Difficulties with the acquisition of real estate in the country, which many residents of Spain are experiencing today, do not scare off investors. Both foreigners and Spaniards themselves who have moved abroad still prefer to make a profit by investing in the local economy. Including the housing market.
At the same time, we also observe a significant number of Spaniards living abroad who still want to have a place to live, a second home, at home. Their interest extends to a fairly diverse list of regions of the country, but they pay special attention to Murcia. Whether for investment or buying a second home, Murcia has become the most popular area among Spaniards living abroad.
Data from the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Development of Spain (MITRA) indicate that the number of transactions in the region by this category of buyers increased by 26% in 2022. The number of buyers who purchased local housing as a second home increased by 30%.
These buyers are not deterred by high prices for local real estate, as they are ready to resort to mortgage loans if there are not enough funds. This is evidenced by the following data: from December 2021 to December 2022, the number of new mortgage lending contracts increased by 26.8%.
If we consider the situation by quarters, the largest number of purchases by Spaniards living abroad was recorded in the II and IV quarters - 947 and 942 transactions, respectively. The third quarter was weaker, but still managed to report more than 900 sales transactions. In 2021, only the last quarter was able to overcome the 900 transaction mark.
Of course, such volumes cannot be compared with the acquisitions of non-resident foreigners in Spain, which accounted for more than 63,000 transactions across the country last year, which was an increase of 43.9% in annual terms. Nevertheless, the indicators are still extremely good for Murcia.
Unfortunately, such demand from Spaniards living abroad and foreign buyers only means a further increase in prices and/or a reduction in goods on the market, which aggravates the already difficult situation with access for local buyers to the market.
Experts, of course, point to the need to create new models of urban development and even suggest concrete steps to solve the problem, but even in the most optimistic scenario, such an approach will take years. To the question of how to solve the problem in the foreseeable future, no one can give an answer yet.