Lanzarote Property

So you have been visiting this lovely island over previous years and have now decided you would like to live here. Maybe you are ready to make the move and get out of the rat race, starting a whole new adventure in another land, or perhaps you have reached the time of your life where you are planning your retirement from work and Lanzarote is your chosen destination. Some people even buy property in the Canary Islands as an investment and stay in their native country using their newly acquired Spanish home as a holiday retreat, a business venture for letting out to tourists or a mixture of both.

Whatever your reasons for wanting to buy or rent property in Lanzarote you are sure to find something to match both your needs and your budget. There are many different types of property on the market such as studios, apartments, flats, houses, bungalows, villas and fincas (country homes) and most of these are available in both busy and quiet locations, so the first thing you have to do is to decide where exactly on the island you would like to live.

There are several things to take into consideration at this point, such as work prospects (if you are in fact intending to work), schooling for children, getting about if you do not have a motor car to name just a few.

Once you have chosen your location, you then need to work out what you can afford to buy or rent in the area. Have a look at a few of the Inmobilaria (Spanish for estate agents) and see what they have to offer. Many of them work together and will find something suitable for you at a price you can afford. As to which estate agents to choose, you can ask around people you know who already have a place on the island or others who can advise you in a professional capacity. Other than that it’s a case of pot luck.

The general procedure is that you tell the agent that you are looking for somewhere to rent or buy, provide details of your requirements and they will find it for you. Quite often however, they will accompany you to look at properties which are nothing like what you have asked for but this is not always a bad thing as sometimes what they are showing you, although it may not have been your original plan, may well be a good alternative that you had not thought about. It pays to keep an open mind, but be careful not to step outside of the confines of your budget.

Once you have found the place of your dreams, if it is a rented property you will be expected to sign a contract for at least six months and pay one month's rent in advance, one month's rent deposit and one month's rent finder's fee. So if the property is say, 750 Euros per month, you are looking at a payout of 2250 Euros. Check up as to whether you will have to pay for electric and water and the maintenance of the site, although most rents usually include these utilities.

If you are buying the property many of the estate agents will set up a mortgage for you but it is worth doing a little research yourself at the same time, to see if you can get a deal with the local banks. The agent will usually help you with all the formalities of buying abroad and keep you informed of how things are progressing.

There are of course advantages and disadvantages of buying as opposed to renting. When you buy the property is an investment for however long you want it to be. However, when you rent, as many people do on the island, although the property will never actually belong to you, you do have the chance to move around and rent somewhere else if the fancy takes you.