Sir Ian Botham recommends Andalucian Dream Homes

He's a cricketing legend, a tireless charity worker and he's recently been knighted! In his spare time Sir Ian 'Beefy' Botham likes nothing better than relaxing at his Spanish home. That's why he's teamed up with Andalucian Dream Homes to promote the benefits of owning property around the Costa del Sol.

Sir Ian, who's enjoyed a home in Spain for the past seven years, outlines why it's a wonderful investment and a life-enhancing decision. "It's improved my family's lifestyle and it's so close to home," he explains. "We jump on a plane and a few hours later we're at our Spanish house overlooking the golf course with the mountains in the background – what more do you want?"

Sir Ian travels to Spain regularly with his children and grandchildren. "Nowadays there are so many flights that whenever I have time off I come straight here to relax and enjoy the sunshine."

"Spain's got everything," he continues. "We can ski in the morning, go to the beach in the afternoon and if we want the glitz of Puerto Banus we can have that too. Then there's the golf. There are some great courses like Valderrama, San Roque and Sotogrande. I'd rather play on the Costa del Sol than other places because I don't have to spend a whole day travelling - and when you have children and grandchildren that's important."

Sir Ian has seen southern Spain develop and he thinks everyone should fly here to see the amazing lifestyle on offer. "If you come and look I'd be very surprised if you don't fall in love with it. In addition to the lifestyle, investing in Spain has been a very good idea for me personally too."

When you've been in the spotlight for as long as Sir Ian, you've got to be careful about who you deal with. "There are lots of people out there who are less than trustworthy," he warns. "I've known David Honeyman (CEO of Andalucian Dream Homes) for a long time and what impresses me about the company is that you can walk into the office, pick the property you want, go and have a look at it, come back, get the legal side of things sorted out and walk out effectively owning a property."

"The whole thing is done without any headaches and without all the pitfalls. To me it's common sense to do everything in the same place. And if you're a first time buyer you want everything to be as easy as possible, so that's why you should talk to Andalucian Dream Homes."

This is a short extract from an interview conducted with Sir Ian at Andalucian Dream Homes' offices by Clare McKenna in June 2007.