MADRID, March 21 (Xinhua) — Experts have believed that Brexit will have little effect on Spanish housing market.
Professor Jose Luis Suarez from IESE Business School in Madrid, highlighted, “the demand for British people to buy houses in Spain has fallen in the last year. 10 years ago they (Britons) made up 45 percent of foreign buyers and now they are 10-15 percent.”
He added that the falling demand from British buyers had not caused a glut on the market as it had been substituted by the demand by people from other regions.
Valencia-based British estate agent Graham Hunt told Xinhua that in the short term, Brexit vote had actually a positive effect on the housing market.
“As the reality of the UK hit home, people were swarming to get out. Month on month, our enquiries have doubled, compared to pre-Brexit figures from UK clients and we are selling more properties to UK clients,” he said.
Hunt highlighted that the Spanish economy won’t be affected at all as the GDP percent from British property buyers is small, “So even if there is a slowdown, it will hardly show up on the figures.”
A recent article published in the Spanish “El Pais” newspaper revealed that a Spanish government report predicted that the regions of Valencia, the Canary and Balearic islands and Murcia will be hit most by Brexit “due to their exposure to British tourism and other key sectors.”
