Irish passport holder moving to Almeria - Page 3

Hi  Andy,  If we are lucky enough to have neighbours like you we are onto a winner. I will definitely look into contacting Dario  ( I’m sure I’ve seen him being recommended in other posts) and thank you for the offer to private message you and Sarah for advice. 

We can’t wait to get out to Almeria and start looking around for a nice rental until we buy, but we will have to wait until the Covid situation improves and travel is permitted. Until then, stay well 😀

Linda 

Hi Linda,

Just a thought about rentals in the UK. The situation is quite different to  that of a few years ago, on top of which the  eviction ban has just been extended, landlords have little security and an awful lot of worries, although my pension decision was to have rental properties to enhance my income, the constant hassle and some tenants irresponsibility has persuaded me to sell all the properties. I have an Irish passport and bought a home near Chirivel. I know the political and fiscal situation is complicated and this together with Covid makes decisions difficult. However, as a retiree with an Irish passport, I look to future with excitement in having a home in Spain mixing with old friends and living in a reasonably pleasant climate without the stress and worry as to whether or not residencia is a good thing. The bureaucracy of home ownership is not really a burden but in any event there are a large number of professionals who will help.

Good luck,

Paul

Hi Paul, many thanks for your reply. You have outlined exactly why we do not want to rent out our UK  property. We have friends who are or were  landlords and they have all had their fingers burnt by non paying or careless tenants at one time or another. 

The thought of a regular rental income is appealing but the thought of someone trashing our little house or just not paying, and then having to deal with all of that from Spain is far less so! 

We will definitely be selling our home before we come over and will then rent for as long as it takes for us to find our new home.
Many thanks for sharing your own experience with us. 

Kind regards 

Linda

With due respects I reckon Linda has her mind made up and as we say in Ireland she is her own woman. I can see some difficulties in renting out the UK property if you've sourced bad tenants and started looking at property in Spain. We got burnt with people not paying and damage to the holiday house in Ireland which we used to rent out. It was an old house and every month something needed repair and as the house was in a remote area we had to depend on electricians, plumbers, carpenters, box-makers, etc who lived locally. They charged what they could and we were reduced to being unpaid gardeners driving over 100 miles each way to  cut the grass when the place was vacant. Therefore, I can clearly see the case for selling out in the UK.

We bought our first Spanish apartment in Torrevieja where our immediate neighbours  sported every kind of tattoo from briars, barbed wire, roses, Japanese writing, Jesus, Jimmy Greaves and the occasional love-heart with the insert name changed somehow on several occasions. We found that our command of the English language was reducing too e.g "For star-hars, yew wud 'ave to do some tren-in to tok like 'em" and I feared for our lives with some of them around. That was the English women; the men weren't quite as bad. After a couple of years and me being prominent in the escape committee bought an apartment in Mojacar Playa along with a stone house 40 miles west of the Playa. 

The fear I'd have offloading the property in the UK is once done your boats are burnt and a retreat is costly, if necessary. Furthermore, there is a breaking in period from when you arrive in Spain. You are on an adventure, your old UK neighbours envy you, you're living the dream. This initial good period can last about ten years. Then suddenly, you've accomplished what you set out to do and perhaps a move back to the UK appears best. 

Anita and Linda appear to be pretty strong ladies and they know what they are about. But, I strongly recommend not to sell the UK property. It's more valuable than you think.

(Incidentally, Anita my grandmother shares your maiden name and was from Emo; she died in 1963 - you and I might be cousins)

Your posts never fail to make me laugh Matthew, love your descriptions of the wonder that is the expat Brit! My uncle had a place in Torrevieja- hated Spain, hated the Spanish, never spoke anything but English, proper arsehole. he finally did the right thing and sold up - Spain must’ve breathed a sigh of relief! Totally get what you’re saying about the honeymoon period but everyone’s reasons for moving are different and I’m of the opinion that life is for living right now! When we were looking for a property we avoided the areas heavily populated by expats - we do have a few in Illar, but we live out in the campo away from the village so just dip in and out of society from time to time! Suits us perfectly!

Emo is not far from us at all - we’re from Kilcormac between Birr and Tullamore! Knowing Irish families there’s every chance we’re related!! I started seeing a lad in the village one year to be told two days later he was my cousin 😱

Paul what are the rules with regards to your Irish passport eg the 90 days in 180 or can you do 180 in total out of 360

Thank you

Billy

Hi Billy,

I believe, as an EU citizen, there are no issues or restrictions of movement or length of stay, of course if one works Tax etc. will come into it as indeed it will in respect of pension income if you are resident. I am no expert, I consult a professional if unsure, its well worth the few euro cost to sort out the bureaucracy rather than have the worry of infringing Spanish Law, but then for me peace and tranquility are my first objective!

Good luck and kind reegards,

Paul

Thanks Paul as I understand you can do 90 days then 1 day out of country then a further 90 days as a non resident as long as you stay under the 180 days in a year due to resident tax unlike U.K. passport holders who can do 90/180

Billy

Hi. We are in a similar position in that husband has Irish Passport and wife has UK passport. We had looked into purchasing property but after reading through this thread will now consider renting but don't know where to start. Can anyone assist please

If we were to follow advise can someone please advise how the rental process would work for us.? 

Would we be able to get residence through the rental property and be able to stay longer than 3 months. ?

What is the best site for rental searches.?

Would we need a solicitor to assist us?

Any help or advise gratefully received