# Help and advice on renting/buying a bar in costa del sol



## Cookiecatfrankie (Jun 11, 2017)

Hi, me and my wife are thinking on making the jump to live in Spain. (In about 4/5 years) Ive been reading lots of sites with info about pros and cons, we know its not going to be easy, as we've both worked as reps in Bulgaria and know its not a holiday.. we are looking for help in finding..
good british lawyers
nice family friendly areas
Apartments to rent
Good schools for our son 

We would really appreciate any help and advice that anyone could offer, thanks advance. Lee.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Cookiecatfrankie said:


> Hi, me and my wife are thinking on making the jump to live in Spain. (In about 4/5 years) Ive been reading lots of sites with info about pros and cons, we know its not going to be easy, as we've both worked as reps in Bulgaria and know its not a holiday.. we are looking for help in finding..
> good british lawyers
> nice family friendly areas
> Apartments to rent
> ...


Seeing that you've got a son, my advice would be not to do it. Bar work in Spain is punishing due to the hours, weather conditions and fickle market. I forsee many hours working and little time for your son.
Some do make a go of it though, so it's up to you to scout round and find out what owning a bar is really like and to see if that's the lifestyle you want


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## Madliz (Feb 4, 2011)

There are always loads of bars for sale. Ask yourself why.

Employment rules and costs, plus high unemployment, mean that a good number of employees get paid 'under the table' at low rates, with low job security and no benefits whatsoever. One has to pay into the social security system for some time to obtain any possible benefits later on. This means no healthcare unless obtained privately.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Don't do it. 
I live on the western CdS. It's a very competitive business environment. Bars open and close with depressing regularity.
The CdS needs another Brit bar like a hole in the head.


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## BMC77 (Aug 15, 2009)

Cookiecatfrankie said:


> *Hi, me and my wife are thinking on making the jump to live in Spain. (In about 4/5 years) *Ive been reading lots of sites with info about pros and cons, we know its not going to be easy, as we've both worked as reps in Bulgaria and know its not a holiday.. we are looking for help in finding..
> good british lawyers
> nice family friendly areas
> Apartments to rent
> ...


Nobody can say what the jobs market will be like in four or five years. Or whether, as a British citizen, you will even have the right to come and live and work here. I'd say wait and see what happens with Brexit before making any plans.


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## Williams2 (Sep 15, 2013)

Cookiecatfrankie said:


> Hi, me and my wife are thinking on making the jump to live in Spain. (In about 4/5 years) Ive been reading lots of sites with info about pros and cons, we know its not going to be easy, as we've both worked as reps in Bulgaria and know its not a holiday.. we are looking for help in finding..
> good british lawyers
> nice family friendly areas
> Apartments to rent
> ...


By the sounds of it - it's high time you both made career change's and sign up for one of those much vaunted IT
CCNA, web design or computer programming courses at college, university, etc. 
They are always in the papers and easy to find on the Internet as well.
Become a mature student, it's never too late to learn & retrain you know and you don't have to think that the 
GCSE's or whatever qualifications you got or failed to get at school or college, has condemned you to only
choosing one avenue of work or career path, either !!
Who knows it could change your lives and will certainly broaden your horizons abroad.


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

Sounds harsh but

Bring all your money... spend six weeks living it up.... burn what's left... go home destitute....... that way you'll cut out one year of grief, hard work and stress


Have to agree with everyone else.... don't do it


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Our village has very few shops selling goods, only a butcher ,baker, greengrocer and a clothes shop plus of course a small Chinese shop.. There are more shops further along the A7.
There are a couple of hairdressers, a shop selling alternative stuff, herbal products and yoga classes, a driving school and thankfully a selection of good restaurants and cafes/bars, quite a lot for a village centre of its size and (alleged) population of 1008.
The three cafes are situated next to each other opposite the consultorio and the Tenencia. There are about three -haven't counted! - all Spanish owned and run with a loyal clientele of mainly village men who sit from before 08.00 until very late. Foreign residents and tourists patronise them too but the main customer base is local.
There are two other café/bar units on the same strip. One was bought by an Irish couple and closed after a year or so. The other is owned by non-Spaniards and seems on its last legs.

The three 'successful' cafes are run by local people and probably don't rake in loadsamoney but as everyone knows everyone it's like a family, a club, they make a living 'good' in more senses than the purely financial.
Few Brit immigrants would fit into that kind of local 'café culture'. Long hours, scant reward...but excellent work/life balance.
In big towns or cities, I guess neighbourhood bars are much the same. In city and town centres, café/bars are usually long-established.
Bearing in mind all this, I personally would never contemplate that kind of business venture, especially if I had no experience of that kind of trade.....and in a foreign country whose language I might not speak.


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