The Olympics may not want Spain, but stats show foreign buyers still do

Tokyo will host the 2020 Olympic Games, but it hasn't been all bad news for Spain

So that’s that, then. Madrid’s third straight attempt to host the Olympic Games in 2020 once again ended in the familiar taste of failure as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) opted for Tokyo ahead of Madrid and Istanbul.

It’s a blow, certainly, but something that Spain has become accustomed to over the past few years. However, latest figures from the country’s Public Works Ministry show that Spain still has a strong allure for one section of society – overseas property buyers…

The Ministry’s figures released last week show that property sales throughout Spain were up by 2.3 per cent – or 345,471 units – over the past 12 months, despite a fall of 4.2 per cent for the period between April and June. However, Spanish daily El País is reporting that purchases by foreign nationals accounted for 16.9 per cent of all property bought during this period, a total of 12,546 units.

In fact, for the past eight quarters, or two years in old money, property sales to non-resident foreign nationals in Spain have increased. Much of this activity has been focused on just a handful of regions, including the ever-popular Málaga and Costa del Sol regions, as well as Barcelona, Girona and the Canary Islands.

There was more encouraging news to come out of the G20 Summit, which ended in St. Petersburg last Friday. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, speaking at a post-summit press conference, said that Spain’s economy had improved to such an extent that the country’s woes were no longer on the agenda.

“Many things have changed for Spain since the last G20 Summit,” said Rajoy. “In the last G20, there was talk of the possibility of a bailout, of the risk premium, of the euro crisis.

“Spain is no longer in the news for that.” Cynics might scoff that the ongoing Syria issue – and even the recent spat with Gibraltar – may have shoved Spain’s economic recovery off the agenda, but like all good politicians, Rajoy saw this as a sign to employ some much-needed positive spin for the country.