Sharon’s mum Barbara had always loved visiting Benidorm but had never been brave enough to buy a home there. Before she passed away, Barbara advised her daughter not to make the mistake and ‘to go and buy a home in Spain’.
Helped by the inheritance she received, Sharon has fulfilled her mother’s wishes and is now the proud owner of a two-bedroom property on the Costa Blanca.
Where can you buy property in Spain with an £80k budget?
Knowing she was probably priced out of Benidorm, even if she had wanted to buy there (which she didn’t), Sharon realised that her £80k budget would go further on the Mar Menor in Murcia.
Says Sharon, 72, a retired teacher with five children and seven grandchildren: “I’d never been there, but I researched it on social media.”
She got Ben Hillman and the A Place in the Sun researchers to help her and her eldest daughter Hayley when they flew out to view properties around the Mar Menor.
How Sharon found her apartment in Playa Flamenca
Seeing the five properties in slightly different locations crystallised their opinion on what might suit them best – along with the condition of the property.
They ended up buying the fifth property they viewed, a furnished two-bedroom apartment in Playa Flamenca, north of the Mar Menor, with a great roof terrace. Their ‘cheeky’ offer of £83,000 for the furnished property on sale at £90,000 was accepted – actually £82,500 when they realised the currency rate had been rounded down.
“We realised that not having to do anything to the property at all was actually a big consideration,” says Sharon. “It had modern décor and was completely turnkey, which was a big plus.”
Why Playa Flamenca suited the family better than the Mar Menor
She says they did not warm to Los Alcázares. “We realised how much nicer the beaches are around Playa Flamenca, how convenient it is for La Zenia Boulevard [shopping complex] and Cabo Roig – another lovely beach. It would just suit the whole family much better than the Mar Menor as there’s so much to do close by all the time.”
Currently, two-bedroom apartments in Playa Flamenca start from around €135,000 (£118k), as prices have risen in the last 18 months since Sharon’s purchase.
How easy is the property buying process in Spain?
The speed of the purchase process was also a pleasant surprise. “It was so rapid. I guess the fact we didn’t have a survey speeded things up. My solicitors were very helpful – My Lawyer in Spain – and I found the whole process reassuring. Going on A Place in the Sun took the fear out of buying.”
What does it cost to run an apartment in Spain?
Her apartment is appropriately named “Casa Barbara” – or Casa Babs as the family call it for short. It doesn’t cost much to run – only €28 per month community charges for the swimming pool upkeep – around €1,200 per year for everything, including rubbish collection and utility bills.
“It’s the perfect lock-and-go home,” says Sharon, who is still working three days a week in a legal admin role. But it’s her ‘perfect escape’ when needed from a busy household back in Market Harborough, where she has her son and family staying while they have their home renovated.
“The holiday home really works for the whole family, but I do love going there alone too! I can get great day trips to fiestas and festivals very affordably. My mother was a great one for a bargain, so she’d be delighted that I got such a great deal on the property. I wouldn’t have been able to do this alone.”
Thinking about buying on the Costa Blanca?
With beautiful beaches, great-value property and year-round sunshine, the Costa Blanca remains one of Spain’s most popular areas for overseas buyers.
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