems today linked to the Internet only cost a few hundred pounds and people left their expensive homes unguarded. Nigel


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

How long does it take, normally, for someone to respond to an alarm when it goes off, be that the police or a keyholder - and in what percentage of break-ins are the thieves apprehended in the act? I suspect that in the vast majority of cases they can get into and out of the property and be long gone by the time anybody gets there to investigate, so it's up to the householder to decide whether the money spent on the alarm system is justified just to find out that their house has been broken into.


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Lynn R said:


> How long does it take, normally, for someone to respond to an alarm when it goes off, be that the police or a keyholder - and in what percentage of break-ins are the thieves apprehended in the act? I suspect that in the vast majority of cases they can get into and out of the property and be long gone by the time anybody gets there to investigate, so it's up to the householder to decide whether the money spent on the alarm system is justified just to find out that their house has been broken into.


Hola

I have eight cameras in a security system that is on-line. The cameras all work and the infra-red can be seen of a night; therefore to my mind it is a deterrent to anyone deciding to break in as their images will be caught on the hard drive. 

The whole system would have to be stolen if the thieves wanted to avoid having their images published by the police 

Davexf


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

davexf said:


> Hola
> 
> I have eight cameras in a security system that is on-line. The cameras all work and the infra-red can be seen of a night; therefore to my mind it is a deterrent to anyone deciding to break in as their images will be caught on the hard drive.
> 
> ...


Are the thieves really so stupid that if they can see infra-red (or even if they can't, if they see there is an alarm system installed) that they would not take steps to make sure their faces/heads are covered and they are wearing unremarkable clothing? 

I can't recall ever seeing images of thieves in the act of burgling a house being published by the police in Spain (is there a Spanish equivalent of Crimewatch, I've never seen it), although I suppose they could be produced as evidence if a case came to court.


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## trotter58 (Feb 8, 2017)

macg said:


> We are just about to close on our holiday home in Torrox and was considering the use the of a caretaker / key holder for when we are not in Spain, in case of an emergency.
> We recently sold our house in Florida and we used a management company there to make a weekly check on the house and also to act as key holder in the event that the house alarm went off.
> Is a caretaker / key holder service quite standard in Spain and if so, does anyone have any recommendations for the Torrox / Nerva area
> many thanks
> Graham


I would 2nd the recommendation that the key holder is properly registered & insured. It's not unknown for keys to be copied and properties to be sublet without the owners permission. 

I also agree that IP security cameras can be very useful. They can be bought for around £50-£100 and once correctly setup will: 
(1) Use motion detection to detect intruders or attempted break ins and upload photos/video to the cloud (no onsite unit required).
(2) Email you the photos/video direct to your laptop/mobile.
(3) Allow you to pan & tilt the camera to check for any damage to your property.

This does require a permanent internet connection at the property and you have to be careful where they are pointing. However, they do give peace of mind that your keyholder is checking the property regularly, the property is not being sublet and allows you to contact the police/keyholder quickly in the event that you are targeted by thieves ..... or even worse, squatters.


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