Even though the weather has been awful, the golf course has been very busy with members, societies and holiday golfers enjoying the Roda Golf course which is still in remarkably good condition.

We have plenty of enquiries coming in for rental properties which is excellent news. Holiday bookings for the Summer are coming in thick and fast and there are also enquiries coming in from buyers looking to buy property here at Roda Golf - all good news I am sure you will agree! A long way to go, but things are definitely moving in the right direction.

The Roda Golf rental department has informed us that they are currently experiencing record enquiries for rentals at Roda Golf, outstanding news.

As you will see from the photos, phase 4A is flying along. There are literally dozens of workers on site, and all working like mad to get the phase completed.

I have spoken to the staff at Roda Golf and they are expecting to start completing the purchase for these properties from May, for those of you who have purchased on phase 4A you need to make sure you are all ready! Start looking for your mortgages now and get prepared, they are taking a lot longer to organise in this current economic climate. The excellent news is that mortgage interest rates are now very low indeed, and so these properties are a lot more affordable, particularly for those owners looking for maximum mortgage.

Regarding the mortgage for these properties, 60% LTV (Loan To Value) mortgage is widely available, 70% is available subject to status and property valuation. Interest Only options are now quite difficult to come by, some banks will offer up to five years, most will offer maximum two years Interest Only option.

For help and assistance with your mortgage or any other matter relating to your completion on your phase 4 property, please don’t hesitate to email us, or phone directly on (+34) 680 842 895.

If you are looking to rent out your property, please start marketing the property now, people are booking, and we now know these properties will be ready for this Summer, I think the Brisa style properties, in particular, are going to be very nice and very exclusive. If you leave the marketing of your property until you complete and furnish the property, you will have missed the Summer rentals for the most part.

Should you require guidance regarding your furniture options, just drop us an e-mail with your enquiry.

Regarding this months photos, I have thrown is a few of phase 3 and the golf course, just to remind you all why you purchased at Roda Golf and why most of us love it here! There is also a photo of Ruaidhri McGee, Roda Golf’s own budding professional going through his daily routine of practising every aspect of his game, look out for Ruaidhri on your TV in the next few years.

The latest photos show a huge amount of work and activity on phase 4A at Roda Golf, I know it has been a long wait, I an sure you phase 4 owners will think it has been worth the wait.

I already can’t wait myself for the April update!

Click here for a FULL SCREEN slideshow!

Regarding the work on the Phase 4 “Brisa” style apartments, the are dozens of workers on site and all cranes are now fully operational! At last it looks like these apartments will be finished pretty quickly! We will obviously be keeping an eye on things for you and reporting all progress, however it is all systems go and at last Phase 4A is a hive of activity.

I know you have all been waiting a long time, but it is now time to start to plan the completion process - I bet you thought this day might never come! You need to start to plan for your NIE numbers, your mortgage requirements and get your lawyers fully up to speed with your proposed completion dates, which look like being early Summer.

We are currently helping many people with their mortgage applications, so if you would like any help please contact us. We deal with every major bank in Spain, and we also have all the details of the builders mortgage. We have our own in-house mortgage specialist so we will definitely be able to find the mortgage product to best suit your needs.

Please remember as the largest Property Management company on Roda Golf, we will be very happy to help with all furniture requirements and indeed all management and rentals needs, please call Stuart direct on (0034) 680 842 895 any time. We are here to help and are able to offer comprehensive advice regarding all aspects of your proposed completion on Phase 4 at Roda Golf and Beach Resort.

Spiral staircases on Phases 1 and 2

We are being contacted regularly about the spiral staircase leading to the penthouse solarium’s on phase 1 and 2 with owners asking “are there any options to improve or change them”? They have always been a bit of a nuisance, particularly for older people, or for people with any kind of disability or handicap, well at last there is an alternative. It looks fantastic and more importantly it improves access to the solarium tremendously.

It has long been a desire for the spiral staircase to be changed over for a more suitable form of access that enables family members of all sizes and ages to safely use the extensive solarium areas, whilst retaining the colours and design of the existing architecture.

Thankfully, it was recently decided by the community of phase one in Roda Golf to allow the necessary changes to take place. The first two property owners who wanted to take full advantage of the staircase replacement have now had this completed and they are absolutely thrilled with the results, so much so there have already been many requests for surveys and quotations for similar on other owners penthouse apartments.

Not only will this improve accessibility, but it will also increase the value of your penthouse apartment, so it’s an excellent investment as well.

Local building firm “Baxters Spain” run by Paul and Andy Baxter have already proved themselves to be an excellent choice for carrying out this improvement, and indeed upgrade, with all work being completed professionally and within the time scales set out initially during the initial survey.

The new stairway comes with a special powder-coat finish means that it is virtually maintenance free, with just the occasional “polish” necessary to keep the sparkle looking nice.

With safety being a major concern, non-slip tiles (colour matched to the existing tiles) were fitted to the stairs, always ensuring a firm footing, despite the weather. A further safety point is that the hand rails on the stairs and the platform are to regulation height, giving added security and peace of mind. Wherever possible the handrails have also been bolted to the walls, ensuring that the staircase is perfectly ridged and has no-movement what-so-ever, in complete contrast to the original wobbly spiral stairway!

The very first owners to have this improvement are absolutely thrilled and have provided excellent testimonials stating how pleased they are with the results.

In short, the new staircase vastly improves your property and makes it:

• Much safer to use.
• Possible to have easy access to the extensive solarium.
• Quieter to walk upon, no more noisy metal stair treads!
• More rentable.
• More saleable.
• Have a significant increase in value.

If you are interested in finding out more information regarding the possibilities of swapping your spiral staircase and improving your already stunning penthouse apartment, please feel free to contact us here directly on (0034) 680 842 895 (email) and we will arrange for the builder to come and provide a free “on site” survey with no obligation.

We have done extensive research on the possibility of the replacement staircase option. It is necessary to have a site visit (no obligation) and measure the lower terrace as they are all different and require “bespoke” stairs to be made for each property. It is NOT possible for a one-design-fits all scenario.

Click here for a FULL SCREEN slideshow!

Anyway, I must start off by saying what a fantastic New Years Eve party we had at the Roda Golf clubhouse, a big thank you to Graham Sanders for organising our particular group of about twenty-five people. We all had a wonderful evening as well as the obligatory headache the next day.

A special thank you to all the staff at Collados at the Roda Clubhouse. There has been some negative comments regarding the service and indeed the unfriendly attitude of the staff in recent months, some of it deserved, however they all made a superb effort and were very welcoming and nothing was too much trouble. A wonderful evening was had by all, and I strongly recommend you try to attend next year if possible - my wife and I will certainly be there.

Anyway, on to the Roda Golf update. We have been getting lots of enquiries regarding the progress on Phase 4, obviously there are many concerned owners awaiting completion of their property which is already well overdue, possibly 12-18 months late already.

There has not been much progress on the construction on Phase 4 for some months. However there is small crew working there at present (29th January). They are mainly roofers putting the roofs on the “Brisa” style apartments. The cranes are working away, lifting materials to the workers up on the roof. I have also spotted electricians and plumbers working intermittently.

There is no doubt work is very slow. However reports that there is no work of any kind happening at present is incorrect. There are about eight workers on-site at present and they seem to be working all week, but I must stress that work does seem to be progressing rather slowly.

There are photographs here to go with the update. These show definite improvements on the previous Phase 4 photos in September, but still some way to go.

A number of our regular visitors are asking questions of a legal nature, and I can only say that you must speak to your lawyer or legal expert for contractual advice, as we are simply not qualified to advise. If I can be of any assistance to anybody who has purchased on Phase 4 and is uncertain of what is happening, or are simply not receiving any information, please feel free to contact me anytime. Please contact me - Stuart Thomas anytime on (00 34) 680 842 895 and I will be happy to take your call and help if possible.

Some other news - The golf course is still in excellent condition. Resident golfers Danny Reilly and Graham Sanders provide me with regular updates on the course condition and everything looks great. The weather is much better now, and the golf course has been packed for the last three days so that is excellent news! The golf clubhouse has also been very busy, and helping to create a great atmosphere for all.

A very important meeting for owners has just taken place at the offices of the Housing Association. As soon as we have any news of the outcome we will do our best to update you. For anybody wanting news now, I would suggest you contact your community committee or the Housing Association and ask for Marisol.

There are a number of enquiries starting to come in from people looking to purchase property at Roda Golf which is excellent news. It is still very much a buyers market, but it looks like things are starting to turn around at last.We do have a fantastic selection of resale properties available and we are able to provide full mortgage services for anybody looking to buy property at Roda Golf, please visit our web site at www.calidainternationalproperties.co.uk. My web guys tell me that this link will show you just our Roda property- Roda Golf property for sale

In my opinion there has never been a better time to purchase property in the Murcia region, and as the number one agent for Roda Golf, we do have the very best selection of properties available at Roda Golf and it would be our pleasure to help you with your property purchase requirements at Roda Golf and Beach Resort.

We also have some fantastic properties available direct from the developer with superb and exclusive benefits.

We also have the largest selection of rental properties available at www.calidainternationalrentals.co.uk so please come and visit and book your summer holiday now!

Once again Happy New Year to everybody, let’s hope for an excellent 2010 at the fabulous Roda Golf and Beach Resort, I look forward to seeing you there soon!

Click here for a FULL SCREEN slideshow!

Roda Golf Info in association with Calida International Properties are very pleased to announce we are now able to provide exclusive discounted prices for bespoke top of the range furniture packs direct from DFS in San Javier.

This range of furniture is solid oak, very stylish, and perfect for the rental market, you will note that patio furniture, sun loungers and fire safety pack is included which is essential when renting your property in Spain.

You can not get these low prices anywhere, not even direct from DFS themselves.

To take take advantage of this exclusive offer, please call DFS direct on 0034 968-334-194 or at e-mail Paul directly and quote reference CALIDA.

You can also visit the DFS web site but remember to quote CALIDA if you want to take advantage of these fantastic low prices, you will not get this quality for these prices anywhere in Spain, GUARANTEED.

Thanks for your time. Please click directly on the brochure below to see it “full screen” or download it. We’ll be back with more news from sunny Spain soon (well…when it stops raining!)

The Roda Golf Info Team

Download the pdf directly (339kb only)

The new team at Universal Hospitality (please visit www.universalhospitality.co.uk are well and truly in to their stride looking after all property management and rentals requirements at Roda Golf, with Gillian and Andrew on site 24/7 looking after all properties and guests needs… they are going from strength to strength.

Should anybody be interested in our property management and rentals services, please contact us at www.universalhospitality.co.uk or contact Gavin Jones directly at or you can still contact us by visiting www.calidainternationalproperties.co.uk

Phase 4 at Roda Golf is really starting to show considerable progress and even though it has been a long wait, we think that May 2010 everything will be completed on the first part of phase 4 (Phase 4A)

There have been some additional blocks built. There are now many men working on every block currently constructed and a lot of the block work or brick work has now been completed, most of the internal plumbing work has been completed and the underground car parks have been completed.

We have some photos from about two weeks ago, but there has been huge progress since then so we will provide more photos and a brief update in a couple of weeks.

With all of the infrastructure all ready in place and phase 3 already completed and looking fantastic, phase 4 once completed is going to look superb and as we keep saying, we feel that phase 4 is going to be very exclusive with fewer properties here than on any other part of the resort and with phase 4 being the only location for the new “Brisa” style apartments, it is all getting very exciting.

The sports facilities have proved very popular this summer but it has been very hot that it was only really sensible to use these excellent facilities in the morning or late afternoon.

Finally, we are able to offer a long term rental proposition to our clients, so if anybody is interested in letting their property long term or anybody on phase 4 requires help or assistance with the completion of their property including all mortgage requirements, property management and rentals services or even help with furnishing your property, please contact us on 0034 680 842895 or visit our web site at www.calidainternationalproperties.co.uk

Click here for a FULL SCREEN slideshow!

The Summer is well and truly here - and wow is it hot! We have some great news and photos to accompany the report on the new sports facilities and phase 4 apartments.

Firstly the new Sports facilities. We have taken some great new pictures showing the new tennis court, the paddle tennis courts (mixture of squash and tennis played with large paddle bats and tennis balls), the multi purpose sports pitch with basket ball courts and hoops, and soccer pitch with goals.

All are now completed along with the new access road and car park facilities. There are changing rooms along with a children’s play area and lots of lovely landscaping, all over looking the signature hole - The par 3 7th to the island green, with great views across the lake to the clubhouse.

It all looks absolutely fabulous and will be ready for use 1st July, although it might be a bit warm for all that exercise! “Mad dogs and Englishmen” springs to mind (along with the occasional Welshman)

The Phase 4 apartments are well under construction and not much to report here other than to say just look at the photos, the progress is amazing and it looks different everyday, there are 3 permanent cranes as well as a number of smaller ones, concrete trucks in and out all day as well as about fifty guys working around the clock.

Phase 4 is really starting to look tremendous and we all expect this phase to be fantastic. It enjoys the lowest density of building on the resort at Roda Golf as well as the much awaited phase 4 “Brisa” style apartments. Yes, there has been quite a big delay, but it is going to be worth the wait of that we are sure.

Finally, there have been some dramatic and fantastic changes and improvements at the Roda Golf Beach Club and we will have an update with photos very soon, it is now open and already some very positive comments have been forwarded to us.

I hope you enjoy this latest report with photos, all feedback greatly appreciated, please also pay particular attention to our new Roda Golf services brochure which you can download below. We are happy to help with every aspect of your completion of your new property at Roda Golf or to provide a professional management service with rentals if you are already an owner at Murcia’s newest and best golf resort here at Roda Golf and Beach Resort!

We’ll be back in a week or two with another update, and we have a small video of Phase 4 construction too!

Happy Summer everyone - Stuart Thomas - Calida International Properties

The Sports facilities

Phase 4 Apartment progress

With regards to the phase 4 apartments, the technical staff have been working feverishly all week marking out the plots and directing the heavy plant. Most of the work that is currently being done is earth moving and extending the existing footings and locations for the foundations. Whilst we were photographing the site, we saw surveyors taking measurements and all together a large amount of activity.

You will see from the photos attached that there are some diggers and lorries on site, these are paving the way for the cranes and the full work force, all of the area for phase 4 has been prepared and actual construction work is obviously imminent, I think you will all agree this is excellent news.

The other piece of fantastic news is that there is now a new shop open at Roda Golf, the new mini market is located next to the Roda Golf sales office where the old bar and restaurant was located, you can now get your daily newspapers, plenty of beers and wines as well as fresh bread, milk, all your usual groceries, chocolates and walkers crisps, as well as good range of necessities and toiletries.

We will have course keep on top of the situation and as soon as any other developments take place in the area, you will be the first to know!

All comments and enquiries are very welcome for this and any other news item.

Gallery 1 - The Phase 4 apartments

Gallery 2 - The Phase 4 villas and the 15th fairway!

British semi-retired couple Graham and Marion Sanders are the latest full time residents of Roda Golf, and we would like to be among the first to welcome them to Roda Golf and Beach Resort and wish them all the very best for their new lives in Spain.

Graham and Marion, originally from Essex, paid their initial deposit for their new dream home in the sun about two years ago. As regular visitors to the area they had a pretty good idea what they wanted from their home in Murcia, and they also decided some years ago that they wanted to live in or near to Los Alcazares.

When the plans were first announced for Roda Golf and Beach Resort, Graham and Marion knew at once that this was going to be the place for them. After reserving their property and paying the deposit they have been “wishing their lives away” waiting for their new home to be built!

They have now been living in the property at Roda Golf for about six months and it is fair to say they are loving it. Graham has just been appointed Vice President of the community of owners on their phase, and will be responsible for making sure everything runs nice and smoothly for the community.

Graham is also responsible, along with good friends Logan, Danny Reilly, Pete and a few others, for the Roda Golf Tuesday and Thursday morning golf challenge, where 5 euros will gain you entry to the 8 or 12 ball competition where winner takes all (the winner must buy the 1st round at the 19th hole) this has now become a very popular competition with many regular visitors to Roda Golf joining the members. I myself have joined them on more than one occasion and it is a real fun experience, the competition is fierce with some real keen golfers in attendance, as well as some very questionable handicaps, you have been warned!

Behind every good man there is a good woman and that is certainly the case with these two. Marion’s main job is to keep Graham on the “straight and narrow”. I am happy to report, so far so good!

Graham and Marion can be regularly seen at the Roda Golf clubhouse and gracing the bars and restaurants in the immediate vicinity, La Diva restaurant in the 525 plaza and El Patio 2 are among their favourite eating establishments.

If anybody wants to know about life in Spain and specifically what life is like at the Roda Golf and Beach Resort, we would suggest you search out Graham and Marion Sanders and ask them, judging by the photo above, it is fair to say that life is pretty good for Roda Golf’s newest full time residents.

InterClubs Roda Golf vs Golf Altorreal. March 7th at Roda and April 25th at Altorreal.
This is an individual and Club competition. Both Tournaments includes green fee and Meal (Paella), to share friendship among institutions. The Tournament is reserved for 50 players from each Club. There are individual prizes in each day, and a Trophy for the Club winner. Shot gun start at 9:00 in both courses.

St Patrick´s Day Tournament. March 17th
We are going to celebrate a Golf Tournament that includes a few beers at the end of the game. The Tournament is reserved for 48 players, and the first tee time is at 11:00 and then, every 10 minutes.

Other Tournaments:

• Region de Murcia Professional Tournament: April 12th
• Banco de Santander Tournament: April 28th (Private)
• Circuito de Empresas: May, 9th