# Advice with move :)



## manda123 (Jan 24, 2014)

Hello everyone,

I am new to this but hoping for some advice.

We are planning to move to spain preferably Costa del sol area in a few years.
What advice would you give someone before making the move or what do you wish you knew before you went. Where are good family areas and where to avoid?
Does anyone have advice on areas. I have been looking at areas just outside cartama and villafranco maybe alhaurin el grande?

:We have just started learning Spanish and hope to grasp the basics by the time we move.
Our daughter will be about 5 to 6 years old when we move.

We are hoping to open a cafe but still undecided if this is the best option.

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Thank you


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## Leper (May 12, 2010)

Dear Amanda,

Sorry to rain on your parade. The economy of Spain will remain low for many years to come. Unemployment will not get much better. Even with fluent Spanish your hope of making it in Spain is remote. For every café that opens at least one other closes. Everybody is fighting for the same Euro.

If you have a fallback like Hairdressing for example please remember Hairdressers are closing at nearly the same rate as restaurants in the Costas. The Beauty business is the same.

If you are in gainful employment in the UK cherish it, nourish it, love it, grasp it and don't leave it go. Believe me, unless you are a millionaire Spain will let you go.

You probably need a cup of tea after this.


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## manda123 (Jan 24, 2014)

Hi lepar,

Thank you for your reply.

We are still unsure of the best option for income although hoping to have a holiday home for a couple of years before making the move to fully investigate options or decide to continue working for our uk based company and have a home from home for the summer's.

Any suggestions, advice or experiences on the areas I mentioned above would be great.

Thanks


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

manda123 said:


> Hi lepar,
> 
> Thank you for your reply.
> 
> ...


Leper has told it like it is.
Stick with your UK company and enjoy Spanish holidays.
It is even illegal to rent out a holiday home as a source of income.
Spain is in crisis and will continue to be for many years to come.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

mrypg9 said:


> Leper has told it like it is.
> Stick with your UK company and enjoy Spanish holidays.
> *It is even illegal to rent out a holiday home as a source of income.*
> Spain is in crisis and will continue to be for many years to come.



er - no it isn't

you just have to have the correct licences & declare the income


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

xabiachica said:


> er - no it isn't
> 
> you just have to have the correct licences & declare the income


But the rental law applicable from June 1st 2013 has altered the situation,hasn't it? Isn't the minimal rental period now six months?
Wasn't it always the case before the law change that you had to have licences and declare income if you had holiday lets?
Or is the change merely about licences?
It's also the case that detailed application of this law will vary from province to province...or so I've read...


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## tarot650 (Sep 30, 2007)

manda123 said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> I am new to this but hoping for some advice.
> 
> ...


The two posts you have had I would take on board and if I was seriously contemplating moving here I would be seriously looking nearer the time when you are coming here.I don't think anybody can predict whats going to happen here in 4 or 5years time.Not even Mystic Meg.When me and the missus came to live here permanently 19 years ago it really was a cheap country to live in and if somebody had told me the crisis Spain is in today I wouldn't have believed them.I am just thankful now that I don't have to work and have the time to enjoy this lovely country.Also,areas to live in,we have different needs and criteria.It's all down to ones personal needs and circumstances.I admire you for learning Spanish but honestly the sooner people learn the crisis in this country is not going to get better in the foreseeable future.I love Spain I am just glad I don't have to work and certainly not looking for it.Best of luck.SB.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

mrypg9 said:


> But the rental law applicable from June 1st 2013 has altered the situation,hasn't it? Isn't the minimal rental period now six months?
> Wasn't it always the case before the law change that you had to have licences and declare income if you had holiday lets?
> Or is the change merely about licences?
> It's also the case that detailed application of this law will vary from province to province...or so I've read...


no you can still do holiday lets - it's _*residential*_ contracts which have to be a minimum of 6 months


& yes, it HAS always been the case that you should declare the income

although the licensing of holiday properties isn't in force everywhere yet, & from what I've seen does indeed vary from province to province


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

xabiachica said:


> no you can still do holiday lets - it's _*residential*_ contracts which have to be a minimum of 6 months
> 
> 
> & yes, it HAS always been the case that you should declare the income
> ...


So in a way it's been a lot of fuss over nothing, if all that's changed has been the licensing requirement -and quite right too. Some time ago I was shown round a few holiday lets and I was struck by how shabby and rundown they were....and for £600 a week for a two-bed apartment.
I thought this change in the law was brought in to protect the hotel industry.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

mrypg9 said:


> So in a way it's been a lot of fuss over nothing, if all that's changed has been the licensing requirement -and quite right too. Some time ago I was shown round a few holiday lets and I was struck by how shabby and rundown they were....and for £600 a week for a two-bed apartment.
> I thought this change in the law was brought in to protect the hotel industry.


that's right - nothing much has changed except that it has triggered a crack-down & those advertising holiday lets are being more actively chased/checked


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## Aron (Apr 30, 2013)

You say in your post that you are thinking about moving in a few years time. I think that is when you should ask this question. Spain is coming out of recession and nobody really knows how long it will take to recover. The IMF have this week upgraded the economic forecast for the Spanish economy. However, that means little until the unemployment falls. 
As for opening a cafe, well, I have known a lot of Brits in the past 35 years who came to have a bar or cafe and never made a go of it, and that was in the good times.
I would stay in the UK, work and save until the time is right to come and enjoy what is a beautiful country.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Aron said:


> You say in your post that you are thinking about moving in a few years time. I think that is when you should ask this question. Spain is coming out of recession and nobody really knows how long it will take to recover. *The IMF have this week upgraded the economic forecast for the Spanish economy*. However, that means little until the unemployment falls.
> As for opening a cafe, well, I have known a lot of Brits in the past 35 years who came to have a bar or cafe and never made a go of it, and that was in the good times.
> I would stay in the UK, work and save until the time is right to come and enjoy what is a beautiful country.


An alarming fact, burrowed away in the government's reporting of the 'good news' in the miniscule fall in unemployment is that the size of the actual workforce is steadily diminishing.
This is probably due to a combination of factors such as an ageing population, emigration and those who feel there is no point in actively seeking employment.
This is Very Bad News as future prosperity will depend on people's spending power. Few spenders =low profits for business=reduced tax revenue=reduced welfare spending=more unemployment =less spending...
A truly vicious circle and no-one has come up with a strategy to break it.
Spain will never again be the 'dream', the Eldorado.
If it ever was apart from a holiday in the sun.


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## zenkarma (Feb 15, 2013)

mrypg9 said:


> I thought this change in the law was brought in to protect the hotel industry.


It came about through lobbying from the hotel industry to the government to do something about the sheer number of private holiday lets damaging their business. The government clearly thought it was a good idea to clamp down on private holiday lets, particularly those not paying their share of tax. 

It's a common theme repeated everywhere—the minority (who think it's okay to duck out of their tax obligations) mess it up for the majority of honest tax paying people.

It's now almost impossible to avoid paying tax because the issue of licenses tells the authorities who is renting and who isn't. Now everyone has to go through the hassle of getting a rental license—even those who did keep their properties properly maintained to a high standard as well as declaring their income for tax.


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