70% of Spaniards prefer to owning to renting
A new report, released by property portal fotocasa, titled “The Spanish and Their Relation to Housing, 2015” shares interesting insight about the thoughts and knowledge of Spaniards in relation to the housing market in Spain. The report was prepared in order to analyse how the economic conditions of recent years have affected the attitude of Spaniards in relation to housing.
According to the report, 61% of the population believe that the price of housing has hit rock-bottom and will not fall any further.
The figure represents a clear difference from the previous edition of the report, which showed a clear majority of Spaniards thought prices would continue to drop.
Beatriz Toribio, from fotocasa Studies said: “After losing 45% of its value since the peak of the crisis, the idea that housing prices will not fall anymore is spreading and many say now is the time to buy. Two years ago the majority thought that housing would continue to lose value, today only one in four Spaniards still have that view,”
However, when looking at the opinions of those who rent versus those who own their home we see a difference of opinion. Those who own their property are more confident that prices will not fall with 66% holding that opinion, versus the 61% national average, while only 30% of rental tenants hold that view.
Relevant to these numbers is the fact that despite the credit tap reopening recently, and the slowdown in falling prices, there are now more people renting in Spain than a year ago. According to the report, 23.5% of Spaniards are living in rented accommodation, compared with just 15% four years ago.
“Spain is and will be a country of owners. But the rental market is growing because there are still a lot of people that despite the fall in prices and the reopening of credit cannot afford to purchase a home,” says Toribio.
Seven Out of 10 Spaniards Prefer Home Ownership
Although the rental market is clearly showing growth, the report shows that seven out of 10 Spaniards consider owning a home is more profitable in the long-term than renting an apartment for life, regardless of which generation they are from.
Furthermore, 47% of Spaniards who currently rent a property say they share the view that home ownership is more profitable, but beyond their reach in the current economic climate.
Despite this, the rental market continues to grow, especially among the younger generations. In fact, is is among “baby boomers” and “millennials” that the belief that renting is “throwing money away” is less widespread. However, in these segments of the population it is also a clear tendency to purchase housing in the future and seven out of 10 long-term tenants state a desire to do so.
63% of millennial respondents said they plan to buy a house in the future. On average the “future”, as stated by respondents, means within the next four years. These respondents said they consider renting to be a temporary situation and they show a greater intention to purchase in the future.
“While we appreciate that renting is more popular among younger generations, this report reveals that they too aspire to own,” added Toribio.
The average rating given to home satisfaction across Spain was 6.3.
This means that are many who consider moving to a better property to be important. Only three out of 10 Spaniards showed a clear satisfaction with their current home (two out of 10 rental tenants and four out of 10 home owners). The average home satisfaction among home owners was 6.7, while tenants rated their current property as 5.8.
You can read the complete report here (Spanish).
