Tuesday, November 30, 2010

European Enforcement Order - "Costa Nightmare"

The infantile news jocks at the mail on Sunday, ran a piece about Spanish Property predictably entitled, "Costa Nightmare" - yawn. The story about how, Banco de Sabadell, a Spanish bank obtained a European Enforcement Order to recoup monies owed to them.

In 2004, an English couple, the Chatterton's signed a contract to purchase an apartment in Duquesa, on the Costa del Sol.

They found it difficult to make the repayments and offered the property back to the bank. The property was in negative equity and the bank wanted to recoup the rest of the money the Chattertons owed. So the bank has used a piece of EU legislation to claim assets from an uncontested debt.

The mail's skew on this story is that it's somehow unfair, and that the big nasty EU is interferring in our lives.

It's one example of where the EU's legal to our lives is justified and wanted.

The ability to more easily recoup monies from debtors across european borders, makes Europe a better and more financially sound place to live.

Whilst it's sad that people should find themselves ina situation where they lose their home because they are unable to pay back a debt. A contract is a contract and a debt is a debt. Were these people naively thinking that the shores of blighty somehow protected them from their creditors?

Wiltshire MEP Ashley Fox (Conservative) is reported to have said; ‘To me this is against the laws of natural justice. I shall be writing to the Commission to ask that they investigate.’

Does Mr Fox believe that debtors should be able to escape their creditors, simply because they live in Wiltshire and not Malaga?

Perhaps Mr Fox should leave the conservatives and join the natural law party.

Mail ARTICLE:


Details of the eu legislation can be found here.

European Enforcement Order Legislation

Monday, November 29, 2010

Euroland La La La

Many said that the Euro couldn't work without debt union and fiscal union. The bond markets are pushing hard. The cracks are being patched over (Greece and Ireland), but if the euro is to survive debt union and fiscal union. Will the Irish and greeks accept the loss of fiscal sovereignty to the EU? In

Spain has to refinance it's debt and there are doubts as to whether the political will exists for the surplus countries (Germany, France and teh Netherlands) to take on the debt of their Southern neighbours.

If the eurozone breaks up and Spain goes back to the peseta at the level at which it joined.

166.386 Ptas = 1 Euro

Many analysts are predicting a drop in the value of the euro, meaning that property in Spain for those wishing to purchase will become cheaper.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Spanish Property Prices Decline for three consequctive years.

Throughout the late 90's and early noughties the Spanish Property saw an explosion in popularity, construction and price. Any boy from the country who knew how to mix cement or carry bricks could get a job.

Spain has massive a glut of unsold properties, and as developer and individuals continue to go into liquidation banks are resposse

The bubble burst in November of 2007 and since then prices have dropped some 25% (depending which measure you look at), with many analysts predicting that property prices will continue to fall.

The word on the ground is that many properties on sale are often over priced, but if you can find the bargains, these are selling for around 50% of their pre-boom prices.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

TINSA - Sold!

The Spanish Property valuation company TINSA, has been acquired by Advent, a Boston based private equity firm.

TINSA publishes an index of Spanish Property prices based on valuations.

Advent paid 100M Euros for a 94.5% stake in TINSA. TINSA posted a turnover in excess of 80Million Euros for 2010.

Advent are hoping to grow the company by expanding into other regions and by buying up other similar businesses.

It is rumoured that Advent are also looking at Servetas, another Spanish valuations company.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

November 2010 TINSA price index

The November (For October 2010) price index indicates that Spanish Property prices are continuing to decline.

Download the TINSA index for spanish property

TINSA estimate that prices are falling at an interannual rate of an estimated 4.6%, at the same time the Spanish national institute of statistics have recorded an increase in property transactions.

TINSA base there Spanish Property price index on valuations, so they should be taken as collective opinion of valuers rather than hard fact.

Prices are decreasing as vendors lower there prices in order to attract the scarce number of buyers.

Banks are revising the prices of properties they have repossessed over the few years. In order to clear properties banks are having to cut prices in order to get the property off their books.

Banks are sometimes offering 100% loan to value mortgages, often for the value of the outstanding loan at the time they where repossessed. It should be pointed out that many properties from the banks don't offer value for money, as similar properties can often be purchased for less.

On the other side of the coin an investment fund Taurus Ibérica has been set up with a view of purchasing bargain properties and turning them round quickly in order to make a quick profit.

It is expect that as serious investors come into the market, who aim to make a quick profit when the market bottoms, this will be the time to buy.

The general advice to buyers out there is to either wait as prices to continue to fall or if you can find a property at considerably lower than the market value.

Pig on the Roof


The town of Nijar, in the Spanish province of Almeria is on the way to San Jose if you are travelling from the North to South.

We' stopped off for a drink and a bite to eat and since we weren't in a hurry to get anywhere we had a bit of a wander around the town.

Whilst we were ambling the cobbled narrow streets, I spied a sight you don't see every day.

A pig on a roof!

The piglet looked down at us as we looked up at it. A friend once said to me that holidays are all about ice creams and photo opportunities. Well I took the opportunity to shoot our little porcine friend with my lens.

A small crowd of gathered to admire and wonder at the piglet with heavenly aspirations.

"Como ha subido alli?" - How did it get up there? "No lo se". I don't know.

The piglet became increasingly inquisitive and tip-trottered toward the edge of the roof to see what all the pink hairy headed creatures were looking at.

Piggy stepped a bit to far, lost his trottering and toppled over the edge falling about 15 feet and then bouncing a foot.

The pig was significantly more stunned by his fall than I was by the surprise of seeing him fall. I grabbed him by his pork chops and asked one of the kids who was standing by if they knew his owner. They said they did. The owner shortly arrived on the scene so I handed over Mr Bacon Sandwich, feeling quite smug and humoured about the whole incident. The piglet had been saved.

We went on our way, and later on we re-encounter the piglet in the arms of a burly long haired Spaniard who dutifully informed us that piggy was in for a roasting that evening.

At least he would be extra tender. Cochinillo al horno.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Spanish Property Rental Websites

Hi all,

I am a web developer and I build individual websites for rental properties.

I have built a number of property rental websites:

www.quickscottage.com

www.stivesrental.co.uk

If anyone wants a website to help them let out their property, please get in touch.

Thanks

Will

willneedham@gmail.com