British Tourism Figures Could Boost The Spanish Property Market
News Posted On: 06 March 2012
It’s estimated about 2.5 million Britons will holiday in Costa Blanca this year, and this could boost the property market in the region. Figures from the Tourism Council in Valencia show bookings are already up 13% compared to last year. In 2011 tourism figures increased by 9.1% which helped boost the local property market.
According to Taylor Wimpey de Espana, investment in Spanish property rose by 27.8% to end September last year. So far this year, the number of potential buyers is up by 10%, and there has been an overall increase of 63% in the number of properties sold to foreign buyers. The number of British buyers has increased by an incredible 100% compared to the same period last year.
This might be good news for the holiday home and buy to let market, but the overall outlook for Spain may not be so rosy. Its economy is expected to contract by up to 1.7% this year, according to predictions by the International Monetary Fund, and unemployment is currently at 23%. Banks are being forced to ease mortgage terms for customers, as more and more are missing repayments on mortgages underwritten during the countries housing boom.
On 22 February the government announced new plans to help families avoid eviction. These include implementing a code of good conduct for the banks, allowing poorer residents to stay in their homes for at least two years after an eviction order, and enabling those who hand over their homes to the bank to be cleared of all mortgage debt.
While this is admirable, it could lead to concerns by investors that the loan problem in Spain is still growing, although some analysts think mortgage arrears will be kept under control even though the economy is set to worsen.
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Written by Les Calvert
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