Viva Estates

Viva Estates

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Once the largest real estate agency in southern Spain, with at least fourteen branch offices, and a huge portfolio, Viva states were recently humbled into closing all but one of their offices. Part of the reason was the national downturn in the fortunes of property companies in Spain in general.

But it can also be argued that Viva overstretched themselves, with too many branches in too many areas, and too many staff. It’s great during the boom times, but perhaps not enough thought had gone into what to do if things turned sour. In short, lack of a good contingency plan.

Perhaps too, Viva were from the ‘old school’ of selling – concentrating on enticing people into viewing trips for example, whilst not spending enough time monitoring the rise of the internet.

Buyers are far more sophisticated than they used to be, and traditional selling techniques are perhaps no longer as effective as they once were. Whatever the reason, their demise was certainly a shock for the local economy, though perhaps not that much of a surprise to those who argue that Spain’s coastline relies too heavily on real estate.

There are similar stories on the Costa Blanca too. Perhaps it’s just time for something new to burst through. Spain is a resilient country and no doubt there are lessons to be learned from the Viva story. Watch this space.