generalcosts

Affordable Homes in The Sun

General Costs

These costs are an important factor when you are deciding on making the decision about buying property in another country and probably this is most asked question. Everyone has their own lifestyle and way of living in England and this will change once you arrive in Spain and start enjoying the different culture. If you are going to give up work and a mortgage to come and live abroad, there would be massive differences even if you moved from Kent to Cornwall and did the same. The main thing is to realize it is another country and you will not find things the same as the UK. Benidorm itself has many English establishments so the feel can be very British in parts, but two miles up the road in the towns of Albir or Altea you will find it totally different with a larger proportion of Spanish population.

Comparing the cost of living from one country to the other is hard as you have to take into account the exchange rate you receive on the euro. The value is yo-yoing on an hourly basis and over the current period of time there is a low rate of exchange to buy the euro. This has meant the cost of living has risen slightly for anyone who receives a pension in Sterling and is living here, but things will alter and many experts are predicting a higher exchange rate over the next year to gradually soften the blow.

The cost of housing can be a major expense and that is why living a mobile home or caravan has been looked at as an economical alternative. Once you have purchased the property there is just a rental payment that has to be paid. The payments are not the same for each site and will vary for the season of the year. As they do vary we are leaving a link here which takes you to a page on our website where there are links to all the major sites in the Benidorm area, so you will be able to compare the figures direct from their own up to date figures.

These figures apply to Villamar - other sites costs will vary.

Rental Costs

The rent on Villamar Is €4,172 for a standard size plot (9 metre by 9 metre) for the year 2010 which is the same fee as last year. This is paid in advance on January the first for the whole of the following twelve months. Converting this into sterling at a rate of 1.16 euro’s to the pound, equates to £299 a month (£69 per week). It is a legal requirement that the figure can not rise by more than the rate of inflation for Spain. The rises have averaged about 3 – 5 % each year since the opening in 2002. Non standard size plots will vary in price. They are individually measured and price altered on a pro rata basis. There is a set fee for the difference per square metre.

Electric Costs

Electric is metered onto each plot and you pay for your own individual usage paying in reception on the first of every month. Obviously if you are not there this is carried forward until you return. There is no standing minimum charge but there is a set charge per unit of electricity used. This figure is government controlled so it can not be excessive. Our neighbours electricity throughout the year is roughly averaging to be £37.50 a month.

Gas Costs

The gas charge is down to how you use it. You can control excessive use as it is bottled gas, which you collect from the sites supermarket, garages, some gas specialist suppliers, and larger supermarkets. The bottles can last a long time in summer but when it is running a portable heating in winter you will probably need one every two weeks. Our charge over the last three years have averaged out at about £7.50 a week, again we are not frugal with it.

Food Costs

Supermarkets all vary in price so food costs can vary. If you still want English brands then you will have to pay more for them, though the difference isn’t as big now as when we first compared them, What we did was try a least two Spanish brands per week in our shopping and soon moved over to them entirely making our weekly shop much more economical. A big trolley filled in one of the local supermarkets will cost about £95 and this will last a good week. Some of the local produce can taste better here. The fruit and vegetables certainly do, and eggs have a fuller flavour as the majority can be free range.

Restaurants

Locally there is such a large selection of restaurants to choose from, which means you can get your meals at fantastic prices. If you sort out the right places you may even it is cheaper to eat out rather than cook. A “Menu of the Day” can consist of a three course meal with a half bottle of wine per person for as little as £3.99 (and no washing up). I understand it is a legal obligation for a “Menu Del Dia” to be offered at a low price by every restaurant so it is worth checking all menus small print for his item.

Visitors on Villamar

You can have friends and relatives stay with you on Villamar, but as the basic rents are much lower than most sites in the area, you do have to pay for any additional people over and above the normal 2 persons you pay for in your rental figure. Immediate members of the tenant’s family (parents, children and grandchildren) may stay on the plot if you are not there, but brothers, sisters and friends may stay only if you as a tenant are there. It is strictly in the rules that renting out is not allowed. The actual figure for the extra people is roughly £6 per day per person at the height of the season with big reductions out of season. Click here to find the link to the Villamar website and look at the English version of the Tariff page for the current listing of prices. The manager does have special offers with big reductions on these prices at various times of the year.

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