Ten Real Reasons For Moving to Spain
By D. Graham Hunt

When you are thinking of relocating to another part of the World there are many considerations, not least work and lifestyle. Here are ten good reasons why you should consider moving to Spain. Now that the real recession has hit houses for sale in Spain are excellently priced for the savvy investor and living and working in Spain can be a comfortable option for the expat who can work from anywhere or whose company sends them there. Spain can offer you an interesting, exciting and fulfilling lifestyle and here is why.

1) The Climate

Spain is a land of contrasts from the green north of the country to the arid parts of Extremadura. However what most people come to Spain for is the long summers and mild winters. It is mostly warm enough to go out in T-Shirt and shorts for eight to nine months of the year and the winters although short and mild offer great winter sports opportunities as Spain is one of the highest countries in Europe on average

2) Food

More especially Tapas. Spain is a haven of regional cooking pride and tapas demonstrate that price. Small plates of food accompanying drinks make drinking a much more civilised occupation in Spain. Tapas are fantastic in Granada and Salamanca for example. As far more elaborate cooking Spain has 6 of the top 20 restaurants in Europe according to a recent study including the number one El Bulli in Catalunya.

3) Lifestyle

The Spanish people live on the street in general rather than being enclosed in their homes in front of the television. This is changing on a day to day basis but is exemplified by the fiestas that every single small village holds at some time in the year

4) Social Interaction

If you come to Spain and do not learn the language then don’t expect too much back. If you make an effort to learn the language the Spanish are most generous with their time and extremely curious about the expats who come to live here. The secret to having a great relationship with your neighbours in Spain is to communicate because the Spanish love talking and giving opinions. Not for nothing are bars and restaurants so loud.

5) This Sporting Life

Spain excels in many sports such as football, basketball, handball, athletics, and even synchronised swimming. The collective is seen as a good way to interact socially so team sports are practiced with gusto, although the country also does well in individual sports such as tennis. The main reasons that Spain excels are very simple to explain though, investment in facilities, every small town has a great sports centre, investment in training and the climate allow great weather conditions for practicing sport all year round.

6) Variety

Spain is a land of contrasts with a great history which it is just starting to exploit on a commercial level. Having been occupied at various times by Romans and the Moorish conquerors for over 700 years Spain has a rich vein of historical monuments and architectural styles. However the country itself is full of contrasts from the huge plains (Where the rain rarely falls by the way) to the mountainous and lush green north, to the arid majesty of the south and the rice fields of Valencia. Spain has a bit of everything for everyone.

7) Drinks

Most regions have their own specialities. Cava (Champagne) is produced from Catalunya, Cider from Asturias, Horchata from Valencia (Tiger Nut milk), and then there are the more exotic like Agua de Valencia (Again in Valencia a mixture of Cava, Orange Juice and Vodka that is deadly), Calimocho often seen during the running of the bulls in Pamplona where coke is mixed with red wine and of course the ubiquitous Sangria.

Public Transport

Spain has probably the best and most modern high speed rail system in Europe and that is complemented by quaint country lines in many provinces that go at a much more sedate pace. The bus routes that criss-cross the country mean that you can get anywhere relatively quickly which is quite an achievement for such a large country. There is also now a pretty decent internal flight schedule to connect up the regions even faster.

9) Safety

Spain is a very safe place to live. You do not feel threatened in the street even at night because there are generally a lot of people around. Take the basic precautions and Spain is an extremely family friendly place and a great place to bring up children without worrying about where they are or what they might be doing too much.

10) Property

As an estate agent I have to declare that this may not be unbiased information but prices of properties are now very affordable for the foreign buyer and with interest rates low repayments are also low. Those who come to live in Spain while maintaining their incomes from their work can now be very comfortable even in the biggest cities as bargains abound. Personally I would stay away from the Costas as that is not real Spanish life and go for the cities and areas around them as they offer so much more variety and an all year round lifestyle. Houses for sale in Spain come in a wide variety and you should look at what suits the lifestyle you want here.

I haven’t even got into the usual topics of fiestas, siestas, fun and beaches, that will be for another article. Spain a a land of contrasts is not seen by many but if you want to look at a few of those contrasts then click on the links here to give you more of an idea and a rounded view of what Spain could be for you. It works for me.

Graham Hunt is an estate agent in the Valencia region of Spain. The websites he runs can be found at Houses for sale in Spain and they are considered to have high quality, great value properties and more importantly excellent information about the process of buying and selling property in Spain and also lifestyle issues in Spain, especially the latter site. If you require more information then send an email by clicking on the top of the first website in this resource box.

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