If you enjoy a rural lifestyle, there is nothing better than the Spanish countryside! Finding a house in the orange groves, or with an acreage of orange, almond, avocado, pomegranate, lemon trees can be a real dream! Around the Valencia area we have beautiful mountains, farms and the coastline, so you can find rural houses with amazing views while still being quite close to the city. To help you find the perfect home there are several things you will want to consider so we can look for houses based on your needs and how off-grid you want to be.
Consider the following facts about houses in the countryside or casa rustica
Water
It’s quite common for rural houses to not be on a water line, this can mean one or both of the following:
A: you will have a septic tank, which are common in most countries, but in Spain we have seen them not only in the typical rural areas, but also sometimes in urbanizations. If you have a septic tank in an urbanization it is likely you will have the option to connect to the sewage line that was put in after the houses were built. In rural areas it is unlikely there is a sewage line to connect to,
B: It’s common to have a septic tank but still have water coming to your house, however many rural houses will also not be connected to incoming water, this means you will need to have water delivered to your tank. This is a very manageable system, but it does mean you will want to be knowledgeable about maintaining a clean water tank too.
Wifi
Most likely you will not have wifi, but no need to worry, there are companies like Starlink that offer a satellite connection. So it’s much easier these days to stay connected anywhere.
Heating/AC
If the house is older and still in it’s original condition it is unlikely you will have either. In this area of Spain the weather was pretty temperate historically. If it has already been renovated you might get both! Because of this (and many other reasons!) there will be a large price difference between a fixer upper and a renovated farm house – so thinking about how much renovation you want to do if you’re in the market for a rural farm house is an important decision.
Roads
Some areas have better roads leading to houses than others. If you are staying/working at home, you might not be coming and going daily and therefore find a short dirt road to your home is not a big deal. Also some dirt roads are better than others! It is possible to find rural houses that have good roads all the way to the house, so evaluating this is also an important factor.
Getting mail and packages
Many rural homes do not have usable addresses (Spanish address philosophy is a whole other article!), it is ok, your house does exist, it’s just maybe not so mail friendly, and you will be using Google pins a lot to get friends to your house! The good news is that once you have lived somewhere for some time and the couriers get to know you, it will get easier. Additionally, all couriers and Correos will hold packages for you to pick up, sometimes they have agreements with a local business to drop them there, so don’t be surprised if you’re asked to pick up your package at a local bar like we were when we first moved! While this may be an adjustment, it does work. (see our article about getting packages in Spain). If you live off grid or are having issues with your address, you may also want to consider making an agreement with a local business and skip the ‘where is my package’ game altogether.
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