The Costa Blanca’s role in the recovery of Spain’s coastal property market has been confirmed by statistics showing how the Valencian Community attracts the second highest share of foreign property-buyers of all Spanish regions, said estate agency HomeEspaña in May.
Between 2009 and 2013 inclusive, the percentage of annual property transactions attributed to foreigners rose from 4.45 per cent to 11.15 per cent respectively, according to figures released this month by Spain’s Land Registry Association. The Valencian Community, home to the Costa Blanca, accounted for 24.8 per cent of foreign purchases, second only to the Balearic Islands. Meanwhile, Spain’s Council of Notaries revealed a 39.8 per cent year-on-year increase in property transactions for February.
The sustained weakness of the euro this year is helping to attract more British and Scandinavian buyers,” said Kieran Byrne, managing director of HomeEspaña. “We don’t expect a rapid turnaround in market conditions in Spain, but at least in the Costa Blanca we have seen increased buyer interest in the first quarter of 2014. More second homebuyers from abroad are discovering how far their money goes here.”
Typical clients of HomeEspaña who have recently benefited from the stronger pound and favourable buying conditions in the Costa Blanca are David and Sue from the West Midlands. In April, the couple completed on a three-bedroom, two-bathroom villa with a private swimming pool [pictured], paying around €190,000 for the property, including taxes and fees.
“The exchange rate was £1/€1.19 and £1/€1.20 when I sent the two instalments to pay for the villa, so overall I feel we’ve got good value for money,” said David. “The property is on a small urbanisation near Orba in the northern Costa Blanca. We have children and one grandson, so we’ve bought it as a family holiday home, which we plan to visit around four times a year. It’s convenient for the beaches at Denia and Javea, but still in a peaceful inland location and the climate is perfect – one of the healthiest in the world.”
David and Sue discovered the northern Costa Blanca when they stayed at a friend’s villa there a few years ago. After deciding it was where they wanted to buy a second home, they visited the area between Christmas and New Year last year, having made contact with HomeEspaña via email and arranged to view a selection of villas with them. To reach the northern Costa Blanca, the couple can fly from either Birmingham or East Midlands to Alicante – their villa is just a 70-minute transfer.
“The agent who showed us around was fantastic,” continued David. “We saw our villa on the first day we were there and made an offer on the second day, in the meantime visiting at least 10 other properties. We were nervous about buying abroad for the first time, but HomeEspaña have been very supportive, including with after sales, and really put our minds at rest. For example, they double-checked the inventory at the villa the day before we arrived to complete.”
Search here for more properties in the South Costa Blanca region or here for more properties in the North Costa Blanca region.
