What’s new in Spain’s 2022 Real Estate market

Since the beginning of 2022, it seems like the Spanish real estate market is making a full comeback to pre-covid levels and it’s gaining its health back. As the National Institute of Statistics states, 2021 showed the best figures in property sales in the last 14 years. According to Forbes, it will keep growing at the same dynamic pace it already started in 2021 and it will avoid real estate bubbles, which is good news. 

Keep reading to get a good  glimpse of the main Spanish real estate news and trends for 2022:

Foreign buyers are coming back

According to Idealista, foreign sales are back to pre-pandemic levels. These are the most interesting insights in regards to foreign transactions:

• 63,934 property transactions were carried out in the second half of 2021, 49,1% more than in the second half of the year of the pandemic in 2020. 
• 18% of all property sales and purchases were foreign. 
• Prices hit a record average of 2,500 euros/m2 in foreign sales.
• Regions with the highest number of foreign sales since 2021 are Balearic Islands (81%), Canary Islands (57%), Andalusia (55%), Cantabria (50%) and Community of Valencia (44%).
• UK and German nationals seem to be the top buyers in Spain’s real estate market.

Intense demand among national buyers

The real estate industry in Spain was more active than expected during 2021 and 2022, besides the climate of uncertainty provoked by the pandemic and the worsening of international relations in the latest months.

However, it seems like the Spanish population is  now coming out to hunt for what they really want. And they seem to have more money for it.  

High saving levels among Spaniards

Being forced to be at home, whether demanded by the government or the fear of the virus, has resulted in less consumption and more savings. Although Spaniards are known for having a big social life, many establishments such as bars and restaurants shut down and customers did not feel comfortable getting into situations where they could be exposed to sickness.

Now that things have been slowly clearing out and activity has been brought back, there is a strong group of national buyers with an important amount of savings to invest into better property. According to Engels and Volkers, savings in Spain increased to 75,000 million euro.

Financing costs are at a record low 

Together with people’s savings, property buying behavior has been supported by the fact that financing is better than ever. Although banks are pickier to approve mortgages, financing options are at a record low, with fixed mortgage rates being at the lowest.