Jan and Elze

Buying a house is an exiting experience, buying a second house abroad even more so. It should never be an impulsive act. It is very important that you choose carefully the area you want to spend your time during your holidays or maybe after retiring. Probably, better hopefully, you are already familiar with the area because you spent a vacation over there. If you don’t restrict yourself there are too many “nice opportunities” in too many parts of Spain you have never been. This leads to a loss of time if ever you make a decision. When you haven chosen your area it is important to go there for a couple of days when the weather isn’t that good as during the summer. When the sun shines and there is a lot to do, life always looks better and the houses prettier.
The last couple of years there is an enormous number of houses too choose from, with various prices at different locations. It is important to know how much you want to spent. Do you want a pool, sea or mountain view, tranquility, a garden, how many bedrooms, central heating etcetera. To get a good overview of the houses that fulfill your demands it is good to search the web and visit different houses from your armchair.
After having done all the preliminary research it is necessary to contact a real-estate broker to help you trough the next stage. This shouldn’t be a random hit. Information from someone with experience is very helpful. A good broker listens to you carefully and knows which houses in the area would fulfill your dream. We have tried two brokers advised by a friend living in the area. When we met Mr. Warwick Pemberton of Costabravafincas (www.costabravafincas.com) we had the right click. We visited several houses and he became more and more aware of the kind of people we are and what kind of house would fit us. He didn’t try to force us into a certain direction and came along with our developing vision. When we were back in Holland we kept in contact and he made an offer on the house of our dreams. As there was a difference between our offer and the asking price Mr. Pemberton really tried all he could to get them together. All in all he succeeded and we signed a contract. Mr. Pemberton helped us with the mortgage which was at that time quite a problem, but again he succeeded, so in the summer of 2012 we could sign the title deed.
As a foreigner you are not familiar with the Spanish law and all the handlings to be done before you can sign the title deed. Mr. Pemberton of Costabravafincas has all the right connections (lawyer, notary, ‘gestor’, bank managers) to help you trough the process. This makes you feel comfortable even a 1000 miles away.
Most of the problems where dealt with by Mr. Pemberton and his charming assistant Ms. Irene Barreiro who fortunately speaks Dutch. Ms. Barreiro did a great job at the notary, translating between Spanish, French and Dutch. Costabravafincas also has the right connections with reliable contractors if you want to have things done in your newly bought house. It was very pleasant to experience that all the orders were finished in time at a reasonable price.
After all things done and spending a very pleasant time in our holiday house the staff of Costabravafincas kept in touch and they helped finding the right people for maintenance, cleaning and gardening. If you want to let your house they can be of great value.
Now a year after signing the title deed the staff of Costabravafincas is still the reliable contact in times of trouble and they are pleased to help us. That’s what we call service!
After these experiences we really want to recommend Costabravafincas as your real-estate broker for the great Costa Brava.