# Any advice appreciated...



## furryultra (Oct 16, 2015)

Hi Folks

Just stumbled across your forum and was hoping for a few pointers here and there . 

My ( and my wifes ) position is that we are entirely serious about making the big move but realise we have a huge amount of information gathering ahead of us . We will ( in a year or two ) fortunately have sufficient funds to buy outright in Spain (budget £60K ) and retire in our late 40's to Spain . We intend when the time comes to rent for a considerable amount of time in whatever area we decide to settle in to make sure we are making the right move . 

What i'd like to ask you all for is your recommendations for towns that you feel may be suitable to our criteria that we could visit in the time leading up to this and explore to see if we like them etc. 

We'd like to stay in a town that although has expats is by no means a "Little Britain" for want of a better phrase as we would like to learn the language better and integrate into our new surroundings and embrace the spanish customs and way of life. We like restaurants and bars and a good busy nightlife but think our days of discos etc are gone . The areas we are interested in are Andalusia and Murcia . For our £60K budget we would like 2 bedrooms and a decent bit outdoor space within walking distance of the town centre which by no means has to be by the coast although it would be nice . We both play a huge amount of tennis so facilities for that are very important to us . We would also like to near a weekly food market as cooking is one of our other passions .

We are in early stages but are set on making the step and any help whatsoever in guiding us towards our goal would be hugely appreciated . I hope the info i have given is useful to you in giving us a few pointers

Thank in advance


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## smitty5668 (Feb 25, 2015)

what part of spain are you looking at?


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## furryultra (Oct 16, 2015)

Hi smitty5668

We're looking at Andalusia and Murcia


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## smitty5668 (Feb 25, 2015)

our place is in murcia near mazarron. property prices are reasonable,and we are 15 minutes from the beach by car.
lots of different places to look at, and sights to see.


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## amespana (Nov 10, 2009)

Would you be looking for work?


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Even away from the coast I'm not sure you are going to get a place with "a decent bit of outside space" for £60k unless you are prepared to do some work on it. Is that in your plan? Does your budget include fees, taxes etc?


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Alcalaina said:


> Even away from the coast I'm not sure you are going to get a place with "a decent bit of outside space" for £60k unless you are prepared to do some work on it. Is that in your plan? Does your budget include fees, taxes etc?


I had my doubts about that too. There are plenty of properties here for that budget, but the outside space would be limited to a patio and/or a roof terrace. As I've said before, those properties with good outside space but just on the edge of or within walking distance of a village or town and good access to all facilities which everyone seems to want are as rare as hen's teeth. If I were an estate agent I think I'd be unable to prevent myself groaning every time I heard those words.


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## furryultra (Oct 16, 2015)

Hi Guys

thanks for the replies. the budget is £60K plus the 10-12% for fees etc . A roof terrace would be absolutely great and would certainly count as outdoor space for me . This is one of the reasons to ask people in the know as at the moment ( about to change shortly ) we are limited to watching tv programmes and reading online which i don't think paints a true picture of the day to day stuff and the realities of what you'll get for your money

We're not looking to do any work to the property or looking for jobs at all

Thanks


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

I put 'casa se vende 60,000 murcia ' into google & got these, among others

if nothing else, you'll see what you might get for the money

Casas 60000 euros Murcia - ventadepisos.com

Casas y pisos hasta 60.000 euros en Lo Pagán, Murcia — idealista


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

furryultra said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> thanks for the replies. the budget is £60K plus the 10-12% for fees etc . A roof terrace would be absolutely great and would certainly count as outdoor space for me . This is one of the reasons to ask people in the know as at the moment ( about to change shortly ) we are limited to watching tv programmes and reading online which i don't think paints a true picture of the day to day stuff and the realities of what you'll get for your money
> 
> ...


In that case, there are properties in the old, historic part of Velez-Malaga which would be available at your budget. This is a large town, the administrative capital of the Axarquia region East of Málaga, 35/40 minutes from Málaga airport by car and 1 hr 15 mins from the centre of Málaga by bus. It is 5km inland from the coast at Torre del Mar, there is a very good local bus service down to the coast at 15 minute intervals during the day Mon-Fri, every 30 mins in the evenings and at weekends. The non-Soanish population of the town is just under 10% of the total, made up of many different nationalities and there is next to no visible "international" presence in the town as far as bars and restaurants are concerned. The town has hundreds of shops of all kinds and very good leisure facilities. One thing we have here which seems to be unusual is a good low cost option for internet - there are two cable tv companies in town which also offer broadband and phone services. Ours is 20mbs, unlimited downloads, for €18 per month inc IVA. The main hospital for the region is just minutes away between Velez and Torre del Mar, and there are two health centres in the town. There is also a large indoor shopping centre between Velez and Torre, with an Aqua Park opposite it which is open in summer. There is a golf course just 10 minutes' drive away at Caleta de Velez and a marina at Caleta as well.

Properties in the town have been featured a couple of times in recent editions of the Place in the Sun tv programme. This agent probably has the widest selection of properties available in this location:-

Essential Properties | We make life simple!

You mention that you are considering Andalucia or Murcia. One thing you might be interested in comparing between the two regions is the position regarding inheritance tax. In Murcia, only the national allowance against inheritance tax can be claimed, even between spouses, which is only c.€17,000. In Andalucia, a spouse or child inheriting can inherit €175,000 free of inheritance tax and there is also a 99% exemption for the family home, if the catastral value is €122,000 or less, provided the property is retained for at least 10 years following the death.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

furryultra said:


> Hi Guys
> 
> thanks for the replies. the budget is £60K plus the 10-12% for fees etc . A roof terrace would be absolutely great and would certainly count as outdoor space for me . This is one of the reasons to ask people in the know as at the moment ( about to change shortly ) we are limited to watching tv programmes and reading online which i don't think paints a true picture of the day to day stuff and the realities of what you'll get for your money
> 
> ...


I think you mean 15% . 

10% of that is ITP (transfer tax) in most areas.

Best to err on the side of caution


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

snikpoh said:


> I think you mean 15% .
> 
> 10% of that is ITP (transfer tax) in most areas.
> 
> Best to err on the side of caution


I don't think so. As I've pointed out before, the transfer tax is still 8% in Andalucia for properties sold (or officially valued) up to €400,000. I don't know how much it is in Murcia.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

furryultra said:


> . We both play a huge amount of tennis so facilities for that are very important to us . We would also like to near a weekly food market as cooking is one of our other passions .


I forgot to say, there is a municipal sports complex in the centre of Velez which has tennis courts as well as 2 25 metre indoor pools, a gym, padel courts, etc.

Complejo Deportivo Piscina Cubierta Vélez Málaga

There is an indoor food market open 6 days a week and a weekly outdoor market.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

The property transfer tax still appears to be 8% in Murcia, too.


Property taxes in Spain


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Lynn R said:


> The property transfer tax still appears to be 8% in Murcia, too.
> 
> 
> Property taxes in Spain


Thanks. I keep forgetting that each region has different rates - it's 10% in Valencia.


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## smitty5668 (Feb 25, 2015)

and as lynn says it's 8% in murcia.


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## Roy C (Sep 29, 2012)

Your £60k at the current exchange is about 81000 euro so you could be looking at 90k properties to negotiate down to your budget. IMO


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## furryultra (Oct 16, 2015)

Thanks very much guys , all great help and think we will do some investigation on velez as seems to tick an awful lot of boxes .


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

furryultra said:


> Thanks very much guys , all great help and think we will do some investigation on velez as seems to tick an awful lot of boxes .


On first sight, you may not like it as the approach to the town, and all around the edges, is like many large towns in Spain, mostly blocks of flats. However, further investigation pays dividends as the older parts of town, mostly uphill from the town centre, are much nicer (and have great views from those roof terraces!). 

It is urban, no getting away from that, but you are not going to find the same range of amenities, infrastructure and good transport links in smaller, possibly more scenic locations.


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Remember the OP said in a year or two. Prices could have increased a bit by then.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Isobella said:


> Remember the OP said in a year or two. Prices could have increased a bit by then.


which would be nice.


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