New to this lark ! - EX-Pats and Owners Abroad, Holiday Forums

New to this lark !

chrissiehope

2006-05-07 16:25:03

We recently bought a 'Casa de Campo' (little house in the country !) in central Andalucia (not far from Antequera, near Archidona), and it is currently being reformed so it can be used as either one house or two apartments (depending on requirements). Following my experiences in a wheelchair last year (having broken my ankle in Spain), we are trying to make the ground floor 'apartment' as wheelchair friendly as we reasonably can.

Although it's early days yet, there are various aspects of Spanish property owning that we would welcome advice on, namely:

Can anyone recommend good Insurers ?
Can anyone recommend a good haulage company (not necessarily house removals at this stage)
Can anyone recommend a good lettings and/or management company

Also, are there any pitfalls to watch out for, or any tips that would make our project easier ? All help gratefully received

Cheers,
Chris

suebf

2006-05-08 13:00:46

Apparently you have to be very careful when advertising property as suitable for handicapped people, as this can mean not only wheelchair access to property but also kitchen counter tops lower so wheelchair users scan reach, specially adapted taps etc, waist high electric sockets etc etc. Although of course you can list things like rampped access etc on your web-site I think if you are aiming at a more specialised market to cater for wheelchair users the rules are a bit stricter.

It is worth contacting one of the organisations that specialize in holidays of this type for advice. This web-site has a disabled persons forum and I am sure advice can be got there too!

It would be a shame to spend money on alterations only to find they are not suitable.

Regards

sue

chrissiehope

2006-05-08 14:27:58

Hi Sue,

Thanks for this - I have already posted on the disabled forum in more detail, asking for any suggestions ! We will have a low level worktop in the kitchen, and a 'wet room' so there are no shower trays to negotiate, but so far have not gone down the 'fully disabled friendly' route with grab bars etc !

Cheers,
Chris

suebf

2006-05-09 08:01:22

Hi Chris,

I was giving this some thought last night, as we too have a ground floor property we may rent out, although I think it is too late for us to make changes now as we are at completion. However I am sure it would maximize the rental potential of your property if you were able to incorporate all the neccessary aids to enable wheelchair users to holiday at your property.

Good Luck

chrissiehope

2006-05-09 08:34:26

New to this lark

Hi Sue,

Yes, I think you're right - I am going to look into at least grab bars (I think things like pool hoists are a bit too much for us to get into !)

Cheers,
Chris

EX-Pats and Owners Abroad

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