Most of the questions I’ve been getting lately are about inheritance and inheritance tax and about the value development of real estate here on the coast.
To begin with inheritance and inheritance law: the simplest and most sensible thing that can be said about it is that it is quite complicated. It is eminently important matter to look up a specialist for. As is so often the case when employing a specialist, it costs money first, which yields something much later, usually in the form of (tax/inheritance tax) savings. But if the opinions are (or were), it can also yield substantial savings, maintain assets, prevent something from being sold to pay the inheritance tax, or other misery that you are not waiting for.
For this matter, which is often taken under the term (International) Estate Planning, you can contact your notary, financial advisor or your own bank. For the more fortunate, there are also very good opportunities here on the coast at the (Dutch) banks, which profile themselves with their “Private Banking” department. Some freely available pecunia are a prerequisite, but then you also get access to a quantity of information, advice and possibly even strategies, that are unparalleled.
During my studies I met a very special fellow student. His name is Godfried, and that’s not for nothing. He looks in everything like his famous namesake Godfried Bomans. I never asked him, but I’m convinced he’s wearing the clothes and shoes his father and grandfather also wore. At his home there was talk of everything (in different languages) except about money. He’s told me that money in his family wasn’t an item; money was earned because of the senior positions, but spent as little as possible. From what remained, quality shares and real estate were bought and nothing was ever sold. The adage was “Quality lasts a long time…”. He did three studies at a time, not that he ever wanted to do anything with it, but only because he found them interesting. When his father died and he was more or less called to manage the family capital, he did a study of economics in a minimum time, which he completed cum laude. He then multiplied, aided by a real estate and a stock boom that raised family capital. He never gave me the impression of working even one day in his life, but that increase in family capital was quite impressive.
To my great pleasure he has honored us a number of times in the past year with a visit. He not only has a great preference for fine wines, but is also a very good and extremely enthusiastic cook, who likes to cook for us. But his visits have a more important reason. On the basis of a large number of data, he is very convinced that the best investment opportunities are currently here in the South of Spain. And so he buys – selectively – but steadily. And as you understand, we’d love to help him with that!
So when I am asked how I see the value development of the property here in the south of Spain, I think of Don Antonio and Godfried and invariably answer: “… In the short term, I have no idea, but on a ten-year basis I firmly believe that prices will at least double; emotionally I can’t believe it, but rationally I’m completely convinced!”.
And i try to take that as seriously as possible.
Mr. Tom van Wees
Edificio Jacaranda 304
Avenida Litoral 7
E-29680 Estepona
https://www.verygoodestates.com/nl/
email: tomvanwees@verygoodestates.com
T: +34 952 80 88 80
