Online searches for properties in Spain increased by 29% over the first three months of 2014 compared to the same period last year, data from Knight Frank’s Global Property Search has revealed.
Converting the searches into results, more than a fifth of all Spanish residential sales – 55,187 transactions – were made by foreign buyers.
For the first time in several years, demand is outstripping supply in the Spanish second home market, with more and more Scandinavian buyers in particular, looking for their ideal property in the sun, Knight Frank have suggested.
Marc Pritchard, Sales and Marketing Director for Spanish house builder, Taylor Wimpey España remarked on the proliferation of Swedish and Norwegian buyers in Spain.
“Buyers are taking advantage of favourable exchange rates and reduced Spanish house prices to purchase their dream second home abroad. Scandinavians now make up over a fifth of our buyers in Spain – a huge increase on previous years,” he said.
Knight Frank’s data has been supported by a real estate report made available from the Association of the Property Registries and the General Council of the Notary Offices, which has confirmed strong growth in the percentage of home purchases by foreigners with respect to the total home purchases in Spain over the last 4 years.
Furthermore, the report details the 10 principal countries purchasing homes in Spain since 2009 as: Britain, France, Russia, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Algeria and China.
