New research reveals Spain as Top Retirement Destination

The TypicallySpanish website revealed the official figures from the National Statistics Institute that more than 4 million expatriates now legally reside in the country full-time. According to the official statistics, nearly two-thirds of expats are based in Madrid, Valencia, Catalonia and Andalusia.



About four in ten people are said to come from countries in the European Union.
More than 2 lakh people from the UK are found now to be living in Spain. On the other hand, one in three expatriates is from Latin America, while a fifth of foreign residents are from Africa.

Recent study by Currencies Direct has showed that Spain is the most popular destination for Britons who want to retire to the sun. Mark O'Sullivan of Currencies Direct commented on Spain's popularity saying that the country has a lot to offer, including a plenty of expat communities.

The popularity of Spain as a retirement location is said to be largely because it offers several lifestyle attractions that are extremely favorable to a relaxing and pleasant retirement particularly it offers hot and sunny weather for most of the year, unlike the UK. Besides, it highlighted for its high living standards in relatively low cost of living and for its laidback lifestyle.
Analysts at ShelterOffshore.com has stated that Spain is also highly accessible from the UK, thereby allowing retirees to stay in easy reach of friends and family back home.

This comes after the recent research by NatWest which found that Spain is rated particularly highly by expatriates, with nearly nine out of ten respondents saying that they feel healthier after the relocation.

New Research Reveals Spain popular with UK investors

Recent study published by Globaledge.co.uk reveals that the Spain is continuing to attract British investors and holidaymakers and the most searched overseas property destinations by UK internet users despite ongoing economic concerns.

The data was taken from the Wordtracker UK database till 6th May and they studied the most popular 200,000 searches containing the word "property" till 6th May 2008. The research confirmed that the properties in Spain are the unbeatable favourite for British investors.

Properties in Spain are top of the list and it accounted for over 10% of total searches, and the list is sprinkled with several Spanish towns and coastal names. Obviously locations of Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol are the most popular regions; the attractiveness of the Canary Islands is also a most attention-grabbing finding of this research. There is significant search volume even at local level with Lanzarote, Tenerife, Caleta de Fuste all making the top 100.

This was said to be largely because Spain offers numerous lifestyle attractions that are highly conducive to a relaxing environment, hot and sunny weather for most of the year, unlike the UK, high living standards and the reasonable price of goods and services. ShelterOffshore.com has reported that Spain is famed for its laidback lifestyle and relatively low cost of living.

Design your own dream villa in Spain

Buying a new home can be a daunting experience at the best of times and buying abroad can make the experience even more daunting. Overseas housing market is flooded with wide array of off plan developments, conventional town houses, resale property, villas and a selection of building plots on which we can build your dream home. Every aspiring overseas buyer has a design of their perfect home. Casas de Lorca, Spanish property specialist is offering buyers the chance to have possession of and plan their own exclusive villa in the heart of Spain without the irritation of refurbishing a worn out finca.

Mike Hamilton, sales director of Casas de Lorca, gives us certain tips to designing your own villa in Spain: He has said that there are 3 basic considerations, and they are the location, design or layout and materials.

Choosing the location for your home can immensely influence the feel of the property. Designing the villa around the natural aspects is very important. When choosing homes on a plot with magnificent views, you have a good start for designing your house. Walls of glass and whole windows in the right places make breathtaking views. The layout of the house is enormously important. A good house is split sensibly between the day time and night time areas. Say no to Bedrooms coming off the living room. Casas de Lorca has an expert design team to assist the buyers. Casas de Lorca has literally hundreds of different types of tiles, stone window surrounds, different type of wood for the doors and en suite wardrobes, types of door handles etc.

Casas de Lorca focuses in sourcing the best locations, helping in the best villa designs to maintain a consistency throughout the property and also decorating with best materials. With all three in right proportions buyers will have a property which is a cut above the rest. For more details, visit www.casasdelorca.net

Overseas investors should consider Spain's regional variations

The Telegraph stated that Spain has a fully developed property market; there are massive regional variations which can often give the wrong impression and people should consider the property market in Spain as places with different trends and attributes.

Spain is a diverse country and there are big regional variations where local supply and demand forces have a big impact on growth. The local dynamics can have an effect on performance more than common market forces. Real estate prices increased most in the province of Granada (8.5%) and Murcia (8.1%), and followed by Madrid (1.8%) and Alicante (3.3%).

According to Kyero.com, a leading Spanish property portal that publishes a Spanish Property Price Index has reported that asking prices fell by 2% in 2007 and the average asking price for 2-bed properties fell by 8.3% while asking prices for 4-bed properties rose by 3.8%. Figures from Sociedad Tasacion, one of Spain’s largest appraisal companies shows that average new build prices in Spain’s provincial capitals increased by 5.1% in 2007.

Property prices on a quarterly basis (when comparing Q4 2007 and Q1 2008 till March) has increased in certain provinces like Huelva (3.9%), Seville (3.6%), and 3.4% in Valencia, but fell in certain places like Murcia (-0.2%), Alicante (-0.8%), and Castellon (-1.3%). So Overseas property buyers should do their homework and consider regional variations in the Spanish market.

The Telegraph has reported that overseas property buyers consider Spain more of a "lifestyle destination", which means that people chose to purchase property there in order to enjoy themselves rather than reaping financial rewards. Spain continues to appeal for the overseas property investors for its beautiful coastline, sunny weather all year round, easier accessibility and a significant ex-pat community who are well catered for. There are enough fundamental reasons for the overseas investors to continue to enjoy Spain and many of the economic pointers look good.

Paul Bradley, spokesperson of Spanish Property Owners Guild remarked about Spain’s appeal that it will always continue to be popular.

Two Spanish villas worth same as a flat in London

The average capital value of rented houses in London has risen by 10.7% in 2008. This includes 12.4% in central London and 15.5% in the rest of the South East. The recent figures from A Place in the Sun suggest that the average price of a flat in London is worth the same as two Spanish villas.


A characteristic London apartment costs approximately £304,000. This means Londoners have to think about moving abroad to get more for their investment because for the same investment they can get two homes in Spain. For instance, two-bathroom, a three-bedroom villa on the Costa Blanca is priced £146,000 and a one-bedroom apartment in Almeria, costs an average of £163,000.

Even though the cash value of rents received by investors has kept pace with inflation in London, recent study by VillasforTravel suggested owners of tourist accommodation in Spain has collected the highest rental returns in Europe last year. Spain has the most potentially lucrative markets for investors who plan to purchase a rental property. Spain as a "lifestyle destination", rather than a place where people wanted to make a fortune.

Official government figures have revealed that the overall number of holidaymakers in Spain went up by 1.7 per cent to more than 59 million last year. Moreover Spanish government has been encouraging the buy-to-let industry by introducing a number of new financial incentive schemes.

Bond's location Costa de la Luz attracts more investors

Overseas property investors have been recommended about buying a glamorous home in one of 007's most unforgettable settings in Spain.

The James Bond 2002 movie Die another Day, which starred Pierce Brosnan, in which Halle Berry's replica of Ursula Andress's bikini-clad appearance from the sea, which brought newborn glamour to this fantastic and one of the oldest in Europe which is so far overlooked by most British buyers on southern Spain's Costa de la Luz.

The Telegraph reported that locations that were considered exotically remote earlier due to the advertisement in bond movies have now become a list of overseas hotspots. The famous inclusion of this area in the film has raised awareness of this exotic location and Prices are soaring in the past two years.

Playa la Caleta in Costa de la Luz was the setting for the scene in the movie and it is few minutes drive from Cadiz's old town. Spanish buyers prefer the beachfront apartments on the town's outskirts and the Brits tend to flock Chiclana, coastal town with good valued properties.

Spanish beaches getting make over

Tim Hodges, director for property company Homesearch in Spain has said that regardless of recent doubts of a housing market crash, Spain still signifies a good market for long-term investment. HIFX has reported that Spain is seen by many as the ultimate retirement choice for its enviable climate, good healthcare system and its reputation for a relaxed lifestyle.


Expatica, Europe's leading lifestyle portal has reported that Spain's renowned coastline is being steadily revamped as according to tourism statistics 30% of tourist visit Spain for its fabulous beaches. The illegally built homes and beach bars, unnecessary jetties and industrial buildings are demolished. Spanish law states that beaches are considered public property and construction is banned within 100 meters of the coast, but the law is often defied by construction companies.

The Coasts Authority in the Ministry for the Environment has commissioned a report into coastal planning from Punta Carnero in the province of Cadiz to Almeria, carried out by the Alatec Consultancy, in which illegal construction on the Malaga coastline is analyzed.
Jose Fernandez, the head of the department, said that 12 of the demolitions were in the Almeria province, with nine in Murcia.

The construction along the most delicate parts of coastlines which have been blighted by property developments since mass tourism first arrived in Spain are monitored closely. The plan is an effort to save some of the most beautiful coastlines from further developments. Experts suggest that the makeover will add value to existing properties and also it would be aesthetically pleasing.

These areas be planned all over again, and this will be the chance to do it in a balanced way, taking the environment into account much more than before. The Spanish government is also acquiring a number of properties as part of its campaign to save its world famous beaches. Spain's sunny climate, fabulous beaches and welcoming people has attracted more immigrants than any other country in Europe

This comes after the Spanish newspaper SUR revealed that Spain generated huge interest during the recent Homebuyers and Property Investors show in London.

Welsh tourists to Spain are on the rise

Spain looks set to attract more visitors from Wales this summer after the country is opened up by new flights. bmibaby has announced another new route from Cardiff International Airport to Barcelona and it will start on 24th May 2008 with weekly 2 service operating on Tuesday and Saturday and from June the service will increase to three times, with an additional service on Wednesday.

Crawford Rix, managing director, bmibaby has said that the new services are launched due to the unprecedented demand for low fare flights. This announcement comes shortly after Ryanair revealed that it is to offer new services from Edinburgh to Palma and Malaga. This will help attract investment and improve connectivity to Wales and Spain.

Rental accommodations in Spain could be set to witness a surge in occupancy rates after the country is opened up by these new flights and will generate higher returns for property owners. This could be a lucrative investment for investors who are looking at purchasing a rental property overseas, especially since visitor numbers are steadily increasing. Holiday-Rentals findings have revealed that almost a third of European properties owned by UK-based buyers are in located in Spain.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority, passenger numbers on flights between the UK and Spain went up by 600,000 in 2007.

Property purchase in Spain is easier than UK

According to the data from Halifax society, Spain has witnessed the strongest gains in terms of property price increase percentages and the average value of a home has doubled. This is due to the consistent demand for property in Spain. A new research by SPC Overseas revealed that property purchase in Spain is easier than buying a house in the UK.

Property developer Lar Sol reports show that Britons purchasing a house on the Costa’s find it more comfortable than buying in the UK. Lar Sol international sales coordinator Katy Katani said that the exceptional demand for property outstrips supply and continues to propel Spain’s economy. The consistent demand for property in Spain, fresh supply of external demand annually and the great likelihood of property owners to reinvest their properties in Spain makes the residential real estate market more active.

Katy Katani further said that the several significant steps are taken by the government by introducing cuts in income tax and corporate tax, by planning to reduce the number of tax bands on Spanish property and to eradicate income taxes on mortgages. The real estate in Spain has remained upbeat despite European Central Bank increased interest rates in 2007.

She also confirmed that Britons like to buy from other Britons who have properties in Spain which make property purchase easier for Britons and that, as Spain has long been a favourite destination for holidaymakers, retirees and investors from the UK, they are creating a network of potential clients.

Recent survey by Clerical Medical Investment Group found that one in three Britons are planning a retirement abroad with the vast majority planning on relocating to Spain.

Buy-to-Let investors should look to the future

Investors in buy-to-let accommodation, irrespective of the recent dip has got encouraging news recently as Homes worldwide reports have said according to a study by VillasforTravel, owners of tourist accommodation in Spain have collected the highest rental returns in Europe in 2007.

Sun has reported that overseas property purchasers need to have a vision about the happenings in their chosen location in the next few years. The supply and demand ratio in a certain place could decide the all-purpose success of any investment. For instance, rental property nearby a place with a large number of available residences is less likely to appreciate in value. But a house in a limited supply area would have high capital appreciation provided other important factors are satisfied.

Recent enquiries in holidayrentals.com website suggest that Short Term Holiday lets in Spain have high returns potential with well-chosen properties in good locations than your investment than long term letting. Most experts predict that an occupancy level of around 15 weeks per year is enough to provide ample income to cover the payments on a typical 20 year 70% mortgage and maintenance costs.

But BuyAssociation recommended that short-term investors come up with an exit strategy if they desired to make riches from their rental property. Remember, short-term letting needs more work than long term. The most gainful approach is market your property yourself and usage of an excellent Short-Term Agent for property management.