Lanzarote Property

Head off the beaten track in Lanzarote to find a stylish investment away from the main resorts

Featured April 10 Words by Zoe Dare Hall
Lanzarote Property

When Borge Jensen wanted to build a house like no other on Lanzarote, he called on friend C�sar Manrique, the revered local artist and architect whose blueprint for Lanzarote's urban planning has ensured the island has remained low-rise, whitewashed and sensitively developed. "I have always been fascinated by Lanzarote's lava fields, which feel as though you are entering another dimension, so when Manrique and I found this plot in Tahiche, a village in the hills behind Arrieta in the north, we knew it was perfect," says B�rge, a Danish designer whose house sits on a lava bubble, where a volcanic eruption left an air pocket in the molten liquid.

"My lava bubble forms part of my living room and is similar to one that Manrique had in his house that was open to the elements. When it rained, you could lie on the sofa and look up and it was as if diamonds were falling from the sky," B�rge says of his house, Casa Teiga (www.casateiga.com), which is now on the market for �1.2m through K2 Properties (www.k2lanzarote.com).

Houses like Casa Teiga are also seeing good year-round rental returns from tourists who want to explore Lanzarote's wilder side, with its distinctive, dramatic volcanic landscapes. "People love the feeling of being completely disconnected from the world here," B�rge says.

While most tourists make a beeline for the resorts of Puerto del Carmen, Playa Blanca and Costa Teguise, Heidi Wigmore, who runs Lanzarote-based interior design company Buy Design, encourages more visitors to appreciate natural attractions such as the lagoon at El Golfo or tiny La Graciosa Island, 2km off the north coast.

"We don't want hoards of tourists to start trampling through small fishing villages such as Arrieta or Punta Mujeres, but we do want to show people the 'nice side' of Lanzarote beyond the mainstream resorts," says Heidi, who moved there from Essex 13 years ago and lives in Conil, near Puerto del Carmen, with her husband Mark and their three children.

"You can find everything from studios to out-of-this-world villas that are set in amazing surroundings and whose owners really make an effort to be eco-friendly with features such as solar heating and low-energy bulbs," she explains. "People don't think of Lanzarote as a rural place and we're trying to change that."

Most second-home buyers choose holiday apartments or villas in towns such as Playa Blanca, where rental potential is good, but competition is fierce. Due to an over-supply of new-build properties, prices in the resorts have also dropped by about 30% since the market's 2007 peak.

Price falls have been less dramatic in rural areas due to a lack of supply of properties for sale. For those preferring a slice of alternative Lanzarote, look in northern villages such as Punta Mujeres, Maguez or Tabayesco for old properties with traditional Canarian charm.

Philipp Imhof, a 43-year-old former Swiss banker who now enjoys a quieter life in Lanzarote, owns the dramatically located property El Mar Y Tu (www.elmarytu.com), set on the rocks overlooking the ocean in Arrieta. "Lanzarote has two faces," says Philipp. "There's the mass tourism side, where everyone stays in the mainstream complexes, and there's the high-quality tourism, with chic rural villas for people who like walking and exploring the inside of a volcano, deserted beaches or gorgeous natural pools."

And it seems, at last, that more people are starting to appreciate that more authentic side. "People's perceptions of Lanzarote are gradually changing," says Heidi Wigmore, "and it's bringing a more positive type of tourist." Just not too many, she hopes, so at least some of those tracks can remain unbeaten.

CHIC CANARIAN LIVING FOR LESS

UNDER �200,000
This ruin in the village of Tiagua in northern Lanzarote has 10 rooms set around a courtyard with a traditional aljibe (water tank) that could be converted into a plunge pool. The property would make a perfect B&B, with the nearby Caleta de Famara fishing village and its beach popular with surfers, kitesurfers and hang-gliders. The property is also a stone's throw away from the sports complex that hosts the annual Iron Man competition. Available for �178,000 through K2 Properties, tel: +34 928 529 152, www.k2lanzarote.com

AROUND �300,000
This large house in Tabayesco, in the rural Har�a region of northern Lanzarote has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, two living rooms and sits on 1,500m2 of land. There is also a 100m2 patio overlooking mature gardens. The house dates back to the 1890s and the owners have been renovating and adding to it for the past five years, so little needs to be done. It's just a five-minute walk to the beach, making it a fantastic rental property. Available for �300,000 through Freedom4sale, tel: +34 928 346 754, www.freedom4sale.com

UNDER �450,000
A rare opportunity to purchase a bungalow right on the beach in the surfers' paradise of Famara, set in a national park with stunning beach views. The bungalow consists of four bedrooms and three bathrooms, one of which is independent from the house. There is also a living room, kitchen, large terrace, 1,000m2 private garden with views across to the island of La Graciosa, and a double garage. The old town of Teguise is a 10-minute drive away. Available for �425,000 through Freedom4sale, tel: +34 928 346 754, www.freedom4sale.com