Rugby legend takes a sporting bet on southern Spain
Professional sportsmen are under no illusion about the fact that whilst their careers may be immensely rewarding, both personally and financially, they are also short-lived. Whilst the rest of the population is just getting into the stride of their careers, athletes are having to adjust to a new life and seek a substitute income. Property investment often emerges as a hobby cum income generator and several sportsmen, or at least those who are shrewd and take the best advice, have become as famed for their property portfolios as they have for their sporting careers. Consider the chants of “We all live in a Robbie Fowler house” which echoed around Maine Road referring to the footballer’s £30mn-strong portfolio of buy-to-let properties. Rugby League legend, Martin Hall, 39, may not have the same lofty aspirations as Mr Fowler, but he too has taken up a career in property development to fund a future for him and his family. Former Wigan Warriors, Halifax and Wales hooker and current Head Coach of the Wales National Rugby League Team as well as Director of Football at Halifax RLFC, Martin has dabbled in the UK property market acquiring land for apartments and houses, but in 2007 decided to broaden his horizons into overseas investment.
Martin picks up the story, “I’d visited Spain’s Costa del Sol a few times and always enjoyed it so decided to take my wife and young family there last year for a combination of a holiday and a look-see at property. In a recent edition of national broadsheet home section I’d spotted a private advert for a plot for sale in Los Flamingos Golf Resort and this was logged in mind as somewhere we should tick off the list. Keen to avoid any pressure we visited the resort under our own steam. We were instantly impressed and started ringing around local estate agents for some guidance.”
Martin continues, “The initial game-plan had been to buy an apartment or villa as a mid- long- term investment but it soon became clear that a self-build villa plot would offer the best returns, not only from capital appreciation on the land but also from the fact that we could build a luxurious property for far less than the cost of a comparable off-the-peg resale villa therefore giving us built-in profit. A mutual contact led me to Adam Gale, MD of Duchy Estates, a local company specializing in Los Flamingos Golf Resort with an office on-site, and he showed us a new phase of building plots with phenomenal views across the golf, Ritz-Carlton hotel, Mediterranean, Gibraltar and Africa and that was that, Adam had a sale.”
Los Flamingos Golf Resort is arranged around the focal point of golf and this is important to Martin. “The resort offers plenty of space for the children to explore in safety and with three 18-hole golf courses currently in play within its boundaries and a fourth nearing completion we can all put in plenty of practice. The kids love using the pitch and putt back home in Oldham and I have two fine sets of golf clubs, it’s just the person that’s using them who’s rubbish – although hopefully that’ll soon change. The Ritz-Carlton Villa Padierna with its Spa, swimming pools, restaurants and gymnasium is another bonus whilst the beach and Puerto Banús, Marbella and Estepona are all available in less than 15-minutes a-piece. The location is hard to beat, especially when you consider that the likes of Jet2, easyJet and Monarch can all deliver us here from Manchester Airport in less than three hours.”
Martin has plans to build a four to five bedroom villa fusing Mediterranean and contemporary styles, with plenty of glass to absorb those captivating views, and whilst his immediate and wider family can enjoy holidays there, the prime motivation is investment. Rough calculations suggest that a little over a million euros spent on the land and build could translate into a sales price in excess of two million euros upon completion.
It seems that sportsmen who have experienced the highs of career success have a built-in sense of ambition and wanting to be the best. Whilst at Wigan Warriors Martin won pretty much every major honour in the game including the Challenge Cup, World Club Challenge and the League Title and not wanting to come second governs his daily life. It looks like his acquisition at Los Flamingos Golf Resort might just help him to continue his winning streak…
Plots within Los Flamingos Golf Resort start from 375,000 euros. For more information, visit duchyestates.co.uk.
