Home Buyers

British homebuyers toped a European poll in 2014 buying more propertyin Spain than any other nationality. According to figures from the OECD Spain is in the top 10 of the cheapest properties to purchase, with Belgians, Germans, and Scandinavians beating Spaniards to buy on the Costa’s. Outside the Eurozone, the Pound is at its strongest in a nearly a decade and British homeowners are finding that they are now getting more for their money than ever before , while ex-pats who are living off pensions are enjoying a better standard of living than in 2009 when both currencies were nearly equal.

One leading property developer, based here in Spain says that 18% of buyers are from the UK, whilst 15% are from Scandinavian countries. The Spanish make up 14% of the total and are now looking at new builds on urbanisations, luxury villas and apartments, despite the widespread suggestion that the national homebuying market is dead. The fastest growing groups were the Dutch and Belgians and buyers from the Middle East were at 4% and Austrians at 3% say the developers.

The BBVA bank are quoted at saying that sales rose by 20.7% in 2014 the highest seen since the end of the 2008 property boom. Around 6 out of 10 new buyers purchased their new properties in cash, as still banks were continuing to be reluctant in offering loans.

Now is an excellent time for those convincing a lender to give them a mortgage with a typical loan of 95,000 euros over 35 years would have cost around 500 euro a month in 2007 and at the end of 2014 that figure dropped to 300 euro. But now, with the Eurobor – the Eurozone interest rate taking a further nosedive, repayments of the loan would fall to around 280 euros.