Seville Property For Sale

Guide to Property for Sale in Seville

Find Property for Sale in Seville

History of Seville

Seville is one of the most historic cities in Spain.  Seville is home to an enormous gothic cathedral, where the famous Giralda tower can be found, the Real Alcazar palace, impressive Roman walls, the Plaza de Espana monument, the World Expo's from 1929 & 1992 as well as Christopher Columbus' tomb and the tower where he housed the spoils of his voyages to the Americas.  As you can imagine, it is an extremely popular tourist destination (and has its own airport), and this is especially true during the Semana Santa en Sevilla (Holy Week) and during the Feria de Abril de Sevilla (April Feria or Party).

Seville has a very rich history, which can be traced back to the town of Alcalá del Río, on the outskirts of Seville, which was the scene of the final battle between the Romans and Carthaginians in 206 AD, and the place where the first Roman colony was founded, Itálica. Julius Ceasar, in 45 AD, converted the people of Seville into Roman citizens, and it was said to be a place of great circuses, Roman theatres and temples, which sadly no longer remain there.

The Cathedral of Seville was originally known as the "Mezquita Mayor", which was an Islamic Mosque and it was the birthplace of the original Giralda tower.  However, the city was retaken by the Catholic King Fernando III in 1248, and the Mosque was converted into what is now the cathedral.

In the 16th Century, Seville was closely identified with the discovery of the Americas, and was known as the Gate to the Indias, and grew tremendously due to the increase in trade.  The tower where Christopher Columbus stored his treasure from the Americas can still be seen, standing proudly on the banks of Seville's Guadalquivir River. 

The 17th Century saw the creation of the Semana Santa, or Holy Week, and the 18th Century saw the creation of the Fabrica de Tabacos, or Tobacco Factory, which was made world famous by Carmen la Cigarrera, who is the subject of the famous "Carmen" play.  During the same century, the "Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza", which is the world renowned bull ring, was also constructed, even though it was not finished eventually until the 19th Century!  This was also when the famous bridge over the Guadalquivir river was built, which is known as the "Puente de Triana" which links the main part of Seville city centre to the area of Triana, which is famous for the spirit of Flamenco dancing which is born in this area.

The early 20th Century saw the World Exposition being celebrated in Seville in 1929. This is not just an exposition as we may think about it in the modern sense, but saw a great boulevard being constructed with palatial buildings housing the offerings from each country that exhibitied. The Iberian-American exposition constructed the mammoth "Plaza de España" which is still an important tourist attraction in the area and is impressive in its scale. Each square and building constructed reflects the different architectural and cultural style of the country that constructed it.  By the end of the century, the world showcase once again was held in Seville, in the year 1992.  This gave the city some legacies, including some very impressive modern bridges, the Santa Justa train station (which is now the home of the Ave speed trains), as well as the conversion of the Isla Magica into a theme park and the Estadio Olympico (Olimpic Stadium) of Seville.

Festivals in Seville (Semana Santa de Sevilla and Feria de Abril de Sevilla)

If you are looking for a property for sale in Seville, there are some things to bear in mind when looking at central Seville area, especially in Santa Cruz.  During the Semana Santa de Sevilla, the entire city grinds to a halt as massive religious floats, bearing statues of the Virgin Mary and of Christ, which are incredibly elaborate and often centuries old, are carried through the narrow streets by volunteers.  These celebrations last for a week and are televised throughout all of Spain and go on through the day until the early hours of the morning.  Anyone trying to get around the centre, either on foot or by car or public transport may well have great difficulty at these times!

As well as being a very religious city, Sevilla is also Spain's flamenco party capital.  With their very own brand of Flamenco, known as Sevillanas, the people of Seville show everyone how to celebrate during the Feria de Abril.  This is a week of Flamenco and Sevillanas dancing, drinking and eating, when the entire town stops again, but this time they do it to party!  On the edge of the city centre the people of Seville create a small town of marquee tents where guests are invited to party by local dignitaries, businesses and public sector organisations in their private marquee's.  These parties go on for days until the very small hours!

Information on Types of Property for Sale in Seville

The streets of Seville are densely packed together; so much so that in certain streets you can actually extend your arms and touch the buildings on either side!  The author of this guide can vouch for this as I once lived in such area, with cobbled stone streets, large oak doors on the buildings which were plastered in a multitude of different colours.  Property in Seville was generally constructed hundreds of years ago, in the era before air-conditioning.  Due to the extremely high temperatures in the summer months, the streets were constructed in this fashion to prevent the strong sunlight from directly entering the properties in an attempt to keep them as cool as possible.  For the same reason, many properties in Seville also have a central porche, which allows air to escape from the top of the building and to keep air circulation moving inside the properties; however, you should also note that most properties in Seville do now benefit from air conditioning!

Nevertheless, historically, properties in Seville (at least in the historic city centre, in particular the old Jewish quarter of Santa Cruz & the main boulevards) tend to be prodominantely townhouses (with the central open air porche) as hundreds of years ago, the main concern of property owners was to keep their homes cool in the summer.  Nowadays, many such large buildings have also been converted to apartments.  Otherwise, the outskirts of Santa Cruz and Seville town centre are dominated by new build, high rise apartments, which are designed for local people living and working in the town centre.

Countryside Properties in Seville Province (Fincas in the Pueblos)

Property for sale in Seville also includes fincas (old farms with a farmhouse), cortijos (which are larger farms, perhaps once owned by the local aristocracy) and villas (larger properties with less land), all of which are available in the towns (pueblos) surrounding Seville, which have the benefit of being traditional Seville properties, but have much more space, perhaps a swimming pool, and are away from the hustle and bustle of the town centre. Such pueblos near Seville include the following:

- Camas
- San Juan de Aznalfarache
- Tomares
- Gelves
- Castilleja de la Cuesta
- Castilleja de Guzmán
- Bellavista
- Santiponce
- Montequinto
- Bormujos
- Mairena del Aljarafe
- La Algaba
- Torreblanca de Los Caños
- Gines
- Valencina de la Concepción   
- Palomares del Río
- La Rinconada
- San José de la Rinconada
- Coria del Río
- Salteras
- Dos Hermanas
- Espartinas
- La Puebla del Río
- Torre de la Reina
- Alcalá del Río
- Almensilla
- Villanueva del Ariscal
- Bollullos de la Mitación
- Alcalá de Guadaíra
- Umbrete
- San Ignacio de Viar
- Olivares
- Guillena
- Esquivel
- Albaida del Aljarafe
- Adriano
- Benacazón
- Burguillos
- Sanlúcar la Mayor
- El Viar
- Brenes
- Gerena
- Las Pajanosas
- Los Chapatales
- Los Palacios y Villafranca
- Villaverde del Río
- Mairena del Alcor
- Poblado de Alfonso XIII
- Las Monjas
- Aznalcázar
- Maribáñez
- Pinzón
- El Viso del Alcor
- El Trobal
- Escobar
- Huévar del Aljarafe
- Cantillana
- Castilblanco de los Arroyos (29.2 Kms.)
- Utrera
- El Garrobo
- Villafranco del Guadalquivir
- Aznalcóllar    
- Los Rosales
- Tocina
- Los Molares
- El Cañuelo     
- Arroyo de la Plata
- Villanueva del Río y Minas

All in all, Seville is a great place to find an authentic Spanish property for sale; if you are a lover of Spanish culture, including religious events and Flamenco parties, look for property for sale in Seville!  The city is truely one of the most spectacular and historical in all of Europe.