This village in Spain will pay you to live, have children there

Ponga will pay people €2,970 to live there and an extra €2,970 for every child born in the village.

 Ponga, Spain. (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Ponga, Spain.
(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Has all the talk of relocating because of the situation in Israel sounded good to you? Here is something that might suit you: A village in northwest Spain will pay you to live in it.

According to reports in Spanish media, whoever moves to live in the village of Ponga will receive €2,970. This is part of a plan to strengthen the local economy similarly to schemes that were launched by many towns and villages in Italy.

Furthermore, beyond this payment, Ponga will add another €2,970 for every child born in the village. Thus, Ponga hopes to give new life to the village which currently only has some 600 residents.

Those who take part in this will discover that Ponga has a lot to offer: Beyond the sunny and comfortable weather, the village is surrounded by a widespread biosphere nature reserve that was classified by UNESCO. The reserve is located around the Cantabrian Mounties and offers travelers hiking trails among green forests and unique wild flowers.

Furthermore, the nearby Asturias area is known for its wild coastlines and its valleys and mountains. 

 Ponga, Spain. (credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Ponga, Spain. (credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Also, history and culture lovers will enjoy the place thanks to plenty of ancient churches.

What's the catch?

But even so, this plan has a catch: In order to enjoy the offer, you would have to live in Ponga for at least five years.

If this requirement is too much for you, you could always try to fulfill your relocation dream in other locations that offer similar plans.

For instance, the Rubia village in Galacia in northwest Spain announced that it will pay €150 a month to those who agree to live there. This plan is meant for families with children in an attempt to grow the number of children in the local schools.

At the end of last year, a similar project was launched in Presicce of Italy's southeast Puglia region. In this plan, you would be payed €28,000 if you used it to buy a property in need of renovating. The plan was meant for people aged over 40 who committed to move to the area within 90 days of approval and who started a business in the village or worked in the area.

These plans join other "House for a euro" offers throughout Italy. According to these plans, you could buy abandoned buildings at low prices, renovate them and move into them.