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Foreigners drive demand for homes on the Costa del Sol

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Foreign demand for homes on the Costa del Sol was up 33pc in the first half of the year, according to figures from the notaries, reported by the regional authorities.

Elías Bendodo, President of the regional Tourism body and the Provincial Council in Malaga province, has revealed that foreigners bought a total of 3,260 homes on the Costa del Sol in the first six months of the year, 812 more than the same period last year, based on the number of deeds witnessed by notaries in the province.

The biggest group of buyers, as always, was the British, who snapped up 630 homes, followed by the Swedes (377), Belgians (288), Norwegians (281), Russians (251) and the French (200). So the British continue to lead foreign demand, despite all the planning scandals and the fall in the value of the pound. It just goes to show, the British really love Spain. The Germans are not even in the top five.

Bendodo presented the figures during the presentation, at the World Travel Market (WTM) fair in London, of a recent initiative called ‘Living Costa del Sol’ – a joint venture between the regional tourist office and the local builders association (ACP) to promote residential tourism in the region.

Living Costa del Sol will have a stand at the next edition of A Place In The Sun, in March next year.

“This is a further sign of the commitment of the Provincial Council, the Costa del Sol, and the ACP to develop this project, of such great importance to the promotion of residential tourism,” said Bendodo. Living Costa del Sol has its own section of the website run by the Costa del Sol tourist board www.visitcostadelsol.com/living.

It’s interesting to see the local tourist office in Malaga giving some support to the holiday home business. Traditionally, as is still the case in other regions, the tourism business has seen the holiday-home sector as a threat to be stamped out as quickly as possible.

6 thoughts on “Foreigners drive demand for homes on the Costa del Sol

  • Patrick Maloney says:

    If one takes into consideration the populations of Britain, Sweden, Belgium, & Norway and if one looks at the figures presented here, then one would know that the Swedes, Belgians and Norwegians are ‘leading foreign demand’ and ‘really love Spain’. Your childish anti-German sneer was also unnecessary and unworthy.

    • Mark Stücklin says:

      “Your childish anti-German sneer was also unnecessary and unworthy.” There was nothing anti-German about my comment. I don’t know where you get that idea from.

      • My initial response to this article was ‘oh, that’s interesting.’ having read the comment by Patrick, I thought it was a pity that it had been interpreted as racist, when the facts speak for themselves. It is well-known that Germany has done well since the last war, as they have a good manufacturing and export base. We Brits like to spend, and our economy is service-driven. We’d do well to learn a lesson or two from the Germans! I still think it is an interesting article, no more than that.

    • Cannot understand how you would consider the statement as ” anti-German ” . It was more a natural statement of surprise considering how many Germans love Southern Spain, yet do not buy in any significant number. ! Oh by the way, they have far more disposable income than the average Brit’. So that’s another point to debate. Your other comments re. population numbers v purchases are correct though. Good point.

      • Mark Stücklin says:

        This is the really interesting question. Germany is a big (82 million inhabitants), rich country with high life expectancy (lots of retirees) and a northern-European climate (cold and rainy compared to Spain). So why do they buy so few properties in Spain (hence my “anti-German sneer” not even in the top five)? You would think they would be the biggest group of buyers by a wide margin. Germans are also big savers, so they need somewhere to put their cash, and now that people don’t trust the banks and the Government, property is an appealing alternative . A German friend of mine tells me that house prices are now surging in Germany, as people look for somewhere to park their savings. Maybe, just maybe, the Germans will soon look at Spain again in bigger numbers. Or maybe, the quality of build left over from the boom just doesn’t cut the mustard for German buyers. I always say that Germans stopped buying in Spain during the boom because they price / quality relationship went to the dogs, whilst the British piled in with gay abandon, buying rubbish off-plan at high prices. Let’s face it, the Germans were much smarter.

  • Terry Fitzpatrick says:

    I think the reason for the lack of German interest in Spain is many faceted. Having been involved in developments in both countries I can attest to the German standard of building compared with some of the worst Spanish. Also Germans tend to rent rather than buy and are very Germany centred. They believe that they do things the best and tend to invest in things German as opposed to speculation in countries where there are violent fluctuations in house prices and where the banking system is in a virtual, compared to Germany, state of collapse.

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