Living in caves is all the rage across Spain, mostly in Andalucia. Caves that had first been occupied 500 years ago are now sort after by foreigners, mainly British and Dutch as second homes and for permanent living.
The caves were once the only housing option for the poor locals in times when building materials and money were scarce. The caves were later abandoned in the 1950s as the inhabitants left for the nearby towns, leaving them abandoned except for local wildlife and for shelter from the odd storm by wandering shepherds.
If the family grew so could their home! By excavating a new room out of the soft, waterproof rock into the neighbouring hillside, they could enlarge their home, room by room, an easy solution but a slow and laborious task.
Enterprising locals later turned one or two of the caves into accommodation for tourism, which began a rise in awareness to this unique style of living and their popularity opened up the whole property market for up-and-coming troglodytes.
Cave living is environmentally friendly, with an ambient year-round temperature of 16-21c, winter heating and air conditioning is hardly necessary. They are also low maintenance houses as there is no roof to need re-tiling, wooden beams to become beetle infested, floorboards to rot or tiles to replace.
Modern caves sometimes have a front extension that isn’t below ground, but with all the modern amenities, low-cost maintenance and excellent soundproofing what more could you need?
Natural light comes from doors and windows facing the outside, but some caves have roof holes made by drilling rigs and covered by convex glass and light ducts.
The local communities have benefited by the selling of their unwanted caves by an increase in population and income. A lot of the permanent cave dwellers are young couples which is helping to balance the ageing population of these country towns, where many of the local young people move larger towns and cities. And in some cases these foreigner have been the salvation for local schools, which were in danger of being closed due to the lack of pupils.
Cave properties are on the market as reformed dwellings ready to move into and as prospective houses with the possibility of designing your own dwelling for renovation. As a fairly low cost home with low overheads they really are worth considering as a novel investment, prices go from 25,000 Euros upwards.
See for more information on Andalucia.
