Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

MOVING TO SPAIN

What are the pros and cons of life in Spain’s Basque Country?

The northern central region of the Basque Country may be very different from the Spain you imagine, but there are plenty of reasons to love it and great reasons to move there.

Published: 27 September 2023 11:58 CEST
Updated: 30 September 2023 09:16 CEST
What are the pros and cons of life in Spain’s Basque Country?
Pros and Cons of living in the Basque Country. Photo: Eric Prouzet / Unsplash

Pros

The food

The Basque Country is known throughout the world for its excellent cuisine, and its regional dishes have earned the Basques more Michelin Stars than any other region in Spain. Forget tapas and paella, if you live in the Basque Country it will be pintxos, cod pil pil and many other glorious seafood inventions. The foodie hub of the Basque Country is the coastal city of San Sebastián, but both Bilbao and Vitoria-Gasteiz are also known for their tasty offerings and award-winning bars and restaurants.

READ ALSO: A gourmet guide to ordering pintxos in Spain’s Basque Country

It has a spectacular natural side

The Basque Country is one of Spain’s greenest regions, home to more than 10 natural parks. Its landscapes range from dramatic coastal cliffs to soaring mountains, dense forests and biosphere reserves. This makes the region an excellent place for adventure sports and outdoor enthusiasts with a myriad of activities including surfing, hiking, kayaking and rock climbing.

Exciting cities with lots of culture

The Basque Country may be filled with nature, but it’s home to several thrilling cities that rival some of the biggest in Spain for cultural attractions and events. The two best are Bilbao and San Sebastián. Bilbao is an artsy city, famed for being the home of the Guggenheim, as well as several other architectural highlights by world-renowned designers and art museums. San Sebastián on the other hand has several excellent museums, as well as vibrant festivals from Semana Grande in August to the Tamborrada, a 24-hour drum parade in January.

San Sebastián is one of the most exciting cities in Spain. Photo: ultrash ricco / Unsplash
 

It offers competitive tax rates

Data from the Taxpayers’ Union (UC) and the Taxation Competitiveness Index (IACF) reveals that the Basque Country has some of the most attractive tax rates in Spain when it comes to income, wealth tax, inheritance, and property transfer tax. It also offers great incentives for businesses and attracts global companies.

The salaries are some of the highest in Spain

It’s well known that you’ll probably be taking a pay cut if you move to Spain from other northern or western European countries, as well as from the US or Australia. If you find a job in the Basque Country, however, you can still enjoy high salaries compared to the rest of the country. The latest stats show that those in the Basque Country earn the most in Spain with an average salary of just over €31,000 per year. It’s also one of the richest regions in Spain. 

READ ALSO: Why are the Basque Country and Catalonia so rich compared to the rest of Spain?

Easily located for frequent visits to France

If you’re a fan of France too, then living in the Basque Country enables you to travel easily between the two countries. The region has a great public transport system, one of which is the Euskotren, like a metro, but connecting most of the major towns and cities in the region, as well as small coastal villages and across to Hendaia or Hendaye in southern France. 

It has low levels of unemployment

If you’re hoping to find a job in Spain, then the Basque Country is one of the best places to do it, particularly because of the low levels of unemployment in the region. The Basque province of Gipuzkoa topped the list of Spanish provinces with the lowest unemployment rate as of the second quarter of 2023, with an unemployment rate of 6.51 percent. The region has also attracted many big foreign companies, meaning that there are many more vacancies than in some other regions, such as Extremadura for example.

The Basque Country is a great nature destination. Photo: Rens Greveling / Unsplash
 

It has one of the best education systems in Spain

If you have school-aged children, making the move to Spain can be worrying as you’ll wonder how they’ll cope and whether the level of education will be the same as what they received back home. The latest stats from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which carries out tests every 3 years on 15-year-olds in reading, maths and science, show that the results from the Basque Country were above average compared to the rest of the country.  

Cons

It’s expensive compared to other regions

Yes, the Basques may earn the most money in Spain, but the region is also generally considered to be one of the most expensive to live in too. San Sebastián is among the top 10 municipalities where the rent is the highest in the country. According to stats from Insurance broker Kelisto, the cost of living in San Sebastián is 33.44 percent higher than the national average, making it the most expensive city to live in Spain.

When it comes to buying a property it’s also the most expensive with an average cost of €511,830 for a 90m2 home. Both Bilbao and Vitoria-Gasteiz are still among the most expensive cities to buy a home in Spain but are still cheaper than San Sebastián. When it comes to rent, San Sebastián is the third most expensive in the country behind Barcelona and Madrid, while Bilbao comes in fourth place. 

According to the cost of living website Numbeo, consumer prices, restaurant prices and grocery costs are all higher in San Sebastián than in the capital of the country Madrid. When compared with Barcelona, however, it’s slightly cheaper in all categories apart from groceries. The cost of living in Bilbao is also higher than in Madrid, with the exception of rent. Of course, if you choose to live in the smaller towns or countryside, it will be cheaper, but not as cheap as some of the least expensive regions in Spain such as Andalusia or Extremadura.

The weather can be unpredictable

The weather in the Basque Country is not the typical weather of sunny hot days and mild winters that you might be imagining. The weather can often be rainy and the winters cold. According to data from the national weather agency Aemet, San Sebastián is the rainiest city in Spain with an of average 141.1 wet days per year. Bilbao comes in at number seven on the list with 124 rainy days per year and Vitoria-Gasteiz with 99.3 days. Summer temperatures are not always hot enough for the beach either, with the average between 23C and 27C.

It can often be rainy and overcast in Bilbao. Photo: Rodrigo Curi / Unsplash
 

You have to learn another language

This can actually be a pro or a con, depending on how good you are at learning languages. If you move to the Basque Country, as well as learning Spanish, it’s a good idea to learn some Basque too. Many signs and street names are Basque, plus it will earn you some brownie points with the locals. The downside is that Basque is known to be one of the most difficult languages in the world. This is because Basque isn’t related to any other known language, meaning nothing will be familiar, and knowing another Latin or Germanic language won’t help at all. 

Political tension

The Basque Country has had a very turbulent history and tensions between separatists and the rest of the country have been high for decades. Thankfully, the separatist Basque terrorist group ETA formally disbanded in 2018, but there are still many in the region who want to be independent from Spain and it’s still a contentious issue that’s best avoided in conversation. You’ll notice that some towns in the Basque Country hold onto to strong separatist beliefs, hanging flags that call for ETA prisoners to be returned to the region. 

Locals are not known for being warm and friendly

The Basques are not known to be as open or as friendly as people from the south of Spain, such as Andalusia for example. Locals often tend to stick to their friend groups that they’ve known for years or who they’ve grown up with. You may find it easier to make friends with other foreigners or Spaniards from other regions who have moved to the Basque Country. Having said that, if you do manage to break into a local Basque circle, you’ll find that they make very loyal friends.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

RENTING

The rules and small print for a rental contract for a room in Spain

Renting a room in Spain can often be easier and cheaper than trying to rent a whole apartment or house for yourself, but there are still several things you need to look out for in your rental contract and small print clauses you need to be aware of.

Published: 17 September 2024 09:28 CEST
The rules and small print for a rental contract for a room in Spain

Sharing a flat in Spain may of course not be your first choice; in 55 percent of cases people here do so because they can’t afford their own place. 

Renting a room is now almost 10 percent more expensive than a year ago, according to recent data published by property portal Idealista, costing almost double in 2024 than it did nine years ago.

The national average for renting a room is now €488 per month.

If you’ve come here to be a student or to learn Spanish though, renting a room can be excellent choice.

Due to Spain’s housing crisis and financial constraints, renting a room is no longer only an option for young people in Spain. In fact, in 2022 Idealista found that the average of a person sharing a home in Spain was 34. 

READ ALSO: Renting a room in Spain costs 90% more than in 2015

Renting a room is increasingly popular in Spain, especially in those cities where rent is very high, such as in regional capitals. 

While your contract for renting a room may not be extensive as renting a whole property, it’s still very important that you have one to make sure that you’re protected.

A room rental agreement not only ensures that both parties are clear about their rights and responsibilities, but also avoids potential misunderstandings and conflicts.

Typically, when you are renting una habitación, your room will be your space, but you will have shared access common areas such as the kitchen, living room and bathroom. 

READ ALSO – Aval: How to get a bank guarantee to rent a property in Spain

Factors to keep in mind when renting a room in Spain:

Tenants do not have the right to continue to live in the home beyond what is stipulated in the contract, so your landlord will have greater control over the property.

It is important that the room rental contract specifies the purpose of renting the room and how long it’s for. Generally, this type of rental is regulated by the Civil Code, but it could also be subject to the Urban Lease Law (LAU), even though the existence of this type of lease is not specified.

The room should include basic furniture, and the landlord is responsible for paying the bills initially, although they may be included in the rent.

There’s no minimum legal content that room rental contracts must contain, and it is not even mandatory for it to be in writing. But it is still advisable to get one in writing in order avoid future problems.

READ ALSO: The pros and cons of signing a temporary rental contract in Spain 

According to property website Idealista, room rental contracts should contain these following elements:

  • The duration of the contract.
  • A statement saying exactly which room is being rented out.
  • The rental price, as well as the payment method with which the tenant will pay the rent and when it will be due each month.
  • The services that are included, such as the use of the kitchen and being able to connect to the internet.
  • It’s also important that there’s a clause to say how payments should be divided in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
  • It must be indicated if subletting the room is allowed or not. As stated in the Civil Code this may be possible if your contract doesn’t specifically state that you can’t.
  • If the property is rented by several people, the contract must be formalised between all tenants through a single rental contract and tenants will appear in the same contract.

READ ALSO: Is subletting legal in Spain? 

How to tell if a room rental contract is legal in Spain

For a room rental agreement to be legal, it must contain the following information:

  • Full names, DNI or NIE number, address and telephone number of both the landlord and the tenant.
  • Specify the exact address of the home, the rented room and the common areas the tenant has access to.
  • The start and end date of the contract.
  • The amount of the deposit and the return conditions. It is not mandatory to provide a deposit, but landlords can request it.
  • The monthly rent, the payment method and how to make the payment.
  • It must state who is responsible for the necessary works and repairs in the home.
  • A clause must be included stating who responsible for community expenses, water, electricity, gas, etc.
  • The text must state the conditions for termination of the contract, such as non-payment of rent or failure to comply with the rules or the landlord selling the property.
SHOW COMMENTS