Land prices increased 13% in 2016
The average price of urban land increased by 13% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2016, to close the year at an average of 171.7 euros per square metre. The highest average price was recorded in Madrid where a square metre of urban land will set you back 470.1 euros/m². Barcelona and the Balearic Islands were next with costs of 393.6 euros/m² and 338.9 euros/m², respectively.
The price of urban land had fallen slightly in the third quarter of the year but increased in the fourth quarter, despite fewer transactions, according to data released by the Ministry of Public Works. Between October and December, there were 4,589 urban land transactions, 1.4% less than in the previous quarter, but 8.2% more than in the same period in 2015.
In total, 6.7 million m² were bought or sold for a total of 851.6 million euros, 25.1% more than in the fourth quarter of the previous year.
The cheapest areas to buy urban land were Ávila (100.7 euros/m²), Orense (112.7 euros/m²) and León (116.8 euros/m²).
This data further confirms the recovery which the real-estate sector witnessed in 2016. Rental costs increased throughout the year, while the number of property sales also increased, although over the year resale property prices did fall slightly. The data shows that the market has recovered in all areas with rental costs, and both property and land sales all showing improvement when compared to the previous year.
So far, all the indicators are pointing to 2017 continuing this trend and agents up and down the coast are positive about the year ahead.
