| Although it's relatively easy to find cheap homes in | | | | convenience foods, your groceries will cost about the |
| Spain, UK residents should know that the cost of the | | | | same as at home. |
| home is only one aspect of affordable homes to buy | | | | Meat - chicken - 2.60 to 4.00 (1 Euro equals about .8 |
| in Spain. Just as at home, there are day-to-day | | | | GBP) |
| expenses incurred by people who have holiday | | | | Meat - pork chops - 5.00 to 6.00 |
| homes in Spain. In this article, we'll compare some of | | | | Meat - lamb - 8.00 - 10.00 |
| the typical expenses involved in owning Spanish | | | | Cheese - Spanish - 3.00 for about 250g |
| homes. While such comparisons often depend on | | | | Cheese - Cheddar - 6.00 for about 250g |
| both your budget and the location of Spanish holiday | | | | Tea - 2.00 to 2.50 |
| home, it still can be helpful to have a general, overall | | | | Milk - 1.00 per liter |
| understanding of what to expect. | | | | Frozen pizza - 3.50 |
| The Cost of Living in Spain | | | | Vegetables - tomatoes - 80c per kilo |
| Typically, you can expect that the average cost of | | | | Vegetables - green peppers - 1.80 per kilo |
| living in a cheap home in Spain will be about 10% to | | | | Vegetables - potatoes - 70c per kilo |
| 15% less than in the UK. So a bag of groceries, for | | | | Breakfast cereal - 2.60 for about 400g |
| example, that costs about £30 in the UK will | | | | Wine - Spanish - about half the cost in the UK |
| cost up to 25, less in Spain. Housing is perhaps the | | | | Wine - French, Italian or Australian - slightly less than |
| biggest expense on your budget when looking for a | | | | in the UK |
| bargain home in Spain. Depending on the area, studios | | | | If you prefer to eat out, expect to pay about 15.00 |
| start at 49,000 (£39,000), apartments at | | | | to 20.00 per person for dinner and 6.00 per person |
| 81,000 (£64,000), townhouses at 110,000 | | | | for lunch. Unfortunately, takeaway food isn't generally |
| (£87,000) and villas at 169,000 | | | | available in Spain, so be sure consider that factor |
| (£134,000). There's good news on mortgage | | | | when planning the food budget for your affordable |
| rates for homes in Spain: typical rates are about | | | | home in Spain. |
| 5.5%. Electricity and gas cost about the same as the | | | | Automobiles in Spain |
| UK. Water in Spain usually isn't more then 15 | | | | The next thing most people need when they have |
| (£12) per month, but since many homes have | | | | vacation homes in Spain is a car. Cars are much more |
| pools, fountains and gardens, buyers should budget | | | | expensive in Spain than in the UK, but fuel and |
| at least 4 times that amount. The property taxes on | | | | maintenance are usually cheaper. If you need car |
| holiday homes in Spain are usually less than 250 | | | | repairs, expect to pay 25.00 to 40.00 per hour and if |
| (£198) per year. | | | | parts for your car are not widely available in Spain, |
| Food Costs in Spain | | | | you'll pay a premium for them as well. Road tax is |
| Food costs are perhaps the next biggest expense | | | | inexpensive and insurance for your vehicle in Spain is |
| for people who are considering holiday homes in | | | | reasonable if the car is registered in Spain. However, |
| Spain. Although prices will vary regionally, a few | | | | UK-registered cars are very expensive to insure in |
| median prices are presented below for comparison | | | | Spain. |
| purposes only. Be sure to investigate food prices in | | | | All in all, when looking at the purchase price of cheap |
| the area where you're planning to buy your holiday | | | | homes in Spain and considering subsidiary costs like |
| home in Spain. In general, though, grocery costs | | | | taxes, food and automobile transportation, it's |
| overall are about 2/3 what they are in the UK, | | | | possible for UK residents for find cheap |
| provided you do your own cooking from scratch. If | | | | accommodation in this friendly, sun-drenched land. |
| you prefer to cook with pre-packaged or | | | | |