Straight talk · 2 July 2026 · 5 min read
When we'd tell you not to buy.
We only get paid when a purchase completes, so publishing this list costs us money. We are publishing it anyway, because a business that claims to be on the buyer's side has to be on it when the answer is no.
When the maths only works if everything goes right
If the budget needs peak rental income, zero repairs and a favourable exchange rate to survive, it is not a budget, it is a bet. The purchase should work with honest numbers: realistic rent, the full purchase costs, and the annual bills on top. If it only works on the brochure version, wait a year and save the difference.
When the money is the emergency fund
Spanish property is a slow asset. Selling well takes months on a good day, and costs real money in taxes and fees. If the purchase would absorb savings you might need on short notice, the sun does not change the arithmetic: do not park emergency money in an apartment.
When the couple disagrees
One partner dreaming and one being dragged is the most reliable unhappiness we see. The purchase survives; the usage does not, and an unused apartment becomes a €4,000-a-year argument. Renting a winter month together settles this question for a few hundred euro. Do that first.
When the plan is flipping
Buying to resell quickly on this coast rarely survives the costs: roughly 9 to 13% to get in, selling costs and taxes to get out, and a market that moves in years, not quarters. Long-term owners do well here. Flippers fund the long-term owners.
When you have not seen it in winter (and plan to live there)
A holiday home bought off an August feeling is fine, that is what August is for. A retirement move decided the same way is not. February tells the truth about a town. For a life decision, rent first, as our retirement guide argues.
Why we would rather lose the sale
Because the plan is to be here for years, and on a coast this small, reputation is the only durable asset. Tell someone the truth and they come back in two years ready. Sell someone the wrong apartment and they tell everyone. The honest version is also just better business.