# Looking for a warm place in Costa del Sol :)



## mauzer_tim (Nov 20, 2010)

Hi everyone on this forum!

Me with my wife decided to escape from Russian winter in Spain and spend next 3 months here. We've just arrived, stayed in a hotel in Fuingirola and I started looking for a flat to rent. The problem is that I need to work,not rest (my job is IT-related so I can do it remotely - only a good internet connection is required), we do not know exactly what place\city should we choose and how to rent a flat with a minimal as possible excessive spendings. That's why I'm asking here your advice, probably it may help me clear some dark some spots in my mind.

That was a short introduction and now my questions: 
1. What place to choose to live in in Andalus province? It's needed that the city has to be enough lively and there we can find entertainments, e.g. some kind of courses like dancing, Spanish and etc. Other criteria is the cost of living and renting flats - we need a budget rent. We are considering between Benalmadema (close to Malaga), Fuingirola or Malaga. Also we think of Granada. What would you recommend us considering my (a bit enormous) criterias
2. What's the good price to rent for 3 months in different regions of Andalus province, say in Malaga or Granada? I need a normal budget accomodation, not slums, but not expensive.
3. How to rent? What start from? I can speak a bit Spanish so I would like to rent from an owner rather than agent. Maybe you can send some links where people place their ads on renting the houses\flats?
3. A bit offtopic question: How to get an access to the Internet? How much does it cost. Yesterday I was in office of Movistar they tod me that since I'm not a resident I'm not eligible to use their USB dongle and Internet plans.

Sorry if I'm asking something second time on this forum, I've researched it but still don't have a clear understanding of what to do next.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

I think before you can do anything, you need to obtain an NIE number, that will allow you to purchase a mobile phone, internet access take on utility bills etc. To rent. The best thing to do is to go through the local newspapers, Sur in English, Friday ad.. spring to mind, both can be accessed on line! Rent will vary so much depending on whether you want a big/small property, front line to the sea (expensive), inland (cheaper) etc... Cheap apartments on the coast will be around 300€, but thats only a very rough guide. For three months rental, they will probably want the total amount up front

However, are you an EU resident?? You say you've come from Russia?? On that, I dont know what the rules are, if you require a visa ???? If you need one to get an NIE number then you could have a problem

Jo xxx


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## mayotom (Nov 8, 2008)

Welcome Tim, I assume you are on a 90 day tourist visa, therefore you will not qualify for an NIE or residency. 
As for warm places you can rule out Granada, its a beautiful place but is very cold in the winter, with temperatures regularly below freezing, due to the height of the city
To search for apartments to rent, look in the Sur classifieds or in many other websites which you can find by searching this forum. You will find that the temperature does vary a lot in the winter between the coast and the inland areas, but a good intermediary would be places like Mijas, where you are close to the coast, but away from the high rents, the town has a bit of life to it and the views are amazing.

Re the internet, you will not be able to get a post pay plan without residency, but there should be prepay options available where documents are not required and you then pay as you use. Also when you are looking for a place to rent, ask if they have internet connected, the landlord should be able to assist with this


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

I got a rental contract, bank account, internet and landline connection, mobile phone,car on Spanish plates, all before I got my NIE.
Was that because I'm an EU citizen, I wonder?


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## mauzer_tim (Nov 20, 2010)

jojo said:


> I think before you can do anything, you need to obtain an NIE number, that will allow you to purchase a mobile phone, internet access take on utility bills etc. To rent. The best thing to do is to go through the local newspapers, Sur in English, Friday ad.. spring to mind, both can be accessed on line! Rent will vary so much depending on whether you want a big/small property, front line to the sea (expensive), inland (cheaper) etc... Cheap apartments on the coast will be around 300€, but thats only a very rough guide. For three months rental, they will probably want the total amount up front
> 
> However, are you an EU resident?? You say you've come from Russia?? On that, I dont know what the rules are, if you require a visa ???? If you need one to get an NIE number then you could have a problem


Hi jojo, thanks for your reply! Yes, I'm from Russia and I'm on a 90 tourist visa here. I already has rented a car, and connected mobile phone... without NIE. (But my hairs bristled up when I saw my mobile tariff (Movistar) with the pricing at 38c per minute  . I wonder are these predatory tariffs a Spain-only thing or it's the same in all Europe? To compare: in Russia we pay about 3c per minute)

Thanks for advice to see local newspapers, it's a good idea! I'm not speaking ironically, due to my IT work I really forgot this way, perhaps the simplest one 




mayotom said:


> Welcome Tim, I assume you are on a 90 day tourist visa, therefore you will not qualify for an NIE or residency. As for warm places you can rule out Granada, its a beautiful place but is very cold in the winter, with temperatures regularly below freezing, due to the height of the city
> To search for apartments to rent, look in the Sur classifieds or in many other websites which you can find by searching this forum. You will find that the temperature does vary a lot in the winter between the coast and the inland areas, but a good intermediary would be places like Mijas, where you are close to the coast, but away from the high rents, the town has a bit of life to it and the views are amazing.
> 
> Re the internet, you will not be able to get a post pay plan without residency, but there should be prepay options available where documents are not required and you then pay as you use. Also when you are looking for a place to rent, ask if they have internet connected, the landlord should be able to assist with this


*Mayotom*, many thanks for your advices! Yes, we are on a 90 day tourist visa - our goal is to live here enough time to understand if we really would like to move to Spain or not.

Regarding NIE, I believe I can qualify for it - AFAIK it doesn't matter what kind of visa do you have to get it, however I need to check that. 

And thanks for the link!

============
And some additional questions to community: As far as I understand the common recommendation for me is to choose a small town near Malaga, e.g. Mijas don't it? Why not choosing outskirts of Malaga instead? Only because of high rental prices?

Today we were exploring Fuengirola (where I'm staying in now) and Benalmadena (pueblo).

Fuengirola looks interesting as it's enough big and lively town, with a quiet and green districts. 
Benalmadena seems to be a beautiful and peaceful but a very lonely town. Hard to get to it (from the coast), few people on the streets and very narrowed streets. I saw posts here where people recommend Benalmadena as a place to live, however I cannot believe that it's possible to live there for a long time (it's probably great for a short rest, though) . Maybe they are speaking about another Benalmadena?


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Movistar tariffs are outrageous. Not only the per-minute rates, but 71 cents to send a text to a non-Spanish mobile! They even charge you 50c to check your statement online.

They had no competition for many years, so could get away with it, but new companies like Yoigo (8 cents a minute) are making them jump.


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## mattferrier (Oct 18, 2010)

mauzer_tim said:


> Hi everyone on this forum!
> 3. A bit offtopic question: How to get an access to the Internet? How much does it cost. Yesterday I was in office of Movistar they tod me that since I'm not a resident I'm not eligible to use their USB dongle and Internet plans.
> .


ive recently moved just outside marbella, and getting internet was causing to be a pain as the assistants in the shops werent as helpful as could of been.
if you work in IT and will be porbably constantly using it then you may find a usb stick to be very expensive and not so reliable and you will still need a contract (i was told 18 months)
there are lots of Y internet hot spots all over where you can pay hourly,daily,monthly etc.
my advice would be to throw this issue at an agent and let them find you somewhere that has internet connection already that can be just hooked up again. i'm on a complex that has y internet through a dish attached to my flat for only 20e per month (price may vary as thats a deal for this complex, i think its 35e)
there are other providers too, if there has been a previous installation then reconnecting will be simple.
all you will need is a spanish bank account to pay them from, which with some banks here can be setup within the hour. mine took 30 mins to get the details i needed


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## mauzer_tim (Nov 20, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> Movistar tariffs are outrageous. Not only the per-minute rates, but 71 cents to send a text to a non-Spanish mobile! They even charge you 50c to check your statement online.
> 
> They had no competition for many years, so could get away with it, but new companies like Yoigo (8 cents a minute) are making them jump.


Thanks I'll see if I can connect to this operator in my city. Strange, but I never seen their sign boards.



mattferrier said:


> ive recently moved just outside marbella, and getting internet was causing to be a pain as the assistants in the shops werent as helpful as could of been.
> if you work in IT and will be porbably constantly using it then you may find a usb stick to be very expensive and not so reliable and you will still need a contract (i was told 18 months)
> there are lots of Y internet hot spots all over where you can pay hourly,daily,monthly etc.
> my advice would be to throw this issue at an agent and let them find you somewhere that has internet connection already that can be just hooked up again. i'm on a complex that has y internet through a dish attached to my flat for only 20e per month (price may vary as thats a deal for this complex, i think its 35e)
> ...


Hi Matt,
Thanks for the information! I really do not have an agent and trying to find an accommodation by myself so I cannot throw the issue to him. So far I've seen several accomodations and I can confirm that you are absolutely right about the pain of connecting the internet. Some house owners say "well... I'm not sure there's somewhere a socket for internet in the appartment provided by the utility company... and you need somehow to connect to it" or just "you should connect internet by yourself. Try using Orange, they will give 5 giga- or megabytes (I dunno certainly) for only 39 euro"  Spain (especially such tourist-centric places like CDS) is likely not the best place for my work


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## mattferrier (Oct 18, 2010)

mauzer_tim said:


> Hi Matt,
> Thanks for the information! I really do not have an agent and trying to find an accommodation by myself so I cannot throw the issue to him. So far I've seen several accomodations and I can confirm that you are absolutely right about the pain of connecting the internet. Some house owners say "well... I'm not sure there's somewhere a socket for internet in the appartment provided by the utility company... and you need somehow to connect to it" or just "you should connect internet by yourself. Try using Orange, they will give 5 giga- or megabytes (I dunno certainly) for only 39 euro"  Spain (especially such tourist-centric places like CDS) is likely not the best place for my work


the point i was making is a good agent will save you a lot of time considering there are probably hundreds of vacant properties in the area you have mentioned.
my agent was very helpful and it didnt cost me any more than sorting it myself as the commission came from the owners pocket. i told her everything i wanted and only viewed what had everything i had stated.
connecting to the internet is not as simple as having a socket that might be live. to my knowledge very few if any areas are cabled and ready to go. i know my internet is from a dish that was installed by the internet company. so saying there might be internet connection is avoiding answering. you would know if someone came out to put a dish up for the sole purpose of your internet!
others may be able to correct me if im wrong as having a dish may only be due to whats on offer in my location


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Our agent did everything for us. in fact we thought we'd have to sort our own internet/phone out, in fact we had someone lines up to do it, but it was all ready and waiting when we moved in. 

Jo xxx


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