Hi, we are young couple from ramsgate, kent in england.  Both of our work is internet based so we decided, why pay a lot of money to live in england with a crap climate when our jobs allow us to work anywhere in the world.

We have decided to move to spain in march/april this year and have been told that andalucia is nice, such as nerja, torrox, almunecar.  I have never been to spain so have no idea whether these are nice or not.  My girlfriend has been several times but to places such as Ibiza, marbella and more tourist resort type places which im keen to avoid.

We have a budget of between ?400 and ?800 per month for rent, or 500-1100 euros(ish) and would like initially to find somewhere for 3-6 months to get a feel for the areas. 

My question is small but I wanted to give some background as to who we are and where we are coming from. 

The question is with regards to deposits, most people seem to be asking for 2 months deposit and 1 months rent up front, do people find that they actually get the deposit back after tenancy or is it a scam like in england?

Thanks in advance and look forward to speaking to you all.

Jamie and vicki

Hi, good luck in your move and hope you find a property you like. As for the rental deposits, most reputable companies ask for 1 months holding deposit until tenancy is taken up when the first months rent is paid.  The 1 months holding deposit is returnable upon vacating at the end of your tenancy however, the landlord does usually reserve the right to retain the deposit if you wish to end the tenancy before the end of the contract.

As with everything you do need to be carefull when parting with a deposit in cash.  There are many fine honest agents but sadly some are not and some are fly by night.  Only hand over your deposit when you have your contract ready to sign - which is best done via your lawyer.  Never be pushed into handing over any cash prior to seeing the rental contract.

If you are renting privately through a landlord direct they are usually more worried about getting the rent rather than damage to items on the itinerary.  It is quite common when you are in the last few months of a rental agreement to not pay the rent for the last two months thus assuring that you get your deposit back.

As with everything in Spain that requires a contract the golden rule is trust nobody and sign nothing unless you are sure it is above board, and you fully understand waht you are signing.  Having a good English speaking lawyer is a must and will pay dividends in the long run despite the intitial cost.

You will find a housing rental contract here which is what you should receive as standard. http://pre.universia.es/consejos/alquiler/modelo-carta/index.htm
Google will translate it into english for you.

Good luck with your move