Data from Notary Reveals Spanish Property Prices Increased 5.67% in 2016

Data from Notary Reveals Spanish Property Prices Increased 5.67% in 2016

Spend enough time on the internet and you’ll be able to find some headline, statistic, or opinion that matches any kind of preconceived notion you might have. The Spanish property market is no exception.

Spanish Property continues to sell and increase from previous years

Several media outlets are all too happy to keep painting their picture of grim desperation. One source even tried to claim that Spanish property prices are in the middle of an alarming freefall.

It’s quite easy to debunk these stories, mostly because every respected economist and analyst in the country has examples of reliable data showing that property prices continue to increase across the country following 2014, when they hit rock bottom.

The actual figures might differ between establishments such as the Deutsche Bank to the National Statistics Institute, the trend is clear and unchanging; prices are on the rise, and have been so for three years now.

The latest figures published this week by the Spanish Notaries Association further confirms the trend, as it shows the average price per square metre in Spain increased 5.67% during 2016 compared to 2015.

The notary data shows that foreign interest was as strong as ever in Spain during 2016, as 13.25% of all homes sold in Spain were sold to non-Spaniards. In terms of real data, this is around 53,000 homes; 19% of which were sold to British buyers.

This means that Brits are responsible for 2.5% of every homesold in Spain in 2016; double the amount of properties purchased by the Germans; who are the second-strongest foreign market.

Mortgage Activity in Spain Increased in November by 32%

The Costa del Sol continues its recovery

Mortgage Activity in Spain Increased in November by 32%

November was an incredible month for the Spanish property market given the 32% growth month-on-month.

As the stats for the end of 2016 start coming in, it’s increasingly clear that the year was a successful one for Spain in a number of ways. The country saw considerable improvement in tourism to the economy as a whole. No industry has seen the level of positivity that the property industry has though.

The central statistics unit of the Spanish government shows that there was a 32% increase in mortgage approvals in November 2016 compared to November 2015. Overall 25.413 mortgages were approved in the month.

This would be encouraging by itself, but when you also consider the greater trends as a whole, it becomes a stronger sign of success. Overall there was a 15% increase in mortgage approvals during the first 11 months of 2016 compared to the same time period in 2015; reaching a total of 260,581.

It’s expected that December will see this total figure increased by over 20,000 for the full year-end total.

If there are that many mortgage approvals in December, it means that there were over 280,000 mortgages approved in 2016 across Spain. While the idea of a “healthy” number has become a little skewed by the boom-and-bust nature of the real estate sector in Spain, there’s still plenty of steady growth, and that’s encouraging.

Here is something to consider; There were over 100,000 mortgages approved per month for much of the last peak for the Spanish property market. That covers 2005 and 2007. This changed a lot after the depression settled in as only 12,000 mortgages were approved in August 2013.

It was impossible to maintain the higher figure, but the smaller figure is just too low. That’s why steady growth somewhere in the middle is just right. At least for now.

Spanish Growth Forecast Increased by 2.7%

Spanish Growth Forecast Increased by 2.7%

While the Spanish economic outlook has been looking good for a while the Economic Minister of Spain Luis de Guindos announced that the growth forecast for the rest of 2016 would be increased by another 2.7%.

The future is looking Bright for Spain

The Minister says that Spain could very well pass the 3.2 increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) seen in 2015 as long as the political impasse in Spain – Spain has held two general elections in six months with no clear winner – comes to a close.

De Guindos said that he believes the current growth projections are very prudent and that he will revise the growth for 2016 in the next set of forecasts to be issued before the end of July.

The Minister was keen to stress that Spain is becoming an even better place to do business day by day, citing how the country has internationally recognised business schools, low prices on real estate, great weather, cost of living being so low and a solid infrastructure. All of which he believes make the country so appealing to investors.

The Minister believes that creating a stable government which would then form a strong economic policy could see the country outdo the growth they saw last year. The Popular Party emerged as the party with the most votes in the last election but, once again, they failed to secure a majority. The far-left party Podemos also lost votes in the election which suggests people are voting for stability; something Incumbent Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was keen to hit home.

While he has presided over a number of tough austerity measures it’s impossible to claim the country hasn’t ultimately had an economic upturn. Unemployment is down consistently and many industries such as hospitality and service have seen a rise in growth over the past few months.

Even the banking industry in Spain, which was reliant on an EU bailout following the last recession, has managed to head in the right direction. De Guindos believes that the banks can continue to act responsibly and help the country continue to grow. He said that the banks were cleaned up in 2012 after the bailout so the country doesn’t need to worry about the banks anymore.
All in all the out look for spain and residents is looking good.

Spanish Growth Forecast Increased by 2.7%

Spanish Growth Forecast Increased by 2.7%

While the Spanish economic outlook has been looking good for a while the Economic Minister of Spain Luis de Guindos announced that the growth forecast for the rest of 2016 would be increased by another 2.7%.

Marbella in the Costa del Sol enjoying welcomed growth

The Minister says that Spain could very well pass the 3.2 increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) seen in 2015 as long as the political impasse in Spain – Spain has held two general elections in six months with no clear winner – comes to a close.

De Guindos said that he believes the current growth projections are very prudent and that he will revise the growth for 2016 in the next set of forecasts to be issued before the end of July.

The Minister was keen to stress that Spain is becoming an even better place to do business day by day, citing how the country has internationally recognised business schools, low prices on real estate, great weather, cost of living being so low and a solid infrastructure. All of which he believes make the country so appealing to investors.

The Minister believes that creating a stable government which would then form a strong economic policy could see the country outdo the growth they saw last year. The Popular Party emerged as the party with the most votes in the last election but, once again, they failed to secure a majority. The far-left party Podemos also lost votes in the election which suggests people are voting for stability; something Incumbent Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was keen to hit home.

While he has presided over a number of tough austerity measures it’s impossible to claim the country hasn’t ultimately had an economic upturn. Unemployment is down consistently and many industries such as hospitality and service have seen a rise in growth over the past few months.

Even the banking industry in Spain, which was reliant on an EU bailout following the last recession, has managed to head in the right direction. De Guindos believes that the banks can continue to act responsibly and help the country continue to grow. He said that the banks were cleaned up in 2012 after the bailout so the country doesn’t need to worry about the banks anymore.
All in all the out look for spain and residents is looking good.