[Help] Buying a holiday home

DJ NOBO · May 5, 2022

A few of my family members are looking at getting together to buy a holiday home, possibly in Spain.
It makes sense with lots of young kids, so storing stuff out there and not having the uncertainty of going to different places on holiday.
Also thought it might work out being cheaper in the long run.
Spain would be a favoured location, near the beach ideally.
Just wondered if anyone has ever done this - any tips? How do it work out? How did you go about buying? Do you feel it’s worth it?
Did it end up being a money pit?
Btw I appreciate the idea of part-lived in homes is controversial to some. Fair enough.

Springal · May 5, 2022

Our family did as one set of grandparents lived out there for 10 years and between their 3 kids they bought somewhere to use and try and get some rental in it when no one was there. It was ok but as a kid (early teenager) there’s only so many times I wanted to go back to the same place.

I’d definitely not go into it with any ideas of an investment / making money or generating much rental income as popular places are pretty saturated

nicko31 · May 5, 2022

Echo what Springal says on the investment front, saturated market plus you need to consider change over costs when renting out, cleaning, laundary, management fees...

Think if you were looking to do some wintering and you can rent in the peak it might be more likely to cover itself financially

BLOCK F · May 5, 2022

DJ NOBO said:
A few of my family members are looking at getting together to buy a holiday home, possibly in Spain.
It makes sense with lots of young kids, so storing stuff out there and not having the uncertainty of going to different places on holiday.
Also thought it might work out being cheaper in the long run.
Spain would be a favoured location, near the beach ideally.
Just wondered if anyone has ever done this - any tips? How do it work out? How did you go about buying? Do you feel it’s worth it?
Did it end up being a money pit?
Btw I appreciate the idea of part-lived in homes is controversial to some. Fair enough.

Nobo, you are brave starting a thread such as this on NSC.
Just hope some of the more rabid socialistas on here don’t get their teeth into you. :lolol:

A mex eyecan · May 5, 2022

all the arguments between the shared owners,
‘I want that week’, ‘no I want that week’.
‘ You broke that so you pay for it to be replaced’, ‘No I didn’t break it Harry did’
‘We think the bedding needs replacing, will cost £150’, ‘well, we are quite happy with what’s there, so we aren’t paying’
etc, etc, etc.

dsr-burnley · May 5, 2022

Spanish law means you must have a Spanish agent/solicitor to do it for you, and you would no doubt want an English solicitor involved too. There must be specialists who work in both countries, I suppose, but the Spaniard is a must. (If it isn't done right, the government can sequester the house without compensation, so they tell me.)

DJ NOBO · May 5, 2022

BLOCK F said:
Nobo, you are brave starting a thread such as this on NSC.
Just hope some of the more rabid socialistas on here don’t get their teeth into you.

Yeah . It’s not a money making venture but even so I’m probably already dead.
As ever , some sage advice already though .

dazzer6666 · May 5, 2022

Thought about it quite long and hard but ultimately decided against it. Have a few pals (all golfers) who have places where they go for weeks at a time, particularly in winter, mostly to play which makes perfect sense but from a personal point of view we have no wish to spend multiple holidays in the same place at the moment (or essentially split where we live - too much going on here to consider it). Wouldn’t want the hassle of renting etc so better value for us to spend the money on holidays.

Stumpy Tim · May 5, 2022

We are thinking of buying a place in Spain too... probably Estepona, which is a smaller (and cheaper) version of Marbella, along the coast. That part of Spain is particulary good as there are a lot of top quality golf courses nearby, so places are rentable all year round.

If and when we make the plunge we'll probably go to a service like this - https://movetomalagaspain.com/

Poojah · May 5, 2022

My in-laws have had a place in the Torrevieja region of the Costa Blanca. It’s a modest, semi-modern villa with a nice shared pool and decent if not particularly upmarket local amenities. They're about to pay it off having had it just shy of 20 years, and whilst they reckon they’ll make no money on it their argument is that they’ve got an asset with circa £150k that they’ve had extensive use out of, which otherwise would have been spent down the pub (and knowing them, it would).

If you’re not amazing with money I’d say it’s not a terrible idea as a savings vehicle, but I’d echo the thoughts of others that you’d have to really know what you’re doing and buy in the right place at the right time to make anything out of it as an investment.

papachris · May 5, 2022

I bought a place in Torrevieja in 2017.
We love our little place over there. We haven't rented commercially but family stay for free and friends go on mates rates.
If you are in an expats type of area there will be good English speaking solicitors.
Once you own a property there you would need a Spanish will for this as well, if not it would pass to the government.
Buying was very easy and only took about a month from offer to getting the keys.
In Spanish law when you agree a price you have to make a deposit that you will lose if you pull out. There is also the same for the seller should they pull out. Allow about 13% on top of the price, this is 10% tax to govt plus legal costs will be about 3%.Be aware of running costs, these will be higher the more facilities are available, pool etc in a complex. I personally have a bungalow in a residential area so costs are lower for me. You'll need to have a Spanish bank account to pay regular costs and if you are non resident there this will cost a little more.
Good luck and I hope you find a lovely place, it's great to just pop over when you see cheap flights

Mr Putdown · May 5, 2022

Springal said:
Our family did as one set of grandparents lived out there for 10 years and between their 3 kids they bought somewhere to use and try and get some rental in it when no one was there. It was ok but as a kid (early teenager) there’s only so many times I wanted to go back to the same place.

I’d definitely not go into it with any ideas of an investment / making money or generating much rental income as popular places are pretty saturated

We bought and converted a water mill and a couple of associated buildings in Normandy with a river and loads of land about 25 years ago and I had visions of the family meeting up for holidays, for years to come.

I think we had the family join us about three or four times before they got bored with it. Too quiet, nothing much to do for them so we sold up before the first grandkid even arrived. It was way too big for just the two of us and the ongoing costs didn’t justify keeping it on. If I’m honest we probably lost the equivalent of a couple of round the world cruises by the time we sold up. :facepalm:

In contrast, me and a couple of workmates bought a two bed flat on the Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes about thirty years ago when we were often there with work. That has been a total goldmine ever since, although none of us actually use it any more, it still makes a tidy sum for us all every year.

Two different experiences of owning holiday property abroad, I guess you win some and lose some. I personally wouldn’t do it again unless it was an exceptional opportunity.

wellquickwoody · May 5, 2022

BLOCK F said:
Nobo, you are brave starting a thread such as this on NSC.
Just hope some of the more rabid socialistas on here don’t get their teeth into you.

He’ll be telling us that he has a garden too, the utter Tory *******!

Paulie Gualtieri · May 5, 2022

Certainly get a decent Spanish lawyer and make sure all planning permissions and covenants are explored in detail

A relative bought a new build place on the outskirts of Los Montesinos (Alancante) and after a couple of months was advised following a visit from the Mayor that the electrical supply hadn’t been approved for the 4 new builds. Only one had been signed off occupied by a full time Spanish National.
For a period of time the other 3 with consent from the occupied home were running their electric from an unapproved rig up to the occupied house.

They had to essentially “bung” the mayor 15,000 euros to get approval. I’ve always suspected the occupied house was in on it in some way.

They sold for a 10% loss 9 years later.

Sure there will be plenty of positives but do your due diligence properly and good luck

Live by the sea · May 5, 2022

Mr Putdown said:
We bought and converted a water mill and a couple of associated buildings in Normandy with a river and loads of land about 25 years ago and I had visions of the family meeting up for holidays, for years to come.

I think we had the family join us about three or four times before they got bored with it. Too quiet, nothing much to do for them so we sold up before the first grandkid even arrived. It was way too big for just the two of us and the ongoing costs didn’t justify keeping it on. If I’m honest we probably lost the equivalent of a couple of round the world cruises by the time we sold up.

In contrast, me and a couple of workmates bought a two bed flat on the Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes about thirty years ago when we were often there with work. That has been a total goldmine ever since, although none of us actually use it any more, it still makes a tidy sum for us all every year.

Two different experiences of owning holiday property abroad, I guess you win some and lose some. I personally wouldn’t do it again unless it was an exceptional opportunity.

I think if you buy in a super prime area like Cannes , you can’t go wrong . Buying in the sticks in Spain or France is a different matter .

BNthree · May 5, 2022

A mex eyecan said:
all the arguments between the shared owners,
‘I want that week’, ‘no I want that week’.
‘ You broke that so you pay for it to be replaced’, ‘No I didn’t break it Harry did’
‘We think the bedding needs replacing, will cost £150’, ‘well, we are quite happy with what’s there, so we aren’t paying’
etc, etc, etc.

This. Make sure there is a lot agreed in advance rather than thinking it’ll all be ok. When money is involved people, even family, turn into pricks.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Harry Wilson's tackle · May 5, 2022

BLOCK F said:
Nobo, you are brave starting a thread such as this on NSC.
Just hope some of the more rabid socialistas on here don’t get their teeth into you.

I'm a rabid socialist and I have no problem with this thread.

What gives?

Weststander · May 5, 2022

Springal said:
Our family did as one set of grandparents lived out there for 10 years and between their 3 kids they bought somewhere to use and try and get some rental in it when no one was there. It was ok but as a kid (early teenager) there’s only so many times I wanted to go back to the same place.

I’d definitely not go into it with any ideas of an investment / making money or generating much rental income as popular places are pretty saturated

This happened to the kids of family who own a nice little place, with a shared pool, on the Costa Azahar.

When the kids got to 16, they announced politely “never again”. Before that time, breaks away for example at New Year got shorter and shorter as the kids missed their mates in Brighton.

But it probably saved a small fortune in sunshine holiday costs in the years up to then.

It was bought outright with an inheritance.

Mr Putdown · May 5, 2022

Live by the sea said:
I think if you buy in a super prime area like Cannes , you can’t go wrong . Buying in the sticks in Spain or France is a different matter .

It might surprise you that we paid just over €100k euro for that apartment. Sea views from all the front windows.

Truth be told Cannes was a bit of a shit hole back then, with its premier hotels surviving on delegates from business symposium’s and the infamous film festival filling their rooms. Around 5pm the prominade had loads of pretty girls, all on the game, emerge to strut their wares. Back then you didn’t have to go too far behind La Croisette, to find the rough side to Cannes.

Trust me, but it really wasn’t seen as a ‘super prime area’ back then!

BLOCK F · May 6, 2022

Harry Wilson's tackle said:
I'm a rabid socialist and I have no problem with this thread.

What gives?

Harry, you are a pussy cat compared to some.

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