Economic and political uncertainty will keep the housing market subdued for the rest of the year, according to several experts quoted in the Spanish press.

With the Spanish property market down an annualized 26pc in June, and 11pc year to date, the experts see no recovery for the market this year.

Angel Serrano, a director of Spanish property consultancy Aguirre Newman, says that “few people will start looking for a home in what remains of the year.” On the other hand, he also thinks the correction in house prices is into its final phase.

Economic and political uncertainty, with unemployment over 20pc and general elections in November, are making Spaniards wary about buying primary residencies, let alone holiday homes.

Moreover, the credit crunch is still in full swing for Spain, making scarce the financing needed to oil the wheels of the housing market. The lack of mortgage finance is the biggest problem and obstacle to recovery, according to Emiliano Bermúdez, from the Don Piso chain of estate agents.

Employment, mortgages and asking prices are the key variables , argues Fernando Encinar, head of research at idealista.com, a property portal. In the short-term the only solution is to “reduce prices if one wants to sell more homes,” said Encinar.