SPANISH PROPERTY FIGURES LEVEL OUT

News

Mark Nolan / 2012-01-04 09:08:12

Property in Spain

According to figures released by the Sociedad de Tasación, the price of new property in Spain fell by 4% in 2011, resulting in an average price of 2,376 euro per square meter, meaning the overall cost of an average home was 213,840 euro.

Experts feel that the trend may continue in some parts of Spain in 2012, whereas other places have already seen prices start to increase over last year. Of the 50 provinces of Spain, 48 of them still dropped slightly last year, Pontevedra levelled out and Zamora actually started to increase in property value.

This turn around trend in terms of value is expected in some of the provincial capitals such as Madrid, Barcelona, San Sebastian and Bilbao where property prices are already more expensive than the national average, whereas sales are expected to increase in volume in coastal and tourist areas, as well as Murcia, Cáceres, Badajoz, Pontevedra, Jaén, Lugo, Zamora, Tenerife, Avila and Ciudad Real, where the average price of a Spanish property stands at just 1,500 euro per square metre, nearly 900 euro per metre cheaper than the national average, which is where some experts feel that astute bargain hunters will be snapping up property in the first half of the year, especially in places that are already starting to grow in investment terms, following the announcements of developments such as the Paramount theme park and the transfer of flights from Murcia San Javier airport to the brand new hub at Corvera.

In 2011, the number of first homes stood at 81,000 units. In the first half of the year this started to look stagnant as there were difficulties in gaining finance for property buyers, but the problem reduced in the second half of the year, as confidence started to return.

The Sociedad de Tasación has also stated that there has been an increase in properties being purchased by individuals, rather than real estate or investment companies and that there has been an increase in the ‘rent to buy’ options that ease first time buyers onto the property market.

The society also see an improvement in the marketplace for property as the number of units available is more realistic to the demands of the market, rather than overbuilding of previous years, which is also set to improve through 2012 as the demand increases, thus reducing the available stock.

Tags: Property, Property Portal, Propertyportal