House Buying

Good Evening

Some reading for you both. Other Forum members may have answers to all  your questions.

As a result of the UK leaving the EU on 31/12/2020 stays of up to 90 days in any 180 day period is allowed for all Non_Residents in Spain so stays of 8-10  months are not feasible for this class of citizen.

See moving to Spain article  for more information and other Visa info below.

https://echeverriaabogados.com/en/blog/procedures/brexit-residence-uk-northern-ireland-citizens-in-spain

http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/LOSANGELES/en/InformacionParaExtranjeros/Pages/VisadosDeLargaDuracion.aspx

https://www.immigrationspain.es/en/residency-buying-a-house/

Nigel

Sorry. I should have explained that we have dual citizenship and hold an Irish Passport. 

Hi

What do mean by dual citizenship.uk as well as irish. Or Spanish as well as Irish citizenship. If no Spanish residency yet, you will have to apply for it as well as obtain a Spanish driver's licence, if more than 90 days in Spain.

Nigel

UK and Irish. 

Hi,

As regards your original post, looking for assistance, why don't you approach "A Place in the Sun", tell them what you are proposing and they may well take you on as a project.  It cannot hurt. 

Another option would be to simply rent a reasonably suitable home in the area that you are looking at, for say, 6 months. During that 6 months you can then take you time finding the right location and property for your budget.(and improve your Spanish into the bargain)

As regards your passport or citizenship, "in the nicest possible way" ,for this move, you should embrace your Irish Roots.  As an Irish Citizen you are a "EU Citizen".  The vast majority of the bureaucracy of moving, living, driving etc is far simpler if you are European, rather than from the UK

Regards

"As an Irish Citizen you are a "EU Citizen". 

'Indeed, best advised stick to that only', also consider 183 days stay, beyond which you are classed as a Tax resident, which opens a real can of worms.   

You say - "In addition, we would prefer not to have to drive" 

In which case recommend looking at properties along the route of the Malaga airport costal rail line, then you do not need a car, also the nearer the coast the better temperature in winter & cooler in summer.   

 https://www.andalucia.com/cities/malaga/train/fuengirola.htm

Hi 

i moved here from england pre brexit and hope my comments assist you 

Firstly each household is different and general answers might not be specific for your case but here are some links

https://www.citizensadvice.org.es useful website 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/living-in-spain UK government on all issues 

https://www.idealista.com one of the best search engines for prperty 

https://www.absoluteaxarquia.com i live in benajarafe and i would say we are close to malaga ,excellent coastal areas ,countryside etc and we have torre del mar ,velez malaga and rincon close by 

A previous post gave excellent advice in that you should visit and see for yourself which area you like -all areas have good parts and not such good areas and you can perhaps locate an area you like and then examine that area in detail perhaps rent a place for 3 months 

The cost of living depends on your lifestyle ie if you dine out a lot ,use of electric ,water etc 

If you like gardening i would highly recommend Your garden in spain by Dick&Clodagh  Handscombe as gardening here is completely different 

I would say that the community feel is really good and that cost of living is lower compared to uk but that is adjusting to the lifestyle ie water is precious ,electricitycan be high but you can see in the uk the recent energy price hikes 

Also remember that we all become older so maybe a remote area means dependency on cars ,prone to burglary ,and remote from facilities and support 

However i would say that i,m glad made the move

Unless you have pots of money don’t entertain buying over here …initially some properties look great but security issues noisy Spanish neighbours!! If you rent you can always move..

you have a one off fee of 10% when you purchase a property and if you have to sell the same applies..plus yearly property taxes to pay and monthly urbanisation fees if applicable 

we moved down here in early November with long term Visas which are tricky to obtain and messy..

The uk thing is to BUY a house get out of that mindset you can happily rent somewhere for 20 years.. keep your cash in bank

living down here is not all it’s cracked up to be you may not like it rent for a year first .. see if you like it .. every ex Pat we have met down here has said rent first then consider other options..

weather great though and cost of living cheaper ..

As I said rent for a year have a good look around then look to buy if that’s your mindset

goid luck 

That might be good advise to rent first, also property here not a great investment, much over priced & little or no appreciation.  Some things cheaper than UK to include eating out and alcohol. Private health insurance is very cheap compared to the UK & lower rates. The killer people should be warned about the 'Tax rates' and low personal allowance, on top of basic income tax there is about 34% social security, income from UK including pensions are taxed with no limit age social security, if people hit 30% tax band add the social security and you are paying 64% which is ridiculous, people need to research everything very carefully. Also note right now UK driving licence only valid for 6 months. The best Spain has to offer is the weather and the atmosphere.