She is still very young in the organization and working as an inspector in the Kiel district team.
He already swam through a lot of waters as head of POSA Antwerp. Until a trip to Spain led them down a completely different path.
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De Poll, staff magazine of the Local Police of Antwerp
HOW WOULD IT BE WITH ...
She was just starting out in the organization and working as an inspector with the Kiel district team. He already swam through many waters as head of POSA Antwerp. Until a trip to Tenerife led them down a completely different path. We are talking about Freyke Van Looveren (30) and Carl Vorsselmans (46). About three years ago, they traded the police world for a real estate business in Spain. "We rolled into it rather by accident. You can hardly call this a plan," Freyke says. You'll have to explain that to us ...
"It seems unlikely, yet that's how it happened," Freyke laughs. "Carl and I have been a couple since 2014. He comes from Loenhout. I'm from nearby Brecht. Yet it was the party at PZ Minos that brought us together. (winks) "Tenerife was the destination of our very first trip together," Freyke remembers well. "We went there to visit Glenn Crynen (ex-BBT, ed) who was staying there for his project U-Turn. Afterwards we also made trips to Thailand and Malaysia, among other places, but Tenerife in particular stuck with us. And so we decided to buy a new apartment there. As a second residence, and as an investment through short-term rentals." But there's a lot involved in such a purchase, Freyke and Carl found out. There's the project developer, and the notary, but it's up to the buyer himself to sort out and arrange a lot of things. And so the couple immersed themselves in property rights and obligations, taxation, and so on. Not much later, when friends of theirs were also interested in a newly built apartment in Tenerife, they could turn to Freyke and Carl for advice. And so the ball got rolling. Meanwhile, even soccer stars, such as Simon Mignolet, among others, had the former police couple advise them on the purchase of Spanish real estate. "The knowledge we now have, a buyer can never find out the week he drops down to Spain to buy a property," Freyke clarified. "The Fleming does not know the real estate market there with its rules and customs. We have a trust function and are the link between the project developer, the buyer and the notary. Buying a new dress in a Spanish boutique will not be a problem for anyone. Buying a house is a different matter. And if you can be assisted in that in your own language, that it won't cause you any headaches and that it saves you time ..."
Freyke and Carl consider a long-term vision much more important than quick money-making. If they do not find a suitable property for a potential buyer, they will say so honestly. "Gradually we found that people often hesitate between the Canary Island and the Spanish mainland," Freyke speaks from experience. "That's why we also operate on the Costa del Sol, the Costa Blanca and Ibiza. The past few weeks I have been busy with our new website newbuildinspanje.com and our social media. I regularly travel to Belgium to give information sessions to Flemish people. Of course, I don't bring houses or apartments, but a lot of essential information. Knowledge is power, is one of those jokes between Carl and me, referring to the phrase that was hammered into us in police school." What does an average workday for Freyke look like? "It's usually long, feel free to compare it to a twelve-hour shift with occasional overtime," Freyke laughs. "We also don't know weekends at all. When I'm not out with clients, I work on our website and marketing and follow up on requests from potential clients.
My job and private life are somewhat mixed up. It may seem like vacation every day in Spain, but rest assured that behind the scenes it is often hard work for us. But there will be something in between our perfectionist side." "Of course I hesitated before I stepped into this adventure," Freyke answers our question. "Carl is very rational and immediately believed in us as a team. Moreover, he got his master's degree in commercial sciences in Zaragoza so he was already fluent in Spanish anyway. He also already had a recognition number as a real estate agent. I reacted much more emotionally. But soon I saw it as an opportunity to learn a world language, and leaving that safe police environment I also found quite exciting. I thought: if things go wrong, I still have this life experience." Still, Freyke admits that for her, this real estate story could easily have come five years later. "I was really still enjoying myself in the police force. And Carl wasn't bored with his job yet either. More than that: his colleagues still call him every now and then and he happily gets on a plane to be an extra in some training. But sometimes things turn out the way they do. And you have to dare to jump. Moreover, I commute to Belgium so often that it doesn't feel like emigrating at all. By the way, did you know that we see our family and friends more often now than we used to? Back then, I worked shifts and Carl worked on a permanent basis. Now when I'm in Belgium, everyone makes time for me ...," Freyke smiles. Sometimes things run the way they do and you have to dare to jump.