Despite the fact that Europeans accounted for a small share of the purchasing base of the residential real estate market in Spain, and their number has been steadily declining since 2012, they played a big role in the market of the most expensive and premium real estate.
The share of Europeans among foreigners buying housing in Spain was about 2% in 2021. They purchased 1,280 residential properties. In 2012, Europeans bought 3,399 properties.
European buyers in the local market were hardly noticeable. They bought super-expensive real estate in popular tourist areas.
According to various sources, a large number of houses and luxury villas belong to various representatives of big business in Europe or persons in the upper echelons of power.
The growth of the share of European citizens in the consumer base of the Spanish market began in the mid-00s. In 2006, this category accounted for 1.24% of all foreign purchases in the sector. In 2008, the share increased to 4%, then 1,270 residential properties were purchased. These were mostly new buildings (about 64%).
2012 was the peak year for the entire observation period — 9.62% of all purchases were made by European citizens. In the future, especially after the events of 2014, the market saw only a steady decline. In recent years, the most popular areas to buy were: Valencia, Catalonia, Asturias and Cantabria.
Despite this, in the premium real estate segment, European wealthy citizens were among the best buyers who were ready to take the largest and most expensive offer of the market.
Now this segment will have to experience a major vacuum in demand, since almost all the super-rich Europeans have already left or are going to leave the country in the near future.
