Spain is a hospitable, open-minded country. Its climate, cultural heritage, and cuisine have made it one of the world’s top tourist destinations, but an ever-increasing number of foreigners are deciding to purchase residential property here for another reason as well: the welcoming, friendly personality of the Spanish people.

Perhaps you’ve been thinking about the possibility of establishing a residence in Spain but are worried that you won’t be able to communicate with others on a daily basis the way you do at home because you don’t speak Spanish. Nothing could be further from the truth. There are plenty of places throughout the country where you won’t face a language barrier.

Do you speak English?

Spain is the official home of over 280,000 British nationals. The year-round presence of this community and the continual arrival of fellow countrymen eager to spend their holidays on Spanish beaches have created a booming market for English-language media in a number of highly attractive areas along the coasts of peninsular Spain and its island autonomous communities.

The Canaries, Andalucía and, above all, the Balearic Islands, have well-established foreign language newspapers and radio stations catering to English-speaking residents and tourists. The Majorca Daily Bulletin, for example, has been serving that island’s English-speaking community since 1962. In addition to offering coverage of local events and local lifestyle tips, this publication based in Palma also keeps the British community up to date with news from home. Mallorca Sunshine Radio, Talk Radio Europe, and Spectrum FM Costa del Sol (the radio station providing the widest English-language coverage in southern Spain) perform a similar role.

The Germans also think life is better on a Spanish beach

Of the more than 130,000 registered German residents of Spain, 30,000+ live in the Canary Islands, 22,000 in the Balearic Islands, and 20,000 in Alicante. About four million Germans spend their summer holidays in Majorca and a significant number of others live there during the greater part of the year. So many Germans visit Majorca each year that people in that country often jokingly refer to the island as their seventeenth länder.

Statistics indicate that 34 % of the residential properties sold to foreigners in the Balearic Islands during 2015 were purchased by German buyers. This explains the success of local German-language newspapers such as the Mallorca Zeitung and German-language radio stations such as Palmenstrandradio and Das Inselradio Mallorca.

That’s great, but I don't speak Polish

Spain had a lot of foreign residents. Spain is consolidating its reputation as a safe and desirable place to invest in residential property. Many Spanish real estate agencies have even hired native-speaking staff members with an eye to providing better service to the growing number of foreigners purchasing apartments and houses here.

Publications such MK Novosti Ispaniya and Komsomólskaya Pravda provide weekly news and information updates in Russian to these growing communities.

The Norwegian community in Spain as a case in point

Alfaz del Pi stands out among the numerous international communities thriving in Spain today. This town in Alicante is home to the second-largest expatriate Norwegian community in the world—outranked in size only by the Norwegian colony in London. Although the Norwegian population of Alfaz del Pi is officially about 3,000, the existence of a Lutheran church and many Norwegian-owned businesses, schools, and residences in the area indicates that as many as twice that number probably live there on a more-or-less steady basis.
 

One of the most popular tourist resorts on the Costa Blanca, Alfaz del Pi is home to over a hundred nationalities. A place where foreign residents represent the greater part of the overall population, it’s living proof that language is not a barrier to anyone interested in putting down stakes in Spain.