# I'm moving in January..the advantages of renting!



## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

So here I am, now all alone in this large house...well, sort of, since July I've given the downstairs guest room, my former bathroom and WC to a very hunky handsome young Italian guy who's working for us at ADANA and who needed somewhere to live. But I don't know how long he'll be staying and besides apart from being far too big for one person the house holds too many memories of ten happy years. Time for a new start, I thought. I was not looking forward to viewing houses and apartments suitable for me and two dogs...
Then a week ago a went to visit a Spanish friend who recently moved to Seville. She happened to mention that her parents, who own a large finca - I suppose you could call it a cortijo, that's on the address - wanted to find a long-term tenant for the smaller two bed one bsthroom house they had built on their land for her to live in. I know the house from many visits and jumped at the offer. It's campo, loads of cultivated land, everything fruit and vegetable for me to pick or dig up, separate from the 'big' house so private but near enough if help needed. All on one level, huge terrace, swimming pool and oh joy!!...a wood burner in the salon. My friend's parents are a lovely Spanish couple, both PSOE, don't speak English...and the place is less than ten minutes' drive from Estepona.

All I had to do was call a removal company who will pack and transport everything. No waiting for a sale. Rent about 600 euros a month less than I pay now as electricity, water, phone, internet, tv included and wood will come mostly from their own felled timber.

I have a couple of British friends, in their late seventies or early eighties, who came to Spain twenty or so years ago and bought large houses. They have fixed incomes, fairly small and smaller now sterling has dropped. They can't afford the upkeep of their properties but have had no luck selling. They are quietly desperate and wish they had rented when they came to Spain.

I know renting isn't for everyone and there are plus points in buying. But I think that it's important to consider the long-term future and what would be the best course when, as is inevitable, one partner dies and the other has to cope alone.

For me it's a new start. I'd move tomorrow if I could but the house is being painted internally and externally before I move in first week in January. My current contract ends on December 31st anyway. Another example of 'who you know not what you know'. And one phone call to a removal company....


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

It sounds perfect, I'm so pleased for you. You'll soon settle in and make it your own!

Of course, it does help that you know the landlords (at least indirectly) and you know they want a long-term tenant. The biggest downside to renting is those nasty surprises you have no control over. 

It's so important to think about the long-term future. We're lucky in that our house, which we own outright, is in good condition so the overheads are very low, and over the years we've made it more comfortable (installing air-con, adding a downstairs bathroom etc) so as we advance in years it should be manageable. 

We are also surrounded by friendly neighbours so I wouldn't be too lonely if one sad day it were just me and the cat. The advantage of being in a village and not out in the campo - another thing to think about when choosing where you want to spend your old age!

Shame you can't take the hunky Italian with you. Sometimes it's handy to have a man around the house! Can he cook?


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

I hope you'll be very happy in your new home.

Not everyone finds themselves in the situation your unfortunate friends are in after buying a home, though. It took 3 months for us to sell our last house from putting it on the market, a friend very kindly lent us a house to live in (free of charge, she wouldn't even let us pay the bills) for 5 months until we'd found our new place and had the reforms we wanted done (yes, you are right, it is definitely who you know) and it took just one week between seeing this place advertised and completing the purchase.

We bought this new place with thoughts of how we would cope when we are older (or even alone) very much in mind. No stairs, we had the baths taken out and replaced by walk-in showers, gardens outside which are maintained so there is no work for us to do, 2 minutes' walk from the health centre and a farmacia, 5 minutes' level walk to the town centre shops or to the bus station for frequent transport connections. Heating is by inverter AC (we do have an open fireplace in the sitting room but I'd rather not lug wood about) so very convenient.


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## MaryHinge (Jul 13, 2018)

Having recently sold my townhouse as it was getting to unmanageable for one person I took the plunge and went down the renting road, something I'd sworn I'd never do but decided that with rents here and in many areas of Spain relatively inexpensive I was converted. I'm on a fairly set income with my pensions and my rent which includes most bills apart from my phone and internet accounts for 18% of my income at current exchange rates which to me is very acceptable compared to most areas of the U.K.
I have a three bedroomed apartment in Brighton which I rent out to an young couple and if I had to pay similar it would account for well over 65% of my income, Not acceptable. Plus no more constant upkeep and maintenance is a huge relief.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Great news Mary!


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Mrypg, sounds great. Good for the dogs too 

There are pros and cons to both. Mary Hinge has the best of both worlds. Rental market is booming in Brighton and rents expensive. I know a few elderly stuck in unsuitable houses in Spain and cannot sell even though much reduced. You never know what is around the corner.


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

That is good news Mary.

We rented in Spain and were glad we did but it wouldn't suit everyone.

We have some friends who would probably sell if they could but can't and are currently resigned to it but many others are happy and have no intention of ever coming back so they are happy owners. For now... 

When we bought back in the UK, although we are only in our early 60s, we bought very much with 'senior' difficulties in mind - we don't intend to move again. 

So - it's easy to maintain, inexpensive to run, on the level and near all facilities (including the pub) for us.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

I did give the possibility of renting serious thought before we decided to sell our old house, but decided against it at this stage for various reasons. Not least because there are so few properties advertised for long term rent in the town where we live at any one time, and those I looked at online I would not have been happy to live in. Also, we do not own any property elsewhere which we rent out in order to pay rent here, so paying rent wholly out of pension income for (hopefully) many years as I am only in my early 60s just did not seem to make financial sense, I do not want to be paying someone else's mortgage. We have friends and acquaintances who have not been so lucky with their landlords whilst renting as Mary has with hers, and some of them have moved several times. That kind of constant shifting around just would not suit me, I like security and the feeling of being settled.

The circumstances in which I would consider renting, I think (and it is only considering, I am by no means certain) is if I were widowed and much older than I am now. As I have no children my estate would go to my sister and brother, or their children if they predeceased me, and it would be far less complicated for them if I had sold up and moved to a rented property here. Plus, if I transferred the sale proceeds to the UK where the rest of my savings are held, it would avoid them having to pay Spanish inheritance tax as non-residents only have to pay IHT on assets in Spain. They would not benefit from the more generous IHT allowances introduced in Andalucia recently, as they only apply to children and spouses. 

I would have to find a rental property I liked before putting my own home on the market, though, as I could not bear the thought of selling it and then being under time pressure to find somewhere or having to settle for somewhere I didn't really want to be.


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## amespana (Nov 10, 2009)

My deepest sympathies Mary.I did not realise you had lost your partner,it was obvious from your posts how much you loved each other.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

amespana said:


> My deepest sympathies Mary.I did not realise you had lost your partner,it was obvious from your posts how much you loved each other.


Thank you. People are so kind. I'm lucky.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Yes, I know not everyone is happy renting. I admit that after decades of owning properties I was a bit apprehensive when we sold up and rented.

I think the key sentence is one Lynn used which included the words 'serious thought'. It's important to think about long-term future, not just the excitement of the new when first arriving anywhere, not just Spain. I know a couple who bought into the romantic dream of remote campo living. They bought a small compact finca with land, miles from anywhere, accessible only by a narrow road with steep drops at one point on both sides. We went to a house-warming lunch and I have to say the location was stunning. But they moved in in April...

Being an old cynic, I predicted this euphoria wouldn't last. The first heavy rains of winter cut off the road as a stream which crossed it, dry in winter, became a raging torrent. Then they were without electricity for three weeks. Showering in cold water didn't go down too well. To cap it all, they fell out with their only neighbour....not a wise course of action in those circumstances. As predicted, they are selling up and moving into town.

What we did when we left the UK - sell up everything and invest the money - worked out for us and especially for me now. But it's horses for courses. The important thing is to think medium and long-term and not let the 'Spanish dream' turn your head.

P.S. Alca....Errico hasn't cooked for me yet. The other way round. When he first moved in we dined on the terrace by the pool, I cooked, we talked and got to know each other and got on inspite of the age gap. He is a decent man and was there at a time when I needed company. We'll stay friends when I move.


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## stevesainty (Jan 7, 2011)

Dear Mary, you have our deepest sympathy, first of all losing little Azor, and then your life partner. You are almost part of our family, reading your posts almost daily. You are a very wise and stoic lady. Good luck with this new chapter in your life. x


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Oh Steve, what lovely words.  So many good people posting here. I wish you all (most of you) lived nearby. I'm sure we would all get along as good friends....you, Alca (some potential good discussion over copas there) Lynn, PW, Megs Mum of course sdear old Baldi...


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## growurown (Sep 3, 2018)

One of the disadvantages of renting from older folks is that when they die the property could be in limbo between infighting heirs and thus not a long-term solution.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

growurown said:


> One of the disadvantages of renting from older folks is that when they die the property could be in limbo between infighting heirs and thus not a long-term solution.


As long as you have a legal contract it makes no difference to your rights.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

growurown said:


> One of the disadvantages of renting from older folks is that when they die the property could be in limbo between infighting heirs and thus not a long-term solution.


Happy little soul, aren't you:tsk::tsk:


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

xabiachica said:


> As long as you have a legal contract it makes no difference to your rights.


And if there was infighting between the heirs then it would be much less likely to be sold, wouldn't it? So faulty logic - no surprise there.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Lynn R said:


> And if there was infighting between the heirs then it would be much less likely to be sold, wouldn't it? So faulty logic - no surprise there.


Yep - very faulty logic.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

Lynn R said:


> And if there was infighting between the heirs then it would be much less likely to be sold, wouldn't it? So faulty logic - no surprise there.





xabiachica said:


> Yep - very faulty logic.


Well faulty logic is a theme let’s be honest....... I’ll get me coat


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

When we first moved to UK from Colombia, we rented a lovely 2BR flat at the top of a tower block - fabulous views out to sea but when the lifts went wrong - 11th floor living can have its disadvantages. Then the rent was going up about 35% so we decided to buy. We bought a flat, top floor again but no lifts (to break down) but with good views. It was an old house in its own grounds divided into five flats and we formed a nice little community. 

We discussed the subject of retirement and where we would like to live. We discarded a number of countries that might have been possibilities and ended up with Spain. We had learnt our lesson regarding rented (no surprise rent increases, please, nor unreasonable neighbours with whom one has to share common areas) so we set out to find the right property for us that would also accommodate the m-i-l in such a way that we would not get under each other's feet.

The house we bought is perfect for our needs. We have a stair-lift that connects the ground floor with the first floor thus meeting the needs of the m-i-l now and maybe us later in life. We live in a pleasant village where we are known and have been made welcome. [Lynn, we have a log-burner and a winch to haul up the logs from the log-store on level -2 so no more carrying since the logs are delivered, carried down two floors and stacked for us.]

I think what many people fail to do when moving here, or anywhere else, is carry out sufficient research not only into their current needs but also their future needs. The house we bought isn't perfect, nowhere ever is, but, over time, we are getting it to the way we want. We have solar water heating, this year we are replacing the remaining draughty wooden windows that let in the rain when the wind blows, with uPVC and with built-in persianas and mosquiteras, so no more hunting nearby streets/gardens for persianas that have blown away when there is a strong wind. Also on the agenda are solar power and central heating.

For us it is an investment that enables us to enjoy our final years but without leaving a heavy burden for the one who is left.

Old Baldi (according to mrypg9)


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## growurown (Sep 3, 2018)

A contract would be voided if the land-house ever changes hands & the heirs (lawyer if in dispute) have 6 months after death to pay the taxes and change ownership or the property would go to the state.

A nice lawyer - family will let the contract run it's course but you always could end up out.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

growurown said:


> A contract would be voided if the land-house ever changes hands & the heirs (lawyer if in dispute) have 6 months after death to pay the taxes and change ownership or the property would go to the state.
> 
> A nice lawyer - family will let the contract run it's course but you always could end up out.


I do believe you are mistaken. The sitting tenant has the right of being the first to make an offer to buy so sale does not automatically imply the tenant has to leave.
Anyway, this is irrelevant in the majority of cases. Certainly irrelevant to my new rental as the owner of the house is not the owner of the cortijo...the owner is the much younger daughter for whom the house was built.
In the normal course of events I’ll kick the bucket first.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

growurown said:


> A contract would be voided if the land-house ever changes hands & the heirs (lawyer if in dispute) have 6 months after death to pay the taxes and change ownership or the property would go to the state.
> 
> A nice lawyer - family will let the contract run it's course but you always could end up out.


Once again you are demonstrating your complete lack of knowledge of how things operate in Spain. There are thousands of houses here where the person in whose name ownership of the property is registered in (and the utilities contracts as well) died many years ago - because the heirs never declare the death to the tax authorities to avoid paying the inheritance tax and plus valia to get the property registered in their name. 

A property would only go to the state if the heirs (all of them) formally renounce the inheritance.

If sold, and the tenant has a legal contract, the property would be sold with a sitting tenant who could stay until the end of the contract period. The contract would not be voided upon the sale. A friend of ours was in this situation last year when the ownership of the property he was renting changed hands - he most certainly did not have to leave.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Oh, and by the way if the death is reported to the tax authorities more than 6 months after the date of death, then they will add a penalty for the late payment of the IHT - NOT claim the property for the state.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

growurown said:


> A contract would be voided if the land-house ever changes hands & the heirs (lawyer if in dispute) have 6 months after death to pay the taxes and change ownership or the property would go to the state.
> 
> A nice lawyer - family will let the contract run it's course but you always could end up out.


Where do you live? Whilst I appreciate regions vary they don’t vary enough to make anything you’ve said true. I’ve yet to see one post that actually has any factual basis Whatsoever. You are playing a dangerous game giving out incorrect information time and time again. 

Also, really, a poster Explains they’ve been bereaved and your contribution is to tell them they’re likely to get kicked out of their new home. Fortunately, Mrryp has enough intellectual ability to sort the wheat from the chaff.....


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Megsmum said:


> Where do you live? Whilst I appreciate regions vary they don’t vary enough to make anything you’ve said true. I’ve yet to see one post that actually has any factual basis Whatsoever. You are playing a dangerous game giving out incorrect information time and time again.
> 
> Also, really, a poster Explains they’ve been bereaved and your contribution is to tell them they’re likely to get kicked out of their new home. Fortunately, Mrryp has enough intellectual ability to sort the wheat from the chaff.....


I think the answer to your question is Velez Malaga.

I’m sure that fine old town knows the laws and regulations concerning inheritance, even if some of its citizens seemingly need to be informed.

Incidentally, the posterand I have one thing in common...I used to grow my own fruit and vegetables back in the UK. Growing your own requires a lot of manure...


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## JEFFCAZ09 (Oct 11, 2018)

With renting you can try out different areas, different styles and size of the home, i have found that the unfurnished rentals are very thin on the ground, so if you need this type iot could take some time. As you become less mobile there are no worries about maintaining the building, you can decide if living in a community with people about is better than being isolated in a rural home..


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

growurown said:


> A contract would be voided if the land-house ever changes hands & the heirs (lawyer if in dispute) have 6 months after death to pay the taxes and change ownership or the property would go to the state.
> 
> A nice lawyer - family will let the contract run it's course but you always could end up out.


No. That information is completely wrong.

If a tenant has a current & legal contract, they have the right to remain in the property until such time as the contract expires, as long as they don't break the contract, obviously. It doesn't matter who owns it, or even if it returns to the state.

The only exception to this is if the deceased landlord / owner is 'owner' by usufruct, in other words doesn't actually own the property, but has rights to it during their lifetime. 

That's under current residential contract law. There's a link in the FAQ sticky.








PLEASE stop posting completely incorrect information. Check the information & provide an up to date link, rather than giving an opinion dressed up as fact.

It's becoming a full time job following you around to correct it


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Lynn R said:


> I did give the possibility of renting serious thought before we decided to sell our old house, but decided against it at this stage for various reasons. Not least because there are so few properties advertised for long term rent in the town where we live at any one time, and those I looked at online I would not have been happy to live in. Also, we do not own any property elsewhere which we rent out in order to pay rent here, so paying rent wholly out of pension income for (hopefully) many years as I am only in my early 60s just did not seem to make financial sense, I do not want to be paying someone else's mortgage. We have friends and acquaintances who have not been so lucky with their landlords whilst renting as Mary has with hers, and some of them have moved several times. That kind of constant shifting around just would not suit me, I like security and the feeling of being settled.
> 
> The circumstances in which I would consider renting, I think (and it is only considering, I am by no means certain) is if I were widowed and much older than I am now. As I have no children my estate would go to my sister and brother, or their children if they predeceased me, and it would be far less complicated for them if I had sold up and moved to a rented property here. Plus, if I transferred the sale proceeds to the UK where the rest of my savings are held, it would avoid them having to pay Spanish inheritance tax as non-residents only have to pay IHT on assets in Spain. They would not benefit from the more generous IHT allowances introduced in Andalucia recently, as they only apply to children and spouses.
> 
> I would have to find a rental property I liked before putting my own home on the market, though, as I could not bear the thought of selling it and then being under time pressure to find somewhere or having to settle for somewhere I didn't really want to be.


Good points Lynn. As I said pros and cons. For people on a tight budget renting indefinately could leave some in poverty. Just thought of this when I did another post.
Our friends came out to Spain with the intentions of buying, they did a silly thing and rented a lovely dream villa. The continued looking at properties, it was boom time and houses were selling and prices rising monthly. Very quickly they were priced out of the market. Rents were going up too After time they moved to a 2/2 nice apartment, stayed for years and finally to a more grotty apartment. When one of them died their savings had gone, with the loss of his pension it was a downward spiral.

I can't explain it but it has always been important for me to own a place, maybe it is the memory of those grotty student flats


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## Love Karma (Oct 10, 2018)

There are pro's and cons to both and at the end of the day it's really down to individual circumstance. I personally have always rented in Spain as its been more convenient. But now that I'm going to be here for the foreseeable future will have a long hard think about what my next step will be after my rental agreement ends next April. There's plenty to but and a fair amount of rentals in my area. (Nerja)


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Isobella said:


> Good points Lynn. As I said pros and cons. For people on a tight budget renting indefinately could leave some in poverty. Just thought of this when I did another post.
> Our friends came out to Spain with the intentions of buying, they did a silly thing and rented a lovely dream villa. The continued looking at properties, it was boom time and houses were selling and prices rising monthly. Very quickly they were priced out of the market. Rents were going up too After time they moved to a 2/2 nice apartment, stayed for years and finally to a more grotty apartment. When one of them died their savings had gone, with the loss of his pension it was a downward spiral.
> 
> I can't explain it but it has always been important for me to own a place, maybe it is the memory of those grotty student flats


Yes, rising prices were another factor I thought about. I certainly wouldn't say prices are rocketing up hereabouts, but I haven't seen another similar property to the one we bought come onto the market for less than 20k above what we paid, and it was important that if we did buy again we do it before the market started rising.

I read the other day that rents in Málaga (the city I suppose, rather than the province) had risen by 48% in 5 years, and if you are renting very long term whilst on a fixed income, that could become a problem.

I feel the same way about owning somewhere, and I never lived in a student flat! I know it´s my responsibility to fix something if it goes wrong, at my expense, but at least I can get on and do it without waiting for it to be done at someone else's convenience, or arguing about how it should be done.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

Lynn R said:


> I read the other day that rents in Málaga (the city I suppose, rather than the province) had risen by 48% in 5 years, and if you are renting very long term whilst on a fixed income, that could become a problem.


Don't believe all you read. I keep reading about rents in Madrid rising by astronomical amounts recently, but in reality, apart from a few niche areas in the centre, by and large the rise is nowhere near what the scaremongers would have you believe.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Overandout said:


> Don't believe all you read. I keep reading about rents in Madrid rising by astronomical amounts recently, but in reality, apart from a few niche areas in the centre, by and large the rise is nowhere near what the scaremongers would have you believe.


My current next door neighbour has told us that his landlord wants to raise his rent by €150 per month when his contract expired. What he is paying at the moment seems very low to me, and the new rent more in line with general market rates from properties I have seen advertised - I presume many owners had to accept low rents during the crisis years and are now looking to raise them to something more realistic.

After posting the other day I had a browse through such properties as there are advertised for long term rent in my town. There was a 4 bed apartment not far from where I live (the kitchen and bathrooms looked like something out of the Ark with hideous 1970s tiling) and they were asking €800 per month - ridiculous. But there really are so few advertised - 18 on idealista.com, 17 on enalquiler.com. Some of those are the same properties under multiple listings, some are actually advertised as short term lets or for winter months from October to April only, so the real number of long term lets is even less.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Lynn R said:


> My current next door neighbour has told us that his landlord wants to raise his rent by €150 per month when his contract expired. What he is paying at the moment seems very low to me, and the new rent more in line with general market rates from properties I have seen advertised - I presume many owners had to accept low rents during the crisis years and are now looking to raise them to something more realistic.
> 
> After posting the other day I had a browse through such properties as there are advertised for long term rent in my town. There was a 4 bed apartment not far from where I live (the kitchen and bathrooms looked like something out of the Ark with hideous 1970s tiling) and they were asking €800 per month - ridiculous. But there really are so few advertised - 18 on idealista.com, 17 on enalquiler.com. Some of those are the same properties under multiple listings, some are actually advertised as short term lets or for winter months from October to April only, so the real number of long term lets is even less.


Funny, a few weeks ago we were discussing the adverse effects of Airbnb etc on rents in areas popular with tourists, but we were looking at it from the other side. Great for tourists, not so great for tenants. 

Property owners can make far more money out of holiday lets, even if only for a few months a year, and there are no troublesome tenants to deal with if you decide to sell up.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Alcalaina said:


> Funny, a few weeks ago we were discussing the adverse effects of Airbnb etc on rents in areas popular with tourists, but we were looking at it from the other side. Great for tourists, not so great for tenants.
> 
> Property owners can make far more money out of holiday lets, even if only for a few months a year, and there are no troublesome tenants to deal with if you decide to sell up.


True - and from the ones I have seen, the short term holiday let places are generally much more modern and better furnished and equipped.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

We rented two places since arriving here. The first was via an agency. Exorbitant rent (which we were unaware of as we hadn't got clued up) and a refusal to do repairs which were the landlord's responsibility. After five months we moved out, using up our 1800 euro deposit in the last two months as we knew we'd never get it back.
The second rental, the one we've lived in for ten years, we got through word of mouth, same as the third one I'm moving into in January. It seems you're more likely to get a better deal that way, all my Spanish friends who rent got their pisos that way.

The other side of rents going up and becoming unaffordable is seeing your income diminish to the point where you can't afford to maintain your house. Surely you have to be prudent and plan for all eventualities whether you decide to rent or buy and not commit yourself to something you may not be able to afford, however tempting and appealing.


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

Did anyone see this on BBC recently. Two pensioners sleeping in a park in Oviedo, I wonder if they had relatives.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45642290


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Isobella said:


> Did anyone see this on BBC recently. Two pensioners sleeping in a park in Oviedo, I wonder if they had relatives.
> https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45642290


No but it was well covered in the Spanish media. They had been evicted from their flat because they couldn't afford their rent. They had no relatives or anywhere else to stay in the area. The PAH (a campaign group against evictions) got wind and discovered that the judge who ordered the eviction hadn't notified the local social services. The judge claimed he didn't know they were old and vulnerable. The case continues ...


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

I saw this story in today's edition of The Olive Press. Obviously I don't know the full story about how this man has come to be in the position he´s in, but it´s pitiable.

Expats on Costa del Sol raise funds to help homeless pensioner get back on his feet - Olive Press News Spain

We were in Madrid last week and saw an elderly lady sitting on the pavement on Gran Via with her belongings, she looked very different from the majority of homeless people on the street. It reminded me of when we went to Cádiz when the crisis was at its height, there were quite a number of elderly people (including couples) we saw camping out in doorways and it was terribly sad.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Lynn R said:


> I saw this story in today's edition of The Olive Press. Obviously I don't know the full story about how this man has come to be in the position he´s in, but it´s pitiable.
> 
> Expats on Costa del Sol raise funds to help homeless pensioner get back on his feet - Olive Press News Spain
> 
> ...



Call me cruel and heartless...but this man seems to some extent at least to have been the architect of his own misfortune.

He’s obviously been in Spain for some years and must have had a passport so why didn’t he renew it? Has he an NIE and Residencia? Why didn’t he apply for the State Retirement Pension he is entitled to as a UK pensioner?

OK there may be good reasons why. But on the surface, he doesn’t seem to have behaved in an intelligent way, no matter how intelligent the kind couple helping him think he is.

The Olive Press are well known for twisting stories and being economical avec la verite so we may have only half the story and a slanted version at that.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> Call me cruel and heartless...but this man seems to some extent at least to have been the architect of his own misfortune.
> 
> He’s obviously been in Spain for some years and must have had a passport so why didn’t he renew it? Has he an NIE and Residencia? Why didn’t he apply for the State Retirement Pension he is entitled to as a UK pensioner?
> 
> ...


Agree about the Olive Press. They love a nice feel-good story now and again, to balance out the usual scandal, doom and gloom.

Does it really make any difference whether he was the "architect of his own misfortune"? He's near the bottom of a long, slippery slope and we have no idea what led him there - it could happen to any of us. I think it's great that those people want to help him. I wonder if they'd have done the same had he not been British.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Alcalaina said:


> Agree about the Olive Press. They love a nice feel-good story now and again, to balance out the usual scandal, doom and gloom.
> 
> Does it really make any difference whether he was the "architect of his own misfortune"? He's near the bottom of a long, slippery slope and we have no idea what led him there - it could happen to any of us. I think it's great that those people want to help him. I wonder if they'd have done the same had he not been British.[/quote
> 
> ...


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