The Word on the Street - News and Information from Spain

International Edition - April 2011

News and Information from Spain

Welcome to the April issue of 'The Word on the Street'. Your monthly news and information from Spain provided by Ábaco Asesores. In a couple of columns we hope to keep you in touch with the news, events and just a little bit of gossip.

The white bell tower with date palms
Guadalest, Alicante

Considering renting?

Many people are. It's a wise choice for those who want to really get to know their local area before buying. It can also be a good way of helping to pay your mortgage or generating an income. However, you need to be aware of your tax obligations if you do decide to rent your Spanish property out. Our article 'Offsetting costs against your rental income' provides information on the ÁbacoConnect website.

On a lighter note

If you enjoy a little satire and wry humour take a look here.

Ring any bells? How much of this do you do when you're trying to make yourself understood? Learning a language is not easy if you're past primary school age. If you're a tourist you can be forgiven for having only the basics - but what about the rest of us?

Do you think that learning the language should be compulsory if you want to live abroad? Click here to tell us what you think:

A learning the language course should be compulsory for everyone

The decision to learn the language or not should be up to you

And for those of you who've met that brick wall in language learning AGAIN why not take a look at this website: www.thesaurus.com

The whole website is interesting if you have a love of words. It contains a thesaurus, dictionary and quotes, but of particular interest is the Spanish language web page. This resource can help you with your translations as well as featuring 'word of the day', 'phrase of the day' and grammar tips in a very palatable form.

Habitation Certificates

It is important when you come to buy a resale property that it has a habitation certificate. Regulations around the issuing of these are changing constantly.However, our article on the website 'A Habitation Certificate for your resale property' might help throw some light on the current situation.

Our webinar survey

In our last newsletter we asked you what time would be best for us to hold a webinar (an online seminar). You told us that an afternoon slot (3.00 pm UK time) was your preferred time. Thanks to those who responded - it will help us plan in the future.

Pay your bills the easy way

Did you know, you don’t have to use stamps, visit offices or even use the internet to pay some of your bills? If they have a bar code you can use that handy hole in the wall instead. Just:

1. put your card in the cash machine
2. click on the 'menu' to 'pay bills'
3. scan the bar code in
4. your account is debited immediately and the bill is paid

There are only certain cash points that you can use - BBVA, CAM, CajaMurcia, Caja Madrid, La Caixa, Santander. But what a good idea!

For a rather entertaining tale of bill payment woes click here.

The article concludes with some useful advice too.

Airport Angst

It's all new at Alicante airport. If you've not been to the new terminal yet, the word is BIG. Perhaps the second word association for it is CONFUSING. Or at least the drive up to it is. But help is at hand from this excellent step-by-step guide on the Alicante-Spain website.

You might also find this description useful on the website. my travel guide website.

The good news is that parking here is still cheap! Whilst on the subject of flights…

Clear day with aqua green clear sea
Benidorm, Alicante

Coming over?
What's coming up?

If you're over here to avoid the royal wedding look away. However, if you're looking forward to making the most of the extra bank holiday by wishing the royal couple well, then you can do it here in Spain too. On Friday 29th April there will be a party to celebrate the royal wedding in Rojales Market Place.

The event is being organised by Rojales Town Hall in association with Paul Cunningham Nurses and will include TKO, a children's tea party, international food and wine tasting, zumba and other events. It's an opportunity for a knees up with live music and jive dancing. For more information you can call 639 318 526 or email sueinthesun@hotmail.com Party. You can read more about it here.

Know your reds

Red days are the Spanish equivalent of the UK bank holiday. There's more of them than in the UK but they're different in other ways too. For example, The Saints' days tend to honour the date rather than the day. So if one happens to fall on a Saturday, that's where it stays and there isn't one 'in lieu' on the Monday. They're also adhered to much more in Spain and the vast majority of shops do have to close.

There are both national and local bank holidays in Spain. This can make it all the more difficult to keep up with them. So, to give you a helping hand access this weblink to check whether there are any pending. Helps you avoid those unexpected 'cerrados´.

Ryan air again

There's one thing you can say about Ryan air, they're never out of the news. This time it's the 'will they/ won't they' of flights to Alicante. Not wanting to pay extra for covered walkways Ryan air are threatening to pull out of Alicante just as the rest of us are finding our way round it.

If you still want to fly with them but don't want to pay more than you have to for booking with them, you can apply for a prepaid mastercard. This is the only way to pay for your flight without incurring additional card fees. A company called Kalixa are offering them at an initial cost of £4.95 - they're free to use after that. If you want to find out more click here.