02 December, 2016

By VIVA Team

Apartment buildings in Fuengirola

Coastal regions and Spain’s islands remain the stronger markets for property.

Property prices in Spain’s more popular regions have maintained their stability in the latest price index for November, although 11 of the country’s 17 autonomous regions saw a slight decrease in average prices for the month…

As ever, homes on the Canary Islands and the Balearics saw a gentle rise, as did prices in Andalucía and Murcia. However, the average property price in Spain in November is actually 1.1% lower than in October, which experts agree is likely to be a small, seasonal dip.

While there is some uniformity in property price trends across Spain – prices are generally rising – not all regions are as in demand as others. For example, home values in Castilla-La Mancha have dipped 1.5% in the month, and while Catalunya also saw a 1.3% price contraction, home values in Barcelona were actually up by 1.7%.

The Costa del Sol remains among the most robust of Spain’s property regions, with average selling prices increasing by more than one per cent in November.

Despite the slight dips in prices in some of the country’s less heralded regions, 2016 has been a very good year for the Spanish property market, with home sales increasing month by month, more foreign buyers returning, and a growing number of younger Spaniards getting on to the property ladder as the job market improves and mortgage availability widens.

Speaking about the country’s recovery, economy minister Luis de Guindos said this week that “Spain has a very big advantage now: we are off the radar in terms of political uncertainty”, and the data backs up his claim: GDP is on course to reach 3.2% this year, unemployment has fallen to 18.9%, and the government that implemented the country’s economic recovery is back in power and eager to maintain the course.

“The measures that we took during the crisis are paying off. Job creation is strong and growth is strong so that shows that the reforms have worked,” said José María Roldán, the president of AEB, the Spanish banking association. “What is very important is not to have a reversal of the reforms that worked. Reversing those measures would be suicidal.”