# moving



## sonya69 (Apr 25, 2010)

Hi Everyone

I am moving with the kids to Marbella in July. Does anyone know any second hand decent car sales rooms where i can buy a car.
And I am a english piano teacher mainly for primary age children, do you think there would be much interest in this ?

Sonya


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## lynn (Sep 25, 2008)

sonya69 said:


> Hi Everyone
> 
> I am moving with the kids to Marbella in July. Does anyone know any second hand decent car sales rooms where i can buy a car.
> And I am a english piano teacher mainly for primary age children, do you think there would be much interest in this ?
> ...



I don't know of any independent car dealers in the area, but we bought a second hand car through the Peugeot dealer in Mijas called Bugar Motors. I paid a bit more probably, but did get 2 years warranty and felt safer about what I was buying and the fact that the paperwork would be done correctly. 

As for interest in Piano teaching, I believe there is a big music school based in Marbella called Espiritu Espiritu Joven De La Musica. It might be worth you contacting them to see if they need any more tutors?

Good luck with the move

Lynn
x


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## m3mpower (May 1, 2010)

sonya69 said:


> Hi Everyone
> 
> I am moving with the kids to Marbella in July. Does anyone know any second hand decent car sales rooms where i can buy a car.
> And I am a english piano teacher mainly for primary age children, do you think there would be much interest in this ?
> ...


Hi,
one thing i know is that second hand cars in spain are much more expensive then in the UK but good luck finding one and good luck with the move..

Regards


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

m3mpower said:


> Hi,
> one thing i know is that second hand cars in spain are much more expensive then in the UK but good luck finding one and good luck with the move..
> 
> Regards


Indeed they are!! The paperwork is the major issue too. As Lynn says its probably better to go to a reputable dealer as they should make sure the paperwork is done and the car is not debt ridden!

Jo xxx


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## m3mpower (May 1, 2010)

jojo said:


> Indeed they are!! The paperwork is the major issue too. As Lynn says its probably better to go to a reputable dealer as they should make sure the paperwork is done and the car is not debt ridden!
> 
> Jo xxx


I also know that in the UK you can do what we call a HPI check, i do it all the time as i sell cars myself here and this costs around £20 and it tells you if the car has any outstanding finance, if it was stolen, if the registration document is fake, if the car has been in an accident....etc and this is a must really when you buy a car as you never know whats hidden behind it, 
i dont know how it works in spain but i'm sure or at least there must be something similar, i would really want to find out myself...

Kind regards


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

There is a site where you can find out if the vendor has any outstanding fines, can't remember what it is though. Maybe someone out there will know of it?
One other option is to buy a LHD car in the UK. I have bought two, one with Spanish plates and paperwork, from a dealer in Basingstoke specialising in LHD cars.
If you don't want to drive it to Spain yourself, they will deliver to your door at a very reasonable cost.
I had both my cars from them delivered to my home in Prague for less than the cost of me flying to the UK and driving the vehicles back to CR.
The work situation here is truly dire, 20% unemployment. There is much more info about that on other threads here.


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## m3mpower (May 1, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> There is a site where you can find out if the vendor has any outstanding fines, can't remember what it is though. Maybe someone out there will know of it?
> One other option is to buy a LHD car in the UK. I have bought two, one with Spanish plates and paperwork, from a dealer in Basingstoke specialising in LHD cars.
> If you don't want to drive it to Spain yourself, they will deliver to your door at a very reasonable cost.
> I had both my cars from them delivered to my home in Prague for less than the cost of me flying to the UK and driving the vehicles back to CR.
> The work situation here is truly dire, 20% unemployment. There is much more info about that on other threads here.


lovely, thanks very much, if you do remember that site, please let me know.
Thanks


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

m3mpower said:


> lovely, thanks very much, if you do remember that site, please let me know.
> Thanks


We used it to check if there were any outstanding fines for non-payment of traffic violations, debts etc. on our LandRover. Fortunately none!
Try this: stop24.es (you pay to access this) or buscamultas.com (free, I think it was the one we used). You just need NIE number and car reg. If you don't have NIE I guess you could try your passport number....


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## m3mpower (May 1, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> We used it to check if there were any outstanding fines for non-payment of traffic violations, debts etc. on our LandRover. Fortunately none!
> Try this: stop24.es (you pay to access this) or buscamultas.com (free, I think it was the one we used). You just need NIE number and car reg. If you don't have NIE I guess you could try your passport number....


Fantastic, i'll give it a go...
thanks very much


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## Guest (May 3, 2010)

Depends on budget but if you're looking for a cheap banger then your luck is out as they don't exist so you might be better off looking at a long term rental to start with! There is a second hand dealer on the Coin road out from Fuengirola that I almost bought from (a friend did) and I have a mate (benalcars.com) who has a 4x4/sportscar place that often gets "cheap" trade-ins but other than that there isn't much.


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## adkam (Apr 29, 2010)

There are quite a few web sites advertising cars here just like the UK. This one is quite good as it has all sorts of prices and both private and dealers. It does cover all of Spain but quite a few are on the Costa del Sol and will give you an idea of what you might pay. AutoScout24: Coches de ocasión, vehículos usados, coche segunda mano


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## Guest (May 3, 2010)

Have you tried using that autoscout site for real? When I was looking a couple of years ago most of the cars didn't exist when you rang up about them, never really found out why though!


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## adkam (Apr 29, 2010)

Going to look at one tomorrow from that site. Will be interesting to see if a) it exists b) its the same as the photos! will let you know!


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## sonya69 (Apr 25, 2010)

*Areas to live*

Hi Lynn
Thank you for your reply.
can i pick your brains and also jojo if you see this. we are moving in july and my son and daughter are going to the marbella int school estopona. The rentals market is great but the areas where i want to be in ,Im not sure about if i rent for 11 months will i regret not being in the right place. 
As i want to be fairly close to the beach and the school driving back and forth.but also want the mix of spanish and english kids. from your experience would you recommend a private villa or a townhouse in a small complex ? And what areas would you recommend to visit? 
we are coming out in may and june to look at rentals.

as my partner will be flying back and forth to work in london I don't want to feel isolated straight away. In the winters with the marble flooring would you recommend to have under floor heating?

Thank you all for your advice and help most appreciated.

sonya



lynn said:


> I don't know of any independent car dealers in the area, but we bought a second hand car through the Peugeot dealer in Mijas called Bugar Motors. I paid a bit more probably, but did get 2 years warranty and felt safer about what I was buying and the fact that the paperwork would be done correctly.
> 
> As for interest in Piano teaching, I believe there is a big music school based in Marbella called Espiritu Espiritu Joven De La Musica. It might be worth you contacting them to see if they need any more tutors?
> 
> ...


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

sonya69 said:


> Hi Lynn
> Thank you for your reply.
> can i pick your brains and also jojo if you see this. we are moving in july and my son and daughter are going to the marbella int school estopona. The rentals market is great but the areas where i want to be in ,Im not sure about if i rent for 11 months will i regret not being in the right place.
> As i want to be fairly close to the beach and the school driving back and forth.but also want the mix of spanish and english kids. from your experience would you recommend a private villa or a townhouse in a small complex ? And what areas would you recommend to visit?
> ...


UNDERFLOOR HEATING??? YES!! Well, seriously I guess its not essential. Its something I'd like but probably pricey. As for choosing where to live. Hhhmm, it depends on what sort of person you are, how sociable you are, how old and what your children are like. I live in a villa in the middle of nowhere which we all love, but I do sometimes wonder if it would have better for us, especially the kids if we were nearer to other families and easier access to towns, parks, other families etc. It would be nice if my kids could go to a local shop on their own, see other kids, that sort of thing?? We did look at a couple of places on an "expat urbanisation", but my family didnt want to live there and apparently it wasnt all "peace and love" there - some neighbours got annoyed with the kids playing outside, dogs barking..... 

What I would suggest is go for what you want for now - "the dream house", but make sure your contract is one that you can break with one months notice WITHOUT penalties if you think you've made the wrong decision. Even 11 months isnt as permanent as buying. But come and look at a few places and see what you think and feel. You'll probably find that your kids will start school and make friends with kids there - and they'll live the farthest away from wherever you are - thats what mine did. My sons best friend lives nearly an hours drive away! That is one of the downsides of international schools, the kids all seem to live many miles away in different directions

Jo xxx


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## lynn (Sep 25, 2008)

Hi Sonya,
I would second everything that Jo has said! Unfortunately, neither of us live near the area you are looking at, and I don't know anything about the school you are sending your children to either, so I couldn't tell you which urbanisations or areas would be best to look at?? We ruled out living that far from Malaga airport as we would be making weekly drop offs and pick ups and wanted to make it as painless as possible! From where we are, I can get the airport in 20 minutes.
Underfloor heating sounds wonderful, but be wary of the cost of actually running it. My parents have it in their house but NEVER use it because the cost is just too prohibative. The colder months can be miserable, but most survive with fires in the evening, plug in radiators and gas heaters. And its worth investing in rugs to put down in the winter too.
As for the problem of feeling isolated, I would suggest that you sign up for some Spanish lessons (Mijas town hall organise the ones I go to), get involved with a club or charity (lots of animal charities down here) and that way you will start to meet people. Pick up a copy of Sur in English newspaper which has details of things going on in your area. I would also recommend the dreaded social networking sites like Facebook to keep in touch with all your friends and family. I have been introduced to it through my kids, and I have to begrudgingly admit that it has been really helpful for me in these first few months.
Feel free to PM me if you want any specific info

Lynn
x


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Brit-dominated urbs can be heaven or hell...it's down to personal preference. We have lived in three different types of accommodation since we came here: my son's smallish house on a long-established, small Spanish pueblo-style communidad on the beach, then a ground-floor piso and finally our villa, not on an urb on the edge of a village within easy reach of Marbella and Estepona.
There were some very pleasant people on the first two developments and the accommodation was satisfactory but we had never lived in such close proximity to people before and it really wasn't for us. During the summer months I suspect there is a lot of movement and noise as many of these types of properties are rented out during the season.
It all depends on what kind of lifestyle you prefer, as someone said. If you are a sociable kind of person and want to be around fellow-Brits, an urb/communidad may suit you. If you're anti-social miserable old sods and prefer peace and relative privacy, like us, a house/villa in an ordinary street may be the better option.
Strangely, though, there seems to be a complete absence of children round here, which is a bit unnatural, really. It may be a good idea to rent short-term and try various options before you finally decide which is best for you.
That can be a bit of a nuisance though if you have brought all your furniture and other household and personal goods and chattels with you, as we found out....
Oh, and yes, underfloor heating is expensive. We have it in our bathrooms as there is no real alternative and the electricity bills soared.


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## adkam (Apr 29, 2010)

Hi there. We have lived in Estepona since January. (The wife, me and a one year old). If you want to meet up in the port for a coffee when you are here, we'd be delighted to help you with any information we can provide including if you want an introduction to our rental agent who's been a great help to us.


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## sonya69 (Apr 25, 2010)

Hi
That would be great to meet up, as we feel we need to be near estopona as the school is there. my daughter is now 1 year and 3 months old and my son is 5 and a half. we are coming over in May and june to view properties. So yes we would like to meet your agent or if you can direct me to his website i would be grateful. How do you find the life over there ? 

Regards
sonya 



adkam said:


> Hi there. We have lived in Estepona since January. (The wife, me and a one year old). If you want to meet up in the port for a coffee when you are here, we'd be delighted to help you with any information we can provide including if you want an introduction to our rental agent who's been a great help to us.


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