A Star is Born in Santa Barbara Heights!

A Star is Born in Santa Barbara Heights!

A wonderful new development that oozes with class

The 9^th of October proved to be a special day indeed for the Costa del Sol. It was the day that the CLC World’s new luxury development Santa Barbara Heights was presented to guests – including over 100 real estate agents – at the launch party held at the California Beach Resort of Mijas Costa. Santa Barbara Height is an exclusive development where over 40% of the homes were sold in a matter of months. 

The event was organised at Santa Barbara Heights. It was hosted by CLC World and included a welcome video where the chairman of CLC World discussed the philosophy and track record of the company, as well as the future plans for the California Beach Resort. This was followed up with an introduction to Santa Barbara Heights from the Sales Operations Director of CLC World Group Paul Rosen.

The Virtual Reality Tour of Santa Barbara Heights – Where Seeing Becomes Believing

Other highlights of the event include guests being presented with the chance to experience an immersive virtual reality tour of the Santa Barbara Heights, along with visiting the plot the earthmoving process will begin at the start of 2018.

A Veritable Feast of Canapés

Guests got to make the most of the hospitality of their hosts thanks to some delectable canapés offered by the talent team of chefs at California Beach Resort, along with a specially crafted Santa Barbara Heights cocktail. The beautiful food and drink was accompanied by some smooth sounds from a live saxophonist. 

Every single 2-bed apartment and 3-bed penthouse at Santa Barbara Heights is just 15 minutes (by foot) or 2 minutes (by car) away from the beach. They all have their own glass-fronted plunge pool on their private terraces, as well as uninterrupted sea views. This is just the start though.

Santa Barbara Heights Even Has Its Own Cocktail!

Some unique to Southern Spain, the homeowners of Santa Barbara Heights will be able to relax in the privacy and comfort of their luxury residence and state-of-the-art communal facilities with optional access to the services of a luxury hotel. 

Each of the luxury homes comes with a private terrace offering a spectacular sea view and a private glass-fronted plunge pool. It offers the privileged Mediterranean lifestyle you promised to give yourself, only it’s much better in reality than it ever was in your dreams!

Brits Spent €3.25m an Hour in Spain During August

Brits Spent €3.25m an Hour in Spain During August

Brits love affair with Spain continues as they send

a record amount in August

The value of British tourism to Spain has been clearly defined with the latest official data showing that holidaymakers from the UK spent an average of €3.25 million an hour during August.

Tourism, which accounts for 11% of Spanish GDP, is set to break records once again in 2017, with the visitor numbers from August showing 10.43 million people visited the country during the month – the highest monthly figure ever.

The National Statistics Institute (INE) data showed that holidaymakers spent €11,324 million in Spain during August; which works out at €15.25 million each and every hour.

British tourists alone threw €2,418 million in the Spanish economy during August, which is an increase of 6.3% over last year and accounts for over a fifth of all economic activity from foreign tourists.

French and German holidaymakers increased their spending as well; by 3.1% and 4.1% respectively. The highest increase was found with Scandinavian tourists, who spent a total of €558 million in Spain during august, a whopping 31% increase over last year.

Outside of the strongest markets, the rest of the world spent an average of 16.7 more in Spain; accounting for 45.5% of the total amount spent in the country.

When looked at as a year-to-date figure, the first eight months of the year saw €60,461 million spent in Spain by tourists, a 14.2% increase over last year and a great indication that 2017 will set new records. Brits are set to account for around 20.4% of overall foreign spending in Spain for 2017 (€12,316 million), an annual increase of 10.9%.

This €20 Note is Worth €9,000

This €20 Note is Worth €9,000

Check your 20 Euros notes to see if it worth 9000

At the start of September El Hormiguero (The Anthill) host Pablo Motos introduced a special €20 note into circulation, offering a reward of €9,000 to anyone that found it.

The winning note 0 with the serial number EA2081272879 – was used in a publicity stunt to pay for a meal at a bar in Villavieja in Castellón. Of course there’s no telling where the note is by now. It’s likely still in Spain, but it could have left the country and be anywhere in the world. 

What’s interesting is that no one has claimed the reward yet – at least we haven’t heard of anyone claiming it – and so the bounty on the note has increased to €9,000. 

Even though I’ve desperately checked the serial number of each €20 I come into contact with, I still haven’t found it. If I don’t have it though that means there’s a chance you might. 

So go ahead and check every €20 note you have on you before you spend it on Shopping. Turn out your wallet and purse, go through your pockets, and check behind the sofa. Think about what you could do with all that money. You could have a new kitchen installed, take the family out for an incredible vacation, or reserve your very own place in the sun.

I’ll go back to being serious now, and tell you just what to do if you’re the lucky owner of the €20 note. To claim the prize for yourself you need to send a photo and video of the note using Whatsapp to El Hormiguero using the number +34 674 012 847. Don’t forget you heard it here first!

Beyoncé’s Spanish Single Set to Dominate the World

Beyoncé’s Spanish Single Set to Dominate the World

Beyoncé dominates the world stage with her singles

It feels like global superstar Beyoncé certainly has the Midas touch. The American singing sensation has spent the better part of a decade releasing smash hits, but one market in particular proved to be resistant to her musical charm; the Spanish language market.

It looks like this could all change soon though as Beyoncé recently released her new single Mi Gente (My People); a remix to raise funds for the victims of the recent hurricane in Puerto Rico and people from the other affected areas in the Caribbean. The single will also support the victims of the Mexican earthquake.

This fact alone would be enough to send Beyoncé into the Spanish mainstream – not that she was ever considered an unknown – and it comes on the heels of the Spanish song Despacito becoming the most streamed song in history.

Music experts believe that Beyoncé singing in Spanish will inspire more Latino singers to go back to their native language rather than writing and releasing songs in English.

Forbes predicts that Mi Gente is set to become a smash hit around the world, helping to spread the vibrant Spanish language to a wide global audience.

Beyoncé is set to add a touch of her own magic to the party – ensuring that the Spanish language will cement itself squarely into the minds of many musical fans across the world and boosting the popularity of learning Spanish as a second language in the process.

Survey Shows Choosing the Right Supermarket in Spain saves Up to €3,000

The cost of living in Spain is still 

considerably cheaper than Northern Europe

Survey Shows Choosing the Right Supermarket in Spain saves Up to €3,000

The price differences between the cheapest and most expensive supermarkets in Spain could be as much as €3,013 per year for some regions according to a new consumer group study.

If you’re shopping at Alcampo – the cheapest Spanish supermarket chain – in Madrid, then you could be spending an average of €2,850 a year to feed your family; much less than the €7,329 per year you would be spending with Sanchez Romero; the most expensive supermarket chain.

The survey was performed by the Organization for Consumers and Users (OCU) and it found that the average disparity between the cheapest and most expensive stores in Spain is €909 per year.

Madrid and Barcelona are where the most expensive Spanish supermarkets can be found, with the city of Granada in Andalucía is home to the cheapest; the Dani Supermarket of Melchor Almagro Street, which is beloved by students for the cheap prices. Alcampo in Vigo is the second-cheapest Spanish supermarket, followed by an additional three Dani chains in Granada.

The city of Granada has the distinction of being the cheapest city in Spain for grocery shopping. The average shopping bill is around €4,051 per year for the city. The figure could be lower if more people stuck with Dani, but the OCU analysis wished to paint a broad and realistic picture of Spanish grocery prices.

The data analysed over 164,000 prices across 1,137 stores across Spain, covering 233 different products in total including fresh food, hygiene commodities, and drugs. There’s less choice in the smaller cities, making Crudad Real and Segovia two of the most expensive Spanish cities.

The cheapest chains after Alcampo were Mercadona, Simply Market, Carrefour, Maxi Dia, Eroski, and Lidl. Mercadona was the cheapest option for around half of all the Spanish cities in the study.

El Corte Ingles, Carrefour Express, and Supercor were some of the more expensive chains.

The data from the OCU shows that the German supermarket chain Lidl increased their prices by 4.3% compared to last year – the highest such increase in Spain – while Lupa, BM Urban, and Mas y Mas dropped their prices by between 2 and 3% compared to last year.

Spanish Property Puts a Price on the Feel-Good Factor

Spain has been recovering from its worst crisis since Franco day 

and continues to do well in all sectors.

Spanish Property Puts a Price on the Feel-Good Factor

The raw data and the statistics gleaned from it might be effective for showing the strength of particular trends, but less tangible emotions come into play with things as life-altering as purchasing Spanish property. 

When analysing the most recent positive data for Spanish property from last month, the leading property consultant of Knight Frank mentioned that what they called the “feel-good factor” had quite the positive impact on both the prices and amount of sales of property in Spain. 

But just what is the “feel-good factor”? Is it possible to measure it? Or could it be considered the general sense of excitement about the current state of the Spanish economy?

Think about the last time you took a great holiday. You might not remember how much you spent, when your flight was, or even which hotel you stayed at. What you will remember though is how warm the sun was and how that made you feel; how you were relaxed when you felt the sand between your toes, and the wonder of al fresco dining with a warm evening breeze. 

The Spanish property sector is being washed with similar positive waves. There’s no doubt that rising house prices, increased sales volume, and interest in property from home and abroad underpins the overall positive vibe, but there’s a real sense that it’s Spain’s time to shine under all the hard data.

There are some problems in the country of course, but Spain is certainly beaming after spending about a decade as the poor man of Europe. The effects are starting to spread to the Spaniards themselves, who now have more job security and better pay than they’ve seen in over a decade. Even the average holidaymaker and homebuyer is benefiting, as they have a wealth of choice, affordability, and quality waiting for them in Spain. 

The summer may have ended for much of Europe now, but the sun is still shining – both figuratively and literally – across Spain and it looks like it’s not about to set any time soon.

Mortgage Approvals Increase 33% in Spain in Summer

The banks in Spain are slowly relaxing there rules and giving

mortgages again 

Mortgage Approvals Increase 33% in Spain in Summer

The latest data from the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE) shows that mortgage approvals during July increased 32.9% compared to the same month in 2016. 

The data shows that some 24,863 home mortgages in total were granted across Spain in one single month. The average value of the mortgages also increased 3.8% year-over-year to €119, 613. 

Overall Spanish banks loaned out a total of €2.97 billion in July, an 38% increase on the July of last year. 

Things get interesting when comparing it to the month of June, as mortgage approvals dropped 15.8% in July compared to June. The likely cause for this is that July is the peak of the holiday season, when many potential buyers are focusing on spending time on the beach rather than spending their money on investments. 

Andalucía in the Costa del Sol saw the most home mortgages granted, as 4,577 mortgages were approved in July. This was ahead of Madrid and Catalonia, which saw a respective 4,379 and 4,348 mortgages approved. 

The popularity of Andalucía is kept high thanks to places such as Marbella, which has become one of the most popular choices for second homes in Spain. British, Irish, German, and Scandinavian buyers alike can’t get enough of the area. 

It looks like the uncertainty of an independence “referendum” has done nothing to deter investors in Catalonia. The real estate consultancy firm Sotheby’s International Realty said that they have seen record sales in Catalonia as it appears investors are not nervous at all about the potential secession of the region. 

Idealista collated data for house prices in Barcelona that showed the average property in the city has increased in value by 9.2% across 2017, which is another sign that politics is having little to no effect on investment.

One thing is clear, buying property in Spain continues to be very popular.