AGENTS’ AND PROFESSIONALS’ OPINIONS

We’ve selected a spread of professionals for opinion, and not solely Estate Agents.

• The agency comment suggests that the market appears to be continuing strongly, but stabilising, principally due to shortage of property, with that having caused a rise in prices. That appears to have reached a plateau at the lower levels, although the high-priced market continues to break records with no extraordinary dip or rise in demand or supply on the horizon.
• There’s a lot of general comment that it’s booming generally, but initial comments by non-estate agents have cautioned that in their opinion the market is not so strong. We are seeing some agents and developers discounting property prices, that perhaps had been put forward too high, assuming the market would rise to reach them.

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Estate Agents – Sotogrande

• As expected, all have positive stories regarding demand and prices achieved especially in the coastal area. There is strong demand and record prices for sites, confirming the continuing desire to build a home of their own design.
• Existing properties are selling, many purchased by developers who strip them back to the shell and remodel them to what is perceived as the modern style and sell on at substantial profit.
• (Appraisals by Survey Spain have shown profit levels of 40+% and developers unwell in to proceed and much less than that in their projections.)

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Planning Adviser – Costa del Sol

• The past year has not been as buoyant as some before, with developments proceeding principally due to existing clients and few new.
• Perhaps the exceptional prices being asked for development opportunities are making new developers think twice and it’s only those with a substantial land bank, bought many years before at low prices, who can make financial sense of development.
• Individual buyers are also becoming cautious with them wanting to see the property and the paperwork and not just buy on trust. So, there are many more buyers for resale property and remodelling, rather than completely new.

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Property Marketeer – Costa del Sol Based

• There are too many estate agencies having been attracted by tales of a booming market, but now that we are back to ‘normal’ many are struggling.
• Specialist Listing agencies are suffering more than those concentrating on Buyers.
• Agencies concentrating on one nationality, such as UK or ‘Nordic’, are having more problems than those with a wider cultural expertise. Buyer’s agents able to serve multiple nationalities have had a great year, as have established selling agencies able to source property. Demand continues to be strong year on year.

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Buyer’s Agency – Costa del Sol Based.

• The market is stabilising as are prices. It’s still a seller’s market with too few properties for the number of serious buyers. Few sellers are discounting and some buyers even paying more than the asking just to be sure of the purchase. It reflects the strength of the buyer’s home market, with housing here still appearing cheap. If a house has not sold within 12 weeks, then the price is too high and ‘over optimism’ by agents seeking to secure the listing is often to blame.
• Regarding long-term rentals and problems of non-payment, that can all be protected by insurance, so people should not be discouraged by the ‘risks’. The market problem with rentals is as much the increase in demand as the shortage of supply. There are more and more people coming here as long-term official or unofficial ‘digital nomads’.

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Estate Agent – Marbella and Benahavís

• Talking on an annual basis the overall the market is still buoyant but does have intermediate ups and downs.
• July and August is historically pretty quiet. Most viewings are for interest only, “Let’s buy a house here in the Sun”. They look around it a few times, but the minute they get home it’s back to reality and you don’t hear from them again. We only do top end mostly in Zagaleta and Madroñal. With limited staff it’s better to be an expert in one area than cover loads of areas with limited knowledge.
• There were 14 sales in Zagaleta last year ranging from €3M to €20M. Demand exceeds supply. All the old houses (20+ years) with sea views have been bought in the past few years and new modern houses have sold very well. Stock is short and the few remaining plots command very high prices. We recently sold at 1,450/ sq m. They will build a beautiful house and will make a handsome profit.
• When the last one is sold, I will have to retire!

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Valuer/Building Surveyor – Costa del Sol

• There are over 15 cranes in my area (La Cala de Mijas, Riviera del Sol), with new buildings being constructed everywhere, villas and urbanisation apartments, mostly at elevated prices (over 300K apartments and villas over 1M).
• There is also a building, a former aparthotel, that has been empty for over 10 years and now has been renovated and apartments being sold at reasonable prices for this area (2-bedroom apartment for 180K).
• The number of long-term rentals is decreasing, and the prices are rising for the ones that remain (mostly over 1K/month for small apartments, difficult to find lower)
• In my opinion this is all relates to the market supply and demand. As it’s mostly the non-Spanish buying and they don’t find prices high compared to those in their home country, this is causing the Spanish population to need to go to cheaper areas, usually to the interior.

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Valuer – Almería

• (Reflecting that our principal valuer there has retired, his comments were brief.)
• All I can say is that here things seem to be prospering as Mojacar has been chosen as one of the 5 most appealing resorts for Spaniards in the whole of Spain, only being one of two in Andalucia.

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Valuer – Costa Blanca South

• The market in the Costa Blanca South follows the inertia of 2023 with growth. Valuers report that prices in Alicante coast towns increased an average of 7%, compared to the whole of Spain with an average growth of 3+% and all Costa areas at 5+%. So, the market in the Costa Blanca is still enjoying good health. Adjacent areas in Mar Menor (Murcia) also have growth rates, though lower than Costa Blanca.
• Regarding local markets, the increase of prices comparing to June 2023 is about 10-11% in the case of Torrevieja and Orihuela Costa, and 10% in the case of San Pedro del Pinatar, probably because of its proximity with the Costa Blanca. However, in La Manga the increase is about 7%.

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Valuer – Alicante

• Second-hand housing is rising in price exponentially, especially in El Campello.
• There is a lot of demand and little product for sale. New housing maintains prices similar to last year; some developments are being carried out but not abundant enough to satisfy the demand.
• There is a high demand for premises to convert them into homes, especially for tourist use. The rental market is skyrocketing, it has gone from an average rent per apartment of €600 to €800 per month on average. There are few homes available for long-term, with the market opting for tourist use.

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Valuer – Costa Blanca North and the Balearics

• Tourist areas at the Costa Blanca and the Balearic Islands face the summer with the problem of mass tourism, which is ultimately only one side of the problem of the real estate market. Tourism provides wealth, investment and creates jobs for locals and immigrants.
• However, the real estate market is not blooming as happened after the COVID, according to local agents. This is especially in the long- and medium-term rental market. The high demand has not a reply in offers, which are far below in number. The reasons for the lack of offer are the current long rental regulations, which causes owners to opt for tourist rentals.
• The market of new and second-hand properties is in tourist areas focused on luxury or high-income clients, proceeding mostly from Eastern Europe. The predicted end of the Golden Visa has not produced any difference in the real estate market. The percentage of the Golden Visa buyers wasn’t remarkable.
• In the cities, with market prices traditionally lower than in tourist areas, they have still reached a level that is hardly affordable for locals. National strong building companies, in cases associated with foreign funds, are undertaking new housing developments, but many for students and tourist rental, which is short-term again.

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Contributors

Thank you to the business leaders, for giving your time and thoughts – in alphabetical order –

Alfredo Bloy-Lawson – Property Marketeer – Costa del Sol

Katja Range – Planning Specialist – Costa del Sol

Lorrainne de Marco – Buyer’s Agent – Costa del Sol

Michael Corry-Reed – Estate Agent – Costa del Sol

PPMQuilES – Arquitecto – Costa Blanca South

Rimolo & Grosso Architects – Costa Blanca North and Balearics

Survey Spain Building Surveyor – Arquitecto Técnico – Costa del Sol

Survey Spain Network Valuer – Alicante

Survey Spain Valuer (Retired) – Mojacar