The Spanish press reports that 50% of homes sold on the coast go to Spanish investors, based on data from a franchise chain of estate agents called Alfa Inmobiliaria.

That comes as a surprise to me given what I’m told by other agents up and down the coast and on the islands, and what we know abou the Spanish economy. With the crisis still fresh in mind, and high unemployment, you wouldn’t expect Spanish demand for holiday homes to be so high as a percentage of overall demand. Perhaps the Alfa figures only reflect their own sales, with a website that is not even available in English.

According to Alfa, 50% of second-home buyers on the coast are Spanish investors, followed by foreign buyers (35%), and Spanish families buying a home for private use (15%).

Spanish investors are buying multiple units at the cheap end of the market, some as low as €30,000 to €40,000 claim Alfa. They are looking for holiday-rental income and capital gains. “Many homes that just a year ago cost €35,000 now can’t be found for less than €50,000” says Jesús Duque, VP of Alfa, quoted in the Spanish daily El Mundo.

As they find themselves priced out the market in capital cities, small-scale investors like retired couples and newlyweds are turning to second-homes on the coast as an investment, claim Alfa, taking advantage of prices that are still 35% below the peak.