What we did and why it works
Short behind-the-scenes stories from our projects — without giving away the details that stay between us and the client.
How we helped a client plan their own rental management business on the Costa del Sol
The client wanted to enter the tourist rental management market, but before investing the first euro, needed an answer to a hard question: would this business even add up — and how fast could it safely grow.
The challenge
The tourist rental market on the Costa del Sol has grown for years, driven by record numbers of visitors to Andalusia and a rising number of property owners who either lack the time or live abroad and can't manage the rental themselves. It sounds like an obvious opportunity — but "obvious opportunity" and "a business plan that adds up" are two different things.
How we approached the analysis
- Verifying market size — we checked available data on the number of tourist properties on the coast and how fast that number was growing.
- Geographic optimisation — we identified a specific stretch of coast and a sensible maximum travel time from the airport.
- A phased financial model — we split the project into a launch phase and an operating phase, each with its own budget.
- Conservative assumptions — we deliberately lowered revenue forecasts relative to market data.
- A full operating cost structure — we broke down the cost per property and scaled it up to the target portfolio.
- Safety margins — we accounted for seasonal cost spikes and recommended a standing contingency fund.
The client received a complete market-entry plan that would stand up to an investor or a bank — with clearly mapped growth phases and a stated long-term target. The specific numbers stay between us and the client — we now use this methodology for every similar analysis.
"We don't estimate by eye. If a client is going to invest well over a hundred thousand euros in a new business, every number in that plan has to be traceable to real market data."
A sale starts long before the first photo
A villa near Nueva Andalucía had sat on two portals for months without a single firm offer. The problem wasn't the property itself — it was how and when it had been listed.
The challenge
The owners had previously listed with another agency, which had put the property up "as is" — no organised paperwork, phone photos shot in the middle of the day, and a price set against competitors' asking prices rather than actual local transactions. The result: interest with no follow-through, months with no progress.
How we approached the sale
- A documentation audit before listing — nota simple, energy certificate and a certificate from the owners' community all in hand before the first buyer even asked about details.
- A valuation based on real transactions — not on competitors' asking prices in the same development, but on what similar homes had actually sold for.
- Preparing the property for the shoot — tidying the garden and interiors, a professional photo session at the right time of day so the light worked in the house's favour.
- A schedule matched to the season — we shifted the intensive promotion period to when interested buyers from abroad actually appear on the market.
The property started generating concrete, scheduled viewings within the first few weeks of the new campaign — without lowering the asking price that had previously seemed to be the problem.
When a good property reaches the wrong buyer
An apartment in central Alicante had been listed for a long time, viewed many times, but with no offer. The problem turned out to be simpler than anyone suspected: it was being shown to the wrong group of buyers.
The challenge
The description and photos had been prepared with a local buyer in mind, looking for a "move-in ready" flat — yet the layout and location were a perfect fit for a completely different profile: a foreign resident or an investor looking for a long-term rental near the centre and the university.
How we reorganised the sale
- Changing the target audience — we shifted the focus of promotion to channels reaching foreign residents and investors, not just local portals.
- New description and photos — instead of "move-in ready", we highlighted proximity to the centre, the university and public transport — the arguments that matter to a tenant and an investor.
- Checking the price against comparable transactions — we confirmed the price was right for the new buyer profile, so it didn't need lowering — just better communication of its value.
An apartment that had generated no real interest for months found a buyer from exactly the segment the listing had never previously reached — without changing the asking price.
On the art of building relationships, not just deals
Our first contact with this family was a simple enquiry about renting an apartment for a two-week holiday. A few years later, we'd been party to three further transactions — none of which started with a call saying "I want to buy a property".
How it started
Not every client relationship starts with a serious transaction. This one started with a simple holiday rental — and with someone on our team remembering what the family had asked about during their stay: schools in the area, what life in Estepona is like off-season, property prices "for the future".
Why it paid off
- Contact with no sales pressure — we kept them posted on market changes and new listings in Estepona, not to force a sale, but because we knew what interested them.
- One point of contact for years — the same team member guided the family from the first rental, through buying an apartment, to a later investment property purchase.
- Referrals as a natural result — the satisfied family recommended us to two other families they knew, which today is one of our most important sources of new clients.
A single holiday rental grew into a years-long relationship spanning several transactions and further referred clients — proof that in premium real estate, the best marketing is remembering who the client is, not just what they buy.
He was looking for a hotel in Spain, found a middle ground — and is still looking
A client who has run hotels in Poland for years came to us with a clear goal: diversify by buying a hotel, or hotels, in Spain. After a few months of working together, it turned out the best first move was not to buy a hotel at all — not yet.
The challenge
Spain's hotel market plays by completely different rules from the residential market — different due diligence, a different operating structure, different sensitivity to location and seasonality. The client had hotel experience from Poland, but not yet a feel for the Spanish market.
How we approached the search
- Joint viewings of several hotel properties — on the Costa del Sol, to test the client's expectations against what's actually available in the price ranges that interested him.
- Analysing the risk of going straight for a large property — without prior familiarity with the local rental market, regulations and seasonal demand.
- Recommending a middle-ground solution — we suggested starting on a smaller scale: several apartments in neighbouring developments in Benalmádena, letting him learn the market without the risk that comes with a large hotel deal.
- Putting the client's hotel know-how to use — his experience managing hotel guests translated directly into the service standard for renting out these apartments.
The client is already earning from renting out the apartments he bought, drawing on his hotel operating experience, while learning the specifics of the Spanish market on a smaller scale than a hotel purchase would require. Together with us, he's still looking for that one right hotel — this time with a far better feel for the market than at the start.
For confidentiality reasons, detailed financial figures and client identities are not published. The descriptions above present the scope and methodology of our work in general terms.
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