Living in Spain and working in France: where to buy?
Settle in the Marina Alta while keeping your professional activity in France
Do you want to live in Spain while continuing to work in France? This project is now facilitated by teleworking, new professional organizations and the possibility of keeping an activity or a company in France while residing in Spain.
But living in Spain while working in France is not just about buying a house in the sun. The choice of municipality, access to airports, the frequency of travel, the quality of the internet connection and the organisation of daily life become real estate criteria in their own right.
In the Marina Alta, this reflection is particularly interesting: the territory offers coastal municipalities, towns with year-round services and more residential areas a few kilometres from the coast.
A life project that changes real estate criteria
When buying a second home, the proximity to the sea, the pool, the views or the environment can be the first search criteria.
When you want to live in Spain while maintaining a professional activity in France, the priorities can be different.
· the frequency of travel to France;
· access to international airports;
· easy access to major roads;
· the quality of the internet connection;
· the possibility of having a workspace;
· the proximity of shops and everyday services;
· the choice between coastline and inland of the Marina Alta.
The property must then be integrated into a complete life organization.
The Marina Alta has a particularly interesting position
The Marina Alta is located between the cities of Valencia and Alicante and has access to two international airports: Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández and Valencia-Manises.
From Dénia, Alicante-Elche airport is located about 100 kilometers away and Valencia airport is about 113 kilometers away. The city of Dénia indicates a journey of about an hour to an hour and a half depending on traffic conditions and mode of transport.
For the Dénia sector and the municipalities near the AP-7, it is therefore relevant to remember a simple idea: the two major international airports can be reached by car in about an hour, with a variable duration depending on the exact municipality, the schedule and the traffic.
This double accessibility is a concrete advantage for a person who regularly has to travel to France: the choice does not depend on a single airport.
Alicante or Valencia: two possibilities to reach France
For a business trip, the available air connection may be more important than a few extra kilometres by car.
A French destination, a departure time or a frequency of flights can make Alicante more convenient at one time and Valencia at another.
The Marina Alta allows precisely this flexibility: from a large part of the territory, the two platforms can be compared according to the destination and the travel schedule.
For a person who returns to France several times a month, this possibility of choosing between two airports can represent a real advantage in the organization of daily life.
Denia: a city particularly suitable for year-round living
The city is about 100 kilometres from Alicante-Elche airport and 113 kilometres from Valencia airport. Both airports are accessible by car, but also by public transport or transfer solutions. citeturn0search0turn0search3
For a person who wants to live in Spain while maintaining regular travel to France, Dénia offers an interesting balance between year-round living, services and accessibility.
Xàbia / Jávea: the choice of coastal living environment
Xàbia can respond to a different project: to favour the coastal living environment while maintaining reasonable accessibility to the two major airports.
The choice of Xàbia also allows you to select an environment that corresponds to the desired lifestyle: historic centre, port, Arenal or residential areas.
For a buyer who still works in France, the question is not only whether Xàbia is close to an airport, but whether its environment and accessibility match the frequency of its travel.
Ondara, El Verger, Els Poblets and neighbouring municipalities
Around Dénia, several municipalities also allow you to look for a different environment while remaining in a living area connected to the main roads.
Ondara may be of interest to a buyer who prioritizes accessibility and services.
El Verger and Els Poblets can be alternatives for those who want to stay close to the coastline and the Dénia basin while broadening their search.
Beniarbeig, Benidoleig, Orba or Ràfol d'Almúnia can also be studied when the buyer agrees to move further away from the coast.
Teleworking: when the home also becomes the workplace
For a buyer who works from Spain, the home must fulfil a dual function: home and professional environment.
A room that can be used as an office, a suitable internet connection, a quiet environment and a comfortable organization of the home can then become important criteria.
The quality of the living environment remains essential, but it must be compatible with the demands of daily work.
The frequency of travel to France must guide research
A buyer who returns to France several times a year will not have the same constraints as a person who has to go there every week.
When travel is frequent, accessibility to the airport and major roads can become a priority criterion. When returns are more occasional, the buyer can give more weight to other elements: environment, proximity to the sea, surface, land, tranquility or budget.
There is therefore no ideal municipality for everyone. There is a location that is more or less suited to a given lifestyle.
Living in Spain while working in France: the tax issue
Working for a French company does not automatically determine tax residency. In the same way, the purchase of a home in Spain is not sufficient, on its own, to determine tax residence.
The Spanish legislation lays down, inter alia, criteria relating to the presence in the territory and the centre of economic interests. The 183-day rule is one of the criteria provided for in Spanish legislation, but the analysis of a situation between two countries may require the examination of several elements.
These issues should be discussed with a competent professional when the project involves setting up in Spain and maintaining a professional activity in France.
Choosing your way of life first, then your municipality
A more coherent approach is to start from the daily life that we really want to build in Spain.
How many times do you have to return to France? Do you work from home? Do you need a city with many services? Would you rather be directly on the coast or accept a few extra kilometres to have another environment?
The answers to these questions then make it possible to determine the municipalities and sectors that really correspond to the project.
Moving to Spain can be gradual
Some buyers start by occupying their Spanish home for part of the year before gradually increasing their presence. Others can work remotely from Spain while keeping their professional activity in France for a while.
In this context, the property chosen must be able to support the evolution of the project.
A property that is suitable for a few weeks of vacation is not necessarily the best solution for a year-round installation.
Conversely, a home designed from the outset for permanent living can allow for a more natural transition.
Why the Marina Alta can meet this type of project
· two major international airports accessible by road;
· a road network allowing rapid access to the AP-7 from many municipalities;
· cities offering year-round services;
· coastal municipalities and residential areas further from the sea;
· a wide variety of housing and budgets;
· The ability to adapt the location to the professional rhythm of each buyer.
The richness of the territory lies precisely in this diversity. The right choice can be a coastal town, a municipality located between the sea and the interior or a more rural area, depending on the priorities of the project.
ICB support: research built around your reality
Your travel frequency, your need to work from home, your access to airports, your service needs, your budget and the type of accommodation you are looking for can be integrated from the beginning of the search.
The objective is not to multiply the properties presented. It is to select the sectors and properties that really correspond to your life project.
Are you planning to live in Spain while continuing to work in France?
Your professional situation, your frequency of travel, your lifestyle and your real estate priorities allow you to gradually build this response.
The choice of the municipality then becomes the consequence of the project, and not the starting point.
Would you like to study your project to settle in Spain while maintaining your professional activity in France?
Let's talk about your project.
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