Data Shows January Spanish Home Values up 3.6%

2018 is a perfect time to buy costa del sol property

Data Shows January Spanish Home Values up 3.6%

Statistics published by Spanish property valuation firm Tinsa this week show the average home in Spain was worth around 3.6% more at the end of January 2018 compared to January 2017. 

With the increase of between 5-6% in 2017 – depending on the metric – signs are strong that 2018 will be another positive year for Spanish property. 

The data from Tinsa highlighted not just the nationwide average increase of 3.6% but also different regional variances. The data showed that property prices were up over 5% in the larger cities and provincial capitals of Spain during January, with an increase of around 4.1% across the Balearic and Canary islands.

Average prices increased around 3% for most of the Mediterranean coast, which is just below the national average. This is a reflection of the fact that demand for coastal properties is generally at its lowest in the winter months. Tinsa believes that home prices across the Mediterranean will reach above the national average as the summer sets in. 

An interesting note is that while the data from Tinsa doesn’t reveal the average selling price of Spanish homes for January, it does say that home values have reached the averages of June 2013, which was a time when the market faced a number of price corrections. 

Things were moving downwards back then while they are moving upwards today, and substantially at that. Home sales are increasing by an encouraging amount; 11-15% over the past few years. The average mortgage loan amount is also steadily increasing.

Spanish Second Home Market Redefines Itself

Spanish Second Home Market Redefines Itself

Costa del sol continues to lead the way in property sales and rentals

There’s no such thing as a “typical” overseas buyer when it comes to Spanish property. For every millionaire looking for property in La Zagaleta, there’s the average Joe that has worked hard to finally invest in an overseas property.

However, it’s well known statistics can be manipulated to tell any story, which is what happened with real estate portal Donpiso. The results are interesting to say the least.

The data shows that an average holiday home in Spain costs €200,000, is o the or near the coast, and is purchased by couples between 35 and 49 years old, with children and a regular monthly income of at least €3,500.

The cheapest coastal region in Spain to purchase property is Murcia, where the average holiday home costs just €150,000. The figure increases as you move across the Costa Dorada. Costa Brava and Costa Blanca with those buying second homes on the Costa del Sol spending an average of €350,000.

It’s true that you really can do anything with statistics. Even though house prices do rise on the Costa del Sol faster than anywhere else since the beginning of the recovery, €350,000 is still higher than the average price one would be paying for a home in the area.

The figure is skewed as Marbella is where the most expensive postcode in the country is found, along with many exclusive neighbourhoods and urbanisations packed with luxury homes. In the more affordable areas of the region, buyers can get a property for the bargain price of around €200,000.

Other trends related to dates show that the summer is the busiest time for buying holiday homes, while demand cools off during the run up to the Christmas holidays.

Another study from Marbella Property Group praised the Spanish property sector, stating that the industry has undergone a major transformation as of late with higher employment levels, an increase in disposable income, and a rise in consumer confidence boosting housing demand, along with the 20.2% increase in mortgage lending in March of 2017 compared to last year.

Data Shows Increase of 47% and 55% in Home Sales and Prices Respectively in Spain

Spain continues to recover and sales are on the up

Data Shows Increase of 47% and 55% in Home Sales and Prices Respectively in Spain

A report collating data about Spanish home sales and value has discovered that – during the first six months of the year – property sales increased 47% over the previous year, while the value of homes in recorded sales increased 55%. 

The data in the report comes from the global real estate firm Lucas Fox, which primarily operates in high-end markets. This is why the average property price in their portfolio during the past six months reached as high as €750,000, which is much higher than the Spanish average. Even so, it does say a lot about the health of the Spanish real estate sector. 

Home values in all price brackets increased steadily across Spain 2017. Even so, this 55% increase for the top level of properties is much higher than the rises seen in other parts of the country. The amount of homes Lucas Fox sold also offers a positive look at the wider national trends of Spain, with the country registering an increase in transactions for over 15 months in a row. 

The data also analysed where the property buyers came from. The number of British buyers dropped 10% over last year – likely do to the impact of Brexit on the pound against the Euro. On the other hand, buyers from the US and Canada made up 10% of the property purchases in Spain. 32% of the Spanish properties sold were purchased to be either a second home or an investment. 23% of the properties sold were sold as a primary residence. 

Lucas Fox co-founder Alexander Vaughn says that the Spanish economy is one of the fastest growing ones in the Eurozone. This is bringing a lot of confidence to the property market. There’s been more interest from property investors who now feel that Spanish real estate has a lot of potential for capital gains and profitability from rentals. Lucas Fox expects the price recovery being observed now in cities will soon spread to the rest of the country.

Agents from Lucas Fox said that they saw a 150% increase in Marbella property sales, with 80% of the increase coming from Scandinavian buyers.

Spaniards Return Home for Property and Jobs

Spaniards Return Home for Property and Jobs

The Spanish revival continues with spain being

the best place to live in Europe  

The Spanish population is growing for the first time since 2011, increasing to 46.58 million at the start of 2017, according to the latest data from the Institute of National Statistics (INE).

The reason for the boost is three-fold; an increase in new births, a rise in expats and immigration and – perhaps most significantly – Spaniards returning home after leaving during the tough years of the recession, coming back to enjoy the strengthening Spanish economy.

The increase in new births is a clear signal that the youth of Spain are becoming more confident in their own financial situations, while it’s expected that immigration will rise as the economy grows.

But the biggest impact is coming from the amount of Spaniards returning home. IT’s estimated that over 50,000 Spaniards came back to the country between the first of January in 2016 and 2017. With them comes plenty of positives for the property and job markets of the country.

In the 12 months between the start of 2016 and 2017 for example, the population of the country grew by 89,000. However, there were 375,000 new jobs created in this time period, meaning that with 18.8 million people working in Spain the figuree is the highest it’s been in seven years.

Another important fact is that the employment boom is being seen in more stable industries than before – in the times when the credit bubble burst and destroyed the economy. The increase in jobs across 2017 is being seen in several industries including agriculture, construction, and hospitality. There has also been an increase in the demand for skilled workers.

Changes in Spanish population have typically correlated with changes to GDP since 2008, when both figures plummeted before rising a little in 2010 and sinking again in 2013. The GDP has risen steadily since then, even if the population figures took a little longer to catch up.

The trend is clear for now however; thousands of the young Spaniards who left Spain to make their lives in the UK, Germany, and across Scandinavia are returning home – better for their time away, with more financial stability and an eagerness to contribute to the continued recovery of the Spanish economy.

Javier Díaz Giménez, professor of economics at IESE Business School in Madrid believes that the economy is growing strongly and is much more balanced than it was back in 2007. The labour market by be evolving all the time, but there is no doubt that plenty of jobs are being created across the board.

The return of confident and willing workers is being felt in more than just the job market. The Spanish property market has also been expanding in an encouraging manner for the past three years now, complete with a noticeable increase in domestic buyers across the past 18 months.

Spain continues is recovery and smashes all records yet again.

May Sees 9-Year High in Spanish Home Sales

The recovery of the Spanish property market has carried over to the summer, as the latest official data from the National Statistics Institute shows home sales reached a nine-year high in the month of May.

It was the summer of 2008 nine years ago; back when people began to notice the signs of an impending financial crisis. Even so, the moods were still high, if a little lower than during the summer of 2007.

Since then however, the property sector has been ravaged by a Spanish double-dip recession, an EU crisis, and a global credit crunch. It took a long time for recovery to begin, with things only looking up in 2013.

Despite the delay, the past 18 months have been very positive overall, and the latest data from the INE is the best seen for some time.

The official figures show that 44,782 homes were registered as sold in May this year; the highest monthly figure seen since back in September 2008, and a whopping increase on May from last year of 22.9%.

This is hardly an isolated incident either. When combined, the first five months saw a total of 191,537 properties change hands in Spain; an 11.8% increase on the first five months of 2016.

To offer a larger view, data from the INE also shows that, for the 12 months leading to the end of May 2017, home sales transactions were around 425,000; an incredibly encouraging 11.9% annual increase.

There are always regional imbalances when it comes to the number of transactions, but the data showed that sales were up in 16 out of 17 of the Spanish autonomous regions over last year. The Balearics and Castille-La Mancha in particular had strong sales; with increases of over 35%.

Other recent data from the INE shows that property pricesincreased by an average of 5.3% nationwide.

Poll Finds 70% Of British Expats Unlikely to Return Home

Poll Finds 70% Of British Expats Unlikely to Return Home

With the wonderful sunshine and Mediterranean lifestyle

its no wonder why no one wants to go back to the cold of

northern europe

The decision to become an expat is not something one takes lightly. It can be stressful to uproot your entire life. If you plan carefully however, then you’ll likely have a positive experience. Things are so good for expats, in fact, that a recent poll of British expats suggested that 69% of them had no intention of ever returning home.

The survey was conducted by the financial services organisation deVere Groups. It found that many British expats are very happy with their current lives as only 10% said that they would consider moving back home to the UK, with only 21% answering “maybe” they would go back.

One of the main reasons that Brits move abroad is to findwork, with just under a quarter of those polled saying they moved for their jobs.

The survey looked at around 1,000 Brits living abroad in countries such as Spain, Australia, the UAE, and South Africa. It shined a light on the main motivating factors behind Brits moving abroad, what the expat life is like, and their long-term plans.

One thing of note was the discovery that 72% of Brits still send some money back the UK regularly, either adding to their savings account or supporting their family members. Of the people polled, 87% of respondents said that they had an easier time saving money after moving, while the majority added that they had a better quality of life compared to life at home.

The CEO of deVere Group Nigel Green says that more Brits than ever are living outside of the UK. There are now officially 5 million Brits living overseas, but it’s believed that the real number is higher as many expats don’t take the time to register themselves with the authorities of their new countries.

Green added that if one were to extrapolate the data from the poll and put it against the number of official British expats, it would mean that around 3.5 million Brits living outside of the UK had no desire to ever come home.

Green said the survey shows that many people considering a move abroad can expect to have a fulfilling and rewarding experience. There are a number of reasons for this, including better career opportunities, a lower cost of living, a higher quality of life, top-notch education and childcare, lower crime levels, and great weather.

Even though many expats currently believe that they will stay outside of the UK – and precious few studies have been conducted on the return rate of long-term expats – there is evidence that suggests more than the 70% of expats indicated in the survey will come home to the UK one day. ManyBritish retirees living in Spain will usually return to the UK when they near the end of their lives, in order to spend time with their family.

Study Finds Costa del Sol is Home to Most Accessible Airport in Europe

Study Finds Costa del Sol is Home to Most Accessible Airport in Europe

Malaga Airport is now one of the top airports in Europe

While it could not be the most scientific study ever performed, the millions of tourists expected to hit the Costa del Sol in 2017 are unlikely to care. Travel info and comparison platform GoEuro has ranked the Malaga airport as being the easiest one to access with public transport in Europe.

The Malaga-Costa del Sol terminal got a total score of 99.9 out of 100, putting it ahead of the other 29 busiest airports in the continent as far as accessibility goes; in particular with regards to public transport.

Even though the airport doesn’t have overground and underground railway connections like other major airports in Europe, it is appealing because of its sheer simplicity; there are quick, affordable, and regular buses connecting the terminal to the centre of Malaga for just €2 (or €1.80 for the train), with fleets of coaches ready to ferry holidaymakers over to Marbella, Torremolinos, Fuengirola, and even further.

Since the Malaga-Costa del Sol airport received an upgrade in 2010, it has become one of the unsung heroes in the record-breaking success the Costa del Sol has seen with tourism, efficiently moving thousands of holidaymakers to and from southern Spain with barely any hassle.

Passenger numbers for this year are already up 18.4% compared to the same time period in 2016, suggesting 2017 is going to be another record breaking year.

While many of the arrivals will head straight for the coast, the Malaga-Costa del Sol airport is also top of the charts due to its location near a city centre, as you can be in the heart of Malaga with a short trip o a bus or train. Second and third place in proximity to the city centre went to the Lisbon and Nice-Cote d’Azure  airports respectively.

Elsewhere in the country, the Palma de Majorca airport came in ninth for accessibility, with 10^th and 11^th place taken by El Prat in Barcelona and Madrid-Barajas airports for their quick, convenient, and affordable public transport.

The study found that Warsaw airport in Poland was where the cheapest public transport airport journey could be found in Europe.

US Construction Firm Promises to Build Thousands of Home in Spain

US Construction Firm Promises to Build Thousands of Home in Spain

Seems like lots of countries are coming to invest and

build in Spain once again the carinas are arriving.

A lot of time and thought goes into every decision made by a major Wall Street investment firm. This is why many will welcome the news that Lone Star Funds – which began investing in the construction sector of Spain back in 2015 – have promised to increase their Spanish house building over the next few years.

This private equity-backed investment firm built 2,000 homes across 2016, and are pledging to build over 3,200 homes each year leading up to 2020; which says a lot about the way the Spanish property market has matured.

In the years between 2009 and 2016, bank lending to the Spanish real estate industry dropped 65%. This brought the construction industry of Spain to the point where any large-scale construction project would need significant private backing to succeed.

This meant that many Spanish developers were left out in the cold, hoping to receive more money from the bank or the government. Analysts say that US firms are a breed unto themselves, though.

Fernando Rodriguez, the general director of R.R. de Acuña& Asociados, a Madrid real estate firm, says that Lone Star uses an Anglo-Saxon model; meaning that they research every little detail and won’t build property in a place where demand won’t exist for the next two years at least. This approach is just what is needed by the sector, which was damaged by the Spanish method of just building whatever, whenever, and wherever. Spanish developers would just build as many houses as they wanted, which is a bad strategy.

There were around 675,000 new homes built in Spain each year between 1997 and 2006. The result was that around a million-and-a-half properties were left empty or not even finished during the crash. Most of these homes have found an owner now, but many of them are likely never going to be sold. They were built for urbanisations and towns that were never completed. Only 39,890 new homes were built in the country during 2015.

Even so, there’s now a lack of new properties in the most popular areas of Spain such as Madrid, Barcelona, and the Costa del Sol. There isn’t enough of a supply to keep up with the demand in these areas. Market analysts say that the plans Lone Star have to build a select number of houses in select areas shows that they have definitely done their research.

The wider Spanish property market – including resales – grew by over 13% last year. It’s expected that the growth will continue in the double digits for 2017 as the market continues to “normalise” and reach levels unseen since the boom period between 2007 and 2008.

Spanish Home Values Rise 10% in Three Years

Spanish Home Values Rise 10% in Three Years

The latest data from the National Statistics Institute (INE) about the Spanish real estate market shows average home values have increased 10.8% in Spain during the past three years.

The property market is on the rise, take a viewing trip

with Costa Del Sol Property Group

In just 2016, the housing price index in Spain showed that house prices were up 4% by the end of the third quarter over the same period of time in 2015. As such house prices have increased by an average of 4% each year since 2014, which is when they bottomed out.

The increase in house prices in Spain is both a driving factor for – and a result of – the increased amount of interest in buying and selling Spanish property. Growth was stunted during the recession between 2007 and 2014, which eliminated confidence in the industry. Spain has since come out on the other end of these dark times.

Many of these transactions are due to an increase in foreign demand for Spanish property, which was still there for the recession. The data from the INE also suggests that there is another positive trend developing in the form of housing starts; people buying their first homes.

This figure rose above 60,000 during 2016, and it’s expected that some 67,000 first homes will be bought in 2017. The housing market right now is a perfect cocktail for the first buy market; the economy is stronger, there’s more job security, better mortgages, and a growing but affordable property market. There’s never been a better time for property investment.

New housing starts grew 32% in 2016 compared to 2015. The result is that only 17.5% of young Spaniards are currently living in rented accommodations.

It’s becoming tougher to find rented accommodation in Spain. Spain has the fewest amount of homes for rent in the entirety of Western Europe, with only 2% of accommodations in Spain up for rent.

Marbella Home of X Factor Judge on Sale for €40 Million

Marbella Home of X Factor Judge on Sale for €40 Million

fresh-faced here in 2010,One Direction auditioned at the

Marbella villa when Simon Cowell was their X Factor mentor.

Cast your mind back to 2010 and you’ll remember when the fresh-faced One Direction auditioned for their X Factor mentor Simon Cowell in his Marbella villa.

This now famous villa, where many dreams have been made and broken over the past decade, is now on sale and can be yours for around €40 million.

The property, situated along the coastline of the Costa del Sol between Marbella and Fuengirola, has impressed millions each year thanks to the stunning views, bountiful gardens, incredible interiors, and swimming pools.

What made it most famous was when it became the location of the first successful audition of boyband One Direction. It has gone on to become the birthing place of many X Factor success stories.

Now though the home is going up for auction and whoever gets it will have quite a treat on their hands; the property is on a 7,000 square metre plot, comes with complete views of the Mediterranean, along with tennis courts, indoor and outdoor pools, gardens, and a dozen en-suite bathrooms. Even the bathrooms have a stunning ocean view.

The home could certainly be considered one of the jewels in the crown of Marbella, but it’s hardly a unique site in the region. There are many such luxurious villas in the Costa del Sol; the place where privilege meets privacy.

What makes the property unusual is that it is not on the Golden Mile between Marbella and Puerto Banús. Instead it can be found further along the coastline in a quiet area close to Eliviria. That’s why it offers more in the way of privacy than your average mega-villa in Marbella, and why it has a larger price tag.

Given how much success One Direction has accomplished since that fateful day in the villa we wouldn’t be surprised if one of them tried to purchase it.

However, the property is a little out of reach for anyone who isn’t super rich given the €40 million price tag. The good news for Simon Cowell is that the super-rich can always be found in Marbella.

Official Data Shows Spanish Home Values up 4% Over Last Year

Official Data Shows Spanish Home Values up 4% Over Last Year





The statistics unit of the Spanish central government released their latest figures recently showing that the property industry is going from strength the strength as the average price for residential property in spain increased 4% over the past 12 months.

Buying property in the Costa del Sol is on the

increase and will continue to grow.

The official figures look at many different kinds of monthly data, trends, and regional variations and they seem to show that just how the real estate market of 2016 has performed.



The data comes from information on deeds that were registered through the year, revealing that there was an increase of 3.5% of resale property values over last year, with new home builds being about 7.3% more expensive.



If taken on the quarterly basis then the figures represent an increase of 0.8% over the previous quarter, which is another encouraging sigh for the industry that these steady increases in property prices have become the norm now. It should also alleviate the fears of people on both ends of the spectrum; both the fear that prices are going up too much and that they have begun to stagnate.



The reality of the situation is far more reassuring and sober. There are still some stark regional differences, which is actually a good thing. While it’s true some prices fell a little in some regions, in particular Murcia, Castilla y León, and Communidad Valenciana, there were also increases in the more popular areas of Madrid, along with Catalunya, the Costa del Sol, and the Balearics. These increases show how much buyers value location and infrastructure.



The figures should offer people considering jumping on the property ladder in 2017 some encouragement as it’s expected that, as strong as 2016 was, 2017 will be even stronger to buy property in Spain and the Costa del Sol. 

Home Ownership Above EU Average in Spain

Home Ownership Above EU Average in Spain

New data from the statistics office of the European Union – Eurostat- - shows that 78% of Spaniards would describe themselves as being homeowners. As a result Spain is ahead of the EU average of 70%, but the number is a little smaller than the number of 2007; when 81% of Spaniards were homeowners.

Buying property in the Costa del Sol and Spain

continues to be very popular

The amount of people owning homes has fallen in UK, France, and Spain following the recession, but the damage has been mitigated in Spain. The UK is getting close to 60% home ownership, which would be the lowest number for a very long time.

It is the former communist countries that are performing the best with home ownership rates in Europe. Over 95% of Romanians and 90% of Croatians own the homes they live in.

Analysts believe that these figures are an indication of how poorly the real estate market is performing in these countries. They point towards Germany – with it’s regulated rental market – where only 51.9% of Germans are homeowners because renting is the norm there.

It looks like the younger Spanish generation, particularly the Millennials, are not all that interested in owning property because they grew up in a culture where owning things has been replaced by leasing cars, renting mobile phones, and even streaming music and television.

However the slightly contracted rates of home ownership in Spain are caused more by the lasting damage of the past two recessions. Millennials found themselves hit the most by the lean years and so they lack both the confidence and the funds to even think about owning property.

This particular anomaly could be changing however following the latest data from the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE) showing that mortgage approvals continue to increase and that young Spaniards are eager to take their first steps on the property ladder.

Even though there are large upfront costs associated with owning a home it does prove to be more cost-effective than renting a property in Spain. The data from Eurostat also shows that Spaniards who rent a property end up paying around 23% more per month on average than their counterparts who purchase property through an owner-occupier mortgage.

August Sees 20% in Spanish Home Sales

August Sees 20% in Spanish Home Sales

While it’s true that monthly home sales for buying property in the Costa del Sol and Spain are still quite low compared to the highs of 2006-2007 the figures for this year were still the highest in six years.

Property sales continue on the uptrend

August 2016 is going to be a month that saw many different records smashed in Spain. For a start the country welcomed record numbers of tourists and a record amount of consumer spending, including record numbers of overnight hotel stays and flights to and from Spain.

All of these records being broken was bound to reflect positively on the property market and, if the data from the Office of National Statistics (INE) is to be believed then it definitely did. The latest figures show that August saw 20.3% more homes sold compared to August of last year.

All in all there were 35,501 homes sold in August, which is the most homes sold since 2010. They also showed that the trend of increased property sales is continuing on and shows no signs of slowing down.

In terms of overall property sales for the year so far Spain has seen some 276,000 homes sold nationwide in the first eight months of 2016. This is a 14.8% increase compared to the first eight months of last year.

In terms of the past 12 months Spain has seen 391,000properties change hands; an increase of 13.3%. It’s expected that this trend should continue for at least five more years as the economic recovery of the country continues.

The GDP of Spain is set to grow by about 3%, mostly due to the domestic demand in the real estate sector. There has also been strong foreign demand in the property sector, including a rise in British demand during the year.

This doesn’t mean one can neglect the market contributions of the French, German and Scandinavian buyers though. There are also more Chinese buyers than before as Spain continues to draw the attention of everyone all over the world.

Spanish construction industry Reaches Five Year High Thank to British Second Home Buyers

Spanish construction industry Reaches Five Year High Thank to British Second Home Buyers

Buying property off plan is coming back into fashion as the

demand is returning

Almost half of the Brits buying second homes find themselves drawn to the sun, sea and sand of the Costa del Sol. So much so that a study has shown the number of new builds being approved in Spain has hit a five year high.

The Ministry of Public Works published figures showing that new home licenses in Spain has gone up by 57.1%. This led to a total number of 16,782 new build licenses approved in the first three months of 2016, an increase over last year and the best quarterly result seen since 2011.

The study says that the reason behind the boom in residential construction has been caused because overseas buyers are coming back to the Spanish market once more. Demand from overseas buyers for Spanish properties is on the rise, with a lot of that demand coming from neighbouring European countries.

The leading homebuilder in Spain, Taylor Wimpey España says that the total number of sales so far this year is up compared to last year, with an increase in British buyers of 48%.

With more Brits looking to make their place in the Spanish sun the Costa del Sol has become the most popular choice. Nearly half of these foreign buyers are choosing to purchase property in the region.

The sales and marketing director for Taylor Wimpey España, Marc Pritchard, believes that this summer will be just as scorching for the real estate sector with momentum continuing to build in the market.

He says that construction in Spain is on the rise as the foreign demand is strengthening the real estate market as a whole.

The Costa del Sol has always been the region of choice for Spanish holiday homes and it is taking up that role once more with British people making it their location of choice for second homes.

With British buyers choosing the southern coast of Spain for their homes the optimism the Spanish people feel towards the market increases. It’s expected that these positive trends will continue on for the rest of the year.

Ryanair Offers Cheap Flights for Expats To Go Back Home and Vote Remain

Ryanair Offers Cheap Flights for Expats To Go Back Home and Vote Remain

Irish budget airline Ryanair have begun offering tickets from Spain for British expats to fly home on June 22^nd and 23^rd. The tickets are just €19.99 and are for expats who want to vote to remain in the EU.

Cheap flights by Ryan Air are received well by expats in Spain

It’s estimated that two million Brits have moved to other countries in the European Union with the majority of them, at least a million, currently living in Spain.

It’s expected that the real number of Brits abroad could be as much as 50% higher than this estimate though, as many of them either forget to register they are living in another country or deregister in the UK. It also doesn’t include the expats who are not permanent residents who spend roughly half the year abroad and half at home.

The CEO of Ryanair, Michael O’Leary, has said that even though his airline is based in Ireland it remains the largest airline in the UK and is a major source of employment for Britain as a whole.

Roughly 3,000 people work for Ryanair, spread across 13 airports in the UK. They take about 41 million people to and from the UK each year.

O’Leary is strongly against the so-called “Brexit” and says that the open skies policy of the EU has led to a dramatic rise in tourism.

O’Leary says Britain is one of the most competitive economies in Europe thanks in part to the goods, services, and people they are allowed to move around the 28 member states.

He believes that British prime minister David Cameron was able to use the “wish list” he presented to the other member states to ensure Britain never has to join the Euro and will deal with less red tape overall.

O’Leary believes that if Britain were to exit the EU then investment that currently goes to the UK could go to Germany and the Republic of Ireland instead.

These “Fly home to vote remain” tickets, priced at €19.99, are valid at any any UK airport and from any airport in the EU, such as those in Spain. They are also available to any nationality and not just Brits, although the only non-Brits who can vote in the referendum are those that belong to the Commonwealth or are Irish citizens.

Brits living in Spain and the EU are able to fly home and vote as long as they haven’t been outside of the UK for more than 15 years. An appeal was brought by two expats, including the 94-year-old war veteran Harry Schindler in Italy. It was rejected by the High Court and is now headed to the British Supreme Court.

The deadline for Brits abroad to vote by post has now passed and the British embassy in Spain have confirmed that they began sending ballots out on May 23^rd.

Some of these ballots have been received and returned, so some expats have already voted in the referendum a month before it will actually be held.

Spanish Home Values up 4.3% According to EU Data

Spanish Home Values up 4.3% According to EU Data

The statistics database of the European Union (Eurostat) found that the value of Spanish property rose by an average of 4.3% in 2015. This is above the average in Europe which is good news for buying property in Spain.

In the final quarter of last year the Spanish property values stayed steady so Spain could be seeing an end to the rising property prices that it saw in the past few quarters.

Homes in Spain saw an increase in value across all quarters leading to the property value being 4.3% higher than for the same period in 2014. The three previous quarters also saw an increase higher than 4%.

Home prices in Costa del Sol are no the up

Analysts feel confident that this trend will carry over into 2016. Data from the first quarter will be out soon and people in the housing industry are eagerly anticipating finding out if the encouraging results of 2015 will indeed lead to a great 2016.

In the whole of the EU property prices increased an average of 3.8% last year. Sweden was ahead of the league with an average rise of 14.2%. Hungary came second with 10.3% and the UK came third with 7.1%.

Croatia, Italy and Cyprus, all of whom have been considered the next big thing when it comes to overseas investment, fell flat. They saw a contraction of 2.1%, 0.9% and 0.6% respectively.

It’s been predicted by CBRE that Spanish property prices will rise by as much as 5% in 2016.

Overall buying property in Spain is a good investment and looks to continue to rise over the next few years.

Spanish-Home-Values-4.3%

Britons Win £2.6 Million in Spanish Holiday Home Tax Fiasco

Britons Win £2.6 Million in Spanish Holiday Home Tax Fiasco

British people who bought Spanish holiday homes have been refunded at least €3.3 million (£2.6 million) in punitive taxes that should never have been charged to them in the first place.

Great news for any one purchasing a holiday home

The overcharging came as a result of Britons being overcharged Inheritance Tax and has led to millions of euros being refunded by the Spanish authorities.

The Barcelona based Spanish Legal Reclaims law firm is also managing a further €7 million worth of claims.

The CEO of Spanish Legal Reclaims says that anyone paid inheritance tax in the last five years are eligible to claim back the tax that they paid. He does warn that it is difficult to do this, however.

He also added that he expects at least €3 million more to be filed in the next few years as more claimants come forward and demand a refund.

There are other law firms who are getting in on the action and helping Britons win back their money after being unfairly charged inheritance tax. The situation is so bad that there are currently no official estimates on how much could be won back.

As Spain is the country where Brits usually buy holiday homes and second properties it’s been estimated that 100,000 people have overpaid a grand total of €300 million in inheritance tax.

Spanish authorities raised inheritance tax and levied it on lifetime gifts. Inheritance tax is paid when someone dies and leaves their home to their family or friends.

In several cases the inheritance tax came to a third of the value of the property and the person who inherited the house would have to pay this within six months of receiving the property.

On the other hand Spanish residents were exempt from up to 99 percent of inheritance tax and paid almost nothing.

It was decided by the European Court of Justice in 2014 that charging people from outside of the country, but still within the EU or a European Economic Area country, more than locals was discriminatory. As a result it demanded that these people should be paid back and even paid back with interest.

The average claim by non-residents is costing the Spanish authorities €30,000. This repayment is also not an automatic thing. Claimants have to file to receive one .

Mr Cuervo, CEO of Spanish Legal Reclaims, said that if a non-resident was charged inheritance tax since 2010 they are eligible to reclaim the tax in Spain. They would need the help of specialised lawyers however as it’s a complex thing to do. There is more than one form to fill in and you need all the help you can get.

Spanish Workers Keen to Stay in Home Country While Looking for a Job

Spanish Workers Keen to Stay in Home Country While Looking for a Job

Spanish workers just love Spain

Despite the love affair that British and northern Europeans have with Spain, from the climate and property, to the food and beaches in Spain, one thing the Spanish have that Brits aren’t interested in is unemployment.

The Spanish economy has been struggling lately which hasn’t helped people find and keep their jobs. It also means that wages are not on the increase like they are in other countries in Northern Europe.

As a result you’d be hard pressed to find a Brit who was eager to move to Spain to find a job. Recent studies have shown that Brits are not willing to move anywhere in order to find work and would rather stay at home.

The study discovered that 98.52% of Brits said they expected their next job would be in the UK. This was the highest percentage of any nationality from the EU.

The poll was of the EU15, or the 15 strongest economies in the European Union. It showed that the UK was also the most desirable country for people looking to find work outside of their own country. Just over a third of people polled said if they were to work abroad they would want to work in the UK.

One of the reasons that the UK is such a favourable destination is undoubtedly that most Europeans who are of working age are able to speak English as a second language. The UK also has more relaxed labour laws and higher wages when compared to the rest of the EU.

Economist Mariano Mamertino of Indeed concluded that the average Brit is far less likely to want to work in Europe than the average European wants to work in Britain. The nationalities that expressed the most interest in working in Britain were the Irish (12.7%) the Greeks (9.5%), and the Danes (7.1). In fact the Britons that said they wouldn’t mind working abroad would rather leave Europe altogether and work in the United States or India.

When you consider there are currently millions of Brits living in Spain it becomes clear that those most likely to become an expat are people aged over 45 who have enough financial stability to not work again and become a resident of Spain.

Spain still scored high in terms of people who want to stay and find work in their own country however. Over 93% of Spaniards who were polled said they would want to work in Spain, a figure that was only beaten by the UK, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany. It did place them above Finland and Sweden though.

The good news for all these Spaniards wanting to stay is that the Spanish job market is improving. 58,000 jobs were created in Spain which reduced the Spanish unemployment figure to 4.09 million. This is the lowest unemployment has been in over six years.

As the economy slowly recovers Spain is still one of the healthiest places to live in the world with an average temperature over 20C, no wonder the Spanish enjoy their own country and don’t look to leave as the cost of living in Spain is excellent.

Three hidden advantages to being a Spanish home owner in Costa del Sol.

Three hidden advantages to being a Spanish home owner in the Costa del Sol.

A lovely, profitable property located on the Mediterranean: this is not just the dream of some people but a real possibility for a large number British nationals who purchase in Spain.

Marbella coast line.

There are numerous advantages to such a venture, one being the opportunity to be an owner of a year-round holiday home in the sun, and being able to renting the property out in the Costa del Sol . But what would be considered the unseen benefits of purchasing a Spanish property?

Apart from the already known attractions, purchasing a Spanish property will also mean.

1. You have a whole new access to another world.

Whether you need to take off on Friday evening to arrive in Andalucía at the ski resort of Sierra Nevada in Granada or spend your Saturday morning discovering the stunning city of Seville, or need to pop over to Gibraltar to stock up on some UK products, being a Spanish homeowner does open up a whole new world more than just sun soaked location for you and your family to enjoy.

There is windsurfing and all types of water sports in Spain, golf, trekking, city breaks, a weekend excursion to Morocco, horse riding, a day in Tarifa, even a visit north to take in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, all achieved very easily with the fast link train AVE, or even a weekend outing to Portugal. Whatever you feel like doing this weekend, southern Spain and Andalucía truly is gem waiting to be explored. What's more, the best part is that in the event that you do not want to go exploring or venture too far and wide, then there are enough places and locations to go very close by with top bars and restaurants in Spain that will suit your needs

2. An opportunity to truly act naturally

Living overseas does make people to behave in a more relaxed, open manner compared to the way the lived back at home, yes it might sound strange but living abroad does make people more uninhibited in their behaviour. When you think about it, if people are free of the responsibilities and pressures of UK life, people find that they start to discover a whole new side to themselves.

Also, having a superb home in southern Spain permits you to truly explore who you really are. Maybe you are a great host/hostess; however, you could never understand that in light of the fact that your UK home was too little to entertain in? Maybe your choice of decoration are more Mediterranean than DFS, however maybe before you have never been inspired to try?

3. A new point of view on home

Home is definitely where the heart is, your heart might never genuinely stop being British in spite of owning that property in southern Spain and all the joy that it brings. In any case, having a second property, somewhere else to call your own, and one that offers an alternate point of view, can give you a new outlook on life.

Mainly: exactly what are your needs? Is the rat race of the UK truly where you need to be located? Will your children thank you for giving them this chance to grow up with a chance to experience two different cultures? Can you now see the possibilities of living a British life, while additionally appreciating and enjoying a life in Spain? Yes to all three. Owning a property in southern Spain is an opportunity to truly widen your existence, seek a good investment for your retirement fund and extend your social and topographical circles – It’s a win – win situation with very few negatives.