Channel 4's A Place in the Sun searches the sunny shores of various holiday hotspots for properties for bargain loving Brits hoping to secure some bricks and mortar as their ideal vacation bolthole, or even as their permanent home.
Presenter Laura Hamilton was thrilled to welcome Cardiff-based Welsh couple Susan and Ainsley to Mijas Costa on Spain's Costa del Sol, even if they did have a wish-list that was lengthy, including sea view, open-plan space, light and bright feeling, communal pool within a community, two to three bedrooms and close to the beach or at least walking distance, close to shops and a supermarket, a gym onsite, and a store room for bikes - and even a bus stop outside.
The couple have two teenage children, and felt the time was right to buy their dream home in their favourite holiday spot and armed with a maximum budget of £175,000 with 'wiggle-room' up to £200,000 were confident that the programme could show them some special properties.
But Mijas Costa is a popular place for property hunters, it is said to be one of the world's most popular holiday hotspots, that stretches from the buzzing town of Fuengirola to the glamorous Marbella. Being near Malaga airport, where flights from the UK take around three hours, means this area is on the radar for many Brits for holidays and homes.
The first property Laura shows the couple is a two-bed apartment in La Cala de Mijas, on the market at the time for £152,586. But this property definitely did not go down well with the couple, being too rustic and no bus stop in sight, and there are vibes that maybe this is going to be a harder property search for Laura than she first anticipated.
The second property had smiles and not frowns - a two-bed townhouse in Calahonda with a communal pool and gardens and its own private terrace - it made it onto the 'contender' list and there was that all important bus stop outside.
The property was on the market for just under £172,500 and looking at the townhouse from outside, Susan says: "I quite like it because it's quite private and secluded. I prefer this one already without even looking inside."
Property three was a ground floor apartment in Mijas Pueblo for sale for £181,034 down from £225,000. But this flat was a bit further away from amenities and had no sniff of a sea view, but from the moment Susan walked in, she was smitten and the tears began.
The two-bedroom apartment boasted underground parking and two communal pools accessed straight from the large terrace. As she walked into the property and saw the open plan living area, Susan was overcome with emotions, saying: "Wow. Oh, I'm nearly crying. It's just gorgeous. This is kind of exactly what we were looking for."
Keen to know more about Susan's feelings towards the holiday home, Laura asked: "As you walked through it really made you emotional, how come?"
Susan replied: "I don’t know. It's just, you look through and you can see the swimming pool as you were walking through. It's a nice space, it's nice and homely, it's lovely. Oh my gosh, I am crying. Sorry. This is everything I thought of."
Luckily Ainsley was captivated by the property too, especially the large terrace overlooking the garden and pool. On paper this property should not have become the number one choice for the couple as it ticked less of the 'must-have' boxes, but you can't argue with tears.
Into property four in El Faro for sale for £206,897 and the news that property three has had another viewing on it by another interested party speeds up the timing of this tour.
Although this townhouse is just a five minute walk from the beach, had three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a garden as well as a roof terrace, this poor property didn't stand a chance - the couple can barely be bothered to look around it - their hearts are still with number three.
As the last chance to impress, Laura takes the couple to a three-bed duplex that had access to a communal pool and gardens and it is the most spacious and modern so far, plus it has the most jaw-dropping, panoramic view from the picture window in the dining room and the bedroom balcony, and on the market for £206,035.
Ainsley is understandably flawed by this two-floor triumph, captivated by the mesmerising view that is very, very special, but he's in trouble because it doesn't look like Susan is having any of it; it's going to be a very long evening of discussion.
The next day and the couple have come to a decision to tell Laura when they met up for a chat. Their favourite is property three - no surprises there, the tears were triumphant, but Ainsley is more than happy to imagine calling that apartment home for the holidays.
Laura scares the couple by telling them the other buyers are extremely, extremely interested in the property they have fallen for.
Despite this, with the apartment already dropped from an asking price of £225,000 to £181,034, the couple asked Laura to put forward a cheeky offer of £175,000. And when the answer comes back as a surprise yes, cue more tears - and these are very happy ones.
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