Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
SPAIN’s property market continues its upward trend with a record number of 64,730 homes sold in the month July. It is the highest ever recorded figure since records were first kept.
The record-breaking tally comes fresh off the heels of news that property prices nationwide are on course to rise by over 7% this year – with the average value of a home set to tip over €1,900 per square metre for the very first time.
Some see this as a sign of regional economic growth and are concerned about the possibility of a bubble in housing that could burst any minute.
July’s figure was the highest ever recorded for that month since the National Institute of Statistics (INE) began collecting data – and 13.6% higher than in July 2024.
The only month that is comparable to this one was July 2007, when 63 371 transactions were recorded.
This total was reached just a few months before the global financial crisis of 2008 triggered Spain’s housing boom.
The growth in July was driven by both sales of new homes (up 22.3% on the previous year) and existing homes (11.6%), with more than 93% of transactions involving free-market housing.
READ MORE: Does Spain have a housing boom? Property prices are expected to continue rising in Spain, with a 7% increase predicted by 2025
Commentators looking to explain the growth in property sales point to cheap finance options – and the number of mortgages taken out in July rose by a remarkable 25% compared to the same period last year.
The average mortgage rate was just 2.94%, lower than June’s figure of 2.99, while the total amount of capital lent to homeowners grew 34.5% to over €7 billion.
The strongest increases in property sales occurred in Extremadura (28%), Aragon (23.8%) and Castilla-La Mancha, while transactions dipped in just two regions – Navarra and Cantabria.
EXPLAINER: Is this good news – or sign of a bubble ready to burst?
Two ways to interpret Spain’s record-breaking July home sales
They are a good sign for the growing Spanish economy. The strong demand, the renewed confidence in the market, and the easy access to mortgages allow aspiring homebuyers to step onto the first rung.
However, there are other reasons for concern.
The demand for housing continues to exceed supply. Prices are rising faster than wages, making it difficult for people with modest salaries to afford many areas.
Not least, the growth in transactions is a record.
Economists, however, believe that we are far from those halcyon times when all was well until the financial collapse brought the entire world to a halt.
Spain is continuing to grow faster than its closest competitors.
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