Home buying by foreigners in Spain raises by 12%

9,502 house purchases were made by foreign residents in Spain during the second quarter of this year, representing an increase of 12% compared to the number of transactions recorded in the same period of 2011, and the highest figure since four years ago. One clear factor explaining the rise in foreigners’ property purchases in Spain has been the drop in property prices - a return to levels seen at the end of 2004.

In contrast to the highs recorded in 2006 before the housing bubble burst, and according to data from the Ministry of Development, home purchases made by foreign residents in Spain marked a record low in the first quarter of 2009.

With regard to location, El Pais reported that most home purchases made in the second quarter were in Andalusia, Valencia, Catalonia and the Canary Islands.

Information source: El Pais and the Spanish Kyero real estate portal