# Housing Boom?



## Silversally (Jan 30, 2016)

I've been looking to buy a property since moving to Costa Blanca South a couple of months ago and I'm shocked at the price of properties. In the last 6 months, the average price seems to have increased by an average of 50,000 euro, which is ridiculous! Of course, these properties are still sitting there waiting to be sold.

Having spoken to several agents, they have told me that properties priced up to 100,000 euro are selling, the price bracket up to 150,000 is slowly starting to move, but above that is still very slow. They have also admitted that many of the asking prices are too high and won't sell.

New builds are apparently being snapped up, mainly by the Scandanavians.

As well as that, I was looking at country properties , for example, in Catral and I was told by consultants taking me round that the properties are fine to buy without a habitation licence, but the buyers still want top dollar. However, I wouldn't even consider buying an illegal property, let alone paying silly money to live out in the country.

So here I am, a cash buyer looking for a 3-bed detached viilla and I'm now looking at ridiculous prices in excess of 250,000 euro, whereas 7 or 8 months ago, it was around 180,000-200,000 and every time I look round, it seems like the price is being shoved up another 20,000 euro for similar properties. 

I'm not sure how selling a house in Spain works, so I don't know if the price is set by the vendor or valued by the estate agents as in the UK, but somebody needs to be telling some of these people, especially the ones "desperate" to sell their properties that, at the moment, there is no housing boom in Spain and if they want to sell their properties, then price them realistically. :frusty:


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## Williams2 (Sep 15, 2013)

Silversally said:


> I've been looking to buy a property since moving to Costa Blanca South a couple of months ago and I'm shocked at the price of properties. In the last 6 months, the average price seems to have increased by an average of 50,000 euro, which is ridiculous! Of course, these properties are still sitting there waiting to be sold.
> 
> Having spoken to several agents, they have told me that properties priced up to 100,000 euro are selling, the price bracket up to 150,000 is slowly starting to move, but above that is still very slow. They have also admitted that many of the asking prices are too high and won't sell.
> 
> ...



Yes it really is a joke - I reckon you can make more money ( and get far more enjoyment ) by buying and 'doing up' 
classic cars. As they are always such a pleasure to drive.

:car:


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## Dunpleecin (Dec 20, 2012)

Bottom line is that if you see something you like put an offer in and see what happens. You say that up to 100k are selling and up to 150k are starting to move so doesn't that indicate that they're priced correctly? In which case if you want something bigger and better doesn't it follow that it's going to be more expensive?


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## Silversally (Jan 30, 2016)

Dunpleecin said:


> Bottom line is that if you see something you like put an offer in and see what happens. You say that up to 100k are selling and up to 150k are starting to move so doesn't that indicate that they're priced correctly? In which case if you want something bigger and better doesn't it follow that it's going to be more expensive?


Yes, but not by another 100,000 or more and also, the sold prices are invariably lower than the asking prices. As for offers, it seems that some just don't want to negotiate or will move only very slightly.


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## Dunpleecin (Dec 20, 2012)

I'm sure no one pays the asking price! If a seller refuse an offer they can't be that desperate surely? Don't forget also that people bought properties 10 years ago at massive prices so whilst they might want to sell they're likely taking a huge loss.


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## Silversally (Jan 30, 2016)

Absolutely and I do get that people bought at the peak and want to recoup as much as possible, but even so, I don't want to be falling into the same trap and paying too much for a property just because the owners did back then. It's almost a scenario of paying for their mistake if you like.

I do feel for them, especially the ones who want to return back to the UK for whatever reason and can't, but then surely, they just need to bite the bullet because otherwise, they'll be staying here even longer.


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## Dunpleecin (Dec 20, 2012)

You're not paying for their mistake. That was the market at the time. Things change. There's thousands of properties available and they vary from region to region. Just like the UK. a 2 bedroom house in Liverpool selling at 50k will be 300 in London. It's the same in Spain. If you want good value widen your area perhaps?


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## Megsmum (Sep 9, 2012)

Basically, just like the U.K. People thier houses on for a price they think it's worth, either it sells or it doesn't, and location is key just like Spain. I know people around here who have had a property on for five years, won't reduce price, waiting for market to catch up. People very often say they're desperate to move but nit so desperate to get reduced offers in. 

A house is worth what it's worth to the buyer, and if you can't find properties within your budget, then you probably need to widen your search area to include cheaper areas.

We couldn't afford what we wanted in Andalucía so we searched in a different region. 
What we bought here for less than €70K would not gave got us an apartment in some regions. 

Good luck with your search


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## kaipa (Aug 3, 2013)

Getting to Easter so more people start to look to buy. Prices always rise this time of year. Estate agents always tell sellers to wait till April to get a better price. Drops again after September. I have a first line property with a big terrace that no one has even looked at after 9 months!! so I wouldn't say there is any real change. Problem is that for UK buyers the uncertainty of Brexit means no one knows what they might be buying into. Could cost more to visit Spain, could be harder to live here... no one knows. Just don't believe the "talk" that nothing will change. Be careful about putting everything you have into a property that you might find harder to live in post Brexit.


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## uora (Jul 19, 2011)

The sales in the Alicante region (where Catral is I think) went up by 15% last year, around 20% in Torrevieja and only around 5% in Orihuela Costa where many British have houses. Alicante is supposed to have lower prices than Costa del Sol.
I don't know if there is a boom in prices as well, but the more buyers there are, the more the prices go up and that is what I see where I live, houses are selling fast and for higher prices than a couple of years ago.


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## Horlics (Sep 27, 2011)

There are 100s of properties priced at "damage reduction" levels, i.e. people are losing money vs. what they bought at but not losing massive amounts. Of course many of these properties will remain on the market for many months or years.

Meanwhile, every now and then somebody who really needs to move will drop to a reasonable price and the property will sell. To get one of these you need to be in regular touch with all the agents so they regard you as serious and will pick up the phone to call you when something comes up.

I'm in Javea and right now there are about 5 or 6 new apartment developments being built and several mini urbs of new villas, and many are selling. One apartment complex is fully sold out before completion. People like new.


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Horlics said:


> Meanwhile, every now and then somebody who really needs to move will drop to a reasonable price and the property will sell. To get one of these you need to be in regular touch with all the agents so they regard you as serious and will pick up the phone to call you when something comes up.


Like this one ? 
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/spain-classifieds/863474-villa-sale.html


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## Horlics (Sep 27, 2011)

I guess it's a bit off the expat-beaten track so demand is probably lower, but it certainly looks decent value for money.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

It seems as if the lessons of the past have not been learned and that history will surely repeat itself.
All over Southern Spain vast construction projects are under way. I made a trip inland a couple of weeks ago and was astonished at the amount of activity...houses, apartments, hotels..
All this when there are tens of thousands of unsold units of all kinds, especially the two-bed two-bath piso.
Just up the road from us a house is being built for an Icelandic singer and her husband -not sure if it's Bjork, don't know much about Icelandic singers. The developer's board on a vacant plot opposite offers a house on the site for 999000euros. Silly money. Several houses in our area have been on the market for years. There have been sales but mainly to overseas buyers, non-Brits mainly.
When the next slump comes as it surely will there will be more empty and unfinished constructions added to those already disfiguring large areas of coastal and inland Spain.
It seems as if the town and country planning system in force here is either non-existent or has more holes than a Gruyere cheese.


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## Williams2 (Sep 15, 2013)

*Are all these Channel 4 programs ramping up prices in Spain ??*

I'm sure weve all seen them and no doubt a number of new Expats and retirees have been motivated
by the plethora of 'new home in the sun' programs that are featured on Channel 4 each day.

In fact you cannot go through the UK TV guide without seeing at least one of these programs scheduled
during the day. The list is growing all the time, namely:

A Place in the Sun: Home or Away
A Place in the Sun: Summer Sun
Homes by the Med
Sun, Sea and selling houses.
etc, etc, etc.

This has obviously given rise to many discussions about 'the dream' these programs are trying to sell.

Spanish Property Insight - the truth about A Place in the Sun

There's also been criticism about these programs and it's no doubt refreshing that Channel 4 are coming out
with a program that looks at the down side of buying a new property abroad. That for one reason or
another doesn't turn out to be the new dream life in the sun, the buyers were hoping for.

Channel 4 - Selling houses abroad


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

mrypg9 said:


> It seems as if the lessons of the past have not been learned and that history will surely repeat itself.
> All over Southern Spain vast construction projects are under way. I made a trip inland a couple of weeks ago and was astonished at the amount of activity...houses, apartments, hotels..
> All this when there are tens of thousands of unsold units of all kinds, especially the two-bed two-bath piso.
> Just up the road from us a house is being built for an Icelandic singer and her husband -not sure if it's Bjork, don't know much about Icelandic singers. The developer's board on a vacant plot opposite offers a house on the site for 999000euros. Silly money. Several houses in our area have been on the market for years. There have been sales but mainly to overseas buyers, non-Brits mainly.
> ...


Lots of planning permission was given here years ago for apartment blocks & urbs which were either started but not finished, or never even started. (by a mayor who coincidentally was also a developer  He's no longer mayor, but is still a developer) As long as 'something' is done on the land every now & then, the permission remains valid ( I think there's some time limit, but it's long). 

We have quite a few unfinished & uninhabitable blocks dotted around  

No permission for blocks nor urbs has been given for at least 6 years, but in the past few months several developers have started building, clearing land & so on. I just hope we don't end up with even more half-finished projects......


Thankfully nothing above 3 stories is permitted, so at least we won't have skyscrapers, & no more big development permissions will be granted, at least as long as the PSOE is in control in Jávea.


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