Spanish Real Estate forum - Spanish property - Estate agentsSpanish Real Estate forum - Spanish property - Estate agents

ToniW · 07-25-2007, 11:33 AM

Recent research by GE Money Home Lending revealed that the main factor that put British people off buying a property in Spain was that there were too many Brits there already.

Spokesperson Gerry Bell said that increasingly people were more interested in locations that had an individual feel and not a traditional expat community.

Valencia offers a traditional style of living, you have to be able to speak Spanish (and eventually a bit of Valencian wonÂ´t go amiss!), the locals are very welcoming and keen for you to enjoy their way of life. The properties are all individually styled and the country homes are still used by many locals as holiday and weekend homes when you can see the hoards of family and friends arriving for the weekly gathering for paella cooked on wood fires.
Bridge clubs, social groups, WI, golf teams... forget it, get yourself down to the local bar or cafe and mix in with the locals, its a great way of life!

Richie · 07-26-2007, 04:40 PM

Funny that !

Too many Brits? Yes, but how many people that come here actually make an effort and learn the Spanish language?

And what about business? Who do you sell to? If you started a business - who would be your target audience?

The Brit population and British community work together and that is how so many stay alive, with out the Brits and you guys - I would not be here and 90% of you would not be either.

You will also find that if these Brits ended moving to a Spanish area, some time long down the line you will find them moving nearer the Brits for reasons just stated.

I do agree there are lots of Brits but we need them.

ToniW · 07-26-2007, 05:29 PM

We should make the effort to learn the language and way of life, one of the biggest complaints Brits have about England is the foreigners who are living there and not respecting our rules and forming their own colonies etc. But we are doing exactly the same over here.
Its nice to know there are a few Brits around, I donÂ´t deny that, and I agree the influx of Brits has helped a lot of us be here, but I would never join a sports or social group because it is English, I have learnt the language and enjoy mixing with the Spanish, they have a great way of life and some great traditions (although the bull fighting perhaps could be tamed a bit!). I find it quite rude to expect everyone ot speak English when you are in another country, how annoyed would we get if every foreigner in England kept asking us if we spoke their language!

jordi · 07-27-2007, 03:35 PM

Aren't there two aspects mixed up here?
I agree people should learn Spanish and not expect the Spanish to speak English.
But does that really mean they have to only / mostly spend their time with Spanish people and not British?
Learning Spanish to get by in everyday life is relatively quick and easy. But improving your Spanish to a proper conversational level is not, it takes time and effort - and you can't expect the average Spanish person to listen to your efforts for more than a few minutes at a time before getting bored :-)
How should a retired couple that has never learned a foreign language before suddenly mix with the Spanish and make friends? They depend on the British community. But that does not mean they should not make an effort and carry on improving their Spanish. Then making Spanish friends should come naturally over time.

ToniW · 07-27-2007, 04:35 PM

I just feel that it is sad going to another country with the idea of "its alright there are plenty of Brits there!" I came here because there are Spanish here, and to learn a new way of life and language. Oh and of course for the sun!
But the original comments were from a money lending company
Recent research by GE Money Home Lending revealed that the main factor that put British people off buying a property in Spain was that there were too many Brits there already.

Spokesperson Gerry Bell said that increasingly people were more interested in locations that had an individual feel and not a traditional expat community.

El Jefe · 07-27-2007, 05:27 PM

Look after living in Spain over twenty years of course I speak Spanish, even though I dont stop learning. A new word, phrase or even more slang words will pop up in conversations through the day.
My engleesh is now slipping a bit and i forget many words in english and use the spanish word instead. I work in an office with three spanish and three english together we have our own Spanglish style of talking, what makes it great is that everyone understands us.
Anyone at whatever age can learn basic spanish, come on every one knows...cafe con leche, la cuenta, una cerveza por favor, hasta la vista, addios, hola, say these phrases enough and your speaking spanish.
Regarding british communitys there should be not be any. What do we want here in Spain , not Chinatown as in Liverpool, or Southhall for pakistanis.Little poland in plymouth , we as british call these type of places ghettos.So why, why? are we doing the same in Spain, with a massive collection of english pubs bars in these commercial centres. The spanish call them "Chan centres"already, you hardly see any spanish in or using them. So why do we do it. Look if you miss England go home. I am not english or british any more. I am proud to be european and have many friends of all different nationalities. We should be embraceing the climate of the mediterreanean , the food , the culture. Enjoying life not hanging around british pubs.

Homefinder · 07-27-2007, 05:45 PM

I have read with interest the differnt viewpoint posted here and I think that the situation varies a lot from place to place.

Toni W is in Valencia close to the city and I guess that there are not a lot of Brits living around her.
Jordi is from north of Castellon, not a lot there either and he has chosen a Valeniano alias.
Where Webmaster is from I dont't know but I would imagine that he has a lot of Brits around him.

The situation in north Costa Blanca (Benidorm to Javea) is very different to most other areas. In most towns the numbers of registered foreign residents (i.e. on the padron) is more than 50% of which 40% are British. There are probably a lot more who are not on the padron. Sadly the Brits have proved to be the least able to integrate.

More significant is that a whole sub-culture has formed (social and economic). Lots of Brits are setting up in buisness with no intention of serving any other but the English-speaking market.
In Moraira we also have a lot of Bulgarians. They are completely different. Most learned Spanish quickly and many are study English.

As an "old-timer" I cannot say that I approve and I can't help thinking that a lot of bad feeling could be building up among the spanish and Spanish-speaking sector.

Another thought: The problem could be very temporary. The next generation would have learned Castellano and Valenciano at school.

It might be interesting to hear a Spanish point of view. I am going to ask CasitasBlancas to comment - it is about time she participated in the Forum! Do we have any other Spanish members on the Forum.

Homefinder.

ToniW · 07-27-2007, 06:59 PM

I will just add the other night a chap in my local bar (very Spanish guy, a little under the influence!) on his entering, I knew his face as a regular so I smiled and said Â´ola, as you do. He looked at me and asked where was I from, so I smiled and told him i was English, "funny he said, he always thought I must be Irish, as i always had a smile and seemed too friendly to be English!" My boss who is Irish found this highly amusing! I think it was a compliment? Â´:{

Richie · 07-28-2007, 12:05 PM

Well Homefinder - what makes you think I am around lots of English? But true I am, my old woman is Spanish and have been with her for 6 years - she's from the north west - Zamora.

However, we met speaking English and that will not change, plus working on the net doesn't really open up my world to many Spanish people - the Spanish I have done work with all speak a little English so we mix and match up English and Spanish "Spanglish".

And a reply to the comment made by El Jefe - I am English and proud of it, I would never consider myself European and not one bit Spanish - there's no place like home but I do like Spain. Always be proud of your roots...

ToniW · 08-03-2007, 11:44 AM

Come on webmaster, your better half is Spanish, you have no excuses for not talking the lingo, 6 years and still only a Spanglish speaker.
I not only have friends I meet in the bars, but at the local simming pool, on the beach, in the shops, there isnt any excuses that work doesnÂ´t permit it. Where do you go at a weekend? English bars and cafes?
I too am still English, apparently with my face I couldnÂ´t pass as anything else! (a comment by a Spanish friend! ) but there are times when I struggle to be proud!