Costa de la Luz, Spain

If you are not quite convinced by the charms of inland property in rural Andalucia but reject the crowds and expense of the built up coasts, then fear not.  Your craving for a beautiful, affordable coastal location can still be satisfied.

With the average home price in Andalucia having tripled in the past 10 years, it is sometimes difficult to get a step onto an already well-developed market. While focus has been firmly upon the Mediterranean coasts of Spain, much of the Atlantic Costa de la Luz has, until recently, remained mercifully untouched.  What is more, planners in Cádiz and Huelva provinces are refusing to take the same liberties as their neighbours on the Algarge and the Costa del Sol have done.

The Costa de la Luz is highly regarded by many as a new hot-spot of Spain; a veritable mini emerging market where in the past year the region has recorded the highest growth rate in property prices within the whole of Andalucia, at a staggering 26%.  “Live In Spain”, an organisation backed by several leading Spanish developers, forecasts spending on Spanish holiday homes will double from approximately 25 billion Euros in 2005 to 45 billion Euros by 2010.

So what makes the Costa de la Luz so special?

• Property prices are at least 30% cheaper than on the Costa del Sol.
• Average green fee is 40 euros compared to 82 euros on the Costa del Sol.
• Highest capital growth experienced in Andalucia last year, and second only to Valencia. 
• Tourist infrastructure in place with budget airlines operating to northern Europe from 4 nearby international airports at Jerez, Sevilla, Gibraltar and Faro.
• EU funds have built motorways and there is even talk of the AVE fast-train serving Sevilla and Cádiz.
• Spanish experience with many wealthy Spaniards from Madrid and Sevilla who have snapped up second homes.
• In the right location, a steady influx of tourists will ensure excellent buy-to-let opportunities.
• Guaranteed authentic Andalucian atmosphere, where you can enjoy simple Spanish restaurants, local bars, and Spanish culture, where a horse or mule in a car park is not unheard of.
• Stunning stretches of idyllic white sandy beaches lined with sand dunes and pine trees. 
• Several resorts, eg. Tarifa, Caños de Mecca, are famous worldwide for their excellent windsurfing, surfing and kite surfing conditions, offering relaxed, international-style eco tourism.
• Beautiful sightseeing in Europe´s oldest city, Cádiz, wildlife in Doñana National Park, Roman ruins, art, culture, sherry bodegas, excellent fresh seafood and more.
• Close proximity to 35 minute ferry journey linking Spain to exotic Morocco.

Current low density hot-spots are located at Ayamonte, Isla Canela and El Rompido, where investment-worthy tourist facilities are at their best and include 18-hole golf courses, fine sandy beaches, luxury shopping, sports and fishing facilities as well as easy access by air and road.

At only just over an hour from the Costa del Sol, the Costa de la Luz does boast outstanding unspoiled beauty that will remain unscathed by mass high-rise tourism. 

For now, low property prices make it an ideal opportunity for timely investment in this promising market.  With between 800,000 and two million European citizens forecast to buy property in southern Spain in the next five years, it is inevitable investment on the Costa de la Luz will continue to benefit from some very impressive growth.