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Delayed buying

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 11:15am
19 replies1022 views8 members subscribed
RobertBB

RobertBB

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Location: Torrevieja

Joined: 9 Jun 2020

Morning folks, i just wondered if anyone else had delayed buying a place in Spain, we initially went to Spain Feb 2019 with the intention of buying a finca, for a few reasons we did not buy, reasons included the following, decided we did not want to become resident and brexit but probably the biggest reason was we were unsure if an inland finca was really what we wanted, we returned to Spain later in 2019 and rented a house inland and this convinced us inland was probably not for us.

During 2018 / 2019 we spent hours even days researching properties, one thing we have noticed when conducting the same house searches recently via several estate agent sites is the increase in house numbers for sale, i suspect covid has had a bigger effect on the housing market than brexit was ever going to have, as an example in late 2019 we looked at houses in Santa Pola, there were very few (less than 10) within our budget / search criteria, the same search today throws back 129 houses.

Same goes for Torrevieja and Guardamar, there are far far more houses for sale using the same search criteria and this is common on all the estate agency sites we have used.

We are currently in the UK and hoping to get back ASAP, our last visit was July/August last year, just wondered how businesses , bars etc etc are coping, hard times for many people, life changing even for those that have never had this virus.

bigguy 26

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 11:44am

Posts: 21

19 helpful points

Joined: 30 May 2019

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 11:44am

Hi Think that a lot of people who were living in Spain for a good length of time under the radar and not getting legal 

are now regretting it .They cannot get back  there  once they come back to England without great difficulty and many questions to answer to the Spanish Authorities !!!

So a lot of properties will be put up for sale when are they able to return ,with the mind set is it all worth the aggravation ??? The prices are being only held up but the estate agents who are less than forthcoming with the truth ??  

Peter3473

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 1:11pm

Peter3473

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Joined: 21 Oct 2019

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 1:11pm

Yes there is a lot of properties for sale, where ever you choose to buy, ensure you inform the estate agents that what ever they decide to show you in your price range is you will be only making offers and do not intend to pay prices advertised, Be firm and stick to what you want to pay, getting 10% off is a minimal start, don't forget fees and taxes, remember the estate agent works and gets paid from the seller. Pick out a few on-line and start enquiring what offers would they accept. good luck and I feel you have plenty of time as its early days, don't rush into it, do your homework and stick to your price range.

elinspain

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 1:28pm

elinspain

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Joined: 4 May 2018

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 1:28pm

This post that was quoted has been deleted.

Hello

Time to stop sulking over Schengen rules Baz. You constantly advise posters to look at other countries with better facilities & less restrictions than Spain etc. which does beg the question 'Why do you still have a home here?

Cheers

Elinspain

Angebadge

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 3:59pm

Angebadge

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Location: Moraira

Joined: 28 Jan 2019

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 3:59pm

elinspain wrote on Tue Mar 23, 2021 1:28pm:

Hello

Time to stop sulking over Schengen rules Baz. You constantly advise posters to look at other countries with better facilities & less restrictions than Spain etc. which does beg the question 'Why do you still have a home here?

Cheers

Elinspain

Hi El. In the words of the song, “you took the words right out of my mouth”. If was so disenchanted with Spain, I’d leave! I’ve always found the Spanish to be friendly and welcoming 🤪🥂

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Angebadge

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:54pm

Angebadge

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Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:54pm

Hi RobertBB

I guess it’s inevitable that some will decide to try to sell. Running costs, for what is probably a second, home will impact on many, particularly if you’re not having the pleasure of using it. I think it’s been many years since someone bought as an “investment”; for the majority, it’s a lifestyle choice

I think it’s worth remembering that to sell, you first need a buyer. We can guess that the majority of “sellers” are Brits, but no one really knows. Lots of other nations buy in Spain. Perhaps not in the numbers that Brits have, but it follows that they will also sell, for whatever reason.

My immediate neighbours....two on one side are Swiss; one has Dementia and will not return. The other suffered a massive stroke and has returned to Switzerland. The other side was Dutch. He has just died following a short battle with cancer. I’m expecting all three houses to go on the market as soon as. They’ve all owned their homes for 20+ years. Interestingly, three others nearby have completed their sales in the last few months. Two to Dutch couples and the other, German I think.

I’m ever the optimist and feel that wherever you are in the world, things will inevitably  change, but the sun will still shine (well, it will if you’re in Spain 😉) and the wheels will keep on turning. If it’s your dream to buy/live in Spain, keep on dreaming would be my advice 🤪🥂

Davebev1

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:08pm

Davebev1

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Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:08pm

If people cannot visit they cannot buy, so inevitable that with less sales over the last year there will be more properties still on the market.

RobertBB

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:09pm

RobertBB

Original Poster

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Posts: 128

154 helpful points

Location: Torrevieja

Joined: 9 Jun 2020

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:09pm

Angebadge wrote on Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:54pm:

Hi RobertBB

I guess it’s inevitable that some will decide to try to sell. Running costs, for what is probably a second, home will impact on many, particularly if you’re not having the pleasure of using it. I think it’s been many years since someone bought as an “investment”; for the majority, it’...

...s a lifestyle choice

I think it’s worth remembering that to sell, you first need a buyer. We can guess that the majority of “sellers” are Brits, but no one really knows. Lots of other nations buy in Spain. Perhaps not in the numbers that Brits have, but it follows that they will also sell, for whatever reason.

My immediate neighbours....two on one side are Swiss; one has Dementia and will not return. The other suffered a massive stroke and has returned to Switzerland. The other side was Dutch. He has just died following a short battle with cancer. I’m expecting all three houses to go on the market as soon as. They’ve all owned their homes for 20+ years. Interestingly, three others nearby have completed their sales in the last few months. Two to Dutch couples and the other, German I think.

I’m ever the optimist and feel that wherever you are in the world, things will inevitably  change, but the sun will still shine (well, it will if you’re in Spain 😉) and the wheels will keep on turning. If it’s your dream to buy/live in Spain, keep on dreaming would be my advice 🤪🥂

Thanks to everyone that's taken the time to reply.

I had assumed the virus was the primary reason for the huge jump in houses for sale in Santa Pola as its not really known as a touristy area for Brits, Germans, Dutch etc etc, certainly they are present but Santa Pola is a working town and its really the Spanish that use it for the holiday periods, my reasoning  being hard times due to the virus meant many selling up rental properties or holiday homes they could no longer afford, quite sure there will be many Brits selling up throughout Spain due to the "B" word but that's another story.

Angebadge

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:40pm

Angebadge

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Posts: 1108

1609 helpful points

Location: Moraira

Joined: 28 Jan 2019

Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:40pm

This post that was quoted has been deleted.

Careful baz52, I’m not sure anyone mentioned “a woman”. Or are you inferring only women sulk? Not very logical 🤪🥂

Cpop

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2021 6:01pm

Cpop

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Posts: 127

65 helpful points

Location: Crevillente

Joined: 3 Dec 2019

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2021 6:01pm

The number of houses available for sale have increased since the Covid outbreak, not just in Spain, but also in France, Italy and Slovenia, so my friends in those countries tell me. 

Reasoning is that many people in those countries own second homes, and if they cannot visit them due to lockdowns, why keep paying out for their upkeep? And some will be rental properties that can't be rented to holiday makers either, so they have gone up for sale.

There are also owners of these properties that are resident in the UK, and who now cannot visit for more than 90 days at a time. Before Brexit they used to spend 6 months over the winter at their second home which will not be possible now.

I have another friend that lives on Pag in Croatia, which is desolate during winter, as the vast majority are holiday homes. I asked if there had been a spike in the number of apartments going up for sale, or have been sold, and he says no. Not being part of Schengen, the 90 day rule does not exist, but this does not seem to have had any effect on property demands.

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