Despite the significant increase in prices, many of our compatriots are planning to buy property in Spain.
Despite the rapid growth in prices, our compatriots are still actively buying housing in Spain. As Novy Inostranets notes, post-Soviet buyers traditionally fall into two categories. For some, purchasing property on the Iberian Peninsula is above all a promising investment; for others, it is an opportunity to spend every season in their own home on the Mediterranean coast. The latter are interested in villas, cottages, and less often, bungalows.
A villa is the most prestigious and expensive property. In essence, a Spanish villa is a true estate: a two- or three-story house with its own plot of land of at least 600 sq. m, a garden, and a swimming pool. A villa necessarily has a garage, a large living room with a fireplace, several bedrooms, a corresponding number of bathrooms, spacious terraces, balconies, and verandas. Accordingly, prices for such housing are significant: estates located in attractive resort areas cost on average 500 thousand euros.
Before the start of the season, Novy Inostranets decided to take a virtual tour along the Spanish coast - from south to north - to look at the most interesting offers on the prestigious property market and sort out the prices.
Andalusia
According to the head of the foreign real estate department of one of the Russian companies, Yulim Griberman, "our compatriots mainly settle in resort towns along the most luxurious Spanish coast, the Costa del Sol. Among the expensive resorts of Andalusia, the most in demand are Marbella, Torremolinos, with its adjacent villages of Mijas, Fuengirola, Benalmadena, Estepona, and Puerto Banus.
The Costa del Sol coast, stretching from Malaga to Gibraltar, is called the "golden mile" or "millionaires' coast." Here is the hottest climate, the most respectable public, and the most expensive real estate. Here, representatives of the global business elite play golf. Here, Hollywood stars live in their villas. Here, politicians and show business figures ride their yachts. From here to Seville is a two-hour drive; the ferry trip to Morocco takes about an hour, and you can ski in the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Costa del Sol is an immodest place. Elite Andalusian property is a huge estate with its own pond, tennis court, swimming pools, fountains, stables, and a helipad. Prices for such housing run into tens of millions of euros. Even the most "democratic" villas on the Costa del Sol cost from 1.5 million euros.
In particular, the Guadalmina Alta estate located in Marbella will cost that much. Guadalmina Alta is a house with an area of 400 sq. m and a plot of 1,300 sq. m. The house has five bedrooms and five bathrooms, two living rooms, a wine cellar, a sauna, large terraces, a swimming pool, and parking for two cars. It is one kilometer to the sea. For example, a villa with an area of over 500 sq. m and a plot of 3,000 sq. m will cost at least 4 million euros in the same Marbella.
Marbella is undoubtedly the most fashionable, prestigious, and expensive place on the Costa del Sol. However, the resort is overcrowded with tourists and residents, which is tiring. Mijas, Fuengirola, Benalmadena, and the surroundings of Estepona - these secluded corners are better suited for living and relaxing in your own villa. Many gated communities have been built here with autonomous infrastructure - swimming pools, tennis courts, and golf courses. In almost any small town on the Costa del Sol, you can buy excellent housing - from apartments for 200-300 thousand euros to villas from 500 thousand euros.
Catalonia
Costa Brava is the northernmost part of the Catalan coast of Spain. These places have at least two obvious advantages - a relatively mild climate (in summer there is no stifling heat or tropical downpours as in the south) and proximity to France and Andorra. It makes sense to pay attention to the Costa Brava primarily for those who are thinking about buying property on the Côte d'Azur: a villa that would cost, for example, 4-5 million euros on the French Riviera can be bought here for half that.
Prices for property on the Costa Brava do not differ significantly from Andalusian prices - good housing in Catalan resorts is expensive. At the same time, the recreational infrastructure is inferior to the Costa del Sol. The high cost of housing on the northern Mediterranean coast is largely explained by its proximity to Barcelona, a major business and cultural center.
On the Costa Brava, the most attractive cities are Playa de Aro, Empuriabrava, Lloret de Mar, Palomas, Girona, Figueres, and Roses. According to the company "Novoe Kachestvo", on the coast a two-story cottage with a sea view and a total area of 300 sq. m (with an adjacent plot of 600 sq. m, garage, sauna, and swimming pool) can be bought for 400 thousand euros. Villas (up to 250 sq. m) located far from the sea but with a substantial plot of land (up to 1,400 sq. m) cost 600-900 thousand euros. Prices for villas with an area of 500 sq. m and a plot of 2,300 sq. m reach 2.5 million euros.
Another resort in Catalonia worthy of attention is the Costa del Maresme; it is located just 55 km from Barcelona. Originally, fishermen and peasants lived in these places, but in the middle of the last century, wealthy Barcelonans became interested in the multi-kilometer sandy beaches of the Costa del Maresme; gradually, their luxurious villas and cottages began to appear here.
Now not far from Maresme, in the village of Villasar de Dalt, a unique estate is for sale. It is located in the foothills, 200 m from the town and 1.5 km from the shore. The villa, with an area of 2,000 sq m, is built in Catalan style from stone and wood. The plot area is 3,600 sq m. The plot has a lake with circulating water and a waterfall. The villa has three levels. On the first level: entrance hall, library, fireplace lounge, kitchen, three guest rooms, heated pool, Turkish sauna. On the second level there are four bedrooms and three bathrooms (finished in marble and onyx), a study, and several dressing rooms. The third floor is three bedrooms, several bathrooms, and a terrace with sea view. In addition, the estate includes a separate house for security and staff with three rooms and two bathrooms, a dining room, and a kitchen. Such an estate costs 5 million euros.
Costa del Garraf, the next one south of Costa del Maresme, is a coast of Catalonia stretching from Barcelona to Vilanova i la Geltru. Many well-off residents of Barcelona have chosen this resort as the location of their summer residences. Along its entire length, the coastline of Costa del Garraf is bordered by a chain of mountain ranges forming charming sea coves. You can buy a small villa located on the second coastline, with an area of 210 sq m, with a garage for one car, a fireplace hall, four bedrooms, three bathrooms, a kitchen, a terrace, and a rooftop solarium, for within one and a half million euros.
Valencian Community
Costa Blanca is sandy beaches, citrus orchards, the famous paella, and the folk festival of Las Fallas. In the 60s of the last century, a tourism boom began here. And to this day, many Spaniards and foreign tourists, including ours, prefer to vacation on the Costa Blanca. Year after year, local beaches are awarded blue flags for cleanliness and a good ecological situation. By the way, the resorts of the Valencian Community have the most blue flags in Europe.
Property prices on the Costa Blanca are lower than on the Andalusian and Catalan coasts. The prestigious and most expensive areas of the Costa Blanca include Benidorm, Altea, Calpe, Moraira, Jávea, and Dénia. A bungalow with three bedrooms, a pool, a solarium, and parking will cost around 180 thousand euros here. A cottage of 250 sq m with the same pool, garage, and Turkish sauna can be bought for 400 thousand euros. As for villas, prices start from 530 thousand euros.
For example, in the suburb of Picassent, which is 12 km from Valencia, a house with an area of 300 sq m is now for sale with its own plot of land (1,500 sq m). The villa is two-story - six bedrooms, three bathrooms, two large lounges with a fireplace. In the yard there is a garden and a pool. Such a property costs 590 thousand euros.