Eloise Horsfield
SWEDISH buyers will be targeted in a new push to sell 40,000 properties on the Costa del Sol.
This week Malaga representatives, headed by tourism boss Elias Bendodo and tourist board manager Arturo Bernal, met with Swedish promoters at the Living Costa del Sol conference in Stockholm.
“The Costa del Sol is sure to satisfy all expectations the Nordic market has for quality, diversity and competitiveness,” said Malaga tourism boss Elias Bendodo at the conference.
Under the new deal, buyers from Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark will be encouraged to purchase second and holiday homes on Spain’s southern coast – many of which are lying empty as a fallout from Spain’s property crisis.
The Real Estate Agency, which has 250 offices in Sweden and seven in Spain, will be in charge of promoting the region to Scandinavia, with an initial chunk of a thousand properties targeted.
Some of the Costa’s assets expected to impress Nordic buyers are golf, food, culture – as well as the beach and the sunshine.
Swedish buyers have already increased dramatically over the last two years, with close to 120,000 arriving in Malaga in 2011 – 41% more than in 2010.
Is there a Wealth Warning? I can suggest one – The value of your terracotta and muck may increase as well as fall and could be demolished.
I don’t believe 120,000 Swedish buyers arrived in Malaga in 2011. Holidaymakers, maybe…
“The Costa del Sol is sure to satisfy all expectations the Nordic market has for quality, diversity and competitiveness”
Except in the quality of the properties themselves of course, which are light years from Scandanavian standards. What a shock these new Nordic owners will get further down the line. I’ve witnessed million euro houses in Banus totally ruined by water during the storms of 2010 and 2011. Price does not equate to quality in Spain – the build quality is just appalling.
They can buy our flat for the outstanding mortgage…oh, they might find out that there are other flats in our block for a quarter of our mortgage because the banks have all the repos.
Don’t the nordics have a pretty good grasp of english so wouldn’t they know the problems to be had buying property in Spain?
Grasping at straws again Spain…. bring out the bulldozers is the best option. Just knock down those empty and unfinished blocks, stick two fingers up to the banks as they’ll get their bail out anyway. Turn the land back into orange groves and green spaces rather than a concrete jungle and maybe, just maybe one day someone will be happy to buy in Spain again!?
how can we get them to come to mojacar ?
Not sure why anyone would buy in Spain when rentals are so cheap, and property will go down at least 20% when Spain leaves the euro and devalues.
I like many 1000’s of others think that buy and moving to Spain was the biggest mistake of my life.
When we moved to Spain we drove over and the night before we caught the ferry from Poole we went out for a drink, just by chance we got chatting to a bloke that used to live in Mijas and he said don’t do it and I said why not, he said that the place is just one big sh-it cake, looks nice from the outside but evil, corrupt and soulless from within.
We still went to Spain, got married, had kids and made some great friends but if I met somebody wanting to move to Spain like that man did with me I would say the same.
Wishful thinking. And quality? Light-years indeed.
Glenn-sorry you feel like that after all those years, but I wonder what you would think of UK now? I love it here in Estepona, and for me its like a little piece of heaven and I will never return to the uk. Crap climate, crap traffic, crap politicians, crap immigration policy. I feel sorry for the spaniards struggling through the economic crisis, but as a retired guy it doesnt really affect me.
Yes as a retired chap I’m sure everything is just fine for you and I’m sure you wouldn’t be living your Costa del sol dream with out UK money.
Maybe I will move back once the kids have flown the nest and if I’m in good health.
I’d rather live in Spain than in the UK. I’d probably rather live in Spain than in Skandi too. However, there are problems in owning homes here, because Spain doesn’t operate like Northern countries (or ‘European Countries’ or even ‘civilised countries’) when it comes to ‘the rule of law’. Be careful when you buy here.
I would not move to the UK por peanuts!! Good weather..good food…good beaches…good people….great culture…. hey!! I love it in Spain.
Buying property should not be so difficult..get yourself a good solicitor and you should not have any problem. I still cannot figure out why foreigners and not Spanish nationals have trouble when buying in Spain.
Oh dear sellers be ready for the scandis to view your property , they take at least an hour and scour every nook and cranny then say ok thank you and off they go never to return.
Yes i had personal experience of this many times.
“Buying property should not be so difficult”
Er, which is why Spain is in the mess it is with regards to it’s “illegal” properties. You do say some dense things Aussie, lol.
“I still cannot figure out why foreigners and not Spanish nationals have trouble when buying in Spain.”
The fact is that the Spanish are equally, if not more, affected by these issues. Expatriates just seem to be better at getting their views known. Having a good lawyer means nothing; all of the members of SOHA and AUAN bought with lawyers and notaries, banks, etc etc.
El Pais, Seville, 20 June 2012
“http://ccaa.elpais.com/ccaa/2012/06/20/andalucia/1340216475_742083.html”
steve,estapona
your all right Jack, oh dear so many like you – there’s one thing though that you did’nt admit to here in Spain, crap built properties – strange that.
I’m sure you’ll love all the repair bills that will definately be coming your way soon.
In Guadix the apartment block we lived in had a very innovative use of the roof – a terrace with individual storage units and lots of washing lines – very good.
The problem was that the I saw straight away that the tiling was done all wrong and after 5 years had to be completely replaced. All the water pipes in the flats were installed so badly that every flat had air blockages so ‘banging pipes’ was the norm. Zero privacy due to the laughable 60/70mm party walls. No one used the installed central heating because there was zero insulation around the pipes. Room sealed boilers – que?
No fire doors, no insulation of any kind and all wall sockets had to either have a plug inserted or taped over, otherwise you could lie awake at night listening to the wind whistling through the empty sockets. Could’nt use more than two hobs at a time or the consumer panel tripped.
Sounds quite funny now but was’nt at the time.
And the Spanish think they are going to sell property to the Nordics – what a total waste of money for the roadshow, much better to spend that money in Spain but then again a nice freebe vacation for some functionarios – silly me that was the whole reason for organising this would be scam.
Og course the Nordics are coming to Spain!! who would want to live in that frozen territory with no light or sunshine!!
Bienvenidos a España!!
I am pleased for steve,estepona that he has found his ‘little piece of heaven’ and that the ‘economic crisis’ doesn’t really affect him.
In contrast, I am an innocent victim of crime here in Andalucia and I am being persecuted for the ‘planning crimes’ that have been committed by the Mayors. Without an amnesty from the Junta de Andalucia, I remain incarcerated in my ‘illegal’ property and believe that I could wait up to 10 years to find out whether or not a judge will eventually sign the demolition order. In the meantime, I have lost my right to freedom to sell my property and move-on with my life. The European Commission have been pushed to the side-lines as the ‘planning crimes’ saga forms a unique an integral problem to Spain and that Spain appears to have isolated itself under it’s own protection, to solve (or not to solve) the problem.
The Junta de Andalucia persist with the situation and we live without hope because there is no dialog nor consultation on offer. Not many people understand that once the building licence has been revoked that, without any support whatsoever, you are in for the duration and that one must wait and see what the Junta de Andalucia and the Andalucian justice system has got in store for them – the time-scale is unbearable as is the expectation that one will eventually ‘pay with the loss of their home’ in respect of someone else’ crime.
The Scandinavians do not need to buy terracotta and muck to enjoy what Spain has to offer them as regards to its tourism and Why base yourself in one location in Spain anyway? – renting is far more flexible.
p.s. Lenox – your last post (oh! so true) and it made me laugh!
Hi Stuart, I am not saying ‘I’m alright Jack’-just that it works for me. Sure I have had some problems with construction when the rains really tip down and I have had suitable repairs done to my terraces by very competent Colombian builders-and maybe I will have problems again-but certainly nothing like all of the flooded homes in the uk as a result of developers building estates on flood plains! I have every sympathy for genuine purchasers like ‘M in Spain’ above who have suffered from the bizarre and unfair planning laws here -hopefully the revision to the Leys de Costa and the intent to legalise as many homes as practicable will help many people but I realise it is way too little and far too late. I would hate to be in that situation. But as ever it is a minority albeit sizeable and for most new purchasers now, the problem should be avoidable. There are, of course, houses built illegally obstructing the views of others- who do not want to see the obstructing homes legalised. You cant please all of the people all of the time…..
Steve,estepona,
‘just that it works for me’, translated means -I’m all right Jack.
UK homes built on flood plains – did you miss all the homes flooded on the flood plains around Almeria and two people drowned.
It does seem that picturesque areas with mountains nearby, are always going to be suspectible to flooding risks. Spain is not unique in this – here’s a case for example where dozens where killed (in France) “http://www.france24.com/en/20100616-deadly-floods-southern-cote-d%27azur-draguignan-rescue-french-riviera-var-arcs-electricity”
Stuart- ‘it works for me’ only translates as ‘I’m alright Jack in your mind!’ Of course I didnt miss the floods or the people drowned-more than 2 I recall. But have you missed all the floods in the UK and the people drowned there?? You may not be one of the many people who post on these sights who look at the UK through rose tinted spectacles, and are negative to all things Spanish, but a little balance would be good….
I like the others think that you would not feel safe buying a property in Spain but Spain has good weather and it works for many. Hundreds of thousands of British live there. Feet up, renting out their UK homes, living the life of Riley. Pensions coming in. My friends in that situation are as happy as Larry. When they get too old they will just fly back to old blighty for the daily visit from the home help!!
Not sure if I would live there again though. Been there done that. By the way, I do know a good Spanish builder. He even has work now. I had to wait a year for my refurb. Re-plummed, wired, floors, windows etc. He did a good job, it is all perfect. My properties have not been washed away either. But in reality, if you have spare cash, you are better off investing in the UK, at least you can rent a place out in the UK and all the ones I know of are legal. Why would you take the gamble? Sunshine is not everything.
I met a lot of people in Spain that could not live there without trying to earn a living. Even back in 2007 these people were struggling. The people who will manage ok are the ones who are not carrying a mortgage and can aford to live in Spain without earning a living.
But, hearing about people buying houses on illegal land and being embroiled in a lengthy legal battle sounds like a nightmare. Also, living in an area where so many of the neighbouring houses sit empty.
I’m sorry to hear this but I appreciate hearing your stories so if I do decide to take the plunge it will help to know what happens to others.
Buying a repo is dangerous as the tax authority can charge you tax on its value rather than its actual purchase price. If the bank is only interested in getting its loan back then insist that they cover you for any future tax revaluation in writing..
Its a shame so many properties for sale in Costa Del Sol remain empty. I hope it picks up soon.