Fewer Brits buying a home in Spain

New data released yesterday by Spain’s Association of Land and Commercial Registrars reveals that fewer Brits are buying a property in the country post-Brexit.

Although Brits were still the biggest foreign buyers of Spanish homes, the number entering the market has slumped over the past nine months.

Having accounted for more than 21 per cent of total purchases by foreigners in 2015, they made up just 19 per cent of 2016’s total.

Prior to the Brexit vote, the relative strength of the pound versus the euro had contributed to the market share rising every quarter, the association said. “Brexit had the opposite effect on currency performance. Added to the uncertainty the decision produced, this is reducing home buying from our main market.”

Brits make up more than 2.5 per cent of all home buyers in Spain, well ahead of the second and third-placed French and Germans who each have just over 1 per cent.

Separate recent figures published by Spanish notaries suggest that Spain’s property market is continuing its recovery from the doldrums experienced in the early part of the decade.

The number of overall property purchases completed in Spain in February was up 9.9 per cent compared to the same month last year. The average price per square metre of property was also up by 2.5 per cent. The average price per square metre now stands at 1,305 euros.

Article published 25th April 2017