Buying a villa in Marbella: the process from shortlist to keys
From NIE to notary: each stage of buying a Marbella villa, in the order it happens, with a realistic timeline.
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The journal
Everything we have written on buying, renting, living in and building villas in Marbella, in one place.
Purchase costs and taxes when buying a villa in Marbella
What a €4M villa really costs to buy in Marbella, resale or new build, and the taxes you pay every year after.
Due diligence on a Marbella villa: title, licences and survey
Title, licences, planning and the building itself: the checks that keep a Marbella villa purchase safe.
New build or resale villa in Marbella: how to choose
Clean lines and warranties, or mature gardens and an established address: weighing new build against resale.
Lucas Fox on Marbella and Ibiza: two prime markets, two kinds of value
Lucas Fox sets Marbella against Ibiza: the Golden Mile and La Zagaleta as a safe haven for wealth, with gross yields of 2% to 4% that are rarely the point.
Renting a holiday villa in Marbella: seasons, areas and the fine print
Seasons, neighbourhoods, deposits and registration numbers: what to check before you book a villa for your holiday.
Renting a villa in Marbella for a season or for years
Seasonal contracts, residential leases, deposits and schools: how to rent a villa for longer and test the coast before you buy.
Renting out your Marbella villa: licences, tax and management
The registrations, tax rules and management choices you face when you let your villa to holiday guests.
Marbella through the year: seasons, climate and villa life
Mild winters, dry summers and a mountain at your back: what each season in Marbella asks of a villa and its owner.
Schools and family life in Marbella: where to live with children
Choosing a villa around the school run: the international schools, the neighbourhoods near them and daily family life.
Golf villa living in Marbella: frontline homes, courses and clubs
From the Golf Valley to La Zagaleta: what to expect from a villa on the fairway, and what to check before you buy.
Running a villa in Marbella: staff, security, maintenance and costs
A villa in Marbella runs on people, routines and a sensible budget. How owners keep a house ready, safe and well kept.
Lladró's Firefly lamp: porcelain light without a cable
Lladró sponsored the Country & Town House Interiors evening in London and handed out its cordless Firefly lamp, a porcelain dome designed with Olga Hanono.
Villa styles in Marbella: from cortijo to white cube
Six villa styles on the coast, and what each one tells you about light, maintenance and resale value.
Orientation, light and terraces: a villa that works with the Marbella sun
Where the sun rises and sets through the year, and how to place terraces, pool and glass so a villa works in every season.
Renovating a villa in Marbella: licences, phases and budgets
Licences, architects, phases and realistic expectations for renovating a villa on the Marbella coast.
Porcelanosa at Beyond Design: stone, Krion and the art of the surface
At Beyond Design in Valencia, Porcelanosa let three studios shape XTONE and Krion into furniture, and visitors paint a mural of nine ceramic tiles.
Private brief
Tell us how you want to live. We will tell you where.
Describe the villa, the setting and the timing in a few lines. We read every brief personally and answer with the neighbourhoods and questions worth your time. We are an editorial guide, not an agency, and nothing is shared without your consent.