Property in Spain continues to attract Europeans and especially the British, because of the country’s warm climate, natural beauty and pleasant quality of life.
The rush of purchase of second homes by foreigners has made the housing market boom over the past decade, but the market now is a buyer’s market due to excess overbuilding and competition from many new and emerging markets. The current oversupplied environment is good for long-term investors and retirees because they can get properties at discount. Even if prices decline somewhat further, it should prove a good purchase in the long term as real estate markets are inherently cyclical.
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The availability of low cost flights within Europe and Britain means that it has never been easier to investigate potential property purchases.
Hotspots To Buy In Spain
There are a huge number of potential locations to suit everyone when considering purchase of property in Spain. Here are some of the more popular destinations:
• Barcelona
• Madrid
• Costa Blanca
• Costa del Azahar
• Costa Calida
• Costa Brava
• Costa Dorada
• Canary Islands
• Costa del Sol
• Costa de la Luz
• Costa del Almeria
Important Things To Look Out For When Buying Property In Spain
Unfortunately, there are some unreliable people in the Spanish property market so you do need to act carefully. Some people have been burned very badly when trying to make their purchase of property in Spain.
Having said that there is a large availability of properties for purchase in Spain including purpose-built apartments, villa complexes and practically every other type of property you could want. It can be a confusing choice however, with a huge number of parties all claiming to have access to the best properties.
Here are some of the important factors you should consider when opting for a Spanish property:
• Look for “GIPE” and “API” accreditation while on the look out for a good estate agent. This does not guarantee that you will not get ripped off but it will reduce your chances significantly.
• As always you should look to have any contract you sign thoroughly checked by a lawyer who understands both English and Spanish very well.
• You’ll need to be familiar with the contrato privado which is a contract that sets the price and lockss both parties into the transaction.
• If you do become a Spanish property owner then you will need to obtain a tax ID number, known as a numero de identificacion de extranjeros – this is important because it is required in order to pay taxes as well as for registering the property.
