Vera - Page 2

Probably the most hard hitting post on the subject from PhilBr. While I'm not thinking about selling our Spanish property I know some of my neighbours are. Squeaky Bum Time is not too far off.

One also needs to be careful reading and interpreting data.  According to the latest OBR Fiscal Sustainability Report (July 2020 - https://cdn.obr.uk/OBR_FSR_July_2020.pdf)

"Given that so few housing transactions took place during the lockdown, the ONS has paused production of the official house price index."

The latest OBR forecast is unchanged from March which shows steady house price growth, however they also put forward three scenarios for their report:

1. The upside scenario showing a short term decrease of about 2% in house prices, recovering to the March 2020 level by early 2021, and continuing to grow quickly.
2. The central scenario showing a short term decrease of about 8%, with prices recovering to the March 2020 level by the start of 2022, and then growing steadily. 
3. The downside scenario showing a short term decrease of around 16%, with prices recovering to the March 2020 level by early 2023 and then growing steadily.  n.b. the graph shows a house price fall from an index figure of 122 to 102.  That is not a 20% fall. 

So the OBR is not forecasting a 20% drop in house prices, but it is using a figure that comes moderately close to that as a worst case scenario.  Even then, the drop is short term, so sit tight.

An estate agent friend of mine says that having done zero business for about 3 months this year, the market in the UK is now fizzing thanks to the Stamp Duty suspension and there is definitely no short term decrease at present.  Of course, it will go flat once the duty is re-introduced.

But you are talking about the short term impact of the stamp duty whilst I’m alluding to the impact of C19 and potential disarray from Brexit - up to 2 million people unemployed.

No one knows the exact impact on anything, I’m just saying be careful what you do whether in U.K. or Spain.

I’ve ignored Matthews advice and spent my money from the sale of my U.K. property on a villa in Mojacar and will retain my apartment in Garrucha with nothing in U.K. Price will most probably go down but it (should) be my final buy so long term planning overcame any short-term considerations.

As long as Trump / Johnson don’t manage to get us Brits thrown out of Spain then I see my future here with trips to U.K. to see kids & grandkids - and hopefully them to us for holidays.

Be careful, we are in uncharted waters.

No, I am simply pointing out that the OBR is absolutely not forecasting a 20% drop in UK house prices.  It's the way things happen these days - some newspaper puts it out there as a "fact", it is plainly incorrect, but people start to believe it anyway.

Uncharted waters they certainly are. Buying property in Mojacar and Garucha cannot be the wrong thing to do if that is what you want as the value is the enjoyment you get, not the sale price.  And if we all stop spending then no-one has any income.  . 

Might sound glib so apologies in advance but if the price is right you can sell anything. You don't suggest that you have to sell your property so if keeping it for a few more years is an option it may be best to sit on your hands and wait for the storm to pass. Property is and has always been a long term investment. Of course if you're happy to sell at a reduced price to get the property and the stress involved in keeping a property abroad off your hands (an entirely reasonable stance) then no, you don't need to visit. Give your lawyer POA and leave the estate agent to advertise/market the property. The people we bought from never returned to Spain once they'd decided to sell and they made that decision whilst in the UK.  Good luck! 

Yes!! We can help you do this, we have an office in Vera beach as well as in San Juan de Los Terreros, very busy and sold a lot of properties over the past months, hence we have a lot of waiting clients, people waiting for new stock ..

Contact me please. 

I can highly recommend SPC, they have been selling a lot recently.  From what I can see the sales market is very buoyant at the moment.

Good luck 

Trouble with our Property we bought during the boom in 2000 ish off plan  in Vera price went down to almost half what we paid for it and is not much more now.  Why are prices so low in this part of Spain?  

Like most people experiencing the same you explained and answered your situation in your post. And let me guess . . . . the prices won't rise to the price you paid (and I paid) during your lifetime. Like me you gambled and didn't win. But, there's always Cheltenham, where gambling is much more enjoyable, but without the sunshine.

To be honest, no matter where you bought abroad before the financial crash, you lost money so i dont think Almeria is unique in that respect. Also the removal of tax relief on property abroad and the difficulty of getting any sort of mortgage made buying a property in Spain more difficult and less attractive. Add in Brexit and Covid and the mini-revival that started around 2014 has also stalled. When this is all passed prices will rise slowly but not to pre-2009 prices. 

But, hey, there is another spin on this, and i appreciate you might not see it this way, but for over 20 years you've had and still have the use and enjoyment of owning somewhere in a beautiful part of Spain. That has to be worth something 🙂.