Spanish property continues to attract foreign buyers
The number of foreigners purchasing property in Spain continues to increase, as confirmed in data released by numerous agencies, including the General Council of Notaries and the Association of Registrars.
During the first quarter of 2016, demand from foreign buyers has continued to grow despite the slight overall decline, with foreign money accounting for 12.93% of all property purchases in Spain. This is slightly down on the previous quarter (Q4 2015) when the rate hit a peak of 14.38%. However, registrars suggest that this slight lull is a cyclical aspect of the first quarter which usually records a lower number of property sales than during the rest of the year.
Nationalities
Continuing the trend, British buyers accounted for the largest proportion of foreign property transactions accounting for 22.35% of sales to foreign buyers. This exceeds the previous quarter when British buyers represented 21.34% of foreign sales.
The next nationality was the French accounting for 8.18% of foreign buyers, compared to the previous year’s 8.72%. German interest in Spanish property fell slightly to 7.14% of foreign buyers, compared to 7.33% in 2015. Closing out the top five were Sweden with 3.94% (compared to 3.73% in 2015) and the Belgians who move up to the fifth spot with 5.95%, a slight drop from the previous year’s 6.26%.
The top ten is completed by the Italians, Chinese, Romanians, the Russians and Norwegians, with 4.57%, 3.98%, 3.94%, 3.25% and 2.80%, respectively.
Other nations that made it into the top 20 include Morocco, Ireland, Poland, Finland and Bulgaria.
According to the registrars, the continuity of foreign demand maintains its dynamic role in the Spanish property market while a revived domestic demand was expected to slightly reduce the relative size of the foreign market.
