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Assuming all things are in place- You have the finance, you like sunny days, lazy living and a good life, you´re thinking of buying a house in Spain – well, do it now!
I recently saw Gladiator for the 45th time. I was thinking of Maximus and what drove him after he had achieved his goals. He didn’t want to lead Rome or conquer the East, he wanted to go and tend to his farm. The character was based on the very real Cincinnatus, possibly the most enduring and inspiring figures in all of Rome´s history.
Summoned to save Rome from those nasty Aequians and Sabines in BC 458, Cincinnatus was made temporary dictator, bringing with it power, ultimate war-time power in fact. You know the rest, he leads his army to an historic victory and saves his family, his city and country.
Hooray! Despite his fame, the leader seeks not to return and rule Rome but to go and plough his fields. They say that this actual event, 2,000 years previous inspired George Washington not to actively seek executive power after the Revolutionary War. After Washington became president, he served two terms and left.
It got me thinking how many people ever end up on their metaphorical farm. I´ve told this story before but I remember meeting a client, an affluent Irish client, who almost bought a house in Zenia Golf, La Zenia, just before the boom times. He was buying for his family, his grandkids and for his own lifestyle, not for an investment.
He decided not to buy, saying it was too risky to buy property in Spain. "what if he didn’t like the heat, what if the economy went bad, what if Ryanair stopped flying here”.
You know what happened, the prices went through the roof then all the way back to the floor. I met this guy 8 years later and rather than feeling he had missed 8 years of joy in Spain, he was delighted with himself for not buying and putting himself through that stress of a volatile market.
He was back looking for a house again though, once the prices "dipped another 10%”. The prices in Spain didn’t drop, they began to rise and have continued to do so. All I could think at the time was what a shame, what a missed opportunity. He has since passed away, and the money he would have spent on his family will now probably go to the government in inheritance tax anyway.
We all tell ourselves that we’re getting a raise or promotion, win the lottery, the dog will have pups. Once I make my fortune I´ll relax and take care of myself. When I retire, I´ll spend my summers with the kids in Spain. Way too often, when it comes time to do what we told ourselves we were always going to do… it just never happens.
Rome really really needed the help of Cincinnatus. This was a life and death situation for the city. For the rest of us, however, not so much. This life we have is short, if you want to own a place in Spain the best day to do it was yesterday. The second best day you can do it is today!
The reality is- you don’t know if you’ll ever get another chance.
Maybe you should get in touch with us today?