There is just so much to love about Spain. Travel is effortless, accommodations are always available (and you’re bound to find something in your price range), you get 300 days of sunshine a year, the people are happy, and you can enjoy some of the cleanest beaches in the world. That’s why over 50 million foreigners a year visit Spain. This is really paradise!

Spain’s climate varies from region to region. The Mediterranean coast as a whole, and the Balearic Islands, get a little more rain than Madrid and the south can be even hotter in summer. The Meseta and Ebro basin have a continental climate: scorching in summer, cold in winter and dry. Barcelona’s weather is typical of the coast, milder than in inland cities, but more humid.

Valladolid on the northern meseta and Zaragoza in the Ebro basin are even drier, with only a little more rainfall per year than Alice Springs in Australia. The Pyrenees and the Cordillera Cantabrica backing the Bay of Biscay coast bear the brunt of cold northern and northwestern airstreams, which bring moderate temperatures and heavy rainfall (three or four times as much as Madrid’s) to the northern and northwestern coasts, including cities like A Coruna. Even in high summer you never know when you might get a shower.

Madrid regularly freezes in December, January and February and temperatures climb above 30′C (86F) in July and August (locals describe it as: nueve meses de invierno y tres de infierno - nine months of winter and three of hell). The Guadalquivir basin in Andalucia is only a little wetter and positively broils in high summer. This area doesn’t get as cold as the meseta in winter.

In Andalucia there are plenty of warm, sunny days right through winter. In July and August, temperatures can get unpleasant, even unbearable, anywhere inland (unless you’re high enough in the mountains). Snowfalls in the mountains start as early as October and some snow cover lasts all year on the highest peaks.

In general you can rely on pleasant or hot temperatures just about everywhere from April to early November (plus March in the south, but minus a month at either end on the northern and northwestern coasts).

The best seasons to see Spain are May, June and September (plus April and October in the south). At these times you can rely on wonderful weather, yet avoid the extreme heat - and the main crush of Spanish and foreign tourists - of July and August. However you can always go to the northwest, to beaches or high mountains anywhere to escape the heat. Some places have decent weather virtually year round. Winter along the southern and southeastern Mediterranean coasts is mild.

Are you looking for a good place to invest your money? Or do you want a beautiful vacation home where you can bring your family during the summer? Or are you thinking of retirement and want to find a country with a low cost of living and yet provide a good quality of life?

Well then go to Spain. Barclays Bank enlisted the University of Navarra Business School to do a study among Britons. They discovered that 65% of Brits said Spain was their first choice in overseas property destination and a 38% said it was their only possible choice. And this study is being confirmed all over, not least of all in Spain’s property registry. Spanish town halls had registered 29% more British residents than in the previous year.

A Pro-Buyer Environment

One reason why Spain is such a good real estate prospect is that the policies of Spain have become significantly pro-buyer. The government is clamping down on illegal sales of properties, and the recent winners of the elections have made it a part of their political platform to increase incentives for foreign investors. There is also a greater sense of professionalism in the real estate industry as the developers are competing for buyers by providing better services and employing people who can handle the needs of non-Spaniard buyers. The government has also enacted laws that allow non residents to stay in Spain without visas or work permits.

Scams to Avoid

Some have found themselves embroiled in certain disastrous off plan purchases. These purchasers have usually optioned properties that turn out to be subject to planning irregularities. To avoid this always go to a lawyer and check the documents in the municipal hall. Don’t buy a property without doing research and getting facts. The legal system is there it’s just that some people try to make shortcuts.

A marketing device that used to be a core feature of Spanish property marketing is the rental guarantee. But this “guarantee” was often achieved by simply inflating the price of a property by the level of the required guarantee. This would then be paid back to the purchaser over the agreed period. A 6% guaranteed yield is promised for two years, so the price is hike by 12% and placed in a “guaranteeing” bank! Hogwash! Be careful of this scam.

But despite the occasional scammer (and all countries have them) Spain continues to be a fantastic real estate prospect, especially with new laws and government policies to protect the buyer.

There are several different types of mortgages that you can avail of in order to find financing for your property in Spain. It’s really a lot easier than people think and all you have to do is to make calls, visit websites, and look through the brochures to find the best deal given your financial situation. Here are some types of mortgages.

- Capital and interest mortgage : Repayment of the loan occurs during the term and you pay interest over the current loan amount. Usually the monthly payments arehigher than with an interest only mortgage. The loan to value is maximised on 80%.

- The Interest only mortgage : with this kind of mortgage the actual borrowed amount or principal will stay the same throughout the term. During the term you will only pay interest. The highest interest only mortgage is 70% loan to value.

- Combined mortgage : It’s possible to get the best of both worlds by combining the two mortgage types. You only have to pay the interest during the first part of the term, either a third of the term or a fixed number of years.

Getting loan approval is not that difficult either. Here are some requirements of some banks,

- Age : most banks in Spain will grant a loan if you are seventy and below although there are those that will be given a loan even if they 80 or 85 years. In some cases it is possible to let somebody younger, i.e. a child, co-sign the mortgage in order to stretch the term.

- Net income : You can use approximately 40% of your net income on mortgage payments.

- Valuation of the property : The bank will need to have a taxation done by an independent agency. They will normally choose which organization will perform this task. Most banks will base the mortgage on the valuation and the actual selling price. They will choose whichever is lowe Some banks use solely the valuation. With these banks you can, if the valuation is considerably higher than the selling price, get one hundred percent financing. In most cases you should realise that you have to invest some 30% yourself.

- Resident or non-resident : Residents can, with restrictions, get better deals than non-residents.

- First or second home : Is of importance to some banks since for them it will mean you are less likely to flee the country, as you already have existing property. This minimizes their risk.