Modern Spanish properties are the best investment

The increasing popularity of new builds offers new opportunities for the Spanish property market says Nigel Salmon

The Spanish property market is ever-changing, but what are the trends for 2017? We interviewed Nigel Salmon M.D. of Girasol Homes and asked for his opinion:

As I’ve said before, the Spanish property market is changing and that change is affecting buyers, sellers and renters alike. While old farmhouses and fixer-uppers are still being bought and sold, the strong demand in 2017 is for newly-built properties and for opportunities to design and build your own unique Spanish home.

But why are new-builds becoming so popular?

First, recent new-builds are better quality. As Spain’s property market continues to emerge from its burst bubble, building standards are rising – because the builders know that quality sells. Also, we’re seeing more and more people who want to be the ‘first owner’ of their Spanish property. There’s clearly something about walking through the front door and everything being untouched by other occupants that is attractive to buyers. Furthermore, such properties rent better. They’re easier to find a tenant for, and they command higher rents – both factors that drive up demand. Put simply, it’s a vogue, a trend, but one founded on genuine advantages offered by the current batch of new-builds. In a nutshell, everybody’s buying which means prices are rising, and that in turn drives a sort of ‘get in quick’ mentality that just stimulates the demand even further. We also see it in the number of such properties we have on our book. Over the last 2-3 years, the types of property available to buy have changed in favour of these newer developments, such as the recent batch of new-build and design opportunities in Hacienda del Alamo Golf Club in Fuente Álamo.

Another factor driving the market is that different kinds of homes are now being built in Spain. It used to be that new homes in Spain were largely designed to recreate a particular idea of traditional Spanish living, which you would see in the details such as the choice of tile and flooring, and so on. However, there’s a growing gap between older properties and the new-builds. We’re seeing more modern design and decor. Maybe it’s the global influence of IKEA but here in Spain, there’s a growing desire (among both Spanish and foreign buyers) for cleaner lines, more minimalist styling, something altogether more Northern European.

This, in turn, is attracting a lot of interest from buyers in that part of the world… Here at Girasol Homes, we saw it first-hand at the recent Second Home Expo trade show in Ghent. We found that at least 85% of the enquiries we were getting were about new-build properties. In fact, we’re redesigning our business largely in response to this growing wave of demand for new-builds. A year ago, I would never have dreamed of opening offices in Antwerp, or having a website specifically aimed at the Belgian market (girasolhomes.be), but the demand for new-build properties is driving us in that direction – we have our Spain-based clients, we’re maintaining our UK market, but we’re also expanding into Northern Europe.

Finally, this all has a knock-on impact on the rental market and that leads us to the next development for Girasol Homes. As a direct response to the new-build movement – which is creating a new sector of buyers who have purchased high quality, modern properties and now want to rent them out – we will be launching a luxury rentals brand towards the end of this year. Exciting times in Spanish property.

-

This is the latest in an ongoing series of property advice articles from Nigel Salmon M.D. of Girasol Homes. Nigel has been dealing in Spanish property 10 years, specialising in the Spanish Costas and in particular the Costa Cálida and Costa Blanca. That experience has given him a very clear perspective on the property business in Spain and how it is likely to change in the future.

Contact Nigel via email: info@girasolhomes.co.uk or by phone: UK Head Office: 00 44 1974 299055 / Spain Office: 00 34 965 321 346