Planning approvals fell by 55% to 162,969 in the first half of the year, according to figures from Spain’s college of architects. Not including social housing, planning approvals fell by 58.6%, implying that the number of new homes coming onto the market in the next couple of years will fall dramatically.

In Catalonia, one of the regions most affected by the Spanish property downturn, planning approvals fell by 71% to 14,704.