Who are we?
The property arm of Granada Concierge helps individual private property vendors to explore new marketing avenues beyond traditional real estate agency.
Operating from Andalucia, southern Spain, Granada Concierge owners, Ian Rutter and Andrew Watson, identified that there is a huge gap in the market when it comes to promoting the many exceptional, unique and historic properties that are for sale across Spain. Many of the major real estate companies concentrate only on the coastal regions, ignoring the incredible inland villages, towns and landscapes that make up this stunningly beautiful country.
WE ARE NOT ESTATE AGENTS; we consider ourselves to be Property PR Consultants. We help our selected clients with different forms of marketing through PR and social media.
What we do differently
Everyone’s reasons for buying a property in Spain is different. It may be a permanent residence, a holiday home or an investment for letting as a holiday rental. Buying a property in a rural location does, however, come with something of a responsibility.
Many rural villages in Andalucia, where we live and work, are in danger of becoming obsolete. Young people feel compelled to leave the villages of their birth and their families to migrate to the larger towns and cities in search of employment. As older people die, there is little temptation for younger relatives to take on the old properties, as there are few opportunities in the villages. For this reason, there are many homes to be found for sale, or abandoned, in rural villages.
Rural villages in Andalucia rely on agriculture, some construction and tourism as the principle sources of income and the residents of these villages live in constant hope of new opportunities for work, revenue and a future.
It may sound cheesy to say that when you buy a village house, you are investing in the future of the village and picking up a thread of history. Our advice would be to consider what part you would like to play in village life, as the more you invest, the richer your rewards. Don’t worry if your Spanish is poor; there are many ways you can integrate into village life with just a few words of the language. However, if you make the effort to fit in and contribute in some way, you will quickly be welcomed into a warm, generous and appreciative community.
Case study 1
Calle Eras, Moclín
We were asked by the owner of this pretty village house if we could help market it on his behalf.
Many Spanish property owners hope to attract overseas buyers as the requirements of these buyers are very different from those of local residents. In rural villages, many Spanish people do not see the value in property as they consider the villages to be dying - there are few employment opportunities, and many younger people have to move to the larger towns and cities to find work. For them, the idea of a 30 minute drive to work each day is not conceivable, and many local people would prefer to buy in the centre or on the outskirts of town, within easy reach of their places of work.
Overseas buyers, however, have a different set of criteria. They are invariably looking to buy a home to start a new life in Spain. They might be looking for a holiday home, or a property that could be let as a holiday home. As a result, the appeal of a village house is likely to be far greater to someone not looking for employment opportunities in the immediate vicinity.
This house had a huge amount of appeal. Despite being almost 300 years old, it had been very sympathetically restored in a markedly non-Spanish style. The artistic owner had used traditional materials and retained original timber beams. Stained glass had been commissioned, and structural elements renewed. The charm was evident.
We initially put the house on the market at 165,000 Euros, which was on the optimistic side. However, we knew that we had a good 12 months to generate some interest.
The property was listed on over 17 different property portals by us, covering prospective purchasers from Spain and all over Europe. We utilise paid social media and PR to gain as much exposure as we can.
After a couple of months, over the winter, the price of the property was reduced to 149,500 Euros.
In total, we arranged appointments for 8 different prospective buyers, originating from Ireland, the UK and Spain. We were the only consultancy or agency involved to introduce any prospective buyers, and this is due to an ongoing, concerted marketing campaign and a string of connected marketing activities that extend beyond our own website and the property portals. Prospective purchasers have contacted us through our blog, many different social media channels, radio programmes and podcast and our other business activities.
In late November 2019, we secured an offer on the property to cash purchasers and the sale completed just after Christmas.
We believe that we have a different approach to marketing property, and we are as committed as the local people to find new residents who will contribute to the community and ensure that these small rural villages survive with a degree of optimism.
If, after reading this, you would like us to handle the marketing of your property, then please have a look at our fee structure.
If you would like further information on the properties we list on this website, please contact us at info@granadaconcierge.com
or call 0034 663 506 000.