We recently presented two episodes for the BBC programme “Getaway for Winter”, which made us realise the challenges of organising a long holiday abroad remains a mystery to most people. We thought it was appropriate to put together a guide for those thinking about spending their winter in Spain.
You can watch these in the UK using BBC iPlayer but from other countries you will need a VPN with UK IP Address!
Start Early
There is no such thing as “Last Minute” arrangements for going away for 2 or 3months. Not only you have to organise your life at home whilst you are away, you also need to remember “Wintering in Spain” is not a new idea. People have been doing this since the 80s, so you have to get your skates on.
We typically start to get enquiries for the winter around March or April. There are clients who have been coming to the same property year after year, so they want a specific property or location. If you want all your boxes ticked them you need to be an earlier riser!
Availability
Most second home owners tend to let their properties during the high season (June to September) and use their property during the winter. This means despite the fall in demand there is a corresponding fall in supply too as many properties used by the owners between October and March.
Local Events
Check out the local events which can have drastic impact on prices. If you watched our episode on Cadiz, you now know about Cadiz Carnival in February. During this 2 weeks owners can demand a months rent for a week. So renting out for just 2 weeks during the Cadiz Carnival will make the owner the same revenue as letting the property for 2 months. Additionally, the owner only has to pay for 2 weeks utilities instead of 2 months, so all around it is worth leaving your property empty in the rest of the winter if you could just let it for the 2 weeks of Carnival!
The same applies to other areas. For example in Costa del Sol there is a huge demand for Golf from September to June. In fact this period is the Highs Season for Golf Courses where they charge high rates for the use of the course, as demand is incredibly high. So at least in Costa del Sol, the demand is kept high by 3 elements namely Golf, Owners Use, and the “Best Weather in Europe” for Winter Escapes.
Trade-off
Understand the value of trade-off. Staying somewhere were you are within walking distance of the shops, the beach, restaurants, bars, train, buses, means you can save on cost of hiring a car. However, these properties rent for up to 30% higher than those that are slightly further away from the amenities. In reality the savings on the car can easily get lost in the additional rental for the property.
Also remember, if you are in the middle of things then you are also in the middle of life, which means noise, traffic, and other things that go with being “in the middle of things”. So you really need decide which is more important to you, being within the walking distance of everything or the tranquillity but having to drive.
Pets
Not withstanding the cost of transportation of animals, the real challenge is finding properties that allow pets. Only about 10% of owners allow pets, and even then they will demand higher damage deposit and cleaning fee (or both).
This means compromises become even more important as you only have 10% of the market available to you, so you can’t be that fussy about where you are staying!
Summary
Winter stay in a warm clime requires good planning, early start, and good understanding of the local demand patterns. You can have a great winter stay in Costa del Sol, as many of our regular clients will tell you, but you need to plan and be realistic. Contact us for the best Best Property Rental