Solid sales round-up

PROPERTY pundits have been concerned that sales of newly built Spanish homes appear to be low, contradicting the notion that a solid recovery is in full swing. In fact all the evidence shows the new developments from Madrid to Alicante, and from Marbella to Mallorca are selling very well.

So why isn’t this translating into official figures? The reason is that home sales won’t be entered into the property register until they are fully built and have habitation certificates, meaning we can take these seemingly low sales figures with a pinch of salt. 

On to the wider sales market, which includes second-hand homes, and the latest figures from the National Institute of Statistics show strong growth across key regions including the Costa Blanca, Costa del Sol, Murcia, Balearic Islands, and the cosmopolitan centres of Madrid and Barcelona. 

The news comes amid revelations that, for the first time in aeons, regular Spaniards are actually better off buying rather than renting a home. At present the typical Spanish mortgage repayment is between €350 and €400 per month for a €100,000 loan, while people renting a property that would fit this mortgage model would expect to pay around €500 each month in rent. 

While this is the way it usually was before the crisis, the figures mark the crossing of a significant threshold, one which could lead to an energised boon in sales over the coming months and years as many people realise it’s in their best interests to buy.