The Latest Spanish Property News from Kyero.com

Average fares reduced by 9%, a 2.50 GBP or 3.50 Euro fare cut. New web check in service gives passengers priority boarding and avoids check in and boarding gate queues.

Total baggage allowance now increased to 30kgs per person,10kg for cabin baggage and 20kg for checked bag.

Commencing in March 2006, passengers will be able check-in on-line free of charge from the comfort of their own home or office. Web check in can be used by all passengers holding an EU passport and when travelling with hand luggage ONLY. Passengers can web check in from 72 hours up to 4 hours prior to flight departure on www.ryanair.com.

Passengers using web check in will also be priority boarded first onto the aircraft. Using web check in saves time at the airport, by avoiding check in and boarding gate queues.

Each passenger can carry free of charge one piece of hand baggage (no infant allowance) on board the aircraft. The bag must not weigh more than 10kg and the maximum dimensions should not exceed 55cm x 40cm x 20cm. For the safety and convenience of all passengers, hand baggage must fit underneath the seat or in the overhead compartment. All heavy items should be placed on the floor ensuring they do not block the aisles or emergency exits.

The checked baggage allowance has been increased to 20kg per person. For those customers who wish to check in luggage there will be a small charge per bag. Simply prebook on our website, the number of bags you wish to check in and pay a discounted rate of 2.50 GBP /3.50 EURO per bag, per flight. Alternatively you can pay for your checked in bag at the airport at the full cost of 5 GBP or 7.00 EURO per bag, per flight.

Pay for the bag(s) you wish to check in, on line up to 4 hours prior to your flight departure at the discounted price of 2.50 GBP or 3.50 EURO per bag, per flight. Alternatively, pay for the bag(s) you wish to check in at your departure airport for 5 GBP or 7.00 EURO per bag, per flight.

Story from Ryanair.com

Spain has come out as the number one destination for UK buy-to-let investors during 2005, a new study has revealed.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have shown that the majority of UK people considering investing in property abroad are heading for the traditional favourite of Spain. Despite the emergence of many other vibrant property markets in recent years, in particular eastern European destinations such as Bulgaria, the figures reveal that most are keen to stick to the old favourite.

Many people recognise that Spain represents a solid investment, with property still in hot demand despite talk of a slowdown in the market and the country’s overall economy. That has failed to dampen the spirits of many property investors, who realise that the country is still hugely popular with British tourists as well as those from other countries, meaning that there will always be a market to help property prices grow.

And the number of people who have come to realise this fact has jumped considerably in recent years.

While the government’s U turn on self invested personal pensions (Sipps) had led some to fear that 2006 would result in a downturn in investment in foreign property, rather than the earlier anticipated increase, the ONS study suggests that the market will remain buoyant regardless of the Sipps situation.

This can be seen from the fact that 257,000 Britons now own a second home abroad, according to the ONS statistics, with spending on overseas investment jumping by 45 per cent in the last four years alone.

Over 23 billion GBP’s was spent by Britons on foreign property investments last year, with Spain being the top destination.

However, the Spanish pull is not the only area interesting UK investors, with France coming second on the list.

According to the figures, while 27 per cent of foreign investments went on properties in Spain, 20 per cent of those investing in the property sector abroad chose France.

Overall, 75 per cent of all second homes owned by Britons are in England, highlighting the fact that the UK property market is still one of the strongest in Europe despite the slowdown over the last 12 months, with investors still seeing the UK market as having the potential to offer significant returns.

That view is endorsed by recent studies which have suggested that the housing market is back on track, with buy to let lending increasing at one of the fastest rates since the turn of the year.

Story from Assetz news

Thousands of people (the total numbers have not yet been announced by the organisers, Blendon Communications) attended the Viva Espana show at London’s Olympia exhibition hall last weekend. And the event merited the title of ‘show’ to a greater extent than last year, as the entertainment for visitors was almost non stop and included new features such as the auction of sports memorabilia as well as the staples of flamenco, art and fashion shows, and the displays of Spanish horsemanship which have been a major attraction since the first Viva Espana exhibition six years ago.

The majority of exhibitors at the event represented real estate companies in Spain, though there were also tapa bars, a mini street market, travel and finance companies, and media representatives such as SUR in English, which has had a stand at the show since the first edition of Viva Espana.

For sports fans, there was not only a “football tent” and the opportunity to practise teeing off on a virtual golf course, but there was also the chance to meet Severiano Ballesteros, who opened the exhibition and helped promote a new golf course from the Alexia Gold stand.

Full story from Surinenglish.com

Record numbers of people are leaving Britain to live and work abroad, figures show. More than 350,000 men and women are emigrating every year, a rise of 30 per cent in 10 years, The Independent reports.

Experts are particularly concerned that the number of people in professional occupations leaving Britain has doubled since 1994.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 359,500 people migrated from Britain to other countries in 2004, up from 236,500 in 1994.

While the outflow of people was offset by 582,000 foreigners coming to live in the UK for at least a year, there are concerns that Britain is proving less attractive to migrants, whom it desperately needs to plug staffing shortages.

Of the people leaving the UK, 207,600 were British citizens, the highest since current records began in 1991. The number of people in the professional classes emigrating almost doubled from 69,000 to 122,000 in the same period.

More detailed figures for 2003 show that the number of people going to live in Australia, for the first time, went over the 20,000 mark.

Nursing organisations have been warning that Britain’s policy of recruiting nurses from abroad is backfiring as many of the foreign recruits are simply using the UK as a stepping stone before going to the United States, where salaries are much higher.

Figures from the Nursing and Midwifery Council show that, last year, 4,393 nurses left Britain for jobs in Australia and New Zealand, double the number who went in 1995.

Howard Caton, of the Royal College of Nursing, said: “It seems that nurses may be attracted to Australia and New Zealand early in their careers. But we are also seeing large numbers of nurses going to America. The opportunities for career advancement can be very good there.

“We have heard of foreign nurses being recruited by agencies to come and work in Britain, and then, six months later, they are approached by the agency to go and work in the US.”

Poor workforce planning has also meant that hundreds of newly qualified junior doctors have found that there are no jobs for them in Britain, despite the fact that the NHS needs more staff. Andrew Roland, deputy chair of the British Medical Association’s junior doctors committee said: “These are people who have trained for years to work in the NHS and have then found that there is no job for them.

“Doctors are not going abroad for an easier life, but to start their careers. The problem is about whether they come back or not.”

A report by the World Bank last year found that one in six graduates leaves the UK, more than any other Western country. Professor Andrew Oswald, professor of economics at Warwick University, said: “We have a severe problem in holding on to our best graduates. A junior academic economist in Britain will earn about 25,000 GBP’s a year; in America, they start on about 50,000 GBP’s to 60,000 GBP’s.”

Observers said that the growth in ownership of second homes may also be both a cause and effect of the migration out of Britain.

Enquiries to the currency specialist HIFX about buying a property in Australia have tripled since the beginning of this year.

Mark Bodega, marketing director of HIFX, said: “The traditional markets for buying a second home are France and Spain, but we are increasingly seeing people buy in places such as Australia and Dubai.”


Full story from workpermit.com

THE number of Britons who own a second home abroad has soared nearly 50% since 2000, figures reveal.

An all time record of nearly 260,000 people own a foreign property,usually in a cheaper and sunnier country.

The majority of buyers are in their late 40s or 50s and are planning to retire to their new home, or at least to use it for six months every year when they stop work.

Until they reach retirement, they hope to rent out their property but still use it for holidays and the occasional weekend.

Charles Weston Baker, head of international research at estate agents Savills, said: ‘People have a much higher expectation of their quality of life, that is what drives the demand for buying overseas.

‘When they retire, they do not want to sit by the fire wearing slippers. People are active into their 80s and it is easier and cheaper to fly abroad than to catch the train to some places in Britain.’

The figures are published today by the Office for National Statistics, which said: ‘The increasing affordability and accessibility of foreign property markets has contributed to a rise in the number.’

Spain is easily the most popular choice among Britons. Nearly 70,000, about one in four of the total number of second home owners, have a property in Spain.

Story from thisismoney.co.uk

The latest figures from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) indicate that the UK property market has found a level of encouraging stability after a turbulent 2005.

The mix adjusted average house price in the UK in December was 185,788 GBP’s, which is just 60 GBP’s down on the figure for November. Bearing in mind the usual seasonal slowdown, this reflects a healthy property market and investors can once again be optimistic about their investment projects for the coming months.

The ODPM survey is based on 40,000 completed sales and it is generally perceived as a significant gauge of the general state of the property industry.

Accordingly, investors have been taking note of the fact that house price inflation was found to have increased in both England and Scotland, while the market in Wales saw a slightly surprising downturn.

Regional variation is becoming an increasingly important factor in property investment, with the patterns less predictable than might be expected.

While house price inflation rate was a steady 3.8 per cent in London, better options for investors may be the north west of England which saw 7.6 per cent and the north east which saw 6.5 per cent. There is currently great demand for residential property in Manchester and Liverpool, with student accommodation in both cities also boosting the buy to let sector.

Yorkshire and the Humber area witnessed a similarly impressive inflation rate of 6.3 per cent but other areas within England fared less well.

A fairly stagnant year in the property market in the West Midlands saw an inflation rate of just 1.8 per cent while a lack of activity in the south west was reflected in an even worse rate of 0.8 per cent.

Regions in the south east of England, meanwhile, saw an inflation rate of 0.3 per cent and the east was the worst performing area at 1.3 per cent.

With the national annual rate of house price growth up to 2.9 per cent in December from a revised 2.2 per cent in the previous month, the new figures back up recent reports from a number of commercial banks.

Yorkshire Bank recently found that 20 per cent of first time buyers are now prepared to pay a premium for a property to gain a footing on the property ladder while only 13 per cent would have done the same thing 12 months ago.

According to the Nationwide building society, house prices increased by 1.4 per cent in January, which is the biggest monthly rise since July 2004. This figure also indicates that the rising confidence in the final quarter of 2005 has been carried over into 2006, though it will be another month before the ODPM reflects on the market in January.

A significant stretch of 2005 proved extremely challenging for many UK investors with a clear dip in buyer confidence meaning that too many people were backing out of deals or waiting for some form of a market crash.

The crash never materialised and this recent data indicates that impressive returns can again be found on properties in the right areas. The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has pointed out that sales figures have now reached levels comparable with those in 2002 and 2003 and most experts are predicting house prices to increase by three to five per cent during the year.

Story from Assetz news

Despite paying into Spain’s social security scheme Lyndsey Gilmour plans to retire in the UK, so she is seeking advice on her state pension entitlement.

Ms Gilmour, 37, originally from Edinburgh, Scotland, is working as an English teacher in Barcelona, Spain, after taking voluntary redundancy from her job in marketing for Royal Mail. She said: “I came to Barcelona in September 2004 and am unsure how long I will stay, but probably for the next three years.

“I am paying tax and National Insurance in Spain but want to know what I should be doing about my National Insurance contributions (Nics) in the UK.

“Should I continue to pay them and if so, at what rate, or do my contributions in Spain count towards my state pension when I move back?”

Last summer, Ms Gilmour returned to the UK for a few months and asked The Pension Service for advice. She was told she could pay outstanding Nics for the tax year 2004 to 2005 at Class 2, totalling around 70 GBP’s.

She said: “I have until April to decide whether to do this or not, but I am unsure why I qualify for Class 2 contributions or what I should be doing for this year.”

Ms Gilmour bought a two bedroom flat in Edinburgh in 2000 for 75,000 GBP’s, which is now worth 145,000 GBP’s. She said: “I rent this out for 430 GBP a month, putting any extra money aside after paying my mortgage in case of emergency. For example, if the flat is unoccupied for a while.”

Vital Statistics

Name: Lyndsey Gilmour

Age: 37

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Occuption: English teacher

Salary: 1,000 EURO’s a month after tax, and rental income.

Bank Accounts: Caja de Ingenieros Current Account; 5,000 GBP’s in First Direct Current Account.

Savings Accounts: 2,000 GBP’s in ING Direct Savings Account; 17,000 GBP’s in Marks & Spencers cash ISA; 43 GBP’s a month into with profits endowment with Standard Life with 11 years to run; 3,000 GBP’s in Legal & General maxi ISA.

Liabilities: 25 year 42,000 GBP’s mortgage with Yorkshire Building Society, part interest only, part repayment.

Assets: Two bedroom flat in Edinburgh bought in 2000 for 75,000 GBP’s, now worth 145,000 GBP’s.

Pension: 20 years’ contributions to the Royal Mail final salary scheme.

Insurance: None

What the experts say

Paying voluntary Nics while in Spain is a worthwhile consideration if Ms Gilmour wishes to draw a UK state pension, agreed the advisers.

National Insurance Contributions: On returning to the UK, Ms Gilmour’s payments into Spain’s social security scheme will not be transferable, said James Dalby of independent financial adviser Bates Investments. He added: “However, she may be able to claim a pension from the Spanish state scheme based upon its rules, although the minimum contribution period for benefits to be accrued is 15 years.

“So, depending on how long Ms Gilmour plans to be in Spain, she might consider making voluntary Nics to keep her record up in the UK.”

Bill Blevins of IFA Blevins Franks, said: “As it is, she already has enough UK contributions to be entitled to at least a partial UK state pension, and any additional voluntary Class 2 or 3 contributions will add to those years for UK purposes.

“In the short term, especially as she is not sure of her plans and as she may return to the UK after a few years, it makes sense to keep her entitlement topped up.”

Class 2 contributions, which she is currently able to make as she is working overseas, protect her entitlement to UK social security benefits as well as the state pension.

Class 3 contributions only add towards state pension entitlement, added Mr Blevins, but can be made whether living overseas or not. He said: “Her entitlement to pay Class 2 contributions should continue on the same basis, and if she stops working overseas she can still pay Class 3 contributions.”

Class 3 contributions cost 7.35 GBP’s a week. Class 2 contributions are 2.10 GBP’s as they were frozen in April 2000. If you can pay either Class 2 or Class 3 NI contributions, you can change from one to the other as you choose by filling in form CF83.

More information is available for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) at www.hmrc.gov.uk, or by calling +44191 225 3540 from outside the UK, and 0845 9154811 in the UK.

Full story from Expat Telegraph

For two decades, Spain has been almost unrivalled within the European market in terms of its position as a property investment hotspot and experts at The Homebuyer Show are suggesting that this continues to be the case.

One of Spain’s key advantages over competitive property markets is that it annually attracts millions of holidaymakers. Since 1994, in fact, it has been far and away the most popular holiday destination for UK residents and it accounted for 28 per cent of all holidays taken in 2001.

With France in second place with just 18 per cent of the market share, it is little wonder that the property market in Spain has remained extraordinarily strong despite rash claims from some that the bubble is ready to burst.

Many of those who holiday in the country decide to purchase a second home or build up a portfolio of property investments and Jason Windle, managing director of Platinum Properties, believes this will continue for many years.

“Even though there is talk that the Spanish property market has reached its peak, it is still catching up with the English market. I strongly believe that it has a long way to go and we may still be only mid way through the property boom,” he said.

Mr Windle has also pointed out that prospective buyers are motivated by the fact that there are no barriers preventing them from living or working in Spain. With the likes of Bulgaria still awaiting EU accession, this is one of the key factors in Spain’s dominance of the European property scene, while recent changes to the land laws have also made investment a more attractive option.

Recently released statistics from the government show that house prices in Spain increased by an average of 12.8 per cent in 2005, while Terry O’Connor, business development director of The Superior Group, has pointed out that some areas are seeing even more impressive growth.

“Some areas in the Costa de la Luz have seen inflation of 40 per cent in the last two years and we expect at least 15 per cent in 2006,” he suggested.

Alhama de Murcia is another area that has been picked out as a lucrative choice for property investment, with the thriving reputation for golf making it a significant growth area.

Buy to let investment projects are also popular in Spain, with Mr Windle suggesting that investors can expect around 700 Euros per week in rental income during the summer and 500 Euros per week during the golf season on two bedroom, two bathroom properties on the coast.

Nick Clark, managing director of The Homebuyer Show, has acknowledged that the likes of Cyprus and Bulgaria are certainly stamping their mark on the European property market, but Spain has retained the qualities that made it a UK favourite in the first place.

“With low cost airlines leaving for Spain throughout the day, good infrastructure and an established year round rental market, it really is an excellent investment opportunity,” he said.

“However, we would encourage any potential or professional investors to research the market and get advice from a professional before they commit.”

The interest in Spanish property clearly remains exceptionally high and many people are consequently looking at the next couple of years as an exciting opportunity to make impressive returns on their investments.

Story from Assetz News

Spain is notorious for illegal builders, but how bad is the problem really? Ian Frewer investigates.

If it’s not the state grabbing half your land, it’s muggers grabbing your handbag; if it’s not these, then it’s the media telling everyone you live in a hell hole dominated by beer swilling expats, corrupt officials and murderous thieves.

Add to which, these days, an increasing number of tales of bad builders; at best incompetent, at worst criminal.

The bad shepherds are finding new ways to fleece their ever increasing flock of lambs to the slaughter. But how bad is it, really? The answer is, bad, but mainly only for those who fail to do their homework.
Sally and Joe Alden, originally from Bradford, in Britain, bought their home near Calpe, on the Costa Blanca, from a British estate agent, acting on behalf of a British vendor.

No, you don’t need a solicitor, he told them, I’ll do all the searches for you.

Betty Anggold was assured her house would be ready by October, 2005 but it wasn’t. nor by November, or even by Christmas. It still isn’t. It wasn’t until they moved in that they learned that proposed development adjoining their land would cost them at least 25,000 Euros in infrastructure charges.

Furious at this apparent deception, they took both agent and vendor to court.

They lost, and had the defendant’s costs awarded against them.

The reason for the court’s decision? Simple, the oldest rule in the book: Caveat Emptor; Let the Buyer beware.

The onus, they were told, was on them to have researched the property; the agent and vendor, who both knew of the proposed charges, and did not tell them, walked away, and the Aldens were left some 50,000 Euros out of pocket.

Outside Spain, rules and regulations are to be obeyed. In Britain, for instance, they employ a solicitor to carry out searches when buying a house, even though it is usually safe to assume that full planning permission was originally granted.

However, when Britons buy in Spain, alas, all too often they make the same fatal assumptions, only to find that their new home is completely illegal, and should never even have been built. Frank and Billie Somers, from Sussex, in Britain, bought a tumbledown finca near La Herradura, Granada.

They were assured by the agent that they could demolish it and rebuild, anywhere on their 18,000 square metre plot.

Too late, they learned that they could only rebuild on the original site of the ruin, (which backs on to a dog pound!) right against a main road, and only to the original size.

Again, blind trust in what an agent told them had cost them dear.

Most agents are genuine and reliable; most builders trustworthy and dependable.

But enough are not, to have started a whole new genre of horror stories.

Full story from Expatica.com

Following on from Ryanair’s recent announcement to charge passengers for checking in baggage and similar plans for other airlines to follow suit, First Luggage is predicting a boom this year as travellers scramble for alternatives and First Luggage provides the perfect solution.

The benefits for travellers using luggage airlines are: no lugging heavy bags to and from airports, check in times slashed, no anxious wait at the carousel on arrival. Instead, luggage is collected from your home or office a few days before departure and found awaiting your arrival at hotel, villa or chalet.

First Luggage reports that more passengers than ever are choosing to travel luggage free and with ever increasing numbers of bags being sent ahead, companies such as First Luggage are able to pass savings on to its customers, a suitcase can now be sent to Europe for as little as 49 GBP’s, a saving of 40% on last year. First Luggage also reports that this should help your bags from not joining the 20 million bags lost, misrouted or damaged by airlines each year .

“We are getting busier and busier” says Gideon Kasfiner, Managing Director of First Luggage, the UK’s leading door to door luggage delivery service, “‘Luggage airlines’ such as ours are really coming into their own as airlines begin to actively dissuade passengers from checking in luggage. The concept of travelling luggage free begins to appeal to consumers even more strongly as the financial incentive grows alongside the ‘luxury’ element. Airlines specialise in getting the consumer where they want to go, but we are the experts in transporting their luggage around the globe, the Ryanair development demonstrates a move toward this more clearly than ever.”

Story from M-travel.com

Half of those who chose to make a new life in Spain end up returning home. But why does the dream turn sour for so many? Ian Frewer spoke to established expats who offer advice to the new arrivals on the Costas.

“A lot depends on whether they came to Spain, or whether they just left England.”

Steve Hall is a successful entrepreneur based in Torrevieja, near Alicante, in southern Spain, who also runs The Newcomers Club, a group offering advice and social contact to people newly arrived in Spain.

Offering advice is not always easy, to people who don’t want to take it.

“I reckon about half of those who come out here below pensionable age go back within two years,” Steve told us. “A lot of the problem is that they believe too much of what they’re told before they come out here”.

“They believe they’ll get a job, that they can manage on far less money than they actually need, that everything will somehow just fall into place. But it doesn’t.

I reckon about half of those who come out here below pensionable age go back within two years, Steve Hall, of The Newcomers Club “The truth is that jobs are few and far between, that you may not get a phone line for years, the area is saturated with British tradesman, the cost of living is not as low as people think, and that Spanish bureaucracy can drive you mad at times!”

Hall knows; he sometimes has the sad job of telling someone that their best bet is to return home, if they can’t manage in Spain, and he seldom gets any thanks for that piece of advice.

Gary and Terri Hart, both in their forties, originally from Huntingdon, in Cambridgeshire, are returning home to England as soon as they sell their house in Villamartin, on the Costa Blanca, in southern Spain.

“We thought I’d be able to make a living out here, me being an experienced builder, but it’s been hopeless.” Gary told us, “The only way to get any work is to price it so low that you undercut everyone else, and then there’s no profit in it. Terri helps out in a bar sometimes, but that only pays peanuts.”

But it isn’t just financial.

Dreams can turn sour

“I miss the children, but especially I miss seeing my grandson grow up. He’s three now, and he hardly knows me, when we go back,” said Terri, her eyes filling up with tears.

“My younger daughter’s expecting in November, and I just want to be there with her. We’re missing out on so much, and I can’t even speak to her often, as still haven’t got a phone line.”

“Much of it comes down to language,” Steve Hall told us, “Most newcomers don’t know any Spanish, and then they feel isolated. That’s why we give free Spanish lessons at the club. Learn Spanish, and you can always cope with a situation.”

It’s a different story for those who retire to Spain, with a decent pension. George and Rose Halliday are in their sixties, and moved to Spain four years ago, having previously owned a holiday apartment for years.

“We know the area, we have a circle of friends, and we can manage fine on our income.” Rose said.

Forget about living the dream, the reality’s what counts, and it isn’t easy living. I just wish someone would tell them the truth, instead of leading them on. Peter Sharron, businessman “Okay, we miss the grandchildren, but they come out to see us quite often, and we go back two or three times a year. Our children are adult, now, and they have their own lives, so they don2t really miss us that much.”

George feels that, like so much in life, it all comes down to money; an income sufficient to support your chosen lifestyle, and to provide things like a telephone, and a computer for emails, and to pay for an interpreter when you need one, and to own a home you’re happy in, and to travel back to the UK when you feel like it.

“It’s all about income, not capital. With today’s interest rates, you need a heck of a lot of capital to provide a decent income, but a good pension, or shrewd investments give you the income you need. Money may not buy happiness, but it certainly helps!” he says.

Even so, a fifty per cent failure rate among expats who try to make a new life in Spain is an alarming statistic.

Peter Sharron runs a successful removal company in Alicante, in south east Spain, and gets to speak to many of those returning to England. “So many of those who go back came out here for a fresh start,” he told us,

“They don’t do their homework, they don’t research the realities of life out here. I have to blame many of the selling agents, and even the TV shows that make it seem so easy to start up out here.

“The fact is that life may be different here, but you, you’re the same person as you were in the UK. You won’t miraculously become more successful just because the sun’s shining.”

“Forget about living the dream,” he said, almost sadly, “the reality’s what counts, and it isn’t easy living. If you don’t have the money in the first place, you’ve got an uphill struggle to make it out here. I just wish someone would tell them the truth, instead of leading them on.”

To contact The Newcomers Club, call Steve Hall on 659 173 108.

Story from Expatica.com

Looking after the old is a young business in Malaga

Almost 200,000 people over the age of 65 live in Malaga province, which is almost 13per cent of the total population. Statistics show that this figure will double inside fifteen years due to two factors the ageing of the population and the attraction Malaga has for retired people from all over Europe. Another factor is sociological: the changing structure of the family in our times, with women fully integrated into the labour market, thus leaving fewer of them to look after older family members. The result is a succulent cocktail for the building speculators, who have discovered a new outlet in the construction of residences for the old in the province of Malaga.

Over the next five years, Malaga will rank first in the number of senior residential complexes in the province. These are not geriatric homes, but American style housing complexes especially designed for older people, complete with all the leisure services and infrastructure they might require. They are apartments for sale to private buyers, inside the complexes, where owners can avail of all the services on offer. The owners thus live in their own homes, but at the same time, can enjoy all the facilities of a geriatric home. Right now, there are eleven of these complexes being built in the province of Malaga, amounting to a total investment of 450 million euros and offering 1,500 housing units, with double the number of places.

Story from Sur in English

Take a look at gated properties in Alhaurin de la Torre available on Kyero.

As has been widely anticipated in the last few days, the Bank of England has decided to keep interest rates at 4.5 per cent, with the strength of the property market a key reason behind the decision.

After the interest rate cut in August 2005, the property market almost immediately showed signs of recovery and confidence has been steadily rising ever since.

While first time buyers had previously been reluctant to commit to any property purchases, Yorkshire Bank found this week that they are now willing to overpay to ensure they secure a place on the property ladder.

It seems that while those in the property investment business will be generally satisfied with the decision to freeze rates, manufacturers will be less pleased. Recent figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) indicated that like for like sales on the High Street had climbed only 0.2 per cent in January, which represents the slowest start to a new year that retailers have seen for more than a decade.

It is in fact the remarkable resilience of the property market that has given the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) the biggest headache in making this decision, as none of the members had been expecting the recent recovery in the housing market to be so pronounced.

Nationwide building society has reported that house prices increased by 1.4 per cent in January, while the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) observed that the previous month was the busiest December on record for mortgage lending. A series of recent reports have shown that buyer confidence is currently high and it is this evidence that has persuaded the MPC that cutting interest rates could potentially lead to the property boom that all members are eager to avoid.

“The main puzzle for the MPC remains the bizarre rebound in the housing market, both in activity levels and prices. Most analysts believe this is due to the August rate cut and many on the MPC will be anxious to avoid encouraging property prices to take off again when they have only recently made a soft landing,” said a report in the Guardian.

Despite the current health of the property market, some experts in the industry have reacted with disappointment to the decision not to cut interest rates. While activity levels and house price increases may currently be beyond the wildest expectations of many property investment specialists, some were looking for yet another boost with a further cut today.

“The number of first time buyers in the market has risen slightly this month, but this could just be a seasonal adjustment,” speculated Paul Smith, chief executive of haart estate agents.

“We urge the Bank of England to reduce rates by a quarter per cent within the next few months. As debt repayments would then be lower, consumers would have more disposable income which would as a result, benefit the entire economy,” he added.

Most analysts are predicting that this is exactly what the Bank of England will do. Such a move will push house prices up again and investors will be expecting impressive returns across the country, with the north and north-west leading the way.

Story from Assetz news

At midnight on Tuesday Valencia’s by now infamous lRAU land law took its last gasp and was consigned to history but not before councils throughout the Costas hurried through approvals on a number of plan parcial schemes.

In Calpe, the council approved a plan that will see another 321 homes built in the town, while in the small village of Benasau in El Comtat the municipal government approved a last minute development plan that will see the number of inhabitants increase from just 237 to over 4,000 in the next few years.

The same can be said of Parcent, where the mayoress gave the green light to a project that has been bitterly opposed by residents for over a year, just hours before the deadline.

La Romana council, not wanting to be left behind, also gave a last minute thumbs up to a Plan Parcial scheme that will see 400 homes built despite opposition complaints that the administrative process had not been followed correctly.

Opposition parties in Benissa have launched a scathing attack on mayor Juan Bautista Rosello for approving the Ronda Norte bypass project. They claim he is in league with developers and CIBE party spokesman Xavi Tro said urbanisation plans for Benissa go against EU legislation and if they were to go ahead several town councillors could face charges for allowing them.

CIBE also announced it was considering court action to prevent the Ronda Norte project from going ahead.

The fears of many people are that although the new Ley Urbanistica Valenciana, LUV, is now in force, they will still be subjected to the injustices of the LRAU because the development plans were approved before LUV came into being.

As the number of development schemes increase so does the bad press. German television station ARD recently broadcast a programme against the Valencia land laws. The show followed a similar one shown on Spanish TV, the BBC and Sky and a number of articles in the UK press. A further extensive article is expected soon in the prestigious International Herald Tribune.

LUV STORY

The Valencian building promoters’ association began a two day meeting yesterday (Thursday) to discuss and analyse the new LUV land and other associated laws.

Professionals such as lawyers, architects and magistrates explained how the law works and how it should be applied. Regional territories and housing councillor Rafael Blasco will close the meeting today (Friday).

Story from Costa Blanca news Online

A HOTEL that was being built on natural parkland is set to be demolished by the Ministry of the Environment despite Carboneras Council’s objections.

The fiasco came about after the council granted permission for the building of a hotel by the company, Azata del Sol, on El Agarrobico beach in Carboneras. But as soon as it was revealed that half the hotel was built inside Cabo de Gata Nijar natural park boundaries, an environmentalist protest prompted the ministry to move in, calling a halt to construction work.

It was soon revealed that the coastal planning group headed by Cristina Narbona in Madrid was calling for the demolition of the half built property despite the fierce arguments to the contrary by the Carboneras mayor.

It was at this point that the regional government was drawn into the debate to mediate between the two parties. But, after a meeting in Seville, the Junta de Andalucia regional government representative in Almeria, Juan Callejon, washed his hands of the matter declaring, ‘the project meets all the legal aspects’. He argued that the declaration of this particular area as a natural park came after the hotel started being built.

Recent meetings without the Junta’s presence also indicate that, if the demolition goes ahead, the onus will be solely on the Ministry of the Environment’s shoulders to take this action forward and consequently it will be the central government who will have to foot the compensation bill for the hotel owners.

Environmental activists, Greenpeace, unveiled banners last year to denounce the hotel and the pressure looks to have paid off.

A spokesman for the group said at the time: “We are tired of good words. They (the Junta and the Environment Ministry) have said that they were going to do everything possible and they have not done anything which means the hotel could well be finished before anything is done.”

Story from the euro weekly news

Bank of Ireland has teamed up with Spanish bank La Caixa to offer mortgage products for Irish people buying property in Spain. La Caixa is Spain’s third largest bank, with 4,800 branches.

Under the agreement, customers can borrow directly from the Spanish bank, with the mortgage secured on the Spanish property. They can borrow up to 75% of the value of a property up to 500,000 Euros and 60% above that value. La Caixa will ensure that all dealings will be in English, though the bank will take an ‘arrangement fee’ of 1%.

Bank of Ireland customers can also apply for a La Caixa mortgage and fund the remainder of the purchase price through an equity release mortgage with Bank of Ireland.

story from RTE Business

The French call us perfidious Albion and les rosbifs; we call them craven and Frogs. In the French media, “anglo saxonne” is their code for everything wrong with the modern world. Despite the entente cordiale of 1904, there is no love lost between us.

So it should come as no surprise that the French Resistance is back in action, this time saving rural France from British homebuyers. Tensions are mounting in Brittany and the Dordogne as Brits price locals out of the market while making no attempt to go native (“clinging on to Blighty” as the French Mistress describes it).

In Spain, on the other hand, the British get the red carpet. There are no spiteful nicknames, no historical animosities, no modern rivalries and certainly no resistance if the British want to throw money at local properties.

Communication factor language
The Spanish are falling over themselves to learn English, while the French are still lamely trying to make the rest of the world speak French. If you must learn a new language, you are better off learning Spanish, spoken by 330m people, than a language spoken only in France and parts of Canada and West Africa.

Quality of life
The French may have more three star Michelin restaurants and spend more public money on healthcare, but on all other fronts you can argue that Spain offers the better quality of life.

Crime
According to the seventh UN survey of crime trends, in 2000, France suffered the fifth highest level of burglaries in the world, with 371,000, compared with 24,000 in Spain. In terms of total crimes, France was in fourth position, with 3,770,000; Spain, in 16th position, had 923,000.

Cost of living
Comparative figures from the Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development (OECD) show that prices in France are 94% of the OECD average, while in Spain they are just 79% of the average.

Taxation
OECD figures for 2001 show France had the fifth highest tax rate among selected OECD countries, with 48.3% of average gross earnings given up in tax. Spain was 15th, with 37.9%. The Spanish government is in the process of reducing taxes further.

Property choice and prices
Between 1997 and 2005, Spanish property was a better investment than French property, with gross returns 50% higher, according to The Economist’s global house price indicators. Looking to the future, there is a risk that property is overvalued in both countries, perhaps slightly more so in Spain, although the difference does not appear to be large.

When it comes to buying property, most Brits want a reasonably priced villa on the coast somewhere warm and sunny. Spain’s Mediterranean coastline is twice as long, further south and covered in villas, which is precisely why more Brits choose to buy there. Spain may be less elitist than France, but it’s certainly more popular.

Climate
Most buyers want to escape the winter or enjoy the summer, or both. The summer bit is easy in both countries, but for a good winter climate you need to be south of the city of Valencia, on Spain’s Mediterranean coast.

Anywhere north of here, and the winter starts to bite, which rules out France as a winter sunshine destination. Spain has more than 620 miles of Mediterranean coastline below Valencia, not to mention the Canaries, Europe’s winter sunshine destination par excellence.

Presence of other Brits
The French national statistics website (www.insee.fr) gleefully offers figures on poverty and social exclusion in the UK, but has almost nothing to say about the number of foreign born residents in France. It takes a lot of internet research to find out that there are some 100,000 British born residents in France.

The Spanish national statistics website (www.ine.es), with nothing to say about social problems in the UK, readily reveals that there are 227,000 Brits officially resident in Spain.

So yes, you are more likely to come across other Brits in Spain, largely because Spain is a nicer place to live.

Full story from the times online

Property investors are today welcoming a report from the Nationwide building society which says that house prices have risen by 1.4 per cent in January.

While Hometrack this week referred to modest house price increases of only 0.1 per cent in some areas of the UK, Nationwide’s statistics indicate that January saw the biggest monthly rises since July 2004.

This has served to reaffirm the general consensus that the UK property market is once again extremely strong having coped admirably with a series of challenges in 2005.

Remarkably, the latest increase takes the annual rate of house growth to 4.4 per cent, as the strength of the property market surprises even the most optimistic of investors. The three months from November were particularly impressive, with growth of 1.8 per cent against the previous three months.

Nationwide has indicated that consumer confidence has been the key factor in this turnaround, an observation that has been made repeatedly in recent months. As first time buyers return to the market and investors once again find they can make significant gains on their outlays, there has been a sense of buoyancy for some weeks and the Nationwide report will only add to this optimism.

The average price of a house in the UK is now 158,478 GBP’s, according to Nationwide, with “pent up demand” following the cut in interest rates in August leading to a surge in activity over the usually quiet Christmas months.

“This is the strongest monthly rate of growth since July 2004 when it was 1.9 per cent and the annual rate of house price inflation was more than 20 per cent,” said Nationwide group economist Fionnuala Earley.

“The annual rate of house price inflation in January 2006 is a more modest 4.4 per cent.

“Even so, this is a significant increase in price and confirms the strengthening trend we have seen since October,” she added.

With Nationwide pointing out that the last four months have been responsible for around three quarters of the annual price rises, the future certainly looks bright for property investment in the UK, although Ms Earley has said that prices may be bridled in 2006 by factors including pension fears, declining consumer appetite for debt and below average economic growth.

According to the Bank of England, mortgage approvals are also exceptionally high at the moment, with the 122,000 loans for house purchases in December up from 116,000 in November. Both figures reflect a considerable increase on the 106,000 average for the previous six months and it is the highest number since May 2004.

Story from Assetz news

The Kyero Price Guides, updated and published yesterday reveal, strong growth and excellent investment potential in Spain’s inland provinces.

Compared to a national average prices, the provinces of Seville, Cordoba and Jaen appear to offer outstanding value and excellent growth potential.

Jaen province offers the lowest house price in the whole of Andalucia. With an average of just 67,000 Euros compared to a national average of 250,000 Euros - Jaen is certainly somewhere for the serious bargain hunter to consider.

Check out our Alcala La Real feature article or search for Jaen properties.

Also a strong contender is Seville. With an average property price of a mere 120,000 Euros, Seville has also experienced price increases of 10% over the past 9 months and there’s no indication that this trend is slowing. View properties in Seville.

Finally, Cordoba province weighs in with a respectable 140,000 Euro price average and again, the province has experienced price increases of 11% over the past 9 months. View properties in Cordoba.

The updated price guides are free to download from Kyero. There are two reports, updated on the 1st business day of each month. The summary price guide contains a price comparison between the most popular provinces. The detailed price guide contains 18 separate reports giving even more detail of prices within each province - get yours now.

Cost is a constant consideration for people taking out private medical insurance, whether in the UK or abroad, and eye watering rises are regularly inflicted on expats.

Brokers recently congratulated Bupa’s UK operation when it managed to keep its annual premium rise in single figures, hardly a consideration for praise in any other industry.

However, rises of four or five times inflation and more are commonplace in medical insurance, as its parameters are fuelled by drug research, the rise of diagnostic technologies such as MRI scans, rocketing professional indemnity costs and doctors’ fees.

Also in the frame is a supposed unwillingness of patients to suffer minor illness or injury without recourse to primary care.

These factors apply with greater force in the international insurance market than in the UK. Premiums in international medical insurance have been well into double figures for some years.

For example, David Green, president of healthcare consultants IHI based in Ontario, Canada, said: “Canadian medical inflation is running at 13 to 15 per cent, whereas our southern neighbours are being mentioned at 12 to 13 per cent.”

On the positive side, quality of care has risen. Improved cancer detection and survival, dramatically reduced hospital stays linked to keyhole surgery and lighter anaesthetics, transplant surgery and joint replacement have boosted length and quality of life.

Air rescue is increasingly used in accident cases. This is not so much to get the patient rapidly to hospital, but to get the doctor rapidly to the patient: on the spot stabilisation is a life saver.

Insurers have been pushed into providing a wider range of services in a fierce market. A strong trend in the industry towards direct claims settlement means that policyholders need no ready cash. When reimbursement of claims to the policyholder applies, it can be within five working days.


Full story from Expat Telegraph