Alex Trelinski
THE SPANISH hamlet of Salto de Castro is up for sale again- a year after it was bought for €300,000 by Toledo constructor Oscar Torres.
The empty village is located in Zamora province in the Castilla y Leon region, and just 100 metres away from Portugal’s easternmost point.
Plans were unveiled for it to become a rural tourist destination, but its now being marketed for €580,000.
It’s said that some architectural improvements had been made and that Oscar Torres is now ready to sell it off to a person or business that would actually be interested in doing something definitive with Salto de Castro.
Property portal Idealista says that Torres can’t complete the planned development due to his ‘business strategy’.
Last year’s sale was said to have attracted offers from buyers in Saudi Arabia, Russia, Brazil, the United Kingdom, as well as 20 investors.
The village covers 4,000 m2 and consists of 44 houses, a bar, a church, a school, a swimming pool, a sports centre and a former Guardia Civil office, but minus any residents.
The entire community was constructed by Iberdrola in the 1940s to house workers building the dam adjacent to it, however, once the project was finished, it was abandoned and has stood empty for more than 30 years.
The financial crash in 2008 put the previous owners’ plans on hold and eventually, they decided to put Salto de Castro up for sale in 2022 with the hope that someone else could make their tourism vision a reality.
It is in the heart of the Meseta Iberica UNESCO Biosphere Reserve with stunning views of the Duoro River and gets around 135 days of sunshine each year.
When Salto de Castro was marketed last year, property experts estimated that it would cost around €2 million to make it workable as a visitor attraction.
READ MORE:
- Empty village on Spain-Portugal border to get tourist lifeline after €300,000 sale
- Deserted village on Spain-Portugal border being sold for bargain €260,000
