Three signs that now’s the right time to move to Spain

If you’re ready to box clever, then now might be the time to move to Spain.

Making huge, life-changing decisions is never easy. But – in the same way it’s often easier to tell a stranger your woes rather than a trusted friend – upping sticks and moving abroad can be as simple as deciding that it’s now or never.

Those in the ‘never’ camp will ultimately miss out on the incredible ways that life in Spain rewards you. Those in the ‘now’ camp rarely look back – a move to Spain is almost always an experience to be cherished.

But getting to that ‘now or never’ stage requires some prompting, and not a little common sense. Moving to Spain to seek a job or an affordable property in, say, 2010 – when the global economic slowdown was hurting most parts of Europe – would not have been a sensible idea.

Each year since then has seen a steady, if erratic improvement, but since the early stages of 2014 the signs have been almost universally positive. So much so that today, as the busiest part of Spain’s summer season dies down, the evidence all points to one indisputable fact: there really has never been a better time to move to Spain.

Need convincing? Here are three recent signs that make moving to Spain right now a great idea…

1. Finding a property has never been easier

We are living through the great stabilisation of Spain’s property market right now. The previous boom, between the turn of the millennium and 2007, always felt like exactly that: a boom, an unsustainable, barely believable period of surging property values and endless growth.

Property in many parts of the Costa del Sol is rising in value.

It wasn’t endless. The industry knows that now. Those with experience of that time will tell you that things are much different now. The lean years between 2008 and 2013 really sorted the wheat from the chaff; the professionals from the cowboys; the desirable properties and regions from the not-so-desirable, to the point where today, properties that have begun rising in value are doing so because of customer-driven demand, not marketing bluster.

The market on the Costa del Sol has been boosted by around 10% this year, with demand among foreign buyers driving this trend. Next year, a further 10% increase in property transactions is anticipated, and as prices continue to climb steadily, most industry experts agree that now is the time to get a foot on to Spain’s property ladder. For Brits, there is an additional incentive – the seven-year high that the pound sterling is currently experiencing against the euro.

2. Getting there has never been easier

Data from Spain’s Institute of Tourism Studies revealed that low-cost airlines ferried in more than half of the passengers arriving at Spanish airports in July. With 23 million arriving, 50.7 per cent were brought to Spain by budget operators.

Together, the three leading low-cost carriers Ryanair, easyJet and Vueling accounted for 34% of those arrivals. The study also showed that over the first half of the year Spain handled 9.7 per cent more air traffic than for the same period in 2014, with Brits once again the most popular group of arrivals. The UK is incredibly well served for flights to Spain, with few routes taking more than three hours and prices lower than they have been for more than five years.

The Costa del Sol is particularly well-served, with Málaga airport recently breaking records – the airport handled more than 1.7 million passengers in July this year.

3. Improving economy, brighter outlook

Moving to Spain is made much easier if you have a reliable means of income. British pensioners are particularly blessed in this regard, given the strength of the pound and the excellent reciprocal Spanish health system.

Things are looking up for millions of Spaniards as the economy recovers.

‘Twas ever thus. What has been lacking in recent years is opportunities for younger expats keen on embracing the entire gamut of life in Spain – jobs, careers, relationships, renting, buying property, owning a car – the whole works. Spain’s poor economy made it doubly difficult for Brits to realise these dreams, but with things looking up the opportunity to make a new life in Spain is a realistic one.

Spain’s economy has already grown faster this year than all other Eurozone countries, and is set to outperform the UK before the year is out. This does not mean that jobs are plentiful and easy to come by, but it is an encouraging step in the right direction, and should serve as an additional pull factor for Brits already attracted by the wonderful lifestyle Spain can promise. Pick up a smattering of Spanish, learn the local laws and scour the local job market and who knows? That new life in Spain could be right around the corner.