Spain Housing Prices Increase 1.9% In One Year
Housing prices in Spain have increased by 1.9% compared to last year, after rising by 0.8% in the first quarter of this year, according to the latest quarterly real estate statistics published by the College of Registrars. Housing, after a few quarters of stagnation due to the impact of rising interest rates, has now seen three consecutive quarters of price increases. The rise in prices has been driven by the increase in new housing costs (4.1%), while used housing has seen a more moderate increase of 1.1%. By region, the largest increases were recorded in Navarra (14.4%), Balearic Islands (6.8%), Valencia Region (5.4%), and Asturias (5.3%), regions with significant rises in new housing prices, which in many cases may be due to the introduction of luxury housing developments to the market. In Navarra, for example, the new housing sold in the first quarter is 23.2% more expensive than a year ago, with strong increases also seen in Asturias (15.5%) and the Balearic Islands (12.4%). The regions with the highest average prices in the first quarter were Madrid (€3,344/m2), followed by the Balearic Islands (€3,325), the Basque Country (€3,031), and Catalonia (€2,463), while the lowest prices were recorded in Extremadura (€804) and Castilla-La Mancha (€893), the only two regions with prices below €1,000/m2. The registrar data shows that in the first quarter, the pace of the fall in home sales has slowed down when compared to the same period last year, 2023, when the market was already experiencing double-digit declines. In this way, between January and March, 151,476 home sales were registered, with a decrease of only 5.9% compared to the first quarter of last year. During the period, 14.2% of purchases were made by foreigners, a percentage that has decreased from the historical peak achieved in the third quarter of 2023 (15.4%), despite the fact that the number of purchases they have actually led has increased, surpassing 21,500 transactions, compared to less than 21,000 in the previous quarter. Their purchases have more weight in the most touristy communities: the Balearic Islands (31.7%), Valencia (28.8%), Canary Islands (26.0%), Murcia (23.4%), and Catalonia (15.6%). The British are the most active nationality, accounting for 9.1% of purchases made by foreigners, followed by the Germans (6.8%), Moroccans (6.1%), French (5.9%), and Belgians (5.5%).
Tags : Housing prices Extremadura Castilla-La Mancha stagnation Balearic Islands Valencia Canary Islands Murcia and Catalonia