Foreigners purchase 21 per cent of property

The Valencian Community, Andalusia and Catalonia account for 65% of foreign home sales in Spain according to a study conducted in 2022 by pisos.com.

Spain is renowned for its high quality of life with great year-round weather, affordable cost-of-living and of course stunning landscapes with everything from beaches to mountain regions. For decades, the appeal of living in Spain has drawn many foreigners to invest in Spanish property.

With Brexit, the pandemic and other factors, the international demand for properties in Spain dropped significantly, but last year, the demand for properties from foreign buyers have bounced back to pre-pandemic figures with an increase of 30 per cent in comparison with 2.2 per cent of domestic demand.

Ferran Font, the Director of Studies and spokesperson for pisos.com, says that the increase in sales by foreign investors is a welcome compensation for low domestic demand. “Faced with the drop in the number of sales by domestic buyers, the foreign investor now appears as the great engine for the ‘real estate’ sector, representing two out of ten operations,” says Font.

Figures have improved in all autonomous communities, with 30 per cent of home purchases by foreigners in the Valencian Community, followed by 21 per cent in Andalucia, and 14 per cent in Catalonia.

Aside from the excellent climate and standard of living, Font believes that the upward trend of foreign investment in Spanish property despite rising prices and inflation, property prices still remain below the level of other European Union countries, making it highly attractive.

By nationality, despite Brexit, the British continue to lead as the foreigners who buy the most homes in Spain, making up just over 10 per cent of total transactions. They are followed by Germans and French. However, Ukrainians continue to see year-on-year increases in property transactions.

With many new properties being built and interest from different areas across the European Union, especially the Czech Republic, it seems probable that these figures will continue to grow.