Although property, particularly rural houses in Spain, are generally cheaper than in the UK the cost of buying is higher.

The main reason for this is the purchase tax of 7% on all property sales, this is known as IVA and is the Spanish equivalent of VAT. You will also have charges for land registry fees, legal costs and notary charges. These will take the buying costs up to a around 10% of the purchase price.

Once purchased the annual taxes on a Spanish property obviously vary with the property in question. In general they are not too high, a typical two-bedroomed apartment will usually have total annual costs of between £1,000 and £1,500.