# hello people



## bretttina (May 14, 2010)

hello all,

i thought i would take this opportunity to say hi,

my nane is Brett and my beautifull wife is called Tina we have 3 daughters 14/12/7 and we realy like the idea of living the dream in spain , but reading lots of posts on here it seems that spanish life is strugling at the moment as we are in the UK ,

we are looking to relocate in the Almeria area possibly Albox/Arboleas but we would like to purchase a propperty first and spend the next few (5-10) years using it as a holiday home and finaly a re-location,

our intentions are to visit Almeria as often as we can over the next year or so before we do purchase our property,

i have read that in considering a property we should look at the key aspects,location,re-sale,LEAGAL PAPER WORK,solicitors,if you know any good solicitors i would be very greatfull if you could point us in the right direction,

how do you (the people living in spain) feel about the economy in the future?
is it going to improve?
things can't always be this bad or can they?

i'm sorry to drone on but i would like to hear your views.

i wish you all well and thank you. 

bretttina


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

Welcome to the forum. A lot of the questions you ask have probably been answered many times over the last 12 months so as you have already seen there is a wealth of advice here. I am planning on moving to Spain around July this year - we have been planning this for four years - and of course, we know that things are pretty bad in Spain at the moment. Things will improve - they always do - but in this case the timescale for an improvement is very difficult to predict. I wish you all the luck you need!! Before purchasing it is often a good idea to rent for a few months to see if it really is for you but since you want to use the home as a holiday home first it probably won't apply to you. I understand that many of the Spanish banks that repossessed homes over the last few years mya be forced to offload them very cheaply from next year which may push house prices down to realistic levels so I wouldn't rush into a purchase just now. As you will have read and seen on this forum, buying a house in Spain can be a fairly simple process compared to the UK but you really MUST be very careful and have an excellent lawyer.


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## bretttina (May 14, 2010)

thanx thrax,

i too wish you all the very best of luck,

are people strugling because of mortgages or is it just the cost of living going up?

with the work situation in spain at its worst ever seen , how are people surviving?
are people becoming more self sufficient, growing more salad and vegetables for them selves trying to reduce costs?
your advise to hold for the time being is greatly noted and thanx for the heads up,

would our choice of area to buy be a sound investment for our childrens future? 

thank you

bretttina


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bretttina said:


> thanx thrax,
> 
> are people strugling because of mortgages or is it just the cost of living going up?
> 
> ...



Firstly I would say be very careful with buying in the Albox area. I'm sure its not the case with all properties there, but a high percentage are possibly considered illegal builds????? So if you are looking there be very careful and make sure that you understand and believe everything that you're told. Cos if you buy one and they demolish it, you'll not be leaving much of an investment for your childrens future!!!

That said, I personally think that with the economic situation in Spain and with the possibility that the pound may rise against the euro, now may not be the best time to buy - in fact I, as Thrax has said would always reccomend that you rent first - you really want know what you want til you've tried it!? 

As for how people are managing??? Well there are record numbers of repossessed properties that the banks would like to sell off cheaply, there are expats returning to their homelands and simply cutting their losses and the Spanish are struggling as the SS isnt unlimited (nor can they claim it unless they've paid in for a significant amount of time) and once it runs out, they turn to family and friends or charities, but unemployment is running at 20% right now and there are plans afoot to reduce pay for civil cervants etc. I cant see any evidence in my area of them growing their own produce tho? But the cost of living has appeared to have gone up since we've been in Spain (2 yrs) and isnt much different from the UK anymore

Jo xxxx


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## owdoggy (Jul 23, 2008)

bretttina said:


> hello all,
> 
> i thought i would take this opportunity to say hi,
> 
> ...


Rent first, buy later!!. Get over here as much as you can, suss out what goes on, and ( the most important thing ) talk to as many people as you can. 

I can put you in touch with a very good agent and solicitor but the more people you talk to the more you can make up your mind if I'm telling you a load of old bollox or not.

We're retired & the job situation, which is dire here at the moment, doesn't affect us (thank god!) so you're on your own there I'm afraid.

We don't have kids either (bloody awful things ....... "Save the pit pony!..... use a kid instead")

Language! ....you need to speak Spanish, and I know you'll probably say that there's plenty of Brits here (too many if you ask me & the missus...... but then we're anti-social) and you'll be ok with English but........ now how can I put this?...........wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong,! You need Spanish! If you can speak it already then well done you! If you can't.....start learning now.......& never stop

The best of luck to you :yo:


Doggy









p.s.Oops, where are my manners.........Welcome to the forum :yo:


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## nigele2 (Dec 25, 2009)

I can only say 'woof woof' to what doggy has said. Spot on fido 

But one thought comes to mind and that is location, location, location - which for the smart ones is three things  You might buy a cheap property but if it is surrounded by empty bank owned deals I'd be careful with the deterioration of local services.

But I'm sure you'll take your time Brett but while you're looking don't forget to enjoy Spain - it's full of magic


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Hi,
The news from sunny Spain is not so good at the moment, but as least the sun has come out at long last. In past years I've been sunbathing on the occasional day in Feb - not this year!
I would reiterate what you've already been told - rent before you buy, and try to make sure that way that you've got a good area to *live* in, not just holiday in. 

Also as you've already been told, if you're coming to live, learn Spanish. Without it you might possibly survive. With it you increase your chances of getting work, making friends and understanding your surroundings. And it's hard work and takes _*years*_ to get to a reasonable standard 

It won't be easy to do what you want to do as you've got two potential areas of difficulty as far as I can see - older children (the 14 year old might be in the middle of exam courses and will find the language more difficult to pick up) and do you need to find work ??? Well, you already know the unemployment figures and now they're are talking of pay cuts, raising taxes and who knows what else.

You asked how are the people managing? Well, honestly I don't know 'cos there is far less government help for the unemployed or poorly off. Up to now José public seemed to be a bit of a lemon actually, but now the unions are talking about General strikes etc, not that that will help matters, of course.

Doom and Gloom I know, but it's the new *Real Spain* or *Authentic Spain* as some people like to say. If you can stay in your present job, but work via internet, or have a solid business idea, or a trick up your sleeve you might make it work here. 

The good thing is that you're not looking to come over right away so you have time to look for the area you want, and learn some Spanish if you don't already speak it.

Sorry it's not more optimistic...


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## gabriele (May 17, 2010)

*Would Almeria be a sound investment?*



bretttina said:


> thanx thrax,
> 
> i too wish you all the very best of luck,
> 
> ...


Hi Brettina, 

there never is a garanty for sound investment. However, Almeria, the Andalucia region of countless spaguetti western movies sounds better to me for investing in 2010 than the Costa del Sol with the Malaga region. By the way, I heard that there is still demand for more private tour guides for this section of Spain. Parts of it look like absolute unspoiled country sides. 
Otherwise, I also wouldn't just go ahead buying a holiday home but would look around a bit first. That's like encouraging some homework first.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

gabriele said:


> I heard that there is still demand for more private tour guides for this section of Spain. Parts of it look like absolute unspoiled country sides.


Really????? With 20% unemployment of spanish nationals, I'd have thought work like that would be snapped up in no time by the locals lol!!!

Jo xxxx


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## bretttina (May 14, 2010)

thanx to all who replied,

all your pointers are greatly taken in and acknowledged,

i have great respect for all you peeps out there at this most tightest of times and i hope things can get a little easier for you all in the very near future,

we think that this is going to be a very long process from searching the right property and location to getting it right for our girls too,:confused2:

i wish you all the very best of luck,

bretttina


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

bretttina said:


> thanx to all who replied,
> 
> all your pointers are greatly taken in and acknowledged,
> 
> ...



I wish you the best of luck too. Dont give up on your dream, just plan very carefully. Any more questions, feel free to ask

Jo xxxxxx


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

bretttina said:


> we think that this is going to be a very long process from searching the right property and location to getting it right for our girls too,:confused2:
> 
> i wish you all the very best of luck,
> 
> bretttina


Thanks!

And good luck to you, too!


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## el barrio guesthouse (May 23, 2010)

Hi 
I live in the area that you were thinking of buying in, and although things are a little tough at the moment I do believe they will get better just not sure how long it will take. While it is true that there are big problems with a number of illiegal builds there are also a lot of exceptionally good value properties for sale and if you are only looking to use it as a holiday home for the next 5-10 years then this area is definately worth a look. I have purchased 4 properties here over the last 8 years and always use the same solicitor, an English lady but she has lived here for over 24 years. If you do decide to come and buy let me know and I'll give you her details. Hope this helps, good luck
Lyndsey


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