Re: any bargains out there in Spain or Portugal (Algarve) or suggestions for Holiday
Because you have specific needs, i.e. holiday use, and you have realistic expectations about the reality of the rental potential of these properties, you should use the downturn to buy yourself a real bargain. Buy a property at a "fire sale" price from someone who has to unload it, and be careful where you buy it.
There is a temptation in a downturn to buy a cheap property because it is cheap, but the most important thing to buy something of quality that will appreciate when the upturn happens (however long it may take). You will then have the added benefit of making a return from your investment as well as enjoying years of holidays in a nice place. If you buy a property in a miserable location, however cheap it may seem, you will neither have enjoyable holidays nor will you hope to make anything on the property if you sell it.
That being said, there is no need to break the bank while buying a decent holiday home. Good coastal areas in Spain like Marbella have properties listed at 200k, and if you know a reliable agent they will tell you which owners are desperate to sell. In recent weeks I was asked to look for a property for a friend of a friend who is moving back to europe and who wanted a holiday home in Spain, and I was offered some real gems that are not even on anyone's website, all at recession prices. They are out there, you just have to look.
If you have the money, you are king in this market. You can get a place (in Spain in any case) at prices that you would only have dreamed about a couple of years ago. Good hunting!