3689 Ecological Off-Grid Cortijo

An ecological, off-grid, cortijo which enjoys a sunny micro climate. Organically registered, abundant fruit trees and vegetable plots.

This is a large, quirky cortijo set on a hillside with long views across the Guadalfeo Valley to the Contraviesa and Sierra de Lujar mountains. It will be of especial interest to anyone who enjoys fruit and vegetable gardening. There are 35 different fruits registered as organic although many of them have only one or two trees. The principal crops are citrus (350 - 400 Kgs p.a), olives (similar) and almonds. Included in the list are avocados, apples, pears, nectarines, peaches, plums and, very unusually, bananas. Although banana palms are not uncommon in the area, productive ones are. The dense banana palm produces more fruit than the owners can eat. Surplus fruits are sold to a local merchant, the olives are taken to an organic mill and the almonds sold to a dealer.

The house consists of a lounge/dining room with wood-burner, kitchen, walk-in pantry, small salon and bathroom, all on the ground floor with, on the first floor, a study, small lounge, principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom, a second bathroom which shares with the main bedroom access to a small terrace with long views, and a further bedroom/workroom. Separate from the house but very close is a light one-roomed casita with great views.

The cortijo was originally three houses which have been joined. One of these houses, consisting of four rooms is undeveloped internally. It has a new roof and the floors are concreted. Currently used only for storage, it is waiting for a new owner to put it to better use.

Outside there are very attractive covered and uncovered seating and dining areas and a lawned space for relaxation, beside which is a plunge pool. On the land, which is arranged as four terraces, there is a stone built potting shed, a wood store, a luxury chicken house and a compost toilet. The land is hugely productive.

Electricity is provided by solar panels which feed two new lithium batteries generating 5Kw-6Kw. The input and output is monitored easily using a laptop app. Hot water is also supplied by solar heating. It would be possible to connect to mains electricity at very little cost. There is  already provision to do so at the edge of the land. However the existing owners have chosen to remain off-grid.

The property has acequia rights and enjoys plenty of water all year round. This is stored in an open alberca with a capacity of 30.000 litres and a second closed tanks of 20.000 litres. The water is filtered before reaching the house and further filtered for use in cooking. The owners currently collect the drinking water from the free source in Lanjaron.

The property consists of a two plots, in total with 6.406 m2. The cortijo is fully registered and the catastro is in complete agreement. The property is sale ready.

This is an exceptional property for a couple wishing to live a healthy, natural and plant-based lifestyle. However, there are many steps both in the house and on the land which may make it unsuitable for families with small children.

If you don’t know this area well, why not take a look at our exposure guide on the Alpujarras in the Area Guide section above (next to Overview).