207: Property Investment in Spain
Navigation trail: / latestnews / archive / 207 - published: 13-10-06
Buying property in Spain; as quintessentially English as drinking tea. But who are these purchasers, what do they want and where do they buy?
2 million Britons own property abroad. 500,000 own property in Spain. Over 150,000 Brits purchased second homes overseas in 2005. 100,000 are planning to move abroad within the next 6 months. Britons invested £12 billion in Spanish property in 2004/05. This is predicted to reach £21 billion by 2009. 75,000 properties were purchased, at an average price of £160,000, and one in three want to retire to Spain.
It seems that we know a lot about how many people are buying in Spain and the level of investment but relatively little about who is purchasing these properties, what they are looking for and why. Kyero.com, the leading Spanish property portal connecting buyers and sellers of Spanish property, therefore conducted a survey asking over 400 people why they were looking to purchase property in Spain, what they were looking to buy and where.
According to visitors to Kyero.com , the average person seeking a property in Spain is male and aged between 41 and 60 years old. The majority of people want to join the other 200,000 Britons and permanently relocate, with 26% viewing Spain as the ideal retirement destination due to the warmer climate, sociable atmosphere and reduced taxes. Even with a wider choice than ever of countries in which to purchase it seems that once people decide on Spain they rarely look elsewhere. It’s not just Brits who are interested in Spain however, with enquiries being received from the USA, Canada, Netherlands, Sweden, Australia, India, Japan and Portugal.
But what are they looking to buy? 73% of respondents stated that they were seeking existing or resale properties with new build coming in second at only 32%. With regards to property types, the most sought after properties are studio apartments with 2 or 3 bedroom villas coming in a close second. Views of the ideal home tend to vary, however, depending on the province. In Alicante, for example, 3 bedroom apartments are most desirable, compared to 3 bedroom villas in Girona or 1 bedroom apartments with swimming pool in Gran Canaria. With regard to property prices, the majority of budgets range from 150,000 to 200,000 Euros, which may not be realistic for some as the Spanish Property Price Guide from Kyero.com reveals that the national average property price is currently 250,000 Euros.
The survey revealed that 97% of respondents viewed the location of a property as an important factor when considering a purchase. It seems that the draw of the sun, sea and sand is still too hard for most to resist, with the provinces of Alicante, Granada and Malaga being the most highly sought after. The most important factors when considering the location of a property purchase are accessibility to shops, a hospital, bar, restaurant, pharmacy, bank, post office, public transport, police station and airport. Nearby amenities including schools, golf courses, marinas, water sports, clubs/discos and churches were viewed as less important.
When considering the wider area, then local climate, crime rate and size of population were noted as important factors as well as accessibility to an airport, especially those served by budget airlines direct from the UK. It was also interesting to note that nearly 40% of people measured distances within the country by driving time, suggesting the Brits love of their cars will not be lost in a move to Spain.
Most people who took part in the survey were within the first stages of property finding. The most popular concerns about buying were the price of property, any additional costs involved, legal aspects and getting the right location. 71% were using the Internet as an information resource, followed by 60% who had visited the area and 32% from magazine articles.
For those looking to buy a second property in Spain it is important to be clear about what you want and why. With over 50 provinces and over 4800 km of coastline to choose from, narrowing down your search criteria is essential to avoid a lengthy process. Decide first why you want to purchase i.e. for a holiday home, retirement or investment property? Why have you chosen that location? Does it meet your requirements? What type of property do you want, what can you afford, what style, and what maintenance does it require? With over 75,000 properties from 500 independent agents across every region in Spain to choose from, make Kyero.com your first point of call.
For more information on property prices in Spain please visit www.Kyero.com your essential guide to Spanish property
Source:
Ashton Billige Property Marketing Ltd