Property prices continue downward trend

SPAIN (From Jimena Real Estate) House prices in Spain continue to trend downwards. Weak demand, massive oversupply of housing, record high unemployment, low consumer confidence, and a struggling economy are among the factors that prevent a full recovery from taking place.On an annual basis, house prices were down 4.46% in February 2011, according to the valuers TINSA, or 1.92% down on the quarter, after a meagre increase of 0.01% q-o-q to November 2010. When adjusted for inflation, prices actually dropped by 7.77% during the year to February.>

* House prices were down by 5.2% in large cities (y-o-y);

* House prices down by 6.7% on the Mediterranean coast;

* House prices down by just 0.8% in the Balearics and Canaries.

The Bank of Spain (BOS), which produces quarterly house price data, said that the average appraised value of houses stood at €1,825.5 per sq. m. in Q4 2010; about 0.36% lower than the previous quarter, and down by 3.53% from the same period last year.

House prices in Spain started to fall in 2008, after a decade-long property boom. Prices have fallen by about 20% from their peak in 2007, according to TINSA. 

Source: Global Property Guide