The MiMove blog met with architect Cesar Patin Lapausa to speak about architecture and differences in living in Northern and Southern Europe. A home in Spain can look very different depending on the origin of the inhabitant. And if you would like to build from scratch, what should you think about?
Cesar is educated in Madrid in Spain but spent a year in Sweden while studying. He met his Swedish love and he later moved to Sweden to be with her.
I was born and raised in Madrid and I studied to become an architect in Spain. I worked as an architect in Madrid for a year before moving to Sweden. At that point, my home was in Spain but now Sweden is my home. Over the years, I have noticed big differences between the countries. There are cultural differences between North and South Europe, both the climate and how the people live and their preferences.
Sweden is a very regulated country, there are rules and policies for everything. There are strict rules regarding buildings. And that is necessary since the cold makes it imperative that the buildings are insulated properly. The water in the pipes might freeze and cause damage unless they are insulated and put in the floors and ceilings. If there was a leak it may time to discover it and the damages can be severe and costly.
My experience is also that it is quite difficult to get help with minor repairs and maintenance in Sweden. It is difficult to find builders, the insurance company has to be involved, and sometimes the job is too small and the handyman turns it down. That is not the case in Spain. You would never carry out repairs yourself. Should the boiler need replacement or the wall a new coat of paint there is always someone to do it to a reasonable cost.
The northern Europeans care greatly about their living space, perhaps because they spend so much time at home? There are trends when it comes to interior design, for example, lighting is important as is outdoor space to inhabitants in countries with less sun. As soon as the sun is out, regardless of how cold it is, you will find Swedes sitting outdoors with heavy coats facing the sun. In Spain, we know there will be sun tomorrow as well, so it is just not so important.
Spaniards don’t spend a lot of time at home. You leave your home to get together with friends and family, but you meet indoors away from the sun. It is not until later years restaurants, for example in Madrid, have added terraces for their guests to sit outside. The customs are slowly changing with more visitors coming from abroad. If the Spaniards stay out of the sun, the visitors want to be in the sun. Although the tourists may wish to be in the shade when it is really hot, they still want to sit outside, even during winter but perhaps under an infrared heater.
Spaniards don’t care a lot for cosy homes or restaurants. Often, there is only one bright ceiling light and the TV is on. Since the light influences, people’s mood Spaniards tend to be quite loud, because of the bright light and also to be heard over the noise from the TV. In Sweden, by contrast, people like warm and cosy. They like dimmed lights and lots of fabrics, and they tend to speak quieter. It is just different cultures, home in Spain can look very different depending on what you are used to.
It is quite unusual to buy a home as an investment in Spain or to have a plan to move again within a few years. Many young people stay at their parents’ house until they have saved enough money for a deposit on a house of their own. Many people don’t move until they are 30. When I left to study in Sweden at the age of 23, all my friends were still living with their parents. I then finished my education and moved to Sweden when I was 27 years old. At that time, some of my friends still hadn’t moved out of their parents’ home.
When you do move houses in Spain, you believe that you will stay for a long time in your new home. You buy everything new when making your home. The Spaniards don’t want to bring lots of old furniture or buy used stuff or to use what is already in the property. They throw everything out and start afresh. You just don’t move in the same manner as people in Northern Europe do. Maybe that will change in the future?
The architecture is a bit different. Firstly, the climate has a huge impact. In Northern Europe, windows sit flush with the external walls to catch the light. In Spain, the windows are mounted further in to keep the light and the heat out of the rooms. There is also a trend in Northern Europe, where you try and make a seamless bridge between the indoor and the outdoor space. Large panes of glass to the garden or terrace to give the home a new dimension. The Spanish are more interested in keeping the outside outside and the inside inside.
The Spaniards also like blinds or shutters to keep the light out. And they don’t like people looking in. Spaniards are very private people. Swedes seem more relaxed in that respect. Also, in Northern Europe, people are more adventurous when it comes to colours. Buildings may be painted in many different colours, but in Spain, white and terracotta still dominate.
Some may be surprised by the fact that bathrooms tend to be larger in Spain than elsewhere. A home in Spain may look different but also be used differently than in other countries. The bathrooms are often used as an extra room. People put in a chair for reading. Spaniards are social people and there are few places for solitude. The bathroom is one of those few places.
When I grew up, it was common that we teenagers gathered in the bathroom while the grown-ups watched tv in the living room. The living room used to be only for watching tv. I wonder what will happen to that room in the future when the tv habits are changing.
If you, as a Northern European, want to build a house from scratch in Spain, there are a few things to think about. Perhaps the best piece of advice is to choose your builder carefully. Especially if you can’t be present much. In Spain, you always use an architect (at least an architect has to sign and be responsible for the building for 10 years) for new buildings and often the architect project manages the build as well.
The spot for the building is of course important. Where is the sun coming from, which rooms will be really hot during which time of the day? Where should the terrace be located, and will the sun reach it even during the winter? Are there natural shady spots or do we need to plan for shade?
Another tip is to ask for light dimmers and many sockets. Those things may be common in your own country but less so in Spain. Ventilation is also different. We tend to rely on natural ventilation (open a window) rather than to add an external fan or ventilation. If you want ventilation, you have to ask for it.
Sustainability is of course also important. If possible, go for local materials and perhaps solar panels now when the tax rules are more positive.
Another difference is that there is seldom storage space in Spanish homes. However, often there is some dead space like a corridor and hallway where you can put cupboards if you like. Storage can be a problem and it is quite common to see a bicycle in the living room or suitcases under the beds in Spanish homes.
Looking at property ads, that is very noticeable, especially if the seller is Spanish. If there is a dedicated storage space in the home, then there will be lots of photographs of that space in the ad. And the home is rarely home-styled or tidied before the photo session, which is common practice further north. I think that when a Spaniard has decided to move, he is mentally done with the home he is leaving behind. Then he sees no point in dressing it before the sale.
So, when the seller is from Spain and the buyer is from Northern Europe there might be a culture clash. A home in Spain may look different to different people. A good piece of advice is to remember that what is common to one person may not be for another.
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