Demand for property in Spain is still depressed by normal standards, whilst the overall housing stock continues to grow..

The overall number of homes in Spain grew last year by a fraction (0.2%) to 25.5 million, according to official stats from the Government, whilst the glut of new homes on the market fell by just 5% last year.

The overall number of homes for sale including new and resales now stands at 1.72 million, according to reports in the Spanish press. Who is going to buy all these homes?

The improving economy and employment figures have raised expectations of growing demand from Spanish families with more money in their pockets, but the latest figures from the CIS – Spain’s official survey body – appears to pour cold water on that idea: 95.8% of Spanish adults have no intention of buying a property in 2016, reveals the latest survey by the CIS.

Is that a lot or a little? Under normal circumstances the vast majority of adults in developed economies are not planning to buy a home in the coming year, as they either already have a home, rent, or can’t afford to buy. So it depends how this figure compares to other countries in a more normal stage of the property cycle.

A quick internet search did not unearth any comparable figures, and as I am on holiday in Tarifa (Cadiz province, Andalusia), and the beach beckons, I don’t have time to dig any deeper. A question, then, for another day.