Very comfortably furnished corner apartment on two levels in the heart of Villamartin with shops, banks, bars and restaurants right on your doorstep. 

The apartment has its own entrance from the street opening into a large lounge/diner, a separate fitted kitchen and guest toilet. Upstairs there is a double bedroom with TV and its own sun terrace, a twin bedroom and a family bathroom.

The apartment is fully equipped with air conditioning in all rooms, UK TV (plus Sky if you want to bring your own card), heaters, sun loungers and all the appliances you need in the kitchen. Electricity in the apartment is payable by a 2 Euro pre pay metre located by front door.

This property is ideal for golfers being just 100m from Villamartin Golf course, or for families wanting a central location and within easy reach of the beach by local bus.  The beautifully landscaped communal pool and garden area is just a couple of minutes walk and has views across the golf course.

Modern, bright and very well furnished bungalow with its own pool, located in a new development close to Villamartin and with great views from the solarium across the salt lakes

Newly available for holidays  or longer lets, this superb bungalow is set in a peaceful, friendly and secure gated community within easy reach of Villamartin or the Spanish village of San Miguel, and is equipped with everything you need for a comfortable stay. Both bedrooms have hot & cold air conditioning, large fitted wardrobes and bedding for all seasons. The master bedroom also has a TV and DVD and an en-suite shower room. The lounge/dining area is comfortably furnished with UK TV, DVD and CD/music system with open-plan fully equipped kitchen area.

Outside there is a private pool, small front garden, off road parking and a huge rooftop solarium with gas barbeque and outdoor furniture for dining or lounging. Guests also have access to the large communal pool and landscaped garden area with fantastic views towards the sea.

We offer a choice of three selling methods or any combination:

1. Display in our shop
2. Via our e-Bay shop
3. In our twice-weekly table-top sales

Your items will be listed and/or displayed for at least 30 days. Already we have a good selection of items in the shop and stock changes daily.

Come and see us soon with those unwanted items or just pop in and browse for bargains ….

The shop is open from 10 til 6 Monday to Thursday and 10 til 5 on Fridays

In addition to our core business of keyholding, inspections, rental advertising and management we can now offer:

Professional Laundry service with 2 day turnaround. Or leave it here and collect on your next visit.

Sell It 4 U service – bring us your good quality unwanted items and we will sell them on for you.

Photo Shop Kiosk – print 4×6 photos from your digital camera or transfer to CD

Airconditioning Installation and Repairs

Health and Safety equipment such as smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, patio door stickers and first aid kits

TV and ADSL installations and contracts

Second-hand furniture, electrical and household goods at very reasonable prices

Twice-weekly Table-Top sales

Our Vamp-it-Up service is doing well too with several projects on the go. Look out for new proprties coming onto the market soon!!

Come and visit us at Unit 154, C.C. Los Dolses (next to EJs)

You can find Los Dolses on the road between La Zenia and Villamartin Golf Club, next to Supervalu

SUMMER OPENING HOURS:

Monday to Thursday – 11.30 til 7pm and Fridays – 11.30 til 5.30

Whether this proves to be a help or a hindrance to the already struggling bars remains to be seen. Certainly it´s a big blow for the little Spanish bars and personally I can´t see how they will enforce the ban in some of the remoter areas but thats another story. Here on the Costas, with a huge dependency on the tourist trade it will probably prove to be a blessing. In the UK and Northern Europe the majority of adults don´t smoke and they for sure will welcome the fog-free environment now offered by bars, cafes and especially restaurants.

For the anti-brigade this is great news – there are certainly those who have been put off coming to Spain and those who don´t go out when they are here because of the smoky bars etc. Hopefully now they will return here and try some of the excellent establishments on offer.  For those who still want to smoke (and initial studies reveal hardly anyone will be giving it up as a result of the ban) the climate softens the blow, since its warm enough to sit outside for the majority of the year.

For now though we are already seeing huddles of smokers outside the bars without terraces and no-one inside. That will change as time goes on and everyone gets used to the idea. Or will it? The Spanish are an obstinate lot and I´m sure there will be a few rumpuses in the coming months!

First floor town centre apartment in a popular block walking distance from everything the village has to offer. Perfect budget base for winter stayovers or longer term rental for singles, couples or small families

Apartment comprises lounge/diner, 2 bedrooms, full bathroom and separate, fully equipped kitchen. Outside there is a small balcony, private rooftop solarium and underground parking. Comfortably furnished throughout. Lift and entryphone.

We arrived with plenty of time to spare so took advantage of the excellent practice facilities, were a pyramid of Callaway balls awaited at each position on the driving range, and on the first tee we were presented with named bag badges, nice touches. And so off we went, the  course wanders through the forest with some open holes, interesting par 3´s, a couple of pictureque lakes and a monster 600yard par 5.

The course is built away from housing unlike most courses here where buildings line the fairways, so you get the impression of being back in the English countryside at times.  Despite a first-hole fiasco, we managed a decent round with several of us scoring in the 30´s. Looking at the card afterwards we all seemed to do better on the back nine indicating this is slightly easier than the front. The greens are fast and the ball lands and sticks like it should, on occasions you need to think your way as some of the approaches are quite narrow.

On the whole a very enjoyable course, which seems to be built and run properly. Its not overly long playing-wise but the distances from green to tee make a buggy essential rather than optional. Tee times are 12 minutes apart so no queueing, the staff couldn´t be more helpful and the clubhouse facilities are top quality. The course costs a little more to play than the average around here but this is a superior course and there are some decent summer deals so we recommend you give it a try soon.

Thanks to Andy and Stuart from Fuegos Golf Society for arranging a great day, including breakfast and a hog roast…if only England had whipped the Yanks it would have been a perfect day!!

The property market in the Valencia region crashed spectacularly in 2009 with over 60% of construction projects postponed or cancelled, due to a combination of lack of buyers, banks withdrawing funding and developers going into administration, leaving thousands of buyers not knowing whether their dream home will ever be completed or indeed, whether they will get their deposits back if they are not. Prices for existing houses in this area have dropped by over a quarter, leaving thousands of owners in negative equity and still paying over the odds for their mortgage. And the rental market has fared no better, there being fewer new arrivals, less disposable income and thousands of properties on the market.

Tourism took a huge knock too with 11 million Brits paying us a visit compared to 17 million in 2008, principally due to the recession and the woefully weak British pound. The exchange rate took its toll too on residents here on fixed incomes  from the UK, who saw their monthly income dive by a third. Bars and restaurants have taken the brunt of El Crisis (as they call the recession here) with the triple whammy of less tourists, residents with less disposable income and those tourists who did arrive opting for cheap takeaways and home cooking. The only winners were the supermarkets who, I understand, made a hefty profit in 2009. Many establishments have closed their doors in the last year and, while some would say there were too many anyway, its always sad to see peoples´ hard work and dreams go up in smoke.

So…worrying times but are we still living the dream? I guess not in the commonly perceived sense of the phrase…work is hard to come by, but then it always has been…businesses are struggling, but then there is a worldwide recession on…people stuck in negative equity, its happened before…rising prices, its still cheaper to live here than in UK. On the other hand, whilst its cold here right now, we know we will get a summer, by the end of March we will be in shorts and T-shirts, the roads are jam-free, the pace of life is relaxed, people are generally more friendly and happy, nobody works on Sundays, beer is cheap and you can still smoke in bars.

Its not quite “The Dream” but on the whole I´d rather be here than there….

Salud!

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PLUS..

For non-Quara owners…If you book your tee times at Villamartin, Las Ramblas or La Finca on-line its on average 5€ cheaper..book via www.grupquara.com. I doubt you can combine the offers but i´ll certainly give it a try and let you know.

PLUS..

Keep an eye on the noticeboards at the courses…they often have open competitions, anyone can enter as long as you are registered with the Spanish Golf Federation and green fees are often discounted, plus you have a chance of some good prizes, typically green fees or shop vouchers. Worst case scenario you get a cheap round of golf. Best case scenario you win too…I recently entered a torneo at Las Ramblas, green fee was 30€ and I came third and won 3 green fees… Good day at the office!!

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All this seems to indicate that now is the time to buy…we know for a fact that there are crazy bargains to be had right now and we know of buyers offering way below the asking price and getting it…if you have been waiting for the right time to buy, all the indications are that this is it!!

Speaking to Estate Agent friends here all the signs are that investors and bargain hunters have started a mini buying spree and they are already running out of bargain basement properties to sell.  If you are interested in investment opportunities contact us now!!

Spanish property market recovery?

Latest figures show an increase in Spanish property sales for two months in a row, May and June. However house prices are still at their lowest level for years as buyers are primarily in the cash/investor sector, snapping up bargains in the distressed and repossessed market.  Estate agents warn it will still be some time before we see prices begin to rise…..that won´t happen until the banks start to lend again, probably not until next year or even 2011.

Good news for the rental market though, more people than ever need or want to rent their home in the sun and demand is still high, so if you are reasonable with your price there is a good chance of long-term rental over the winter. We are also seeing an increase in holiday enquiries for next year,  many have  foregone their holiday this year but are keen to get early bargains to ensure they don´t miss out next year.

Good prices is the key to rental bookings at the moment…our advice is to do whatever you can now to get those weeks booked…a bird in the hand….!! If you need help or advice with long term or holiday rental give us a call or email us

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The rest will belong to those poor unfortunates who couldn´t get their phones registered in time due to the chaotic registering system whereby one made several trips to the relevant office and queued for hours only to find the computer systems were down (it took me 4 attempts). Predictably, during the last fortnight before switch-off you couldn´t even get near the phone shops..luckily i started my quest in September and finally got it done end of October, it took all of 3 minutes…

Some people I know just gave up and bought a new one, so I guess some of those 30,000 will now be in the bin. The next question is what happens to all the credit already paid into those unregistered phones? So far none of the suppliers seem able to answer that one.. quelle surprise!!

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Rare opportunity to rent a detached villa with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms on one level and an underbuild with 2 further bedrooms and shower room. Huge 800sq m plot with its own pool and fantastic views

These houses don´t come along too often, it has everything and some..! The villa itself has a large lounge/dining area with fully equipped kitchen and a full length conservatory. There are two good-sized bedrooms and spacious shower room, and the master bedroom has TV sockets, private access to the terrace and an en-suite bathroom with twin sinks and a jacuzzi bath.

The villa benefits from ceiling fans in all bedrooms, air con throughout and gas central heating/water. The kitchen is fully equipped including dishwasher. Downstairs in the underbuild is a utility area with washing machine and an extra fridge/freezer.

The underbuild consists of 2 good sized bedrooms, shower room, and a  lounge/games room area with 3 sofa beds, pool table, table football, dart board, mini bar and TV/video and DVD.

Outside is a huge terrace area, private pool, shower, brick barbeque and fantastic views across the campo to the sea, plus off street parking for 2 cars

This is a great family home being close to good schools, medical facilities and just five minutes from Spanish San Miguel or English Villamartin. Highly recommended for viewing asap

Things have settled down here, most people have switched to Torresat, Simulsat or have clubbed together to get a communal dish (more about those later). Still can´t get sports at home but soap fans are happy. Those bars who haven´t got the horrendously expensive Sky system are managing to get most sporting events using a combination of Torresat, ShowSports and Spanish TV. Occasionally the commentary comes in Spanish or Arabic (?!) but hooray, we get to see all the goals, tries, record-breaking runs and 12 foot putts so alls well with the world!

The latest rumour has it that Sky and other exponents of pay-to-view, including the BBC, have been found by the European courts to be acting illegally by withholding rights to view throughout Europe and they will be obliged to un-protect their frequencies in the near future. Maybe the wailers were right then?! Time will tell….

For now I´ll finish with a word of caution to those thinking of getting a communal aerial. We were lulled into the “one-off payment” idea, with the promise of 200 channels and the dish being installed in the communal grounds. Two months down the line and we have only about 10 channels we can watch properly, over half don´t work at all and the rest are pop music, shopping or Muslim channels. We get BBC1, ITV1 and some other ITV stuff, all repeats…apparently, being the furthest house from the dish means the cable is too long, weakening the signal..am not convinced. On hindsight we should have withheld payment until we got a satisfactory system, now we have a fight on our hands to get our money back. Can´t see that happening can you?

Paying monthly has its advantages, if you don´t get the service you just cancel the direct debit and go elsewhere…Job done! Meanwhile I guess its down to the beach for some hookey DVDs to tide us through the winter… Pass the remote!

The weather´s great but can I watch Corrie?

Receiving English TV channels in Spain used to be a simple affair..you got a small dish and a receiver box installed for around 400€, coughed up 20€ a month to the supplier and got 30 odd channels including all the terrestial channels plus Sky Sports, Sky Movies, UK Gold, History channel etc etc. Happy days!!

The problem was it was all illegal so when Telmicro, the biggest supplier in the area, was shut down in August 2008 by the Guardia and the directors thrown in jail, it goes without saying there was pandemonium amongst the British expats living here. Not being big telly-watchers and what with it being summer and all, we took the high ground and looked on with smug amusement as the cafes, bars and urbanisations buzzed with rumour, rage and conjecture. “We are EU citizens, we have a right to watch English telly!” they wailed…..er..no, you are in Spain dear!!

We weren´t unaffected however, as for some reason beyond me, British holiday-makers need to watch telly on holiday, meaning several of our rental properties were now deficient of an essential item with which to attract the tourists…So we set about finding alternative suppliers, the next biggest company was Torresat, who cleaned up their act, deleted all their illegal channels and replaced them with about 80 new ones, needless to say they had a field day over the next few months. They still had their problems however, as they had insufficient antennas in place so if you weren´t in line-of-sight of one you couldn´t get a signal….Plus they were no longer broadcasting Sky or any of the associated channels. This was a big problem for the local bars who relied on big sports events to fill seats. Most have now bought new systems but it must have made a huge hole in their profits.

On the domestic front new companies have sprung up everywhere offering packages of all sorts from big community installations to 1m dishes from Portugal of all places! Still we weren´t tempted although winter was coming on and inevitably we would start to miss cosy evenings in with David Attenborough, Jeremy Clarkson et al. We were rewarded for our patience when Simulsat bought out the remains of Telmicro at the end of 2008, all we needed was a new box and were were up and running again, albeit with restricted channels. So now we have English TV and sometimes we can get sports on the Spanish channels. If we can´t then we have to go watch it in a bar…Shame…Cheers!!

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