Buying Property in Canary Islands

N

noodlesom

Guest
I'm thinking of buying a 1 bedroom apartment in Caleta de Fuste in Fuerteventura.
Can anyone give any suggestions as to wheter they believe it is a good location?
Prices are around 120K Euros
 
I like the location, its quiet down there.
Personally I'd avoid a one bed in a holdiay resort. Too much competition from the package deals. I got a 4* package deal last year in feurte for 2 weeks in sept for 360euro each. Large villa's with private pools which suit large families would be the only type of investment I'd consider in the canaries.
 
Canaries generally is a 'package driven' resort in that its almost always as cheap to get accomodation included in the deal,as its to get a flight there separately. That leaves you only people working there and rental potential is not great, particularly for one bed units. If ure just buying for yourself with the intention of using it personally and family as a 'long stay' destination it would be reasonable value. Otherwise its cheaper to get deals there on packages all round.
 
Caleta is a nice location & growing. It has 1 golf course & another due to open soon. There are lots of differtent types of property, as usual depends what you want to pay & what you want form the investment. If you want more info email me.
 
Just rekindling this one with an associated query.

Seriously considering relocating to Fuerteventura. i.e. - buying to live permanently - not as an investment. Lifestyle, pace of living, climate and cost of living being the main attractions.

A lot to consider - we both have basic Spanish and aim to reach near fluency before we go. Employment does not seem to be a big obstacle but obviously we will look more closely at this (being bilingual should be a big help anyway)

Savings + profit from proceeds of house sale here should enable us to buy a reasonable apartment outright - no mortgage.

We would intend to contribute to a pension in Ireland for later years - if this is possible. My main concern is that the move back to Ireland (if there ever is one) would maybe be financially much more difficult.

Anyone any views on this? Does it sound like a silly fanciful idea?
 
You really enjoyed that holiday then? :D

I know you'll do lots of homework on this, and if the work angle is ok with you, I don't see it as fanciful at all.(I'm totally guessing that you'd have to do something different to your current employ?)
You'd hardly be the first, and they don't all fall flat on their face.

And if Jock can move to another country, get a job & learn a new lingo, so can you! Actually, before I met Mrs Jock & was still working offshore, I was making serious enquiries about relocating to the Greek island of Rhodes. (I have a few buddies there, which would've helped enormously).
The media often focus on those whose dream has gone sour, but you'll find expats in just about every country in the world, so why not?


I'd have been a lot more worried about you if you'd just had a holiday in Tibet! :p

Re the finances, I'm sure someone else will keep you right on pensions etc.
Just wondering if you'd considered maybe renting out your existing home for a couple of years? Gives you a fair chance to make your mind up with the benefit of a safety net.
I'll watch this with interest!
 
You really enjoyed that holiday then? :D
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Oh yes...but have been thinking about this since 2005 really!


I know you'll do lots of homework on this, and if the work angle is ok with you, I don't see it as fanciful at all.(I'm totally guessing that you'd have to do something different to your current employ?)
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Yes, I'd be changing jobs totally.

I'll probably end up TEFL-ing - both in schools and private tuition, together with guitar playing in pubs the odd evening. From talking to people there seems to always be a demand for both. One guy did just that - worked 8 to 1 in a school and played in a bar three times a week. He admitted - as I suspected - that you probably won't end up rich there but can certainly have a nice lifestyle and your money goes a lot further. said it was the best thing he's ever done - been there 3 years.

TBH, I'd consider a lot of things - I'm definitely a work to live person rather than live to work. ;)

Just wondering if you'd considered maybe renting out your existing home for a couple of years? Gives you a fair chance to make your mind up with the benefit of a safety net.
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True, we are considering this as well.

I'll watch this with interest!
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Well don't hold your breath - if anything happens it will be at least a year away!

But thanks for the encouragement Jock. :)
 
Caveat said:
Seriously considering relocating to Fuerteventura. i.e. - buying to live permanently
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Best of luck with your investigations Caveat. You are an intelligent fella. Wouldn't consider it fanciful at all. Make sure you get yourself broadband over there.
 
Caveat said:
Just rekindling this one with an associated query.

Seriously considering relocating to Fuerteventura. i.e. - buying to live permanently - not as an investment. Lifestyle, pace of living, climate and cost of living being the main attractions.

A lot to consider - we both have basic Spanish and aim to reach near fluency before we go. Employment does not seem to be a big obstacle but obviously we will look more closely at this (being bilingual should be a big help anyway)

Savings + profit from proceeds of house sale here should enable us to buy a reasonable apartment outright - no mortgage.

We would intend to contribute to a pension in Ireland for later years - if this is possible. My main concern is that the move back to Ireland (if there ever is one) would maybe be financially much more difficult.

Anyone any views on this? Does it sound like a silly fanciful idea?
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Well I'm glad to see you're doing your homework. I have been living "abroad" for 15 years.

IMHO the people who succeed/ enjoy the experience have a few key points in place:

1) They have portable/transferrable skills. TEFL & guitar playing is OK, but will it keep you (and don't forget your partner!) interested/ busy for 5-10 years? I still do basically the same job as I did "back home."

2) They learn the local language and integrate into the community. Glad to see you've already started. I had already taken 2 years of German before I moved there and then took additional evening classes to gain a proper qualification "Deutsch Als Fremdsprache" which was useful for local employers (I no longer live in Germany and had to learn yet another language!)

3) They plan and have a safety net. The breaking point seems to be around after 9-12 months. You need a safe way back if it turns out not to suit you. Don't sell everything and just move.

4) They can let go of family and friends to some extent and make new friends. Do not underestimate how difficult it is to fly back "from abroad" when you have to pay for the flights in your new local currency and with income from your new (lower paid) job.

Is it fanciful? Not at all. I have lots of friends who have done it, and moved more than once even. Me too.

Can you contribute to an Irish pension? I don't know, but you'd definitely be wise to get all of the facts in writing in advance. I could not contribute to my particular private or state pensions when I was out of the country. I have alternative arrangements in place.

Will you be able to go back to Ireland? That is a tough one to answer. There is a risk that it'll be a one way trip, even with a safety net in place. I do not think I would want to relocate back to the UK. Firstly, I do not want to move back. Secondly after all these years it is more of a foreign country than where I live now. Thirdly, I would take an enormous hit on the current house prices and exchange rate and would have to accept a much lower standard of living which I'm not prepared to do.

But why not go there and just rent for a while first on a long term lease to see how it is?

From what I could see in Spanish resorts it wasn't too expensive to rent for a whole season.
And you could also consider renting out your place in Ireland to cover the costs.

good luck!
 
Was there at Xmas local pub landlord told me that wages remain static but cost of living has increased a lot, I noticed that supermarket prices weren't much lower than here, so before moving take yourself over again and have another holiday. I loved the place also, much nicer than the other Canary Islands.
 
PATMAC said:
I noticed that supermarket prices weren't much lower than here
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This wasn't my experience at all last week. Sure, a lot of the well known British or other European branded stuff was expensive as it's all imported but I thought most of the usual supermarket items were very good value.

The ubiquitous Netto stores are notoriously expensive (relatively speaking). Eurospar or better still, the Hipermercados are much cheaper. I noticed differences of around 35% on the exact same items for example.

Eating and drinking out, though still good value, has certainly become more expensive in the last couple of years. But in balance, we have no kids, intend to have no mortgage/rent to pay and will both be working. Cars and also utilities are much cheaper too (and no heating bills!)

Plenty of homework still to do in any case!

Thanks BTW Martin77 - interesting points.
 
went to caleta last year for a weeks relaxation and also to have a look at properties in the area etc. loved caleta but maybe too quiet in the long term. didn't followup on property bit. went to corralejo this year with no intention of looking at properties, just for a break and while I didn't look at any property on this visit, if I were to purchase in Fuerte it would be in Corralejo. Just found it that wee bit more to our liking. Still prefer Fuerte to the other islands. Wish you well Caveat.
 
Have 3 friends that bought from a certain developer from Cork builiding in Corralego that cant get their money back after 3 years,he cant deliver on the apartments,so be careful who you deal with!!
 
BK0001 said:
I like the location, its quiet down there.
Personally I'd avoid a one bed in a holdiay resort. Too much competition from the package deals. I got a 4* package deal last year in feurte for 2 weeks in sept for 360euro each. Large villa's with private pools which suit large families would be the only type of investment I'd consider in the canaries.
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Caveat said:
We would intend to contribute to a pension in Ireland for later years - if this is possible. My main concern is that the move back to Ireland (if there ever is one) would maybe be financially much more difficult.
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You won't be able to contribute to a pension scheme, not unless you pay tax in Ireland! You may be able to pay minimum PRSI for the years you are away to keep your state entitlements (rather than relying on pro-rata stamp from the Spanish system (=pro-rata benefits)).
 
Caveat, just read your post and thought I would relate the following. Close relatives of mine relocated several years ago when they retired, to Canada. It has worked out very well for them. It was a major move and not without misgivings. At that time ,I know the property market was differant, what they did was to let their house in Irel. and rent in Canada. They did this for two years and then sold here. Even with the present market here, if you like the area you are in , maybe that might be an option to consider rather that face having to start again somewhere new if things don't go as planned. Best of luck!
 
Having nearly got frostbite playing golf yesterday evening I think I will be considering Lanzarote or Fuertaventura. What is the Guinness like?
 
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