The latest home sales figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) show the Balearic housing market leading the Spanish recover with sales up 39% so far this year.

There were 33,390 home sales recorded in the Spanish property register in June this year (not counting subsidised housing), up 21% on the same month last year, and the fifth consecutive month of double-digit increases in the market expansion.

As you can see from the chart above, the market is clearly recovering after years of crisis, though sales are still a long way from where they were in the boom, and are still below normal for a country the size of Spain.

Year-to-date (first six months), home sales are up 17% on the same period last year. The market has now expanded in 22 of the last 24 months, so it’s not unreasonable to claim that the Spanish property market is recovering. The big question is, how far will this recovery take us?

BY REGION

Year-to-date by selected region (focusing on areas where foreigners tend to buy property), the Balearics are leading the recovery by a wide margin with sales up 39% in the year to June, followed by Murcia up +28%. Market growth is also strong in Valencia province (+22%), Madrid (+20%), and Barcelona (+19%). In comparison, sales growth looks disappointing in Tarragona / Costa Dorada (+6%), Málaga / Costa del Sol (+8%), and Alicante / Costa Blanca (+12%).

NEW VS. RESALE

Having grown for two consecutive months after years of declines, the new home sales figures were back in negative territory in June, down 1% over 12 months. However, I still expect the trend from here to be one of increasing new home sales, even if some months are negative. The supply of new developments is increasing, and there appears to be plenty of pent-up demand for new homes, so I believe it’s only a matter of time before a stable growth trend is established.

SUMMARY TABLE MONTHLY SPANISH PROPERTY SALES – ALL YEARS