# Best area to live in or around Marbella



## iceblue

Hi to all

I would like to buy in or around Marbella suitable for permanent all round living.

I have sold my business so perhaps looking for a permanent place in warmer cliamtes but I thought I would rent before buying but wanted to home in on a couple of areas. 

I am a people person and so don't want to be tucked away too remote and a long drive from amenities or the coast but also don't want something which is on the doorstep of people on the booze each night.

Ideally somewhere which has is not a huge distance from facilities e.g. tennis club and or gym, etc.


Which are the most pregstigious areas to live in for 150m+ size, 3 bed property for a family (ife and my son aged 17 who will also need to start 6th form there). I have a budget of around 400 - 600K Euro (yes wide range but for the right property I would go further).

Are there any areas that are more likely to hold their value than others? 

Any locations to avoid? 

Are some areas more geared to holiday/seasonal visitors than for year round living? 

Would welcome your advise as this will prepare us for our next visit to the Estate agents when we fly out to look around again.

Thanks!
Dave


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## jojo

Golden Mile is a prestigious area, There are international schools in and around Marbella for your son, altho after that he'll possibly need to go to an English speaking country to weither work or go to uni. Heres the governing body of international schools in the area Schools in Spain | Nabss. Obviously you need to go and look around to find the schools and areas to suit you, afterall we all have our different wish lists

There are a couple of posters who live close to Marbella who will be able to hopefully before specific

You'll need to prove income and healthcare cover to enable you to become residents

Jo xxx


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## mayotom

Please note my opinions in *RED*



iceblue said:


> I have sold my business so perhaps looking for a permanent place in warmer cliamtes but I thought I would rent before buying but wanted to home in on a couple of areas.
> 
> yes renting for at least a year is highly recommended so that you can get a feel for the area before committing
> 
> I am a people person and so don't want to be tucked away too remote and a long drive from amenities or the coast but also don't want something which is on the doorstep of people on the booze each night.
> 
> This would cover most of Marbella district with the exception of Puerto Banus, Where I live is very quiet, but still only minutes away from bars restaurants etc. You can be in the heart of things but also in a quiet location, There are several very central locations where you can live in peace while still been two minutes from people where you can socialise
> 
> Ideally somewhere which has is not a huge distance from facilities e.g. tennis club and or gym, etc.
> 
> If you are on Golden Mile you can access a couple of tennis clubs very easily, although the area is quiet. There are dozens of Gyms around the area so you are never far from one
> 
> 
> Which are the most pregstigious areas to live in for 150m+ size, 3 bed property for a family (ife and my son aged 17 who will also need to start 6th form there). I have a budget of around 400 - 600K Euro (yes wide range but for the right property I would go further).
> 
> Its no problem to find properties in that price range, even Villas(high running costs) however that really is for the future, currently we are in a buyers market and that will not change for a few years, therefore there is no need to rush into anything
> 
> Are there any areas that are more likely to hold their value than others?
> 
> its the same the world over, if you buy in the right location you will stand a better chance of holding value
> 
> Any locations to avoid?
> 
> not a lot, but you will notice area's out of town or on golf courses with lots of empty properties, stay away
> 
> Are some areas more geared to holiday/seasonal visitors than for year round living?
> 
> Central Banus would be very seasonal, the rest of Marbella is quiet mixed, you will find that one building is generally predominantly tourist while the next is very residential, ensuring a good mix
> 
> Would welcome your advise as this will prepare us for our next visit to the Estate agents when we fly out to look around again
> 
> Only one recommendation, don't rush into meeting estate agents, try to meet people who are living here and get several opinions and work out what you want from the area. I meet people all the time who are in the same situation as you, as I run a Bar here, most of these people enjoy listening to others and taking advice from a multitude of people. That said I know several people who have come down over the years and bought places only to move on within a couple of years, usually with significant financial loss
> 
> Thanks!
> Dave


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## iceblue

Appreciate the advice! About the Golden Mile, I guess it covers a relatively large area and then there is the mountain side of it and the coast side of it.

So it would be good to hear any thoughts any preferences.

Also the other area to CDS/Marbella, which I have not vistied but seems to have good reviews is Denia/Javea. Seems a bit more Spanish there. Any opinions on why CDS may be better or worse that part of Spain? 

Thx
D


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## 90199

Javea, My father used to live in El Portet near Moraira, which is not far from Javea. Wonderful part of Spain, I thought at one time that perhaps I would settle in that area, however eternal springtime of the Canaries drew me here!


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## mrypg9

iceblue said:


> Appreciate the advice! About the Golden Mile, I guess it covers a relatively large area and then there is the mountain side of it and the coast side of it.
> 
> So it would be good to hear any thoughts any preferences.
> 
> Also the other area to CDS/Marbella, which I have not vistied but seems to have good reviews is Denia/Javea. *Seems a bit more Spanish there*. Any opinions on why CDS may be better or worse that part of Spain?
> 
> Thx
> D



There is more to the CDS than the larger tourist towns. I live in a small village a mere thirty or so kilometres from Marbella yet there are few British immigrants living in the village and such tourists as arrive in summer are mainly French.

I would hazard a guess that Estepona, to name but one seaside town, sees fewer British and other tourists than say Marbella or Torremolinos, to name two more touristy resorts. It is very quiet and very 'Spanish'.....but then everywhere in Spain is Spanish....there are very many ways to be 'Spanish' after all, from Bilbao to Barcelona, from Toledo to Torremolinos.

I think that is one of the many attractive features of Spain...the sheer variety. 
Even Benidorm, with its developed tourist industry and high-rise hotels, is as Spanish as Blackpool is British!

Estepona is well worth a visit. The Ayuntamiento is trying hard to promote itself as more 'genteel' than Marbella, which the TOWIE crowd have nudged just a little downmarket in the eyes of some....
Next year 2013 it has been chosen as the European City of Sport...


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## iceblue

I think what puts me off Javea is the weathers seems less good in the winter months - from what I have read.

Thanks for the info on Estepona and some of the other ideas. 

The big pull of being as close to Marbella will be facilites which I guess I am used to having ony lived in the big cities in the UK (not that Marbella is anywhere near the size of those).


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## xabiaxica

iceblue said:


> I think what puts me off Javea is the weathers seems less good in the winter months - from what I have read.
> 
> Thanks for the info on Estepona and some of the other ideas.
> 
> The big pull of being as close to Marbella will be facilites which I guess I am used to having ony lived in the big cities in the UK (not that Marbella is anywhere near the size of those).


I've lived in Jávea 9 years - most winter days you can sit on the seafront with a coffee in a t-shirt

yes, we get some rain (we're expecting a wet weekend) but that's why it's so green here , & it can get chilly at night - but most days the temps will reach around 20º

I don't think it's that different to Estepona..............


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## mrypg9

xabiachica said:


> I've lived in Jávea 9 years - most winter days you can sit on the seafront with a coffee in a t-shirt
> 
> yes, we get some rain (we're expecting a wet weekend) but that's why it's so green here , & it can get chilly at night - but most days the temps will reach around 20º
> 
> I don't think it's that different to Estepona..............




From what you and others have posted I'd say there are many similarities....I've not been near Javea for decades but again, only from deducting from posts, I'd venture a guess that there may be more Brits in Javea itself than in Estepona town?

In Estepona, the preferred immigrant area is around the port. There are attractive apartment blocks and the area is fairly quiet. Sandra and I will probably move into an apartment in Estepona when this big house gets too much for us but we would be looking for a large apartment on the seafront in Estepona town itself.

I can think of nothing better in my dotage than to totter out of the foyer of my apartment and take a few faltering steps to one of the many bars and restaurants along the Paseo...The views across the bay to Gibraltar and Africa are simply stunning at any time of day and season of the year.


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## mayotom

mrypg9 said:


> There is more to the CDS than the larger tourist towns. I live in a small village a mere thirty or so kilometres from Marbella yet there are few British immigrants living in the village and such tourists as arrive in summer are mainly French.
> 
> Estepona is well worth a visit. The Ayuntamiento is trying hard to promote itself as more 'genteel' than Marbella, which the TOWIE crowd have nudged just a little downmarket in the eyes of some....
> Next year 2013 it has been chosen as the European City of Sport...


Please don't confuse Marbella with Puerto Banus, they are two totally different scenarios... That sort of crowd can be found down there, but here in Marbella we have real people with real lives who don't care what some idiot on a cheap TV soap does with their lives. 
This year 40% of my rental clients have been French with less than 10% from english speaking countries. Most of those were actually in the Estepona and Duquesa districts. 
you have rightly pointed out that there is a hell of a lot more to the area than the larger Tourist towns. 10 minutes from the coast can take you to fantastic little towns like Ojen, Istan, Benhavis, Casares and many many more.

Come down and explore the region a little more, even rent for a couple of months at a time in various areas to get a feel for each location


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## mrypg9

mayotom said:


> Please don't confuse Marbella with Puerto Banus, they are two totally different scenarios... That sort of crowd can be found down there, but here in Marbella we have real people with real lives who don't care what some idiot on a cheap TV soap does with their lives.
> This year 40% of my rental clients have been French with less than 10% from english speaking countries. Most of those were actually in the Estepona and Duquesa districts.
> you have rightly pointed out that there is a hell of a lot more to the area than the larger Tourist towns. 10 minutes from the coast can take you to fantastic little towns like Ojen, Istan, Benhavis, Casares and many many more.
> 
> Come down and explore the region a little more, even rent for a couple of months at a time in various areas to get a feel for each location



I'm afraid you're going to have to tell all that to the chavs and TOWIE crowd who routinely refer to what they term 'Marbs' as their fun destination.

There is a perception in the UK, thanks to such programmes and the frequency with which such Z list 'celebrities' as Jordan, Peter Andre etc. are featured in the more downmarket magazines and the tabloid press, that Marbella is a bit, well, 'naff'.

But then there are those who view the CdS and all the Spanish Costas in that light. When I said we were relocating to the CdS from Prague there were a few raised eyebrows...

The sad fact is that the UK tabloid press routinely prints stories of drunken misbehaviour, fatalities from daft stunts such as leaping across balconies and other such lurid tales. Scarcely a week passes without some less than flattering story about Spain in the Daily Mail...

Now you and I know that such tales are exaggerated and that yes, there is more to Marbella than stag and hen nights and footballers with their 'girlfriends'...
We also know that there are indeed quiet spots a mile or so from a crowded beach. 

But as you rightly pointed out, the best way to find out is to come and explore.


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## Kenwhite77

I must confess I was pleasantly surprised how nice Marbella is, the UK tabloid make it sound like Blackpool but has lots to offer and far nicer than I imagined.

I certainly would love to live in Marbella but a little confused why the cost of renting a property is so expensive when surely their isn't the demand for the number of properties available.

Anyway, once I get settled in Spain and don't have to commute to the UK I will move down to the region of San Pedro, a nice walk into Puerto Banus to hop in my dingy. ;-)

If someone can explain why Marbella is so expensive no doubt I will find it a pleasant read as surely it can't be down to all the hype.


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## jojo

Kenwhite77 said:


> I must confess I was pleasantly surprised how nice Marbella is, the UK tabloid make it sound like Blackpool but has lots to offer and far nicer than I imagined.
> 
> I certainly would love to live in Marbella but a little confused why the cost of renting a property is so expensive when surely their isn't the demand for the number of properties available.
> 
> Anyway, once I get settled in Spain and don't have to commute to the UK I will move down to the region of San Pedro, a nice walk into Puerto Banus to hop in my dingy. ;-)
> 
> If someone can explain why Marbella is so expensive no doubt I will find it a pleasant read as surely it can't be down to all the hype.


 I guess its all about "prestige" There are parts of London (that I wouldnt live in if you paid me), that are considered "posh" and "Upmarket" and thats reflected in the price of the properties - Marbella is the same????

Jo xxx


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## mrypg9

Kenwhite77 said:


> I must confess I was pleasantly surprised how nice Marbella is, the UK tabloid make it sound like Blackpool but has lots to offer and far nicer than I imagined.
> 
> I certainly would love to live in Marbella but a little confused why the cost of renting a property is so expensive when surely their isn't the demand for the number of properties available.
> 
> Anyway, once I get settled in Spain and don't have to commute to the UK I will move down to the region of San Pedro, a nice walk into Puerto Banus to hop in my dingy. ;-)
> 
> If someone can explain why Marbella is so expensive no doubt I will find it a pleasant read as surely it can't be down to all the hype.


It's no more expensive than some other places as you will find when you look at estate agencies in that area. Yes, it is far more pleasant than portrayed in the press but as I said it has acquired a certain 'chavs-r-us' reputation in the UK media which I'm sure is grossly unfair and inaccurate. It's a town comme les autres, and as Mayotom has pointed out, there's more to it than First Division footballers, Linnekers Bar and Page Three models.

Now San Pedro I like.. It's a no-nonsense, down-to-earth little Spanish town with plenty of good bars, restaurants and shops and no paunchy medallion men or women old enough to know better in skin-tight jeans and tottering heels...

It is said that Spanish landlords ask ridiculously high rents and refuse to bow to downward market pressure, preferring to keep their properties vacant. I don't know if that's true or not.

Why some areas are more expensive than others can often be down to trends and fashion. Think about Islington and Canonbury in North London...both once down-at-heel working-class areas, now fashionable, highly sought-after and very expensive to buy or rent. The same with Notting Hill...

I think the problem for Marbella as far as the British market is concerned could be the relentless stream of tabloid pieces featuring the drunken and vulgar antics of the TOWIE kind that take place mainly in Puerto Banus but the media simply refer to Marbella as the Number One 'party place '.

But the circus will in time move on and some other seaside town will get the TOWIE type attention and leave Marbella in peace.


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## mayotom

Kenwhite77 said:


> I certainly would love to live in Marbella but a little confused why the cost of renting a property is so expensive when surely their isn't the demand for the number of properties available.
> 
> Anyway, once I get settled in Spain and don't have to commute to the UK I will move down to the region of San Pedro, a nice walk into Puerto Banus to hop in my dingy. ;-)
> 
> If someone can explain why Marbella is so expensive no doubt I will find it a pleasant read as surely it can't be down to all the hype.


It really is relevant to exactly where the location is like jo jo has pointed out, the Marbella district stretches 28km from Guadlamina to Cabopino. with enormous variation inbetween, for example I pay €600/month for a modern 3 bed apartment 30meters to the beach(which I rarely use) while a 3 bed in the building where I work costs over €1200 I walk from one to the other in 15-20 minutes.
Some friends of mine have just rented a beautiful brand new 3 bed Duplex at mirador de la canada for €700, Another friend has moved to Ojen and pay's €450 for a 2 bed, another to Guaro pays €400 for a 3 bed house

Take a look at some of the online adverts for apartment rentals on these websites, also you will find lots of very reasonable rental properties on notice boards in Supermarkets and internet shops

Sur in English Classifieds
Segundamano.es
fotocasa.es

idealista.es


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## mrypg9

900 euros a month for the brief time we spent in a two-bedroomed piso which was not front-line beach or in a very pleasant location....that was near the so-called 'new Golden Mile'....


Just goes to show that a rental will go for what people are prepared to pay for it....

Apparently some Spanish people were renting a similar piso in the same community for 600 euros...

We were new and naive..


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## brocher

iceblue said:


> I think what puts me off Javea is the weathers seems less good in the winter months - from what I have read.
> 
> Thanks for the info on Estepona and some of the other ideas.
> 
> The big pull of being as close to Marbella will be facilites which I guess I am used to having ony lived in the big cities in the UK (not that Marbella is anywhere near the size of those).




I'm not exactly sure what you mean by "facilities." 

Certainly, you will find plenty shops, etc in Marbella but it certainly doesn't compare with the facilities of a big city in the UK. There is one huge supermarket, Al Campo, but otherwise it is limited to very small branches of Mercadona, Eroski, etc. Other towns nearby have much bigger branches of supermarkets offering much better choice. The one shopping centre, La Canada, is in my opinion, pretty limited too, selling little other than fairly young fashion. There is very little in the way of ordinary shops selling routine homeware, etc. 

There doesn't seem to be much choice in the way of clubs, gyms, etc. in the immediate town centre either. Most are dotted around the wider areas mentioned in previous posts.

Although there are lots of nice restaurants and bars, there is pretty much nothing in terms of live music, shows, theatre, etc and whatever there is tends to be overpriced (or cancelled due to lack of interest because nothing is advertised properly!)

Saying all that makes it sound as if I don't like the place at all, which is certainly not true! I like it very much but just thought it was worth adding another viewpoint!


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## mayotom

brocher said:


> I'm not exactly sure what you mean by "facilities."
> 
> Certainly, you will find plenty shops, etc in Marbella but it certainly doesn't compare with the facilities of a big city in the UK. There is one huge supermarket, Al Campo, but otherwise it is limited to very small branches of Mercadona, Eroski, etc. Other towns nearby have much bigger branches of supermarkets offering much better choice. The one shopping centre, La Canada, is in my opinion, pretty limited too, selling little other than fairly young fashion. There is very little in the way of ordinary shops selling routine homeware, etc.
> 
> There doesn't seem to be much choice in the way of clubs, gyms, etc. in the immediate town centre either. Most are dotted around the wider areas mentioned in previous posts.
> 
> Although there are lots of nice restaurants and bars, there is pretty much nothing in terms of live music, shows, theatre, etc and whatever there is tends to be overpriced (or cancelled due to lack of interest because nothing is advertised properly!)
> 
> Saying all that makes it sound as if I don't like the place at all, which is certainly not true! I like it very much but just thought it was worth adding another viewpoint!



So it seems Brocher has not lived in Marbella.


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## brocher

mayotom said:


> So it seems Brocher has not lived in Marbella.



Correct.

Your point?


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## FeliciaValentina

And, have you bought a house yet? I am considering the same step so every advise is welcome!! Muchas Gracias;-)


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## danboy20

Also, give Mijas - especially around La Cala - a try. You will get so much more for your money property wise, location is great, lots of nice restaurants, and schools and facilities.


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