MOVING TO BARCELONA
The siren call of Barcelona’s pretty seaside location and reputation as a humming metropolis with a broad cultural appeal continues to attract new residents from all over the world.
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WHERE TO LIVE
Barcelona is a compact city, making the choice of area to live a comparatively easy matter. Much of the outer suburbs and satellite districts are of limited appeal. With the exception of the privileged minority, most residents live in apartments, which can range from tiny studios (as small as 30 sq metres and on occasion even less) to enormous sprawling affairs (in excess of 200 sq metres). The Spanish property bubble burst in 2008, but Barcelona continues to be one of Spain’s most expensive cities. Its compactness and popularity mean that rental property remains at a premium.
Ciutat Vella (the old town) is roughly divided into the three areas of the Barri Gòtic, El Raval and La Ribera. Locals tend to shy away from Ciutat Vella, either because of a lingering reputation for danger or because they feel the area is overrun with tourists. Both are legitimate concerns. Prostitution, petty crime and drugs are still issues at the seaward end of La Rambla and in the streets of El Raval between the waterfront and Carrer del Carme. The most highly prized zone in local eyes is around Carrer de Santa Anna and Carrer del Duc de la Victòria in the Barri Gòtic, while foreigners have tended to be attracted to the buzz of the Born area in La Ribera.
The variety of housing in the old town is enormous. Some apartments are remarkably spacious and may boast attractive features, such as hydraulic mosaic floors, bare stone walls, timber ceiling beams and the like. Other places seem like rabbit hutches. The good and bad frequently have certain disadvantages in common. Narrow streets mean limited natural light in all but top-floor flats. To get to the latter, you might be looking at four or five flights of stairs, as lifts are a rare luxury in these old buildings. Ground- and 1st-floor flats frequently have terraces out the back, perfect for BBQs. The throngs of tourists and night-time revellers are also a factor to be taken into account, depending on the street you live in.
Seaside options range from the often tiny subdivided flats of La Barceloneta, a still gritty working-class area with much charm that is slowly being gentrified. The Vila Olímpica area is somewhat soulless but offers more modern accommodation. El Poblenou is popular with some expats as it has what they consider a more genuine (read less touristy) feel while offering competitive rent and sale prices and beaches close by. Further northeast, you wind up amid the extravagant highrise blocks of modern apartments looking out to sea in the Fòrum area – a little too far from the central city action for some tastes.
Popular with younger Catalans and foreigners alike is Gràcia. Many of the long narrow streets of this once separate town are lined with restaurants, bars and shops, lending it a life independent of the rest of the city. Prices can be high.
Between Ciutat Vella and Gràcia sprawls the grid area of L’Eixample. Its heart, the streets around Passeig de Gràcia, is where the more expensive housing tends to be concentrated. Apartments tend to be long, narrow affairs. That means wasted space in long corridors but can be an advantage for those with bedrooms to the rear – far from the noise of traffic and, in certain areas like the streets between Passeig de Gràcia and Carrer de Muntaner, nocturnal weekend revellers. To some, it makes a good compromise, centrally located between most districts of interest, well served by public transport and offering a broad range of options. Prices are moderate to high. The further you are from Passeig de Gràcia, the lower the prices.
The busy, hilly streets of El Poble Sec can be appealing, as prices are not bad by central Barcelona standards. It’s a little rough around the edges, which you might like or lump.
La Zona Alta, a rough geographic term for the higher inland areas between Pedralbes and Tibidabo, are firmly favoured by the local bourgeoisie. Real estate is at its most expensive in these areas (including Sant Gervasi and Sarrià).
Families wanting houses and gardens generally have to look further afield and many choose to live beyond the city in and around Sant Cugat. Another popular choice is the seaside town of Sitges (Click here). Property anywhere near the centre and waterfront there is as expensive, and often more so, as anything in the poshest parts of Barcelona.
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RENTING
Extended Stays
If coming to check Barcelona out for a few weeks, rather than staying in a hotel, the best option is a short-term apartment rental. The Sleeping chapter provides various options for searching out holiday apartment rentals (Click here).
You can trawl those websites for longer stays too, although renting your own place or flat-sharing are the two obvious options. Social networks, like Facebook and the travel accommodation website Couchsurfing (www.couchsurfing.org) can also be useful tools for seeking out people with whom to share. Check out local websites and publications too (Click here). A particular useful site is www.lloguerjove.com (in English too), where share flats and rentals are advertised.
Many people go through estate agents, liberally sprinkled across the city. Browsing these is a good way to get an initial idea of rents being charged.
Leases & Renter Rights
If renting a room in a share flat (piso compartido), expect to pay about €350 a month or more for a room. Do not accept the first thing you find. And don’t be disheartened by your first encounters. You may be confronted with windowless cells in student houses packed to the rafters with people (of course, this can mean the compensation of paying low rent). Older buildings that have long been on the rental market can be in a poor state of repair. Then, occasionally, you can turn up some gems.
Most flat-share arrangements are cash-in-hand affairs with the people already living there. Make sure you understand what is included: electricity, gas, water, phone, internet connections, cable TV and comunidad (building maintenance fees) are all costs and you need to be clear which of these are included in your rent.
If renting a place yourself, you will either go direct to the owner (usually through the websites and publications mentioned on Click here) or through an estate agent. The benefit of the former is that you avoid commission and may be able to negotiate a lower rent. The downside is that you will have little or no comeback in case of problems.
Rental leases signed with estate agencies are generally for five years, renewable. It is possible to get shorter contracts. There are generally no rent rises in the life of the contract. As a rule, with at least one month’s notice, you may end the contract if you wish to move out. If you have problems in the flat, you can approach the estate agent for help in resolving them. Bear in mind, however, that the general attitude is that tenants have to sort most issues out themselves.
Flats can come either amueblados (furnished) or not (sin muebles). Generally, all flats have the basic kitchen fittings, but on occasion even these are missing and you have to get a plumber to install it all, which basically works out to you doing the owner a little renovation work!
On signing the lease, you pay a month’s rent as deposit, at least the first month’s rent in advance and the agent’s commission (often also one or two month’s rent). Check that all the suministros (utilities) are connected before signing. You will have to arrange the name changes on these (again, a friendly estate agent could come in handy here, especially if you have language problems). You will need to provide ID, passport or local resident’s number (NIE), and may be asked for some kind of proof of capacity to pay (such as salary slips or an aval bancario, a guarantee from your local bank for up to six months’ rent).
Students
Language students learning Spanish and foreign university students, many of them in Barcelona on the one-year Erasmus exchange program, make up the bulk of students in Barcelona. Most opt for flat shares. The Universitat de Barcelona (Map; 
93 402 11 00; Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes 585; 
Universitat), the British Council (Map; 93 241 99 77; Carrer d’Amigó 83; 
FGC Muntaner) and International House (Map; 93 268 45 11; Carrer de Trafalgar 14; Arc de Triomf) have notice boards with ads for flat shares. Another option is the student residence complexes run by Melon District (93 217 88 12; www.melondistrict.com; rent from €484 a month in a twin share, to €650 a month in single, depending on length of stay). The better located, Melon District Poble Sec (Map; 93 329 96 67; Avinguda del Paral.lel 101; Paral.lel) can accommodate around 100 people in a combination of single and double rooms with common kitchen areas and single or twin studios.
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BUYING AN APARTMENT
Buying property in Barcelona, as anywhere, requires patience and care. The most common way to find an apartment is through estate agents. People also place photocopied notices around town (on walls, street lights, car windscreens, everywhere…). Finally, some vendors content themselves with hanging for sale (en venda/en venta) signs on their balconies (although more often than not these are hung by estate agents). Real estate agencies and individuals place classified ads in newspapers like La Vanguardia, and on websites such as Loquo (www.loquo.com). Many ads that appear to be private are in fact placed by agents (and anyone can set themselves up as an agent).
The real estate boom from about 1998 to 2008 saw housing prices rise at a phenomenal rate. Since 2008, prices have stabilised and, in some parts of the city, dropped. Sales plummeted but, in early 2010, showed signs of timid recovery. At the time of writing, the average price was around €4600 per sq metre. Though that figure varies considerably from one district to another.
At the height of the boom, estate agents were demanding as much as 10% of the purchase price in commission, which is passed on to the purchaser. However, vendors can negotiate this and a more reasonable figure would hover around 5%. Clearly, if buying direct from a property owner, you can save yourself this cost.
If taking out a mortgage in Barcelona, discuss the options with a local bank before embarking on a serious house search. Since the crisis of 2008, banks have become noticeably more reticent about lending. As a rule, residents need to pay 30% of the house price up front (broken down into 20% of the asking price and the rest to cover costs and taxes, which amount to about 10% of the purchase price). Non-residents generally are asked to pay 50% of the asking price plus the 10% to cover costs.
When you have found a place that interests you, you need to take certain steps to avoid traps. If buying outright and not using a local bank’s services, you should consider taking on a conveyancing lawyer. These are best found by word of mouth. Otherwise, try a search on www.elabogado.com/inmobiliario/barcelona.
Firstly, a check needs to be done on the property in the Registro de la Propiedad (Map; 93 225 35 51; Carrer de Joan Miró 19-21). For a small fee you can obtain a file on the exact address, in which any outstanding debts, unpaid taxes or problems of ownership should emerge. When buying a property in Barcelona, you take over any debts or outstanding payments. You need to check with the Comunidad de Propietarios (the association of all the owners in the building) that the present owner is up to date with maintenance fees. Finally, you need to know if the building is afectado, ie whether it is earmarked for modification, demolition and the like because of future town planning. You can also do this yourself in person at the Oficina d’Informació Urbanística (Map; Avinguda Diagonal 230; 
9am-1.30pm & 4-5pm Mon-Thu, 9am-1.30pm Fri). Some people buy such properties because they are often cheaper than average, in the hope that the said plans won’t be carried out any time soon.
If arranging a local mortgage, the bank will evaluate the property to decide whether the amount being asked is reasonable given its condition and market prices. This is not a full survey of the kind that is common in countries like the UK. Such structural examinations of properties are rarely carried out in Spain.
If you are satisfied you want to buy the property, you may well be invited to make a down payment (commonly 10% of the agreed price) in what is commonly known as a contrato de arras. This helps lock in the sale. If you back out later, you lose the money. If the vendor backs out, s/he must pay back this sum and another 10%. The final sale is sealed by signing the escritura pública before a notary (usually commissioned by your bank or the estate agent). At this time, you will also pay a whopping 7% VAT on the sale price and expenses (notaries, documentation, registration of the property under your name and so on).
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JOBS
With the world economic crisis that began in 2008 and the collapse of the building industry at the same time, unemployment in Spain shot up to just over 20% by April 2010. In the province of Barcelona, the total is not much better, around 17.5% (these figures do not, however, take into account the underground economy – those who work cash-in-hand). In this gloomy context, finding work in Barcelona can be a challenge. Add to this the intensity of competition, with young people from all over Europe attracted by the city’s lifestyle, and one can imagine that searching for work in the Catalan capital can be a tough assignment.
Visas & Permanent Residence
Nationals of Switzerland, Norway and Iceland and all EU countries may work in Spain without a visa, but for stays of more than three months they are supposed to register with the Policía Nacional within the first three months. They are then issued with a document bearing the NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjeros), needed for many everyday activities, such as opening bank accounts. No ID card is issued, merely an unwieldy document. The idea is supposed to make life easier for European citizens, who may identify themselves with their own national ID. But since the NIE is needed for many other transactions in Spain, the net benefit of the measure seems scarce.
All other citizens are supposed to obtain a work permit from a Spanish consulate in their country of residence and, if they plan to stay more than 90 days, a residence visa. If you are offered a contract, your employer will usually steer you through the labyrinth of paperwork. Otherwise, work permits and/or residence visas are hard to come by for non-EU citizens. Quite a few people work, discreetly, without bothering to tangle with the bureaucracy, but this really only works in such areas as bartending, construction, harvesting and the like.
If you manage to get some kind of visa and aim to stay long-term in Spain, you will be aiming for a Permiso de Residencia (resident’s permit). If you manage to renew this for a minimum of five years, you are generally granted permanent residence.
Work Options
The easiest source of work for foreigners is teaching English (or another foreign language). Schools are listed under Acadèmies de Idiomes in the Yellow Pages.
Sources of information on possible teaching work – either school or private lessons – include foreign cultural centres (the British Council, Institut Français etc), language schools, foreign-language bookshops and university noticeboards. Cultural institutes you may want to try include the following:
British Council (Map; 93 241 97 00; www.britishcouncil.org/es/spain.htm; Carrer d’Amigó 83; FGC Muntaner)
Institut Français de Barcelona (Map; 93 567 77 77; www.institutfrances.org; Carrer de Moià 8; Diagonal)
Institute for North American Studies (Map; 93 240 51 10; www.ien.es; Via Augusta 123; FGC Plaça Molina)
Translating and interpreting could be an option if you are fluent in Spanish (and/or Catalan) and a language in demand. Bar work in Irish pubs and boat scrubbing in the marinas and the like are other possibilities.
For many jobs on a higher level, you will need to have reasonable Spanish and, in some cases, Catalan. The better your ability in these languages, the greater your chances on the local market.
A big impediment can be recognition of foreign diplomas and other qualifications. There is no set rule on which qualifications are recognised but if you are looking for work where they are necessary, you will most likely need to have notarised translations of them prepared.
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FAMILY CONSIDERATIONS
Moving with kids can be a complex business. Barcelona offers several international schools, and day-care facilities are available, although competition for places is tough.
MOVING HOUSE
Moving house is a traumatic business at the best of times and can be worse still when heading abroad. Check out various international removal companies in your home city and compare quotes. Pack your belongings well and take the appropriate insurance, as breakage or other damage in transit is always on the cards.
At the destination point, one potential obstacle can be getting bulkier items and furniture upstairs, especially in buildings without a lift (a common situation in the old town, and not uncommon in other parts of town). The most common solution is to hire vehicles with a platform to lift objects to the streetside windows (which generally have to be taken out). This should be taken care of by the removals company you contract.
A web search along the lines of ‘removalists Spain’ will throw up a plethora of international removals companies. The UK is particularly blessed with such companies.
Places in pre-school day-care centres (guarderías) can be hard to come by. Ludotecas (play centres for small kids) can be useful for kids of a broader age range, but generally only for a few hours a day, especially for the hours between school finishing times and when busy parents get off work. A good place to start for information is Kids in Barcelona (www.kidsinbarcelona.com), which has a list of English-language and international nurseries, kindergartens and after-school play/activity centres.
A handful of international schools operate in and around Barcelona. The British School of Barcelona (93 665 15 84; http://britishschoolbarcelona.interaweb.com; Carrer de Ginesta 26, Castelldefels) has delivered quality education since the 1950s, attracting Catalan and international pupils, most of whom go on to attend university in the United Kingdom or Spain. Attracting more of an American student base is the Benjamin Franklin International School (Map; 93 434 23 80; www.bfischool.org; Carrer de Martorell i Peña 9).
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USEFUL RESOURCES
Websites
Websites in English on living in Spain abound. There are also some useful ones for the accommodation hunt.
Anuntis (www.anuntis.com, in Spanish) A big general online classified portal where you’ll find various small ads websites, such as Segundamano (www.segundamano.es, in Spanish).
Barnavivienda (www.barnavivienda.com, in Spanish) Flat rental.
En Alquiler (www.enalquiler.com, in Spanish) A nationwide property rental site with thousands of flats in Barcelona.
Living in Spain (www.livinginspain.org) A broad site with information on topics ranging from getting married to making wills.
Lloguer Jove (www.lloguerjove.com) Dedicated to flat shares and rental, especially for young people.
Loquo (www.loquo.com) A good place to start looking for apartment rental, share accommodation and a host of other classifieds.
Spain Expat (www.spainexpat.com) This site has a wealth of information on anything from tax to starting your own bar.
Newspapers & Publications
The Complete Residents’ Guide Barcelona, published by Explorer, is a weighty tome containing all sorts of information for people living in Barcelona. Countless guidebooks in English on living in Spain exist. David Hampshire’s regularly updated Living and Working in Spain is a good one.
Those in search of properties for sale or rent can trawl classifieds in local papers, especially La Vanguardia. The free English-language monthly Barcelona Metropolitan, found in bars and some hotels, carries rental classifieds in English, as does another monthly freebie, Catalunya Classified. Otherwise, get a hold of Anuntis, the weekly classifieds paper. The last few pages of the Suplement Immobiliària (Real Estate Supplement) carry ads for shared accommodation under the heading ‘lloguer/hostes i vivendes a compartir’.