Hi from Alicante Spain

tonymar

buglawton wrote: »

What percentages of expats have added solar panels to their sun-soaked roofs in Spain, I wonder? In the UK it needs subsidies and the installers go bust every few years. In Spain it must be much more viable.

Hi it is very strange , but solar is very little used here .

I myself worked selling solar water heating systems for a long while here , and they work great providing nearly all hot water
But I have given it up now due to low sales and interest

I even noticed much more panels on UK roofs than here in Spain

I guess with the poor economy here people are just concentrating on essentials , like food , paying bills etc.

I may try again when things pick up , as it is law to fit panels on new builds

Cheers Tony:):

FZwanab

Can you get the uk state pension while living in Spain or only a private pension if you have one?
Are you in an urbanisation or have to pay huge communal fees somewhere?
Where would the more upmarket areas of alicante be?
Is it all like "a place in the sun" TV show. Is there anywhere else, given the choice you would prefer to live now? Eg. France, Italy.
Do you get cold in winter because you have acclimatised to the temperature?
Do you swim every day? Just dreaming about it all myself.

tonymar

FZwanab wrote: »

Can you get the uk state pension while living in Spain or only a private pension if you have one?
Are you in an urbanisation or have to pay huge communal fees somewhere?
Where would the more upmarket areas of alicante be?
Is it all like "a place in the sun" TV show. Is there anywhere else, given the choice you would prefer to live now? Eg. France, Italy.
Do you get cold in winter because you have acclimatised to the temperature?
Do you swim every day? Just dreaming about it all myself.

hola Penny

I am not of pension age but I am sure friends get their Uk pension here ( they have worked for it and paid in after all )

I live in the country , no huge fees , the in laws live on a huge urbanisation and pay no fees , some houses that have communal pools etc have fees , but in general they are fair

Do you mean Alicante province or Alicante City regarding area ?

It is a place in the sun ! and it cheers me up to see the blue sky and no grey clouds !!!

No I am glad to be here , as opposed to other country's

Yes it gets cold here in the winter , the houses are not cosy like Uk ones , no good heating systems or carpets

but is still sunny during the day and that makes up for it !

No dont swim every day , do have a pool in the garden , but mainly only use it in the summer !!

If you have a dream , of living in the sun then go for it you only live once !!

Cheers Tony

tonymar

ceo211 wrote: »

thanks for this iwll go to spain

Good luck with your trip to Spain !!:)

Mr_Singleton

tonymar wrote: »

Hi Sue
yes now is a fantastic time to buy , in all the years I have been here I have never seen prices so low

Not so good for he people trying to move back to the UK after having spent their retirement in Spain and now due to old age need to move back.

tonymar

Mr_Singleton wrote: »

Not so good for he people trying to move back to the UK after having spent their retirement in Spain and now due to old age need to move back.

Thats right

Its not a good time to sell in Spain , it is a very good time to Buy !!

I do have some friends who want to move back due to loss of partners and old age etc , and they bought when prices were high here , I do feel sorry for them as they will have to make a big loss to realistically sell

I think generally prices go up and down , now in my opinion is a good time to buy not sell !!

Cheers Tony:)

Lets_say

I have a property in the southern Alicante area. A few points.

Always rent first, to ensure you have picked the right area.

Yes, state pensions can be paid to people living in Spain, but it will be converted into Euros - great at the moment.

Yes, even in this area it can be cold in the winter in some properties, as many are only built as summer holiday homes. Hence why many ex pats are complaining about the new rules about winter fuel payments.

If you are not state pension age you will have to have private health insurance, at least for the first year. After that, you should be able to pay monthly into the Spanish system.

'Communities' on 'urbanisations' pay community fees. This can vary enormously depending on facilities, and whether all the properties are sold, and all owners are paying their dues. For example, my community has 25 properties, we are all up to date, and pay 400€ a year. Basically we have a small pool and a few plants. A friend pays around 1500€ a year, on a community of 17, because there are lots of hedges between the properties and the garden contract is run by the
(British) president.

Animosity between neighbours and presidents is a constant source of problems in communities, along with noisy dogs.

Anyone thinking of buying should go to a uk bookshop and buy books to read up on buying property abroad. ( or look on boot sales!)

Never use the same solicitor as the vendor. Never give power of attorney. Always check that there are no outstanding debts.

I am not being negative, just trying to alert 'dreamers' to the pitfalls. I love my property, and ignore my neighbours squabbles. However, the fact it turned out OK for me is more luck than judgement. Please look for websites to ask questions in your preferred areas.

Lets_say

And Tony clearly hasn't had the last 10 days of miserable cloudy cool weather we have! Some mad fool was in the pool at Easter and today, but I only usually use it June/July and August.

tonymar

Lets_say wrote: »

I have a property in the southern Alicante area. A few points.

Always rent first, to ensure you have picked the right area.

Yes, state pensions can be paid to people living in Spain, but it will be converted into Euros - great at the moment.

Yes, even in this area it can be cold in the winter in some properties, as many are only built as summer holiday homes. Hence why many ex pats are complaining about the new rules about winter fuel payments.

If you are not state pension age you will have to have private health insurance, at least for the first year. After that, you should be able to pay monthly into the Spanish system.

'Communities' on 'urbanisations' pay community fees. This can vary enormously depending on facilities, and whether all the properties are sold, and all owners are paying their dues. For example, my community has 25 properties, we are all up to date, and pay 400€ a year. Basically we have a small pool and a few plants. A friend pays around 1500€ a year, on a community of 17, because there are lots of hedges between the properties and the garden contract is run by the
(British) president.

Animosity between neighbours and presidents is a constant source of problems in communities, along with noisy dogs.

Anyone thinking of buying should go to a uk bookshop and buy books to read up on buying property abroad. ( or look on boot sales!)

Never use the same solicitor as the vendor. Never give power of attorney. Always check that there are no outstanding debts.

I am not being negative, just trying to alert 'dreamers' to the pitfalls. I love my property, and ignore my neighbours squabbles. However, the fact it turned out OK for me is more luck than judgement. Please look for websites to ask questions in your preferred areas.

I agree it is not a decision to take lightly best to check every thing out first , as you would when buying in the uk !

ps where abouts is your place , I am in Agost ( Spanish village just inland of Alicante city )

Cheers Tony:)

tonymar

Lets_say wrote: »

And Tony clearly hasn't had the last 10 days of miserable cloudy cool weather we have! Some mad fool was in the pool at Easter and today, but I only usually use it June/July and August.

The weather has been quite changeable here in Agost , today was lovely

Yesterday I went to La zenia nr Torrevieja , it was nice first then we had a thunder storm

Are you in Spain ?

Cheers Tony