Once you've determined your budget for purchasing and maintaining a property, it's time to consider the type of property you want to buy. Properties in Spain differ significantly from those in cooler climates and can vary greatly between the northern and southern regions of the country. It's likely that the property perfectly suited to your lifestyle in your home country will be quite different from one that matches your lifestyle in Spain.
Just as when choosing an area to live in, my advice is to let your lifestyle dictate the kind of property you purchase, rather than allowing the property to dictate your lifestyle. Buying a property in Spain is almost always a lifestyle-based decision, so you need to ensure that the property enables your desired way of living and doesn't hinder it.
To achieve this, stop thinking in terms of the typical search parameters used on property websites—such as the number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, or whether it's attached or detached. Instead, start thinking about what the property will do for you.
Here's a simple exercise to help you focus on what truly matters:
Take a sheet of paper and draw a line straight down the middle.
In the left-hand column, list all the features you would normally include in an online property search (e.g., number of bedrooms, bathrooms, property type).
In the right-hand column, write down why you want each of these features.
For example:
Left-Hand Column (Features) | Right-Hand Column (Reasons) |
Three bedrooms | Space for family visits and a home office |
Two bathrooms | Ensuite for convenience when getting up in the middle of the night. |
Detached house | Privacy and outdoor space for gardening |
Near the coast | Love for beach activities and sea views |
Close to amenities | Easy access to shops, restaurants, and services |
After completing the list, tear the sheet down the middle and discard everything in the left-hand column. Focus solely on the reasons in the right-hand column—that's what truly matters. When you begin your property search, ensure that any property you consider fulfils the criteria you've identified in the right-hand column, if it does then it doesn’t matter whether it checks the boxes in the left hand column.
By concentrating on what the property will do for you, rather than specific features, you'll be one step closer to finding a home that truly complements your lifestyle in Spain.
But you also need to think about what the property will demand from you and how that will impact the lifestyle you want to lead, for example, you may love the idea of a traditional style white washed villa with a large garden and private pool where you can spend your days relaxing with a book or a cold beer, but what if you can’t afford to pay somebody to keep all that white paint looking fresh? What if you can’t afford a gardener to keep the plants watered and cut back and someone to keep the pool clean? If you’re retiring that might not be a problem, I know plenty of people who would be pleased to have jobs to keep them busy and active, but if it’s a holiday home, do you want to spend all of your holidays with a paintbrush in one hand and secateurs in the other?
On consideration you may find that if you want to relax with a book and a beer when you are on holiday you would be better with a smaller property with low maintenance render and with managed, shared gardens and a communal pool. Have a really good think about the lifestyle that you want to enjoy, discuss it with whoever you may be sharing that life with and write down all the key, non-negotiable factors. Keep those in mind whenever you are considering a property. If it doesn’t give you what you want then it’s probably not the place that will make you happy. Also keep in mind the features that you may be willing to live without. Unless you find a perfect plot of land and then design the property yourself, there will almost always need to be a compromise somewhere in the decision making process.