A homeowner in Spain needs to use their second home an average of 45 to 60 days a year to offset fixed maintenance costs, which range from 1% to 2% of the property’s value annually. However, each individual situation varies depending on the number of days. Therefore, this calculator for how many days you need to use your second home will give you a clearer idea of whether buying a second property is profitable or not, depending on how much you plan to use it.
Calculate how many days you need to use a second home
How to use the days calculator to buy a second home
The free Fotocasa calculator lets you know how many days you should use your second home to determine if it’s worth buying. To get an accurate result, it’s important to fill in the calculator with the most precise information possible. To use the calculator to find out how many days you should use a second home to make it profitable, you’ll need to fill in the following information:
- How much interest you pay annually on your mortgage: You can find this information in your bank’s app, in the amortization schedule.
- How much you pay in property tax (IBI) annually: This information will be on your annual property tax bill.
- How much you pay for your home insurance: Specify how much you pay each year for your second home insurance or provide an estimate of how much you would pay.
- How much the community fees cost: If the property is in a homeowners’ association, you’ll need to indicate how much the community fees are paid each year. This is especially important in communities with many amenities such as a swimming pool, gardens, etc.
- Average annual utility costs: Calculate how much you pay for electricity, water, gas, and internet each year for your home.
- How much you pay for garbage collection: You’ll find this information on your municipal bill or along with other bills, such as your water bill.
- Other expenses and taxes: Add any other expenses and taxes you pay for your home or plan to pay here to make the calculation as complete as possible.
In addition, you should also include the cost of spending one night in a similar property in the city where you have your second home or plan to buy one.
With all this information, the second home buying calculator will tell you how many days a year you should use the second home for it to be cost-effective. If you use it more than that number of days, it would be worthwhile to own a second home relative to its upkeep costs. If you use it fewer days than indicated, it would be cheaper to rent a similar property in the same area for the days you visit compared to the cost of maintaining it.
Your home in Spain