Here we take a look at how much money it costs annually to own a house in Javea, from the most basic expenses to the optional expenditures, so you know what to expect when you buy your first home.
Before buying a house for the first time, you have to consider many things. One of the most important are the costs of maintaining the home. In addition to fixed expenses such as mortgage, water, electricity, etc. There are other expenses that new buyers are not very aware of at the beginning. In this article we itemise how much it costs to own a home in Javea.
The main expenses of owning a home in Spain are:
- Mortgage
- IBI
- Community expenses
- Rubbish rates
- Home insurance
- Maintenance expenses
- Services and extras
- Mortgage expenses
In most cases, the main fixed expense of owning a home is the monthly payments on the mortgage.
Each mortgage is unique, so the bill at the end of the month varies depending on the case. However, the most advisable thing is that the monthly payment does not exceed one third of the household income, although it should not be less than 20% so as not to extend the loan excessively.
For example, if your family earns a monthly income of € 3,000, the mortgage repayments should not exceed €1,000. In any case, banks analyse the solvency when granting mortgages and this factor is usually taken into account.
Also, you should thoroughly review the mortgage contract with a lawyer for abusive clauses before signing it to avoid surprises at the end of the month.
IBI (Real Estate Tax)
The IBI is a property tax and is regulated by the City Council of each locality. This is charged to the owners of flats, houses, garages, premises, etc. for the simple fact they own a property.
The IBI is paid once a year and the cost varies according to each municipality and the characteristics of the property. It is difficult to determine how much money the IBI is, since it can vary from a few euros to more than € 1,000. To make things easier, you should check the cadastre. In any case, the General Directorate of Cadastre estimates that the average price of the IBI in Spain is about €500 per year.
Community fees
If your home is not an independent house, you will have to pay for the use and maintenance of the common spaces. The owners on different floors will have to face the proportional part that corresponds to them. This is calculated according to the surface of your property. For example, a person with a house of 120 m2 will pay more than one with a house of 60 m2.
Community fees are paid monthly and may include costs of:
- Lighting the common areas.
- Community water
- Community insurance
- Possible repairs
- Maintenance of spaces, gym, garden, pool, etc.
- Porter service, cleaning, etc
- Community management or administration
- Parking lots
- Damage and other expenses.
Depending on the size of the community and the different services (pool, gym, etc.) the fee can vary greatly. In Spain, the average community expenditure per year is about €600, or €50 per month.
Rubbish rates
The rubbish rate is a tax that also depends on the town hall. It is charged for the collection of household and local waste and the entire process of its treatment until its disposal.
It is charged annually, and the cost depends on each municipality, from zero in some locations, to just over €170 in the most expensive cities.
Sometimes it is included in community fees and, in cities that do not charge, it can be included in the IBI. The average cost for the rubbish rate in Spain is around € 100 per year.
Home insurance
Homeowners insurance means being covered for many eventualities and thus avoiding extra expenses that imbalance the monthly family budget. Imagine a robbery, a fire or a flood due to broken pipes…
The price of home insurance will depend on the coverage and the insurer. But it is interesting to ask for quotes before buying the house, since there can be many differences between one house and another. Especially if a property has areas such as gardens, terraces, porches, etc.
In any case, the average price of a multi-risk policy for a house of 120 m2 is around €250 per year, according to the latest report of the OCU (Organization of Consumers and Users).
Keep in mind that home insurance can be cheaper if you have security systems installed in your home.
Maintenance and renovation expenses
One of the aspects that most upsets the family economy for homeowners are maintenance and renovation expenses.
This can include an infinity of expenses, although the most common are the maintenance or renovation of appliances and furniture, taking care of the garden, repairing breakdowns, etc.
Although home insurance saves a lot of money in this area, it is essential to keep in mind the costs of keeping a house in good condition.
Therefore, it is recommended to reserve 5% of the monthly household income and create a fund to meet these types of expenses.
Invoices, services, and extras
Finally, to know how much it costs to own a home, you must include all the services that the house will have. The expenses in basic services and their average monthly costs are:
- Electricity bill: €63 per month.
- Water bill: €8 to €20 per month.
- Gas bill: €50 per month.
- Telephone and internet bill: €49 per month.
Other optional services that can be counted as household expenses and their average prices are:
- Television on demand: €10 per month.
- Home cleaning: €12 per hour.
- Gardening: €20 per hour.
- Security alarm: €35 per month.
How much it costs to own a home: a practical example
To clarify things a bit, let’s see a practical example of the costs of owning a family with a monthly income of € 3,000. For this, we will consider the average expenditure previously established without having optional services for a house in a community of owners:
- 20% mortgage of the family salary: €600 per month.
- IBI: €42 per month.
- Community expenses: €50 per month.
- Rubbish rates: €8.50 per month.
- Home insurance: €20 per month.
- Maintenance and renovation expenses (5% of salary): € 150 per month.
- Invoices and extras: €175 per month.
In total, the final bill for owning a home would be € 1,045.85 per month. Each year, these expenses amount to € 12,550.20, which represents 34.86% of the monthly family budget.
These figures are consistent with the general recommendations on housing expenditure, which estimate that allocating between 30% and 35% of the family budget to a house is the right amount to have a good standard of living.
If you would like further help with determining the expenses of your future home, we help you in the process and advise you how to budget for the Javea house of your dreams.
