Finding and selecting property on the Costa del Sol
We help foreign buyers find and buy property on the Costa del Sol in Spain. We represent only you, never the seller or developer, and you pay us nothing as the buyer. We search across the entire market, check things you will not find in the listing, and will also tell you if, in our opinion, a specific property is not worth buying.
We start with what you want. Not with a filter.
Most searches start with a budget and the number of bedrooms. But these are the least useful pieces of information you can give us. Selecting a property only makes sense when we know how you really want to use it. This often determines why two apartments that look similar at first are actually completely different for you.
- How often you will come hereTwo weeks a year and three months a year lead to completely different properties, locations, and budgets.
- Who will come with youChildren, parents, a dog, visitors. This affects the layout, floor, lift, parking, and how close you want your neighbours to be.
- What you want to do hereGolf, the beach, restaurants, peace and quiet, working remotely. These are not only lifestyle questions. They are mainly questions about location.
- Whether the property should generate incomeIf you want to rent it out while you are away, some properties are immediately ruled out, and the locations that make sense for you also change.
- Whether you want to manage without a carWalking distance from the beach and shops is one of the things that has a major effect on the price on the coast. That is why it must be a real decision, not just a wish.
What if I change my mind during the search?That is normal, and we expect it. A client arrives convinced that they want a resale property and leaves with a new build. Or they change the location completely. You tell us, and we redo the selection. Nothing is fixed.
We search across the entire market, not just our own listings
We do not have our own portfolio that we need to sell to you. We search where local agencies really search: directly with developers, through real estate agencies across the coast, in professional real estate networks and MLS, as well as on public portals.But the difference is not only that we have access to more sources. What matters is that we already know what to look for in them, what to ignore, and what to check before we send you a listing at all.
- Directly with developersCurrent price lists, new project phases, and units that have just been released for sale.
- Real estate agencies across the coastA large part of the listings is shared between agencies and may not be publicly displayed where you are looking.
- Professional real estate networks and MLSWe work, among other systems, with Resale properties Online and Inmobalia. Local offices use these systems to share listings and information.
- Public portalsWe also monitor Idealista and other portals. The difference is that we quickly identify old, duplicate, misleading or no longer available listings and verify them before they take up your time.
On a public portal, the same property can be listed by five offices, even if it has already been reserved. With new builds, the developer often releases units in phases and sends updated listings first to the offices they work with. Some of the best units are therefore secured by agencies and waiting buyers before they appear on a public website at all.Therefore, it is not important whether a specific property is currently on our website. If it is on the market and makes sense for you, we can deal with it.
Do I have to buy something from your listings?No. Our catalogue is a starting point, not a limit. Offices on the Costa del Sol share many of their listings, and we work directly with developers based on their current availability. If you find a property elsewhere, send it to us. We will check it in the same way as if it were on our website.
Is buying through you more expensive?No. The seller or developer sets the price, and it is the same whether you come directly or through us. Our fee is paid from the commission that is already included in this price.
What you actually receive
Searching is easy to promise but difficult to verify, so this is what you will actually receive, not just what we say we will do.
- A brief we confirm with youWe will present and confirm what we understand from the first call straight away: how you want to use the property, which locations this points to and which locations it rules out. We do not search based on a version that you have not agreed to. If you change your mind at any time, tell us and we will compare each further selection with the version you confirmed.
- A selection you can respond to, which we then reviseYou may not like what we send back. Tell us what is wrong with it, which properties to remove and why, and we will revise the selection accordingly. Two or three rounds are a normal part of the process, not a sign that something has gone wrong. This is how the brief becomes more precise.
- Advantages and disadvantages of each propertyFor each property in the shortlist, we state what makes sense about it and where we see weaknesses, including what the listing does not mention. If we would not buy it ourselves, we will say so. When you are left with two properties, or if you ask us to do so, we will go into more depth in the written assessment at this stage, instead of creating a document for every listing that simply caught your interest.
- The actual cost of completing the purchase, not just the priceAlongside the price of each property we present, we will state how much buying it will actually cost you to complete the purchase, including taxes, a lawyer, a notary, the land registry and other smaller items. For planning purposes, allow approximately nine percent in addition to the price for a resale property and approximately thirteen percent for a new build, with the difference mainly made up by tax. A property that fits your budget based on the asking price but does not fit it based on the total costs is something you should know about immediately.
Send us anything you find yourself
You do not have to wait for our selection. Send us a link from Idealista, another office or directly from the developer, and we will check it in the same way as a listing we found ourselves.You will receive the same answer from us, no matter where the property comes from. Even if that answer is that we would not buy it. If it makes sense, we will guide you through the entire buying process.
What we verify, even if you cannot find it in the listing
An advertisement is designed to sell the property. For this reason, we check details for every property that reaches the shortlist, even though these details are often not included in the presentation. Most properties do not reach the final selection because of these details.| What we check | Why it is important | How we check it |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | Portals are full of listings that are already reserved, sold, or have not been updated for a long time. | Before including a property in the selection, we confirm with the agency or developer that it is still genuinely available. |
| The real price today | The advertised price, the seller's expectations, and the price at which it actually makes sense to negotiate do not have to be the same. | We find out the current conditions, the room for negotiation, and, where relevant, which offers the seller has already rejected. |
| Views and orientation | Photos often show the view, but not what the orientation means in January or August. A terrace can be beautiful at one time of day and practically unusable at another. | We check the directions, the surroundings, and, based on the specific property, we will tell you when the terrace will really work well. |
Why the lowest advertised price is almost never what you are really looking for
Two apartments of the same size in the same town can differ by hundreds of thousands of euros just because of the view, orientation, or distance from the beach. For this reason, for each type of property we show not only the lowest advertised price, but also the budget from which, based on our experience, the selection really starts to make sense.Lowest advertisedBudget from which the selection makes sense
- Apartments250 000 €300 000 €
- Townhouses350 000 €500 000 €
- Penthouses300 000 €450 000 €
- Villas600 000 €1 000 000 €
| Type | Lowest advertised | Budget from which the selection makes sense | What changes the price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apartments | 250 000 € | 300 000 € | A sea view, a few minutes from the beach, and a south-facing terrace make the biggest difference. |
| Townhouses | 350 000 € | 500 000 € | Location, views, and privacy are often more important than the floor area itself. |
| Penthouses | 300 000 € | 450 000 € | The price is mainly determined by the terrace, view, and orientation. |
| Villas | 600 000 € | 1 000 000 € | The widest price range on the coast. The plot and privacy often mean more than the size of the house. |
How the search works step by step
The full purchase process has fifteen steps, from the first call to the handover of the keys. Finding and selecting are the first four. We describe the remaining eleven, from reservation onwards, in the purchase guide.Steps 1 to 4 of 15
- First call20 to 60 minutesWe do not only discuss your budget and the number of bedrooms. We want to understand how you really imagine your life here: how often you will visit, who you will come with, what you want to do here and whether you want to rent out the property. The more details we know, the better we can search.
- First selectionAs soon as possible after the first callWe will send you an initial selection of locations and properties based on what we agreed. Consider it a working proposal and a realistic view of the current market. It is completely normal to find that something you originally wanted no longer makes sense. Tell us and we will adjust the selection.
- Tailored selectionOnce we know what interests youSeveral properties that deserve closer attention. For each one, we will tell you what makes sense about it, where we see weaknesses and what may not be clear from the listing.New buildWe check the developer, the project stage, which units are actually still available and what the payment schedule looks like.ResaleWe ask the seller how much the property is actually being negotiated for and why it has not been sold yet.
- Video viewingsBefore your tripFor properties that really interest you, we will do a live video viewing or record one for you. We will show you the apartment or house, the view, the shared areas and the surroundings, including things that professional photos often hide. This allows you to rule out some properties before buying a flight ticket.New buildFor an unfinished project, we record the land, the current construction stage and the completed show apartment, if available.ResaleWe record the specific unit in its actual condition, including areas that the wide-angle lens in the listing makes look much better.
Search on your own or with us
We do not want to claim that you cannot manage it on your own. The difference is what you actually gain during the search.| On your own | With Arevont | |
|---|---|---|
| Who the agent represents | The agent showing you the property is paid by the seller and represents the seller's interests. | We represent you and no one else. We never represent the seller. |
| How much of the market you see | What one agency has, plus what public portals show you at that moment. | Direct offers from developers, individual agencies, professional MLS networks and public portals. We also know which offers are current and which are worth your time. |
| Access to the best new builds | A developer usually does not put every new unit on a public website first. Some phases and units become public only after partner agencies receive them. | Developer teams send us new phases, price lists and released units directly. For popular projects, we often work with the offer before it reaches public portals. Good units are sometimes sold between agencies and waiting clients. |
| Whether the offer is still current | You may only find out that a property is reserved when you are arranging a viewing. | We confirm availability and the current price before the property is included in your selection. |
| What you find out about the location | What the listing says, and one visit in one season of the year. | The views, noise, smells, walkability, life outside the high season and what may be built next to it. |
| Who will tell you the bad news | The person telling you about the property also needs to sell it. | We will tell you when a property is a bad choice, and why. Even if it means losing the deal. |
| Language and distance | Spanish or English, with communication from your home country based on the other party's schedule. | From people on the coast, including a video before you arrive. |
| How much it costs you | Directly, nothing. The seller's commission is included in the price anyway. | Nothing. The commission is the same, but part of it goes to someone who represents you. |
One detail in the documents can change the entire reason for buying
The client wanted to use the apartment partly for themselves and rent it out for part of the year on a short-term basis. Nothing in the listing suggested that this could be a problem. However, for short-term renting, the information in the listing or the agent's verbal confirmation is not enough.The most expensive problem is the one you only find out about after buying.
How much does it cost you?
- Buyer0 €No fee, no fixed charge, no payment when you buy.
- Developer or seller
- New build
- 2,5 to 6 %
- Resale property
- 1,5 to 4 %
- ArevontOur fee is part of this commission. If you buy nothing, nobody pays us anything.
The property price is the same, even if you buy directly. For a new build, you can simply take the developer's price list and check it yourself.
Who may not benefit from buying
Not everyone needs their own property. If you want to come once a year for a week, try a different part of the coast each time, and do not want to deal with ownership or renting, it may be easier to rent something each time.However, it is different if you want to return here regularly, spend several weeks or months here each year, keep your things here, arrive with only hand luggage, and feel at home straight away. Owning a property can make even more sense if you can legally rent it out while you are away and cover part of the costs this way.That is why we will not automatically tell you that buying is always the right answer. We need to know how you will use the property.
- 200 000 €
- below this threshold, we would generally not focus on Costa del Sol at all
- 250 000 €
- the selection is already very limited and Costa Blanca often makes more sense
- 300 000 €
- from this threshold, the selection on Costa del Sol starts to make real sense
Most common questions about searching and choosing
- How soon will I receive the first selection?
- As quickly as possible. If we have a clear understanding of your requirements after the first call, we try to prepare the first selection on the same day. With more complex requirements, or if we need to check specific availability, it may take a little longer. However, we do not want to make you wait several days just to send the first suggestions.
- How many properties will you send me?
- It depends on what you want from the first selection. Some people prefer a short shortlist of several options where we have already completed much of the filtering. Another client may first want to get a broader picture of the market, locations, and prices, so we send a much larger selection. During the first call, we will therefore ask you what suits you better.
- Will I see the property before I arrive?
- Yes, for the properties that really interest you. We will arrange a live video viewing or record one for you, including the view, communal areas, and surroundings.
- Do you also work with properties from other agencies?
- Yes. Agencies on Costa del Sol share listings through professional networks, so we can deal with a property regardless of who is currently offering it, and at the same price.
- Can I buy even if I do not live in Spain?
- Yes. Most of our clients do not live in Spain permanently. We handle the selection through calls and video, and much of the subsequent administration can later be handled through a power of attorney.
- What happens if you think a specific property does not make sense?
- We will tell you and explain why. We have already advised clients not to buy, and we received nothing from that deal. That is exactly why it makes sense to have someone on your side who is not dependent on selling a specific property.
