# Javea Property Hunt



## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Hi everyone

First, I'd like to give a huge thanks to everyone who has taken the time to answer peoples' questions here. I have been reading this site for a couple of weeks, and the wealth of information provided here is enormous.

My husband and I (both 50, no kids) are coming to Javea in November to start looking for a property to buy. 

A quick backround on us: both studied Spanish to 3rd year Uni level around 2007, made friends with a couple in Valencia - him Valenciano with no English, his wife from Uruguay with English at beginner level. We used to Skype 3 times per week, half hour of Spanish conversion, half hour of English, plus exchange emails for one another to correct. I watch RTVE from time to time. So my Spanish is there, just unused. Anyway, while visiting with these friends, they showed us around Javea (we went scuba diving) and we loved it.

We are now looking for a home that will be a (frequently used) holiday home until we are either in a position to work some months in Spain (my husband is a contractor and could work 6 months on (UK) 2 months off sort of thing) or retire there.

I am, I admit, nervous about the bad rep Valencia has (the whole land grab thing/selling illegal properties etc). Is this still an issue?

If anyone can recommend an estate agent to show a few properties, that would be appreciated (or should we just drive around and look ourselves?). I've been looking at a website called javeacasas.com which looks pretty good, but their testimonial page is a red flag (a good review every single month? just one? EVERY month? It seems contrived, usually you see a batch of reviews, then a month or so of nothing, then another one or two), and also there is not a single review outside of their own webpage either.

Thanks!


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## DaveandLiz (Aug 18, 2014)

and sometimes "if it sounds to good to be true"..................................it probably is....

Do some more searches online, lots of agents some good some bad but you will get a view of whats available

Good Luck

Dave


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Tusabrat said:


> Hi everyone
> ...
> Thanks!


Why do you want to buy instead of rent?


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Chopera said:


> Why do you want to buy instead of rent?


It's a good time to buy. Probably the best time. Also, I want a mortagage-free property for retirement. We want to offload our London flat for various reasons (plus it's a really good time to sell), and if we don't buy something else we will for sure fritter the money away.

I've read the advice about renting, and I think it's generally sound advice (which I'd probably follow if I were planning on living there permanently right away), but given that we want a holiday home in the first instance, renting is not feasible (i.e. you can't leave your stuff there/make it a home that you can just jet off to on random weekends etc).


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Tusabrat said:


> It's a good time to buy. Probably the best time. Also, I want a mortagage-free property for retirement. We want to offload our London flat for various reasons (plus it's a really good time to sell), and if we don't buy something else we will for sure fritter the money away.
> 
> I've read the advice about renting, and I think it's generally sound advice (which I'd probably follow if I were planning on living there permanently right away), but given that we want a holiday home in the first instance, renting is not feasible (i.e. you can't leave your stuff there/make it a home that you can just jet off to on random weekends etc).


I suspect it'll be a pretty good time to buy for a few years yet (but who knows?) The reason I asked is if you spent say a year exploring different areas on various trips over you'd probably get a better idea of what works for you than anybody on a forum can tell you. If you make a mistake with the purchase you might not be able to sell for a few years, and you'd probably make a loss, so it's worth taking a bit extra time getting it right

We've been visiting Javea for a few years now, and keep an eye out for buying somewhere if the right place comes up, but generally we see the same properties hanging around the market for months if not years on end. Conclusion: asking prices are still too high and you need to work out what offers people are willing to accept. This takes time, and spending a few thousand on extra trips to begin with might save you tens of thousands in the long run.

Anyways: if you are after a villa with land, then Tosalet and Absubia are good places to start, because they are relatively near the main beach. If you're not that bothered about the beach then there's the Montgo to consider as well. However villas can be high maintenance so if you prefer a lock-up-and-go then there are plenty of urbanizations between the port and the main beach. Idealista, Fotocasa and kyero are the main property portals. you'll probably find the same property listed with various agents, so an idea could be to pick the agent with the most properties you like ans start with them. Xabiachica might have some better suggestions.


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## Maureen47 (Mar 27, 2014)

I guess regarding the house prices having been looking for more than 18 months are dependent on whether someone wants to sell or wants to hang on for a better price. We have seen lots of houses that havent moved in price and are way above the current market value , I think its worth spending the time knowing the area you want to be in , the must haves for your house and then finding one at the right price. Our needs did change over the 18 months when we realised what we could get for our budget and had a rethink on what life in Spain would really be like in some of the houses we thought we would like to buy. Its a real roller coaster of a ride buying a house in Spain , so worht taking time to get it right because as another poster mentions , when its done its done and you could end up very unhappy and stuck with a house for a long time that doesnt work for you , Good Luck in your search and enjoy looking


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Chopera,

Thanks for very helpful reply. I probably didn't make myself clear, in that I'm not going to up and buy something in the next month - we will definately be coming on a few trips to look around. And not just in Javea either, we will be exploring a bit further up and down just to check everything out. My husband adores Valencia city itself (where our friends live), but it's not convenient if we want to fly with BA. However, we will nevertheless include that in our 'looking around'. 

Our timeline is probably to buy late 2015 - we are having our kitchen redone in November, then we need to do some other bits and pieces, put the flat on market, wait for it sell etc etc etc. While that is going on, we will be exploring. Our first trip in November is staying in a house in Montgo. Thank you ever so much for pointing out areas to consider, that is very helpful indeed.

One of our biggest decisions is whether to get a lock-up-and-leave apartment or a house. I think we'd prefer the convenience of an urbanization for now, but I'm pretty sure we'd want a house for retirement (we may want a dog, or a place to store toys - we love boats and canoes and all that stuff). So that's a pretty tough decision we need to make - and it may become easier once we see what's on offer. I guess I'm mostly put off by the chance of nightmare neighbours in apartments, where there is no room between you and the next person (for example, we currently live in a flat, and when the neighbours have parties on their balconies, the noise and cigarette smoke can be annoying - it's like they're partying right inside our own flat).




maureen47,

Thanks also for your view. What did you mean by 'a rethink on what life in Spain would really be like in some of the houses' - that you found you would be too isolated/cold? It's interesting that both you and Chopera feel the house prices are too high still. I'm not sure if they will come down further because here in the UK there seems to be a lot of interest again, after a long while of indifference. Also the Spanish economy seems to be turning a corner? (My friend in Valencia - her husband has just landed a job after 2 years of unemployment, and she feels things are a little better).

And yes - we will have fun looking! I'm just not sure if I should pre-book an agent to take us around before I get there, or just walk into the nearest inmobiliario. I don't want to end up owing money to some agency because they happened to show me around 8 months ago!


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Tusabrat said:


> ...
> One of our biggest decisions is whether to get a lock-up-and-leave apartment or a house. I think we'd prefer the convenience of an urbanization for now, but I'm pretty sure we'd want a house for retirement (we may want a dog, or a place to store toys - we love boats and canoes and all that stuff). So that's a pretty tough decision we need to make - and it may become easier once we see what's on offer. I guess I'm mostly put off by the chance of nightmare neighbours in apartments, where there is no room between you and the next person (for example, we currently live in a flat, and when the neighbours have parties on their balconies, the noise and cigarette smoke can be annoying - it's like they're partying right inside our own flat).
> 
> ...


Many urbanizations have what they call "townhouses" (or "bungalows" - even though they have more than one storey) so you only get neighbours to each side, and usually a bit of garden as well.


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## Maureen47 (Mar 27, 2014)

Tusabrat said:


> Chopera,
> 
> Thanks for very helpful reply. I probably didn't make myself clear, in that I'm not going to up and buy something in the next month - we will definately be coming on a few trips to look around. And not just in Javea either, we will be exploring a bit further up and down just to check everything out. My husband adores Valencia city itself (where our friends live), but it's not convenient if we want to fly with BA. However, we will nevertheless include that in our 'looking around'.
> 
> ...


Hi , to answer your questions , the rethink was that you can be taken in by a fabulous house that has no running water and relies on a deposito and solar power , wifi might be possible but signal could be dodgy , so things we thought we could live with or without we finally realised that we wanted comfort in Spain so bought a rural house that has mains power , water , air con , a pool , so we are ready to move in , we have plans for the land and want to make changes but we can do that whilst living comfortably and that wasnt our starting point , hope that explains the change. We didnt use agents to find us houses we spent a lot of time online but also have family in the area we bought and they were on the lookout for us too . Prices are still going down on some properties as when you have been looking a while you keep seeing the same ones and the over priced ones are still there 2 years later. We wanted to get a house at a realisitic price for the current market rather than the cheapest property we could find although initially some of the low prices are tempting but on investigation there is usually a reason why , Best of luck , its an exciting time !


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## Expatliving (Oct 21, 2013)

I'm going to throw my hat in the ring on this one, despite not being an expat on the ground in Javea.

I've been researching the Spanish property market now for probably 2-4 years, that long! Whilst my family circumstances are key to my personal 'move' time frame, I've also noticed a distinct sales pattern with regard to properties owned and being sold in Javea and the surrounding areas.

Obviously, personal circumstances with regard to newly widowed persons, empty properties etc, has an enormous effect on reasons for homes being put up for sale? Through 'asking' (via email) it has become very apparent that Brits are more inclined to inflate the value of their homes, whilst Spanish people want to stick very close to the original price.

I know the 'given' is to rent, possibly long term? However, no matter what anybody says, if you know and research an area well enough, that 'rented' outlay will not be necessary. I live in London, near Greenwich, but know very little about any area of London more than say 5 miles away. So, when have you ever heard of a person renting a home in an area (UK) just to give that particular area a trial run? It just doesn't happen, well rarely!

I know, I know! The sensible thing to do is rent, but rent for 3-6 months and that's a year's fee for a child at private International school? I would say, research and research again the area. Visit as many times as possible, watch out for people desperately trying to rekindle money to buy back into the UK market. This forum is excellent for information, both good and bad. 

One last thing ... Research known flooding incidents in your chosen Urb/location.

Anyway, it's my opinion, based on research and comparison.


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

The differences in buying somewhere else in the UK and buying in Spain include: UK agents are more highly regulated and tend to price to market more than Spanish ones, UK land registry sales figures are publicly available so you can easily find out sold prices for similar properties in the area, when you buy in the UK the solicitor is contracted to carry out searches and identify risks, such as flooding, subsidence, ground contamination, and whether the property is legal. Also in the UK what you see in summer is pretty much what you see in winter (which is why so many want to leave  ) whereas in Spain a property can be a sun drenched paradise in summer, full of life and fun, and a deserted, freezing ghost town in winter. Made worse because many coastal houses in Spain are designed for summer living only, and have poor insulation. 

In the UK taxes tend to be raised against properties while you own them, the form of council tax, whereas in Spain council taxes are low but transaction costs are high. In Spain the average cost of buying a house is now over 12%, and the cost of selling can be nearly as much. The overall effect is to make buying and selling in Spain much more expensive relative to the running costs, so it's not something people do as often as in the UK.

If you rent for a year then yes you have the costs of renting, but owning a house isn't without its costs either (especially if you have a mortgage) and, all things being equal, your additional knowledge of the market should allow you to at least recuperate those costs by negotiating a better deal.

Having said all that, of course people looking for holiday homes aren't usually in the position to spend a year renting in the area so it's not an option, and of course these days you can research a hell of a lot more online. So it's not as if renting first is obligatory, but "try before you buy" is a good option for many people.

Also, if buying in an urb you should always get in touch with the Administrador - they will tell you what issues the building has experienced, such as flooding. The other valuable source of information is the consierge - they know about everything going on in the building, and usually the surrounding ones as well (sale prices, any break-ins, etc).


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Thanks guys, your replies are all very informative - especially the titbit about the cost of buying being around 12%. We haven't got that far in our estimations yet (waiting to see first how much we can expect from our flat) so that's a good thing to factor in when we start looking to see what we can afford.

Smithkei - you are a new member, and signed up to make a single post, which promotes Javea Casas. I'm afraid it just adds a further red flag to the integrity of this business, so I will definately be avoiding it.

maureen47 - thanks for the explanation, that makes sense. As a computer programmer by trade (although I won't be working there) wifi will be a must - especially since I plan to automate my new home as I've done with my flat here in the UK (blinds scheduled to open or close with the sun, lights that turn on and off according to time or daylight, streamed music that turns off when the TV turns on etc).

Expatliving - when we moved to the UK 16 years ago, we were very afraid to buy in case we made a mistake, so we rented for about two years first. We ended up buying two roads away from where we were renting, and it ended up costing us about £50,000 in terms of the massive increase in property prices during that time! During the time we dithered about buying, the original property we liked shot up so much in value we could no longer afford it, and we ended up paying around £50,000 more for our property than we would have had we just purchased up front. Having said that, though, I'm not sure I would do it differently if I had a do-over - there was a certain amount of security when we bought our flat knowing we really did like the area.


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Hi tusa.
Yes I also think that it is a good time to buy & I have seen a noticeable increase in the amount of people asking about moving to Spain this year.
Javea is a nice area (IMO) with a lot to offer & from what I have seen has a whole bunch of good property for sale ...... well on face value that is.

As has been said (and you know) it will pay to have a good study & once you have narrowed your search down I would pop into some local bars to chat with the locals to get a better feel/info.

Silly things that can make a big difference here ?
Better to be "all" mains.
Better to be further up the hill than down.
Better to have good guttering.
Big plots need lots of work to keep nice.
Dustbins parked outside mean rubbish & smells.
Good vehicle access helps a lot.
Pine trees on the property = pine needles 24/7/365.
Etc 
Etc

All IMO of course & having said that when we sell we will rent , but in our case we intend to keep moving from place to place now we have finally decided what we wish to do in life. (took a while mind)


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

So, I am back after a 2 week visit to view property areas, sitting at my computer typing with one hand while scratching mosquito bites with the other! Oh, the joy of hot countries, all the biting things.

I know I said renting wasn't for us, but after this visit, I can see the wisdom in that advice. There are so many areas, each equally beautiful yet unique, that it would be impossible to choose without further experience of being there.

There are lots of issues that need investigating also - so much of what I've read in this forum came to life once I spoke to people living there (both expats and locals) who echoed the same thing - I need to look into the flood plains, to check out the potencia of a property, to beware of damp and mold in properties lower down the hills, and - something I noticed for myself - question the wisdom of villas clinging to the cliffs! Surely some of those must get lost to the sea due to erosion? We walked to Cap Prim (stunning!), and looking back you can see a huge million pound mansion being constructed on the cliff, right alongside a ridge of obvious erosion - are they crazy? I would never be able to sleep peacefully during a storm, scared about the place slipping down the cliff! How often do these villas get washed down the cliffs? I believe Balcon del Mar has the worst ground stability? I also saw a picture of a villa in La Barraca where the swimming pool went down the cliff.

We looked at property in La Sella (beautiful area, but the road there felt a little tedious), Montgo (gorgeous, but wild looking - I don't know if I'd feel safe at night if I were on my own), Puerte Fenicia (generally lovely up there, but out of our budget!) and we generally drove around getting a feel for distances.

We found that there seemed to be surprisingly little for our budget (£200,000, looking for 3 beds + 2 bathrooms) - we were mostly shown very old properties that needed some level of renovation, and which - in spite of the huge outdoor areas with sparkling pools in the photos - were fairly small inside. The more modern properties are lovely with no need for fixing up, but have tiny bedrooms; our super-kingsize bed would never fit in any of the newer apartments we viewed.

It was a hectic 10 days, but we came away with new Spanish friends already - it's amazing how people can communicate when they can barely speak! Our new friend speaks no English at all, and we only have our 3-year Open Uni course which finished in 2006, yet with a few copas de vino and a couple of chupitos in a late night Tapas bar, there was no language barrier! :blah: :blah:

So, I think we need to be there to buy a property.


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

VFR said:


> Pine trees on the property = pine needles 24/7/365.


Haha, yes, I remembered this when we were shown a house with two big pine trees on the property.

On a side note - we noticed that most residential areas had really bad, potholed roads - what's up with that?


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Tusabrat said:


> Haha, yes, I remembered this when we were shown a house with two big pine trees on the property.
> 
> On a side note - we noticed that most residential areas had really bad, potholed roads - what's up with that?


Depends who looks after them, odds on its the local council and money being tight ?


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

VFR said:


> Depends who looks after them, odds on its the local council and money being tight ?


a lot of the older urbs in Jávea are private inasmuch as the roads within the urbs (even if there's no obvious 'gate') are the responsibility of the community of property owners, rather than the ayto / council

some of the newer ones are still the responsibility of the builder - usually there is some issue which the builder hasn't met contractually, & the council hasn't yet adopted the urb, & therefore has no responsibility for the roads, street lighting etc.


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Does anyone live in, or know anyone who lives in, the Pueblo? We were wondering what it's like to live there, as apposed say, to the Port. 

Again, good reason to rent, I suppose, to find out.

We saw a small villa we liked in Costa Nova, but there was building (or maintenance work of some kind?) going on in the road, plus the property directly behind the house. Very nice houses around there, with very bad roads.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Tusabrat said:


> Does anyone live in, or know anyone who lives in, the Pueblo? We were wondering what it's like to live there, as apposed say, to the Port.
> 
> Again, good reason to rent, I suppose, to find out.
> 
> We saw a small villa we liked in Costa Nova, but there was building (or maintenance work of some kind?) going on in the road, plus the property directly behind the house. Very nice houses around there, with very bad roads.


I have lots of friends who live in the town - unless you like living cheek by jowl with others, don't do it

if I didn't live in the port - which I love - I'd be happy to live in the town - but it's not for everyone


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## Horlics (Sep 27, 2011)

I like the town and would live there had I not chosen the port. The port has a town feel to it whilst also being right next to the sea (obviously!). That was enough to steer me in that direction.

That said, a nice townhouse with an open roof in the pueblo, i do like the idea. Apart from the stairs.



Tusabrat said:


> Does anyone live in, or know anyone who lives in, the Pueblo? We were wondering what it's like to live there, as apposed say, to the Port.
> 
> Again, good reason to rent, I suppose, to find out.
> 
> We saw a small villa we liked in Costa Nova, but there was building (or maintenance work of some kind?) going on in the road, plus the property directly behind the house. Very nice houses around there, with very bad roads.


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

I live in London, in a flat, so I don't mind being in a flat too much. At least, I never minded until a new resident moved in below me last year, and since then (in spite of repeated requests) I've had to suffer to stench of marijuana and incense 25/7 - she burns the incense in some futile attempt to cover up her delinquent sons habit, not realising the two odors are poles apart. As they are below us, the smell seems to work its way through the ducts into our flat - a bit embarrassing when you open the door to someone and the reek spills out of your flat!!! It was a very nice block for the 10 years or so up until then.

So I would not mind a flat, but I must admit it was not my first choice when looking at property this past week, due to a fear of ending up in a similar circumstance.


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## Horlics (Sep 27, 2011)

6 inches of cement all-round in Spain. Not the most complex construction method but smells are not a problem.




Tusabrat said:


> I live in London, in a flat, so I don't mind being in a flat too much. At least, I never minded until a new resident moved in below me last year, and since then (in spite of repeated requests) I've had to suffer to stench of marijuana and incense 25/7 - she burns the incense in some futile attempt to cover up her delinquent sons habit, not realising the two odors are poles apart. As they are below us, the smell seems to work its way through the ducts into our flat - a bit embarrassing when you open the door to someone and the reek spills out of your flat!!! It was a very nice block for the 10 years or so up until then.
> 
> So I would not mind a flat, but I must admit it was not my first choice when looking at property this past week, due to a fear of ending up in a similar circumstance.


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

Horlics said:


> smells are not a problem.


Good to know!


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Tusabrat said:


> Good to know!


that's until the windows are opened..... especially if there's an internal patio........


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

xabiachica, if I recall, you said you've lived in quite a few areas, starting at the Port, and eventually ending up in the Port again.

Which other areas did you live in? And for each, why did you move on? Also, are you in a flat now?

Thanks


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Tusabrat said:


> xabiachica, if I recall, you said you've lived in quite a few areas, starting at the Port, and eventually ending up in the Port again.
> 
> Which other areas did you live in? And for each, why did you move on? Also, are you in a flat now?
> 
> Thanks


oooh... 11 years of moves!!

in a nutshell - we had a lovely apartment in the port when we first arrived - but with 2 little kids it wasn't practical - great sea view but no outside area except a small balcony - we had intended to use the beach but the port beach has a dreadful undertow

so we moved to a villa with a pool on the Cabo La Nao - lovely again - but dreadful in winter & my husband got sick of the driving - 'only 10 minutes to town' isn't much unless you do it lots of times a day

so we moved back to between the port & the Arenal - we moved up & down that stretch a little bit - so that the kids could walk or cycle to school (at one point they built a new school & where we lived was too far so we moved nearer  ) 

then when the elder one was ready to start secondary school we moved right back into the port so that she could walk there - & the younger could catch the school bus 

now they are both in secondary & both walk to school - it was something I was determined to have for them - to live near school & have friends on the doorstep like I did as a kid

yes we're in an apartment - but it's ground floor on a small 'urb' with a private patio & shared pool. Tbh I had no idea it had a pool until I came to view it!

I'm still friends with our original landlord & if the apartment next to the one we originally rented from him came available I'd seriously consider moving again - but until then, we're happy where we are


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## Maureen47 (Mar 27, 2014)

maureen47 - thanks for the explanation, that makes sense. As a computer programmer by trade (although I won't be working there) wifi will be a must - especially since I plan to automate my new home as I've done with my flat here in the UK (blinds scheduled to open or close with the sun, lights that turn on and off according to time or daylight, streamed music that turns off when the TV turns on etc).

I also work in IT so wifi for me is a must, its my window to the world and my ability to earn if choose to do so , we have bought on the edge of a village so still get the benefits of village life including elec , water , wifi , sky (although not completely legal !) and the 3 acres land that give privacy with neighbours in a short walking distance but not overlooked, its all about what you need , we don't have children with us so that's one less thing to consider but are near enough airports if I choose to do some consultancy although an option in Gib is coming up so need to suss that one out !


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## Tusabrat (Sep 25, 2014)

xabiachica said:


> so we moved back to between the port & the Arenal


Thanks for that explanation... I really liked the area between the Port and Arenal. We went for a jog a couple of times along that stretch. We walked into the Port from the Parador one evening, and noticed that about 99% of the apartments in that area seemed empty - here and there, only a single apartment in a whole building had lights on. I image that it may be a bit creepy being the only resident in an entire block during the winter season!


maureen47 - I've been wondering about wifi etc. I was surprised to find wifi available in most cafes we stopped in, esp. in Denia. When chatting to a resident about computers, she stressed we need to find out the 'potencia' before we buy. We have quite a big checklist now!


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## Horlics (Sep 27, 2011)

Yes! Always best to check everything out thoroughly.



xabiachica said:


> that's until the windows are opened..... especially if there's an internal patio........


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