Buying an Appartment in Spain?

[Robo]

Bit of wishful thinking here.

We were looking at our options over lunch today.
I'd love to retire, but can't unfortunately.
But I can work remotely.
And ease back my working hours a bit.

I'm hoping to walk a fair few more Caminos before age and ill health catches up with me.
So living in Spain for a few months each year is a possibility.

Potentially we could downsize here, and buy a small apartment/studio somewhere fairly central, and take breaks of a few days from work to go walk different Caminos.

Perhaps renting it out as an AirBnB when we are not there could help defray some of the costs? (or booking com)

I know quite a few members here have moved to Spain from elsewhere, or have always lived in Spain.
Any thoughts or advice would be most appreciated.

Questions that came up in our lunch discussion were........

1. Where to be based? Probably fairly close to International Airports (2-3 hours) or at least main line rail. We are not beach people. More into mountains and countryside. But it probably makes sense for a 'base' to be in a major town/city. Thoughts were Madrid, Salamanca, (been to those) Toledo?

2. AirBnB ability. Here in Australia many apartment buildings (maybe most?) do not allow them to be used as AirBnB type 'short term' accommodation. I wonder if it's the same in Spain?

3. Property Management. Given we are in Australia, I wonder who we could lean on for managing the property? Here in Australia there are companies that do it, for long term rentals. But short term? Ideally they would also manage the bookings as well as take care of the property. (edit. Looks like there are AirBnB 'co-hosts', who do this for a %)

Just some random thoughts, that might allow me to 'semi' retire and walk some more Caminos at least.

Comments or advice always appreciated.

Yet another hair brained scheme maybe?

 

[Pafayac]

My advice is to buy an appartement in Gijon, large enough to welcome pilgrims: currently, this is nearly impossible to find cheap accommodation in this town !

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

A dream which I'm sure a few of us share.
You could contact these guys for answers to many of your questions, I'm sure there are plenty of other examples.

Airbnb Management in Spain | GuestReady

Maximise your rental income with GuestReady. We are an award-winning Airbnb management company, operating in spain. Our 5-star services start at just 15%.

www.guestready.com

 

[Luka]

Interesting thoughts...

If you want to be close to an international airport your choices would be more or less limited to Barcelona and Madrid. Both expensive cities. And also getting more and more restrictive to airbnb kind of constructions, because of overtourism and housing problems. Barcelona even wants to ban airbnb by 2026 (if I recall well).

Salamanca might be an interesting option. Certainly a lot more affordable than Madrid. León maybe? Central location for many Caminos. High speed train to Madrid, so rather accesible to an international airport. Same counts for Oviedo and Gijón (though you would have to travel a bit longer). I think I would look along the lines of the AVE-network. Maybe also good options along the Santiago - Madrid connection. There is (for some incomprehensible reason) an AVE-station in A Gudiña, if you would prefer countryside.

 

[Robo]

My advice is to buy an appartement in Gijon, large enough to welcome pilgrims: currently, this is nearly impossible to find cheap accommodation in this town !

Hmm. Might have to look at that area.

 

[Robo]

A dream which I'm sure a few of us share.
You could contact these guys for answers to many of your questions, I'm sure there are plenty of other examples.

Airbnb Management in Spain | GuestReady

Maximise your rental income with GuestReady. We are an award-winning Airbnb management company, operating in spain. Our 5-star services start at just 15%.

www.guestready.com

Thanks for that.

 

[Robo]

Interesting thoughts...

If you want to be close to an international airport your choices would be more or less limited to Barcelona and Madrid. Both expensive cities. And also getting more and more restrictive to airbnb kind of constructions, because of overtourism and housing problems. Barcelona even wants to ban airbnb by 2026 (if I recall well).

Salamanca might be an interesting option. Certainly a lot more affordable than Madrid. León maybe? Central location for many Caminos. High speed train to Madrid, so rather accesible to an international airport. Same counts for Oviedo and Gijón (though you would have to travel a bit longer). I think I would look along the lines of the AVE-network. Maybe also good options along the Santiago - Madrid connection. There is (for some incomprehensible reason) an AVE-station in A Gudiña, if you would prefer countryside.

Many thanks. Some new areas to investigate........
Interesting looking along the AVE network. Good tip!
Burgos maybe. Certainly lower prices....

 

[VNwalking]

A Coruña? I have nothing helpful to add about the rest. But do wonder about a visa?

 

[Robo]

A Coruña? I have nothing helpful to add about the rest. But do wonder about a visa?

Nice idea.

I'm eligible for an Irish Passport. (EU)
That might help?
Would need to get advice on that.
Or at least on Foreign ownership.
90 days a year would be plenty.

 

[Molly Cassidy]

You might be interested in the article below. It's worth noting that whatever the Airbnb rules now, many governments across Europe are imposing restrictions, so it's very likely rules will change.

Spanish government to limit short-term rentals and tourist flats to address housing crisis - Spain in English

The Spanish government has announced its intention to modify the country's existing housing law to put more limits on both short-term and tourist lettings

www.spainenglish.com

 

[Sirage]

On a reasonable rail line, not necessarily the highest speed, rather than close to an airport.

Clearly time to have a few weeks or months being in Spain to experience the various places that are suggested here.

Include Segovia, about 30 minutes from Madrid on a good train, (and as a nostalgic bonus it has delivery vans with "Merino" on the sides because of its history with Merino sheep). It is at a good elevation above the Spanish heat.

Salamanca is good, but there are many good towns.

 

[Pelegrin]

2. AirBnB ability. Here in Australia many apartment buildings (maybe most?) do not allow them to be used as AirBnB type 'short term' accommodation. I wonder if it's the same in Spain?

There is a recent law that set 3/5 of the neighbourhood community to prohibit the possibility of " piso turistico". It is easier to find that possibility in the coast.

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

Nice idea.

I'm eligible for an Irish Passport. (EU)
That might help?
Would need to get advice on that.
Or at least on Foreign ownership.
90 days a year would be plenty.

There are no current restrictions on who can and cannot buy a property, (EU not necessary) you simply need a NIE (foreigner registration number basically), and it's strongly suggested that you open a local bank account.
There's plenty of info online. (Yes I have seriously considered this, although as a permanent rather than temporary resident).
You might want to check out this one, it seems to cover most of the basics.

Buying a Property in Spain as a Foreigner (2024 Full Guide)

According to the current data on the Spanish real estate sector, there is a significant “boom” in foreign purchases of properties in Spain: since 2009, foreign demand for housing in Spain has increased notably, being led by British buyers, closely followed by Germans and French. It is true that...

spainadvisers.com

 

[TravellingMan22]

Bit of wishful thinking here.

We were looking at our options over lunch today.
I'd love to retire, but can't unfortunately.
But I can work remotely.
And ease back my working hours a bit.

I'm hoping to walk a fair few more Caminos before age and ill health catches up with me.
So living in Spain for a few months each year is a possibility.

Potentially we could downsize here, and buy a small apartment/studio somewhere fairly central, and take breaks of a few days from work to go walk different Caminos.

Perhaps renting it out as an AirBnB when we are not there could help defray some of the costs? (or booking com)

I know quite a few members here have moved to Spain from elsewhere, or have always lived in Spain.
Any thoughts or advice would be most appreciated.

Questions that came up in our lunch discussion were........

1. Where to be based? Probably fairly close to International Airports (2-3 hours) or at least main line rail. We are not beach people. More into mountains and countryside. But it probably makes sense for a 'base' to be in a major town/city. Thoughts were Madrid, Salamanca, (been to those) Toledo?

2. AirBnB ability. Here in Australia many apartment buildings (maybe most?) do not allow them to be used as AirBnB type 'short term' accommodation. I wonder if it's the same in Spain?

3. Property Management. Given we are in Australia, I wonder who we could lean on for managing the property? Here in Australia there are companies that do it, for long term rentals. But short term? Ideally they would also manage the bookings as well as take care of the property. (edit. Looks like there are AirBnB 'co-hosts', who do this for a %)

Just some random thoughts, that might allow me to 'semi' retire and walk some more Caminos at least.

Comments or advice always appreciated.

Yet another hare brained scheme maybe?

Hi mate.

My partner and I have been looking at properties in Spain over the last couple of years and spending months at a time in possible locations.

We netted out at Valencia or Andalucia. Valencia is a great city. I fell in with an expat group there, mainly USA folks, and they were all very happy with their choice. Obv it is very connected transport wise. All the benefits of a city without the costs and plenty of good public transport. Beach close, great arts centre and lots of bands tour.

Re Andalucia - I guess Cordoba was the winner though no beach! Cadiz was attractive too though we only were there for a few days which is no time to judge! I think buying a property in Andalucia attracts smaller property purchase taxes, though you hear lots of stories about very harsh laws on repossession and so forth. For example if a property has a debt against it, in some regions, you inherit the debt. You need a good lawyer and not the one the estate agent recommends! Plenty of airports about and lots of good bus and train connections.

I recently spent three weeks in Coruna and liked it but you need good weather! I don’t like the cold so wouldn’t live in north.

I would the recommend you subscribe to the The Local and get a daily feed from it. It has everything you could ever wish to know about moving to Spain.

 

[Corned Beef]

Something for you to pass away some time on. Top of the list is €1.27m which is likely cheap by Australian standards (if my sisters are to be believed)

https://www.idealista.com/en/venta-viviendas/gijon-asturias/

 

[Robo]

Hi mate.

My partner and I have been looking at properties in Spain over the last couple of years and spending months at a time in possible locations.

We netted out at Valencia or Andalucia. Valencia is a great city. I fell in with an expat group there, mainly USA folks, and they were all very happy with their choice. Obv it is very connected transport wise. All the benefits of a city without the costs and plenty of good public transport. Beach close, great arts centre and lots of bands tour.

Re Andalucia - I guess Cordoba was the winner though no beach! Cadiz was attractive too though we only were there for a few days which is no time to judge! I think buying a property in Andalucia attracts smaller property purchase taxes, though you hear lots of stories about very harsh laws on repossession and so forth. For example if a property has a debt against it, in some regions, you inherit the debt. You need a good lawyer and not the one the estate agent recommends! Plenty of airports about and lots of good bus and train connections.

I recently spent three weeks in Coruna and liked it but you need good weather! I don’t like the cold so wouldn’t live in north.

I would the recommend you subscribe to the The Local and get a daily feed from it. It has everything you could ever wish to know about moving to Spain.

Sounds great. Though Beaches and Bands are not really our thing
We live in Sydney Australia, surrounded by glorious beaches. But never go there.......different folks?
We do sail though........
Love water, just no desire to be in it. Too many things that bite LOL

Cordoba sounds good!

 

[Robo]

Something for you to pass away some time on. Top of the list is €1.27m which is likely cheap by Australian standards (if my sisters are to be believed)

https://www.idealista.com/en/venta-viviendas/gijon-asturias/

Yes, probably an average house price these days in Sydney. (actually A$1.6m so a bit less)
Sadly I don't have that kind of money to throw around.
Having taken 20+ years to pay off this home, I don't have 20 more years of working left!!

Looking at more like €100-150k for a small apartment!

 

[Molly Cassidy]

I would recommend a smaller town in easy reach of Madrid or Barcelona. You can always visit the city for a few days when you want to.

 

[TravellingMan22]

Sounds great. Though Beaches and Bands are not really our thing
We live in Sydney Australia, surrounded by glorious beaches. But never go there.......different folks?
We do sail though........
Love water, just no desire to be in it. Too many things that bite LOL

Cordoba sounds good!

Sure, understood, we are all different. My main advice would be to try and spend a bit of time in any town you choose to buy in. Being in a place for a few days as a tourist is very different to be being somewhere for a few months. I don’t really regard the Camino as ‘authentic Spain’ in the sense than you are part of an international community passing through. It’s a very different feeling being in a fixed location, for a few months. That’s been our key finding anyway.

 

[Robo]

I would recommend a smaller town in easy reach of Madrid or Barcelona. You can always visit the city for a few days when you want to.

I was thinking about that too. I like Zamora and thought of there.
But it doesn't have much of a Plaza Mayor.
We like to hang out eating and people watching.
I loved the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca for example.

For us it would be a pity to spend time in a smaller town, given the travel cost from Australia etc, only to have to travel and have additional accommodation expense, visiting the places we would rather be in.

For example, I'd rather live in a small studio, a 10 minute walk from the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca, where I could wander down for a coffee or a long lunch during work breaks, than live in a 2 bed apartment or house in a small city, waiting for the weekend to travel somewhere else.

All about trade offs I guess, and what we enjoy about our surroundings.

We often laugh about where we live in Sydney.
I used to be a bit embarrassed when people asked where we live!
It's considered a lower cost area with a lot of immigrants.
But we love it! It has everything we need.

We're close to all the things we like.
Great places to eat, with virtually every cuisine you can think of. Nice parks.
Easy access to the countryside.

The 'fancy' expensive end of town is near the CBD (downtown) / Beaches and other places we don't really go to.......

Where would I go to in a city in Spain?
The Plaza Mayor, the 'old centre'.
Great food, architecture, people watching.

 

[SabsP]

I was thinking about that too. I like Zamora and thought of there.
But it doesn't have much of a Plaza Mayor.
We like to hang out eating and people watching.
I loved the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca for example.

For us it would be a pity to spend time in a smaller town, given the travel cost from Australia etc, only to have to travel and have additional accommodation expense, visiting the places we would rather be in.

For example, I'd rather live in a small studio, a 10 minute walk from the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca, where I could wander down for a coffee or a long lunch during work breaks, than live in a 2 bed apartment or house in a small city, waiting for the weekend to travel somewhere else.

All about trade offs I guess, and what we enjoy about our surroundings.

We often laugh about where we live in Sydney.
I used to be a bit embarrassed when people asked where we live!
It's considered a lower cost area with a lot of immigrants.
But we love it! It has everything we need.

We're close to all the things we like.
Great places to eat, with virtually every cuisine you can think of. Nice parks.
Easy access to the countryside.

The 'fancy' expensive end of town is near the CBD (downtown) / Beaches and other places we don't really go to.......

Where would I go to in a city in Spain?
The Plaza Mayor, the 'old centre'.
Great food, architecture, people watching.

But living in a smaller town you could get actively involved in the local community.

 

[Molly Cassidy]

I agree with travelling man you need to check out each town. They are all different. Where I lived in Asturias was small but quite lively. But worth checking out the prices first.

 

[Pelegrin]

Cordoba sounds good!

Córdoba sounds good for autunm and winter.

 

[Anhalter]

This might not be the answer you been looking for:

I do have some personal experience from my family with property in Spain. I feel that if you want to make it work, you either have to be super smart about it, put in a lot of money to have someone do it for you or put in a lot of effort by doing the required things yourself. It can become a burden. Even if you get people or an agency to do the work for you, nothing guarantees that they wont mess things up. Then you need to let them go, find someone new... the works.
I would hate to be tied down to that.

If i was to spend a couple of months a year in Spain, i'd rather rent. Yes, this will feel like spending money instead of investing money, but with the money spend, you make your problems someone elses problems. And worst case, you rent a place you hate, you rent somewhere else next time.

 

[Robo]

Sure, understood, we are all different. My main advice would be to try and spend a bit of time in any town you choose to buy in. Being in a place for a few days as a tourist is very different to be being somewhere for a few months. I don’t really regard the Camino as ‘authentic Spain’ in the sense than you are part of an international community passing through. It’s a very different feeling being in a fixed location. For a few months.

Yes, good point and I agree 100%
Though getting away for a 'few months' from Australia is not easy. And very expensive!
Also I have a business to run.
Hence we might go in as 'cheap' as possible and minimise the risk.
We'll only be there a couple of months a year anyway.

It will be a risk. But hopefully we can minimise it.

I take your point about the Camino not being authentic Spain.
But I think the more rural routes like the VdlP are probably bit more 'authentic'.
There just aren't many

 

[Robo]

But living in a smaller town you could get actively involved in the local community.

I would agree, if that is what we are looking for.
But we aren't.

We will be there a couple of months a year max, working remotely, sightseeing, enjoying the local food, and going for walks.

Sorry, we are not really very social.
We've lived in our current house for 12 years and have probably spoken to the neighbours 20-30 times.
We stick to ourselves......

We're all different.

 

[Robo]

This might not be the answer you been looking for:

I do have some personal experience from my family with property in Spain. I feel that if you want to make it work, you either have to be super smart about it, put in a lot of money to have someone do it for you or put in a lot of effort by doing the required things yourself. It can become a burden. Even if you get people or an agency to do the work for you, nothing guarantees that they wont mess things up. Then you need to let them go, find someone new... the works.
I would hate to be tied down to that.

If i was to spend a couple of months a year in Spain, i'd rather rent. Yes, this will feel like spending money instead of investing money, but with the money spend, you make your problems someone elses problems. And worst case, you rent a place you hate, you rent somewhere else next time.

Yes, good points, and that was my initial idea.
It's certainly the logical approach.
I suppose being able to AirBnB it to offset the costs was the attraction.
Not sure we could afford to rent 2 months a year.
But I'll do the numbers.

 

[Anhalter]

Yes, good points, and that was my initial idea.
It's certainly the logical approach.
I suppose being able to AirBnB it to offset the costs was the attraction.
Not sure we could afford to rent 2 months a year.
But I'll do the numbers.

Consider that you won't be the first person with the idea of co-financing their holiday home with renting it out. People have been doing that for decades. Yes, it can work, but it can also fail. Won't be easier when you're on the other side of the world.

 

[TravellingMan22]

I would personally look to rent a place if you are there only 2 months a year via Airbnb. Takes away the hassle and risk. You can also look to vary your location year on year. Plenty of cheapish places in good areas. I know how expensive everything is in Australia and you will save a fortune on food and other costs though I guess you will offset vs airfare.

 

[Luka]

This might not be the answer you been looking for:

I do have some personal experience from my family with property in Spain. I feel that if you want to make it work, you either have to be super smart about it, put in a lot of money to have someone do it for you or put in a lot of effort by doing the required things yourself. It can become a burden. Even if you get people or an agency to do the work for you, nothing guarantees that they wont mess things up. Then you need to let them go, find someone new... the works.
I would hate to be tied down to that.

If i was to spend a couple of months a year in Spain, i'd rather rent. Yes, this will feel like spending money instead of investing money, but with the money spend, you make your problems someone elses problems. And worst case, you rent a place you hate, you rent somewhere else next time.

Good point, but I could argue with that (living in Asturias, Spain for almost 7 years now).

First of all, when buying a house/appartment, always contract a lawyer. A lawyer will sort out all the paperwork and do the (very) necessary checks about the legal status of what you are buying and possible catches. You should be safe then.

Secondly, it is getting harder and harder to find a place to rent in many parts of Spain. Especially for just 2-3 months (if you don't want to pay airbnb-prices). So that might not always be an easy alternative. But not impossible of course.

 

[Robo]

Consider that you won't be the first person with the idea of co-financing their holiday home with renting it out. People have been doing that for decades. Yes, it can work, but it can also fail. Won't be easier when you're on the other side of the world.

You're far too logical!
And perfectly correct of course.

 

[TravellingMan22]

I would personally look to rent a place if you are there only 2 months a year via Airbnb. Takes away the hassle and risk. You can also look to vary your location year on year. Plenty of cheapish places in good areas and you can get long stay discounts.I know how expensive everything is in Australia and you will save a fortune on food and other costs though I guess you will offset vs airfare.

 

[naplesdon]

I was still in the market to buy after I sold my apartment in Biarritz. My plan was to move the Algarve. For the past year I have been using IDEALISTA to research properties on the market. If you narrow down you options to one or two areas, you can get notices every day of new properties that are available for sale in your chosen price range and square meter range. They send about 3 options each day which includes the real estate agent's information.

 

[TravellingMan22]

I was still in the market to buy after I sold my apartment in Biarritz. My plan was to move the Algarve. For the past year I have been using IDEALISTA to research properties on the market. If you narrow down you options to one or two areas, you can get notices every day of new properties that are available for sale in your chosen price range and square meter range. They send about 3 options each day which includes the real estate agent's information.

Indeed - Idealista very much the app for property in Spain!