A Bright New Future – Massive new investment
According to a recent report published by Spain’s National Institute of Statistics, more than a quarter of a million foreign residents now officially live in the province of Málaga… and that’s nowhere near the true total as only those who have taken the time to ensure their names appear on the electoral list – many don’t bother - have been included in the figures. Of this number, almost one in four (nearly 57,000) are British.
Britons’ ongoing love affair with Spain has long been a well documented fact, and the latest HiFX Monthly Global Property Hotspots Report confirms once more that Spain irrefutably remains in pole position as their destination of choice. And it’s not only the British who can’t get enough of a good thing. Citizens from all 27 EU member states are flocking to the Costa del Sol in search of a better life. In fact, 150 different nationalities from all five continents have made their home here, happily coexisting in tolerant, multicultural harmony. So what brings them all here? The sunny summers and mild winters? Certainly. The relaxed lifestyle? Absolutely. World-class golf, water sports, entertainment, shopping and leisure facilities second to none? You’d better believe it! But that’s only half the story. If you’re a free spirit with no one to consider but yourself, then the prospect of starting a new life in a land of opportunities is a decision that’s easy enough to take and is hardly likely to keep you awake at night. On the other hand, if you have a family to support and children to put through school, or if you’re thinking of retiring to the sun but are concerned about possible future health issues, relocation abroad is not something you do on a spur of the moment whim. Happily, however, whatever your expectations, age, and lifestyle ambitions, on the Costa del Sol expatriates have all the benefits of home – with none of the disadvantages of leaden skies, exorbitant heating bills and council tax, or the interminable daily commute – and definitely no culture shock.
High-achieving international schools, state-of-the-art hospitals – in both state and private sectors – and world-class infrastructure are already unparalleled in Mediterranean Europe, and thanks to massive new investment… international, EU-funded, national, autonomous, provincial, local and private… the Costa del Sol is poised to claim its rightful place at the very centre of the world stage. It was only five months ago that HOT Properties reported on the Costa del Sol’s unprecedented new advances in the provision of hi-tech infrastructure. And already there is more, much more, in the pipeline. The extension and upgrading of Málaga airport is the most prominent of current projects. The gateway to the Costa del Sol, in 2006 more than 13 million passengers passed through the doors of Málaga’s international Pablo Ruiz Picasso airport – a driving force behind residential tourism on the Costa del Sol – a 3.2% increase over figures for 2005.
Expansion works to the tune of 900,000,000€ are well underway and, on completion in 2010, the airport will be more than able to handle the 27 million annual arrivals and departures predicted by 2015. Yet, as confirmed in a report by the Costa del Sol Tourist Board published just two months ago, only 50 kilometres to the north, plans are already on the drawing-board for the creation of an additional 3,000,000 square metre airport on the outskirts of the historic inland city of Antequera, scheduled for completion in 2012. Meanwhile, beneath the busy streets of the provincial capital, tunnelling machines are hard at work on the construction of the city’s two-line Málaga Metro system which, with 19 stations and costing an estimated 384.3 million Euros is due to become operational in 2009. Plans to extend the existing coastal railway line connecting Fuengirola and Málaga westwards to Marbella and San Pedro - almost all of which will be underground - have already been significantly scaled up in size to provide a service linking Nerja (to the east of the provincial capital), with Estepona, in just 90 minutes. With 21 stations and 94 additional kilometres of track to be laid, the 2,436 million Euro project should be completed in 2012.
Meanwhile, the long-awaited AVE high speed train is on target to come into service before the end of this year, the Córdoba- Antequera section having been inaugurated by Spanish President, José Luis Zapatero in December 2006. With eleven trains daily in each direction, for the forecasted 2,000,000 passengers who will use it in the first year, travelling time between Málaga and Madrid will be reduced to just 2.5 hours, making it a viable and convenient alternative to flying. The Andalusian Government also has a wide-ranging raft of impressive plans up its sleeve. Only last month it pledged the creation of 750,000 new jobs across the region within the next seven years. Coinciding with the recent International Environmental Day, it released details of its Action Plan to reduce C02 emissions from their current level of eight tons per citizen per year to 6.5 tons in 2012. One of the 140 different measures included in the directive proposes the introduction of a public maritime transport service regularly plying between the coastal cities of Málaga, Almería, Cádiz and Huelva; and in conjunction with both state and EU funding, the Junta de Andalucía also plans to invest a massive 23,000 million Euros in new infrastructure across the region in the next six years. All the reasons why expatriates purchased property here – beyond a simple investment – are being improved upon year in and year out. Not only the overall infrastructure, airport expansion and the like, but also at a local level the development of hospitals, schools, shopping centres, amenities and all the endless facilities that have utterly changed the face of the Coast in recent years. Those with a home on the Costa del Sol gain massive use, enormous personal lifestyle fulfilment and huge benefits from their purchase. The extent to which people love the Coast, and relish owning a property here, is perhaps not completely understood or accepted by those who do not.
Remember, you can fly here from the UK in a little over two hours, and we have around 320 sunshine days each year. Yet you can watch the same TV programmes as you would back home, work on your PC or lap top, and be reached on your mobile ‘phone in just the same way as if you were in your office back in Britain. Those fortunate enough – and astute enough – to own a home here, plan on staying here. And who can blame them? They want to own a property here, enjoy the privileges of owning a property here, and they want to sit on their investment. Relaxing on their terrace, looking out over the sea, golf course or the stunning countryside, and savouring a glass of vino tinto, not only are they appreciating their investment, but their lifestyle experience, too… and who could ask for more! In the last five years, of the 212,000 officially registered new residents of the Costa del Sol, an astounding 132,000 are expatriates. In the last 12 months alone, of the 22,795 people who have had their names added to the Coast’s electoral rolls, no fewer than 13,807 have relocated here from around the world. The figures speak for themselves.
For further information on the Costa del Sol, please contact VIVA today!
|
|
|
