Julian Walker International investors will welcome the ongoing weakness of the euro, incredibly low interest rates on euro mortgages and signs that the Spanish property market should continue to recover in 2016.
Spain has been a firm favourite with foreign buyers in 2015 and this trend is likely to continue next year, according to property analysts. The popular Alicante area, part of the Costa Blanca, is tipped as one of the safest long-term investment spots, having recorded very strong increases in sales volumes in the last 12 months, fuelled predominantly by foreign buyers.
One of the Spanish islands could also be a sensible investment. The eastern Canaries – Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote – look particularly strong with a fast improving jobs market, strong growth in lending and very active overseas interest. Twelve months of sunshine is enduringly appealing.
Meanwhile international investors love the Balearics and have driven strong sales growth in 2015: foreign investment now accounts for more than 40 per cent of the market. The Balearics also benefit from one of the lowest unemployment rates in Spain, making a happy overall picture for property investment there in 2016.
Malaga and Murcia round off the list of top Spanish investment spots, Malaga thanks to high international investment and steady growth in sales, and Murcia due to rising sales, increased domestic lending and overseas buyers accounting for a quarter of the market.
Foreign buyers should feel reassured by a recovering Spanish economy. The national economy is rebounding and GDP there is currently up 3.4 per cent year-on-year – more than twice the Eurozone average. Spain’s eye-watering unemployment level is also finally coming down, along with the cost of living. More jobs and more purchasing power for Spaniards is a healthy platform for growth.
Foreign buyers will also play a role in the projected growth. Currently overseas buyers account for around 18 per cent of the Spanish property market, though in some areas this rises considerably – in Alicante half of all buyers are non-Spaniards.
