Over Two Thirds of the Property Sold to Foreign Investors in Andalucía Are on Costa Del Sol

Over Two Thirds of the Property Sold to Foreign Investors in Andalucía Are on Costa Del Sol

The demand for the Costa del Sol keeps increasing

which good news for the whole region

A recent report from the Spanish Ministry of Development found that 7 out of the 10 Andalucía properties sold to foreign buyers during the first six months of the year were in Málaga.

A report published by the Spanish Ministry of Development showed that between January and July 2016, 70% of the properties in Andalucía sold to foreign buyers were in Málaga, which is the home of the Costa del Sol. This works out at 4,978 transactions, which is a 16.9% increase compared to this same period of time in 2015.

At the regional level there was a total increase in foreign purchasers in Andalucía of 18.9%, up from the 5,973 property transactions across the first six months of 2015 to a total of 7,105 sold in the same period for 2016.

The other Andalusian provinces are falling behind Malaga when it comes to properties sold to foreign buyers. Almería saw 797 real estate transactions registered, which was an increase of 33.7% for the first semester of 2015. Granada had an increase of 13.9% with 409 sales; Cádiz had an increase of 4.6% to 405 transactions; Sevilla had an increase of 47.1% to 262 transactions; Huelva had an increase of 23.5% for 126 transactions; Jaén saw an increase of 49% for 79 transactions; and Córdoba came in last place in terms of transactions with an increase of 16.6% for 49 transactions.

Number of Retired British Expats Claiming Winter Fuel Allowance Down Two Thirds Following Crackdown

Number of Retired British Expats Claiming Winter Fuel Allowance Down Two Thirds Following Crackdown  

The British government recently cracked down on winter fuel payments and have managed to save £16 million so far.

New data released from the UK government shows that just over 42,000 British expats  buying property and retiring overseas in the EU received winter fuel payments – down by over two-thirds compared to last year.

Around 137,845 British pensioners living in the EU received winter fuel allowance payments during the fiscal year of 2014/2015. This number was cut down drastically following a crackdown by the British government.

Elder Brits who were living abroad in sunnier locations were still receiving their annual winter fuel payments of over £200 (or £300 for those who are aged over 80) even though they were living in places where there was no need for it.

This caused the former Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith to bow that he would bring this wasteful practice in check by introducing a temperature test that would analyse the average temperatures of Europe.

If pensioners were living in an area of Europe were the average temperature was higher than the warmest area of the UK (the southwest of England) then they would have their winter fuel payments stopped. After this scheme was introduced the government has saved around £16 million as the amount of money spent on payments was reduced from £24.5 million to £8.1 million.

A general rule of thumb says that payments were stopped for people who moved to places such as Spain, France, Greece, Portugal, Malta, Cyprus and Gibraltar.

An interesting note is that pensioners living in Italy can still claim Winter Fuel Allowance. This is because the temperature test only takes into account average temperatures and the 40 degree highs of the Italian summer are offset by the bitter winters.