Well, we've done it. We've bought our house in Spain! We've paid the deposit, had it accepted and are now waiting to sign the contracts.
This area of the site will be devoted to the progress of our house, from purchase to renovation. We'll update this page as things happen (which will be quite slowly!), posting pictures as the work on it progresses.
As you can see, not for the faint hearted!!
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31 Mar 2000
A quick trip to Spain, contracts signed, paid the remainder of the purchase price and the house is ours!
Another inspection of the property revealed that some of the initial faults we'd noticed on our first visit in December were getting worse, with the gable end of the house giving particular concern. An inspection by a local builder revealed that although the repair could be done it wouldn't really be cost effective, considering the fact that we also need a new roof, new floors & extensive internal renovation. So, we've decided to demolish it, clear the site and build a new house!
30 May 2000
Well, not much happening yet. We've received some plans for new houses from the builders who we originally bought the house from, and a quote to build a "shell" (foundations, walls & roof) as we want to do some of the work ourselves. We've been trying to get quotes from 3 other builders too but to no avail! We've filled in forms on their websites and e-mailed them for the last month and are still waiting for a reply. Maybe they don't want our money. Maybe TV fame has gone to their heads. Who knows! We decided, in a last attempt to make contact, to fax them today. If we don't hear anything in the next few days we'll assume they don't want the business, (we'll also put their names on this site so you can avoid them too!) and go with the original builders who always return our e-mails and answer our questions. "Ah...that's Spaniards for you" I hear you say, but all the people we've contacted are English!
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5 June 2000
Time's up! We've waited long enough for a response to our emails, faxes, etc., and received none. So, here are the companies who didn't respond:
Connections Business Consultancy S.L. - Albox, Spain
L.A. Talbot - Arboleas, Spain
Barons International - Bristol, UK
We'll continue our search for alternative builders/quotes for our project, and let you know what happens.
13 July 2000
We made contact with another builder in our area about a week ago, via their website. We had a response within a couple of days, which seemed promising. We then sent details of the work we require (foundations, walls & roof) and are waiting for a reply. We are definitely of the opinion that it's much better to be in Spain to try and sort this kind of thing, rather than trying to do it via email, faxes, etc.
9 September 2000
I thought I should make an entry so people don't think the site is dead! An extended period for me in the USA has meant no progress in Spain! The builder mentioned above didn't bother to get back in touch (what is it with these people??). So here they are:
Sol Vista Property Consultants (no address but around Lubrin/Mojacar with phone numbers in the UK and Spain)
I've now decided to go to Spain on a Spanish language course for a couple of weeks. Hopefully I'll get to our house and have a look round for builders personally.
8 December 2000
Well, I've been on my two week language course in Spain. What a nightmare!!! From the first moment of the course the teachers spoke nothing but Spanish. Now that's OK if you already know some Spanish, but if you're like me and can only say "Two beers please" it makes things very difficult. The second problem was that a lot of the course consists of learning grammar. I don't understand grammar in English ( I wouldn't know a present participle if you poked me in the eye with it!) so to be taught it in Spanish.............well, you can imagine! The college was very good though, and the teachers very patient. Unfortunately it was too far away from our house for me to visit, so no progress yet.
15 December 2000
I'm tired of waiting for builders to get back to me, so I've decided to make a start using the people we originally bought the house from. The first step is the demolition of the existing ruined house which we are trying to arrange for around the 1st week of February 2001. I should be able to go over to Spain that week to oversee things and to arrange for a caravan to be placed on the cleared site. At least this will give us a base from which to work on our subsequent visits.
11 February 2001
Just returned from 6 days in Spain. I arranged for the builders to come and demolish our house on Monday, and they turned up on Wednesday! But at least they turned up. A day and a half later the house was demolished, site levelled and rubble taken away and dumped in the nearby rambla (dry riverbed). I managed to meet the solicitor for the first time to start the escritura process and acquired the phone numbers of a couple of architects. I also met my new neighbours - an English couple who are having their house renovated by a builder from the next village. The work he's done so far looks very good so I'm going to get some quotes from him next time I go to Spain. The only thing I didn't manage to do was to arrange for a caravan. So it's now back to work to earn the money for the architects fees and the foundations.
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13 May 2001
Sorry there's been no entry here for a while; a job change including relocation in the UK has been taking up all my time. I'm going out to Spain on 2nd June for a week - a few days visiting Barcelona and a few days in Mojacar so I can visit my plot near Lubrin. I'm trying to arrange an appointment with an Architect while I'm there so I can get started on the plans for the house. I also need to see my Solicitor, as I've had a couple of emails from him with very conflicting information. I'm hoping this is just due to his written English, rather than any problems. I'll let you know as soon as I return.
15 July 2001
Well I managed to get to Spain for a week at the beginning of June (sorry I haven't updated this page until now, but I've been working over in France and Germany since I returned). I met my solicitor and found that everything is in order (it was his written English which frightened me) and he's done all he can until I actually have the house built. I'd tried for a few weeks previous to going over to Spain to telephone an English speaking architect I'd spoken to on my last visit, but he never answered the phone. So, when I arrived in Mojacar I went round to his house. He'd moved! I tried to track him down but it would have been easier to find the Scarlet Pimpernel! So eventually I found an English speaking architect in Garrucha and managed to arrange a meeting with him. He's going to check the building regulations which apply in my area (Lubrin) and let me know the best way to proceed. Next time I visit Spain I'll arrange a meeting with him at our site so he can see the outlook, sun direction, etc. and suggest some possible plans for the new house. Unfortunately, due to a new job, I won't get back to Spain for a good few months. Just as well I'm not in a hurry with this project!
18 November 2001
Nothing much new to report yet folks! My new job is restricting the amount of time I can spend on this project over in Spain. Before this I was self-employed so could (in theory) nip over to Spain anytime I wanted. Now though, I have to wait for holidays to come round. I just found out when these are yesterday; my next weeks holiday in the end of May 2002!!!!!!!!!!! So progress is going to be really slow!
I started a Spanish nightclass at a local school a few weeks ago. Would you believe it; the guy sitting next to me is having a house built about 10 miles from my plot! So he's given me the name and phone number of an English speaking architect who I'll phone in the next couple of weeks and see what info she can provide.
3 May 2002
I suppose I'd better start by apologising (again!) for not updating this page regularly. Sorry!
Ok, well firstly I've changed employment again. Working as a company employee just didn't suit me, so I'm back to being a self-employed contractor. Less hassle, less hours and more money! So maybe it's time I got started on this project again. The architect I found in Garrucha never bothered to contact me again, so I phoned the English speaking lady mentioned above. I've arranged a meeting with her on 10th May, initially at her office then she's coming with me to the plot to have a look. I'm only going to Spain for 3 days so I hope she's quick! I'll update this section of the site as soon as I return and tell you what I've found out. Promise!
20 May 2002
Well what a suprise!! The architect was there at the pre-arranged time! We went out to the plot and she measured up and took a quick sketch. She's now going to calculate the "official" building costs (using government supplied figures) so she can work out her fees, building licence, etc. She's also going to try and find out the correct boundaries for the plot. Once this is done she'll fax it all through to me, hopefully in the next couple of weeks. Once I've agreed her fees she'll make a start doing sketches. I've given her a very open brief; doesn't need to be too big but I'd like the opportunity to extend at a later date. other than this I'm open to any ideas she has. As soon as I hear anything I'll let you know.
7 September 2002
As some of you may have guessed (due to there being no update of this page for quite some time), nothing has changed! I gave the architect 6 weeks to fax me the details she promised, then phoned her to find out what was what. She apologised and said that she had been very busy, but my details were on her desk and she would get to it shortly. By the time I moved home in the UK at end of July I still hadn't heard anything, so decided to leave it for a while till I got settled in. Anyway I faxed her again last weekend to give her my new fax number but so far I've still heard nothing. I don't have a real fax machine; I use one of these "fax to email" services, and just this morning I've found that it isn't working! So maybe the architect has tried to fax me and I just haven't received it. Then again maybe not! So once I'm in a position to receive faxes again I'm going to phone her and find out if she has done anything yet or if I need to look for yet another architect!
15 September 2002
Well I phoned the architect on Monday. She apologised for not being in touch but said she'd been extremely busy over the summer. Now things were a bit quieter she had been able to get some info for me and would fax it as soon as I was able to receive faxes again. Sure enough a fax arrived today outlining the costs for architects fees, building supervisor fees, etc. These had been calculated based upon a house size of 120m2 which is a little on the large size for me. However her fees for this size of house were reasonable I thought, and will reduce if I decide to go for a smaller property. I liked the idea of the staged payments she's suggested as I won't be having the house built all in one go. So the next thing I need to do is to decide upon the size of house I want and let her know. Then she'll obtain a layout of the plot and get started on the plans. I'm hoping these will be done before the end of November as I'm going out to Spain for a week and would like to be able to sign them off while I'm there and instruct the architect to arrange the building licence.
27 September 2002
I've worked out roughly the number and size of rooms I will require in the house and have faxed these back to the architect so she can calculate the size of house I'll need and revise the costs accordingly. Once I hear back from her I'll give her the go ahead to start working on some plans.
27 November 2002
Just returned from a week over in Spain. The architect sent me some sketches of ideas for the house. I liked the general idea so just had to change one or two things to suit. I had a meeting with her while I was over there and she said we needed an official plan of the plot so that the house plan could be placed onto it ready for submission of the project. As I don't have one I went to ask at the local town hall. They didn't have a plan of the plot itself but did have a plan of the village which shows all the plots and buildings there. As this is to scale we can use this instead of having to get a topographer to go out an measure. Also while I was at the town hall they gave me a copy of the building regulations detailing what you can and cannot do regarding reforming old properties or building new ones. The architect checked through these and said there is no problems associated with what I want to do. Now she's going to prepare the "project" ready for submission to the town hall so I can obtain the relevant building licence.
When I went out to my plot I noticed a new track up the hillside had been dug, which appeared to be across the right hand side of it! Out came the tape measure and the newly acquired map of the village. The people who dug the track must have had the same map as it misses the edge of my plot by about 2 feet. In fact, they've done me a favour, and given me a nice straight edge with which to work. A bit of luck for a change!
15 February 2003
A belated entry. I've just recieved a fax of the plans from the architect, with one or two minor changes she's suggesting (everytime I hear from her the house gets bigger! It now stands at around 150m2). I've agreed these and made a couple of my own, such as window positions, etc. She's now in a position to complete the project with the local town hall and apply for a building licence. The picture opposite is a 3D representation of how the house should look once completed. This isn't quite to scale but not too far off.
12 May 2003
I received a fax from my architect today, saying that the project has been stamped in Almeria and is now ready to take to the townhall in Lubrin to obtain the building licence. I've told her to wait until I go out to Spain at the end of June as I have a lot of questions regarding the build procedure, etc. I'd like answered before I apply for the licence. So I have a meeting with her on 2nd July - hopefully I'll know more then.
24 September 2003
A rather belated entry again! I had the meeting with my Architect as arranged. All the plans were ready and have been approved, and were ready to collect from Almeria. I was also given a copy along with building specs and quantities. These being all in Spanish gives me a major translating job!! The next step is to apply for the building licence from the townhall in Lubrin, which she was planning to do, along with getting some initial quotes for putting in the foundations. Up to date I haven't had any further word, but not surprising really as I believe everything closes down during August. And, afterall, it's only been 3 months!
6 December 2003
At last!!!!! I received a fax yesterday from my Architect to tell me that we now have the building licence approved, all it needs now is for me to pay for it at the local Townhall. I'd been expecting to pay around 3% of the Architects "Project" costs; I was a little surprised to find the actual cost quoted as 4.5%. Now this isn't a great deal of money in the overall scheme of things but it would be better in my pocket than theirs. So I'v faxed the Architect and asked her to check the amount. I'm going out to Spain for Christmas and the New Year so I'll be able to sort out payment for the licence and hopefully get some quotes for putting in the foundations.
3 January 2004
Just returned from an excellent Christmas & New Year in Spain. We met the Architect and went through a few things with her. She had also received a quote from a builder, not only for the foundations but for other parts of the construction too. On the face of it the quote looks a little on the expensive side but I'll wait and see. Then off to Lubrin townhall to sort out the building licence. No one there speaks English but our little bit of Spanish worked and we understood the explanation of the building licence costs. In the Lubrin area the fee for a building licence starts at 4.2%, and can rise to as much as 5.2%, depending on the Architects "Project" costs. So ours at 4.5% was correct. We then went to the bank and transferred the fee into the townhall bank account, then returned to the townhall with our receipt. They took their copy of the receipt and the stamped the building licence. Done and dusted in about 10 minutes!
Next we found another Spanish builder (who spoke no English at all) and arranged to meet him at 8:00am the following Saturday to go and look at the plot so he could give us some quotes. Amazingly he actually turned up on time! I think I managed to explain to him what I was after, and he's going to send the quotes directly to the Architect.
Another trip to Lubrin and we found another builder. I was given the phone number of someone who works with him who spoke English so gave him a call. He said he would speak to the builder and arrange a meeting for us all with him there to translate, and that I should phone him at 10:30am the following day to find out the meeting time. This I did but he said that he hadn't seen the builder as yet and would phone me back when he had. I'm still waiting!
We had a run to Albox and called in to the company who I originally bought the ruin from. They were supposed to be closed for the holidays but the builder was in his office. Even though it's been about 2 years since I saw him last he still remembered me and my ruin. I gave him a full set of plans and have asked him to give me a quote for the foundations, so hopefully I should receive it next week.
So....... now I just need to sit and wait for the quotes to roll in!
29 November 2004
Sorry It's been so long without an update; there's been quite a lot happening too!
Ok, first of all the only other quote I received was from the people we bought the ruin from and that was around £1000 more expensive than the quote the Architect had received and weren't prepared to budge on the price as they had plenty of work. She also sent a copy of the plans to another builder up in Pulpi but again we received no response. So in the end it was really "Hobsons Choice".
We went out to Spain and the end of June and arranged to
meet the builder at the plot along with the Architect. We measured everything out and
marked the position of the house on the plot, which only just fit. The builder said that
there would be some extra costs involved due to the additional depth of the foundations on
one side of the house, and the extra concrete required. I also asked him to bring the
water up to the plot, as it would save hiring another JCB later to dig the trench. He said
that if he could get a JCB the following week he would dig the foundations while we were
out there, and would let us know the extra costs involved.
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So we headed home and heard nothing for a few months. The foundations were dug but no concrete poured yet. Then about 8 weeks ago the Architect called to say that the builder would be starting again the following week to put in the steelwork and pour the concrete. Sure enough he turned up when supposed to, and the foundations are now complete.
I asked the Architect at the time to get separate quotes for the groundfloor external walls and the beams/concrete work that make up the groundfloor ceiling/first floor roof terrace (if you see what I mean). I didn't hear anything so I called her today to see what was happening. She said that she'd contact the builder again as she knew he'd done the quotes but she had yet to receive them. About an hour later she phoned me with the quotes. After a brief chat about one or two changes I wanted, I told her to give the builder the go-ahead on both jobs and see when he could start.
I called her again this evening and the builder has confirmed that he will start work in the beginning of January and should have the groundfloor "box" completed by the time we go out there again the first week of February!
20 February 2005
Well we had our week out in Spain. The day after we arrived we went out to see how well the builder had progressed. He hadn't done a damn thing! Not one single block had he laid! To say we were a little disappointed would be a huge understatement. We had a meeting with the architect and the builder the following evening but never got to the bottom of why nothing had been done. I think it was a communication problem between the builder and the architect, but don't know for sure. He agreed to another start date which is around now! Some friends of ours are going to let us know when the building work actually starts. One good thing though, I suppose, is that we got to see the foundations in place before the building commences.
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