Over the last 25 years we have seen boom and bust in the Spanish holiday property market. Now is a great moment to buy in the Valley of Lecrin or the Costa Tropical. However it is as well to remember a few things. This is not an area of vast urbanisations (thankfully), planning laws are in force to control development outside urban areas, and the terrain is quite hilly. All of this means that if you want to buy a villa with garden and pool you may find such properties cheaper elsewhere. The most common types of property available – townhouses, apartments or village houses – bring their own challenges. Feel free to contact us if you are considering buying here, we have been here since before there were estate agents, we have seen people make mistakes, we know what to look out for.
Here is a sample of the types of property you will find here:
The village house – plenty of these in the Lecrin Valley and towards the coast, as well as in the
Old Town areas of Salobreña and Almuñecar. Their charm is their architecture, the views they
enjoy from roof terraces, their shady scented patios, so welcome in summer, the convenience
you enjoy of being part of a real community for just a fraction of the price of a villa. However you
have to know something about your rights and those of your neighbours, the construction of the
house, the heating in winter. If you have doubts about any of these you might like to consider
having an old house restored, for here you get to decide how the house is rebuilt and how it can
be laid out to suit you.
The country house – the dream of quite a few people who are on a budget but want to get away from it all, the country house is not for the faint hearted. The more services it enjoys – mains water and sewage, electricity, telephone/internet, good road connection – the more expensive it will be. There are plenty of cheap houses which turn out to be a nightmare to live in all year round, and I regret to say it is more often this type of house which suffers from robberies when the owners are away. Then there is the issue of legality; some houses are illegal, many occupy the grey area of being “nave de aperos” (commonly referred to as “cortijo”), where people live in such houses, but may find in future a tightening up of the regulations.
The house/apartment in an area with communal gardens and services (usually a pool). This is an economical type of property which in theory gives you all the advantages of open space (gardens, pool etc) at low cost. The only qualifier is it’s best to know your neighbours, or at least the rules which govern the community! We have a small community here in Acequias. It is legally incorporated so that every owner also has a share of the freehold of the whole Tia Maria estate, and there is a service charge which covers everything which happens outside your own four walls, including decoration and building insurance. This type of property is ideal for use as a holiday home and to earn revenue from renting to others.
The villa/house with garden/pool. Can be quite expensive anywhere south-west from Granada, as there is a short supply. Here in the Valley we have seen examples of three bedroom houses with pools/gardens for €200,000, but these normally require improvement. Villas in the eastern Costa Tropical are cheaper than around Almuñecar, and those inland from Granada are cheaper still. Contact us if you’d like a guide to estate agents.
