Why You Should Move to Spain NOW!

Morning Bill, hope all is well with you.

I thought I would drop you a quick line and spread some positive thoughts.

Sadly, my 94yr old Mother passed away on the 24th September, and I attended her funeral in the UK last week. However, during conversations with my only brother, who always said he stayed in England to be close to her, I suggested there was now nothing stopping him from moving to Spain. His response was that he probably won't in the foreseeable future as there is a major economic crisis in Spain, with unemployment running at 25% and the exchange rate has still not recovered sufficiently. Basically, all doom and gloom!

I thought for a moment and said "Hang on a minute, you are forgetting one important thing - Spain is still a fantastic place in which to live !" "A draft beer is still only one Euro, coffee one Euro, a nice bottle of wine is only 2 Euros, my car tax is 45 Euro a year, I have a 400 sqM house and pay only 98 Euro a year rates, we can get an excellent 3 course 'menu del dia' for 7 Euro, we have had sunshine and no rain since April, and we can plan a bbq a month ahead and know we will get great weather".

In addition, I explained that, like me, he draws his full State pension plus private pensions, and suggested he could live a very good life here on his current income, and be insulated from the so called 'crisis'.

Having lived here full time for 12 years, both my wife and I agree that the actual cost of living as a resident is about half of the cost in the UK. As a tourist on one week's holiday, you wouldn't see that as you pay everything at tourist rates, especially on the Costas.

As everyone focusses on the European wide crisis, I think that's a fundamental and important factor most people are forgetting - SPAIN IS A FANTASTIC PLACE TO LIVE. OK, so you need either a pension or a business you can run from here in order to have a sustained income. So . . . . . . .!. What's the problem?

Regards

Mervyn
Algarinejo 

Mervyn is selling "Finger In" on behalf of a family member.

http://www.tickle-international-property.com/
Email: bill.tickle@tickle-international-property.com

Buying A Repossession (Foreclosure)

It is no secret that the Spanish banks face a huge problems in the current financial climate. They have huge portfolios of repossessed properties and very little experience in dealing with the problem.

Traditionally Spanish banks took repossessions into their ownership at full book value. If this was higher than market value they held the property, sometimes for years, until they could sell it for a profit or at least break even. In the process they didn’t need to declare losses and didn’t undermine the main property market with a flood of cheap homes.

Today the sheer number of repossessed properties means that the banks can’t follow traditional practice and desperately need to make sales.

 The other alternative was to auction the property. Unfortunately the process in Spain is convoluted and anything but transparent. It is very difficult for an outsider (ie the general public) to find out what is being auctioned and where. This meant it became a great way for the family, friends and business contacts of the local bank manager to make a profit because they are the only people who would ever know what was available and where and when it was being sold. As a result sales occurred at ridiculously low prices; a great perk for the insiders but a disaster for everyone else. In particular this process is totally unsuitable for getting rid of the current back log.

 Since the current crisis began we have seen the banks try all sorts of things to shift property; 100% mortgages (albeit for homes at old fashioned prices) being a prime example. Selling through agents hasn’t worked well either because of the unwillingness of many to co operate with each other. The bank wpould give the keys to agent A on the understanding that other agents could have access to them. Unfortunately it mever seemed to be convenient and even if an appointment could be made it was amazing how something always came up at the last minute to prevent the viewing!

 Long months of hard work have now resolved most of the problems and we are able to offer a large number of repossessed, bank owned homes. The important thing to note is that the asking prices are set by the bank and are EXTREMELY negotiable.  

 The banks are also difficult with regard to commissions, which is why in most cases we need to charge a buyer a “finders fee” of 2,000 Euros. This will be more than recovered in price negotiations and we would be equally be happy to work for a percentage of any discount we can negotiate!

Finally we have many, many, more repossessed properties for sale than we can show on the site. There has never been a time like this for buying bargain property in the very best locations on the Costa del Sol and in Inland Andalucia and all you have to do is let me know what you want and when you are coming. We will sort out the very best properties that meet your requirements and help you get the bargain(s) of a life time.  

For our Repossessed properties   Click Here

+44 208 144 5525

+598 424 80 563

Skype; tickle.tip

http://www.tickle-international-property.com/  

Email: bill.tickle@tickle-international-property.com

Rent To Buy

I got an irate call from a competitor and friend (yes that’s what I said, we enjoy friendly competition and co operate as well from time to time!) who got the wrong end of the stick in last week’s newsletter warning of the perils of “guaranteed rentals”. She thought I was criticizing “buy to rent” which is something she recommends. Nothing could have been further from my mind because in today’s market “buy to rent” is an excellent idea.

Everyone knows that Spain has for a long time been a popular destination for holiday makers and in my experience hard economic times are perversely good for Spanish rentals. Why? People still want their holidays, they still want guaranteed sun but they don’t want to break the bank. So good bye Maldives, hello Spain! I used to own apartments in Estepona and the best rental year I ever had was in the depths of Mrs Thatcher’s recession! No one booked ahead, everything seemed to be last minute but we were nevertheless packed for months on end. Many of my friends involved in holiday rentals in Andalucia are experiencing the same trend this year, making buying a home in the country a genuine investment opportunity.

There is also a very strong demand from people nervous of making a commitment to buying who are instead renting long term. If you are looking to invest this is a perfect situation; good, committed, tenants who should be buying but haven’t got the courage to invest themselves so instead pay you! It may seem a bit daunting to go against the trend but that is how you make a successful investment; the same herd (flock?) that is afraid to invest at the bottom of the market is the one that can’t pay enough at the top!

I have tried to include some good renters this month along with the usual new listings, price reductions and bargain deals but if you would like to discuss buy to rent in greater detail please get in touch any time.

http://www.tickle-international-property.com/

Email: bill.tickle@tickle-international-property.com