Spanish banks prepared to lend over 100% on repossessed properties

January 12, 2012 – 10:51 am

Spanish Banks are prepared to lend over 100% on their own properties that have been repossessed, it has been revealed. They are also selling them at rock bottom prices to attract buyers so that they can reduce the amount of property on their books.

According to Adam Cornwell, managing director of Feltrim International these are quality properties in desirable areas. Recent reports from a leading risk adviser say banks have around €30 billion worth of property that they can’t sell.

Source:  PropertyWire.com

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3.4 Million Spanish homes are empty.

December 2, 2011 – 11:08 am

Too many empty homes in Spain

3.4 million Spanish homes lie empty, 13pc of the total housing stock  according to a new report from IDC. There are 676,000 empty homes in Barcelona and Madrid alone. Of the two, Barcelona has the biggest problem.

This is a “worrying situation with very negative consequences, principally a huge cost,” explains Carlos Parra, Director of IDC, quoted in the Spanish press. The empty homes are neither for sale nor for rent.

At the same time, tens of thousands of homes are being repossessed, and millions of young adults can’t afford their own home.

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Almost 1 in 5 Spanish mortgages signed between 2004 and 2008 are or will become delinquent

November 24, 2011 – 10:11 am

1 in 4 Spanish mortgages in Tenerife and Spain in trouble

Almost 1 in 5 Spanish mortgages signed between the bubble years 2004 and 2008 are or will become delinquent, according to a study by an association of home owners facing foreclosure (AFES).

AFES calculate that more than 700,000 families will have had their homes repossessed by 2015.

Specifically, there were 4 million home purchases between 2004 and 2008,  the bubble years of the Spanish property boom  of which 170,000 have already been foreclosed, another 170,000 are in process, and another 375,000 are expected to be repossessed by 2015.

All this at a time when there are more than 3 million empty homes in Spain.

The victims of this drama “borrowed more than they could cope with based on false expectations of rising property prices and employment,” explain AFES. “They never imagined they would lose their jobs and that property prices would crash.”

AFES propose partial or total debt forgiveness by banks, more mortgage lending, and lower property prices to making housing affordable. “The big social drama is that after losing their homes people are saddled with debts they can never afford to pay,” said Carlos Baños, President of AFES.

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Santander in talks to sell apartments to New York group

October 26, 2011 – 4:06 pm

The Spanish Banco Santander banking group is widely reported to be in talks to sell approximately 12,000 repossessed Spanish apartments to a group of Wall Street investment funds.

Cerberus Capital Management LP and Goldman Sachs Group Inc are understood to be bidding against a Morgan Stanley fund, say the reports, which cited unidentified sources close to the talks.

Santander still has about €6 billion of property to sell, according to the reports this week. Santander’s press office has declined to comment on the rumours.

The 12,000 properties concerned are thought to be worth up to €3bn. Santander is still hampered with a real estate portfolio worth €8.33bn – all of which it has acquired since the credit crunch of 2008. It remains keen to tidy up its balance sheet by selling off the properties.

Source: OPP.org.uk

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Record number of repossessions in Spain this year?

October 21, 2011 – 2:51 pm

Repossession bargains in Spanish and Tenerife property

 A record number of homes in Spain could be repossessed this year, according to estimates by the ADICAE banking and insurance consumer group, presenting prospective buyers with an even greater selection of distressed housing stock to choose from, once the banks start to release these properties back onto the market.

The group projects that around 16,500 homes in Spain were repossessed in the second quarter of 2011, squashing some claims that the market is now on the road to recovery.

With Spanish home prices having declined by up to 70% since 2007, caused primarily by a severe oversupply of homes, property buyers are bagging some genuine bargains, particularly in coastal resorts such as in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.

Spanish property commentator Mark Stucklin said: “If the trend continues, there will be a total of 160,000 home repossessions this year, on top of the 140,000 families that have already lost their homes since 2008.” He added: “To make matters worse, many of those families will still have to pay off mortgages for the homes they have lost.”

According to ADICAE, a further 270,000 families are behind on their mortgage payments, suggesting that the more repossessions could follow,

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Spain still a frim favourite for property

September 7, 2011 – 10:55 am

Property in Spain and Tenerife still a favourite with buyers

The three most popular international real estate markets are still the old favourites – Spain, France and the USA, according to the latest Top of the Props report .

In troubled times, many investors return to the things they know best and that certainly seems to be the case with overseas property buyers, with the top 3 countries sharing nearly a third of all property searches on TheMoveChannel.com.

Director Dan Johnson said: “The Spanish market is awash with great deals at the moment as Spanish banks continue to try and shift property cheaply. This phenomenon is unlikely to change soon, as there is plenty of supply, while the failure of some banks in the recent stress tests, means they’ll be keener than ever to divest the repossessed stock from their balance sheets. 

“France is an altogether different market, with a much higher concentration of lifestyle buyers purchasing holiday homes because they love the country and want to spend time there – it’s not such a price-sensitive market, though buyers are still pushing for good deals.”

Other notable movers and shakers this month are Portugal, which moved above Italy in terms of popularity for the first time and Thailand, which jumped up 12 places to number 9 and moved into the top 10 for the first time.

Of course, the Canary Islands especially Tenerife has some real bargains at present, why not check out the local estate agents and grab a property at prices paid  years ago.

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Spain still a top destination for holidaymakers

September 3, 2011 – 9:12 am
Spain remains one of the top destinations for holidaymakers around the
world, as tourist numbers and property enquiries both increased this
summer.
Figures released by the Frontier Tourist Movement reveal that Spain has
received 7.4 per cent more international tourists this year compared to the
same time in 2010, proving that the country’s beaches and culture are still
attracting visitors.
Around 32.3 million international tourists visited Spain between January
and July of this year, with July alone welcoming 7.5 million tourists. Up
to July 2011, Spanish airports received nearly 36.5 million passengers. The
busiest budget airline was Ryanair, which experienced a 25% increase in air
traffic to Spain.

Unsurprisingly, visitors from the UK led the way with 7.4 million
passengers (35.8 per cent), while Germany and Italy followed with 4.2m (20
per cent) and 2.2m (10.7 per cent).

The biggest rise to Spanish shores came from Swedish visitors (40.8 per
cent), who are purchasing an increasing amount of property in Spain. France
and the Netherlands also saw their number of tourists grow. Estate agent
Spanish Hot Properties comments: “Of all the tourists who chose to holiday
in the Costa del Sol, around 72% said they were attracted mainly by the
prospect of sun and sand which will come as no shock considering the
region’s exceptional climate.”

Spain continued to attract foreign interest in August too, Robin Brayne, Commercial Director of the overseas property portal, comments: “Once again, Spain is head and shoulders above the rest of Europe. People remain attracted by the country’s sunny coast and relaxed lifestyle, and further interest has been fuelled by the glut of repossessed & distressed properties being sold on by Spanish banks, offering homes at
superb value.”

Of course the Canary Islands, perticularly Tenerife remain popular for sales and purchase of propertyand holidays. As Spanish tourism soars this summer, the property market is looking increasingly sunny.

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Spain and the Canary Isles still the Brits favourite place to buy a home

February 7, 2011 – 12:14 pm

Spain is still tops for Britons buying homes abroad

Spain is the perennial favourite for Britons looking to buy a home abroad, confirms the latest survey by Channel 4’s A Place in the Sun.

The ranking for 2011 goes as follows (2010 in brackets):

1. Spain (1)
2. France (3)                    
3. Portugal (4)
4. Italy (6)
5. Florida (2)
6. Turkey (5)
7. Greece (8)
8. Cyprus (7)
9. Malta (new entry)
10. Egypt (new entry)

Here is what they had to say about Spain, Tenerife and the Canary Islands:

Once again, Spain remains the most popular destination for Brits to buy abroad and therefore tops our chart of the best places to buy abroad in 2011. After all, it has all the right ingredients – excellent access from the UK, sun, sea, culture and infrastructure. With repossessed properties and distressed sales hitting the market, the home of the Costas, Balearic and Canary Islands still has some great deals for the diligent buyer. Huge discounts on holiday homes mean there’s a multitude of destinations and property options on offer.

As we have been saying for a while now, this really is a great time to buy in Tenerife. In fact it is a great time to buy throughout Spain and its islands.  Check out the latest deals with your estate agent, particularly the discounts available  on prime property in Tenerife.

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Bank of Spain contemplating changes in property matters

November 30, 2009 – 5:17 pm
Banking changes on property matters in tenerife and Spain may be on the way.

Banking changes on property matters in Tenerife and Spain may be on the way.

The Bank of Spain is contemplating the idea of raising provisions made by the banks for bank-owned repossessed residential properties in Spain on to their books to 30% of asset value in 2010, from 20% due to be implemented for 2009, it has been reported…

The Spain property market has endured a torrid time over the past couple of years, following a real estate boom, with values plummeting across the country.

Banks in Spain have been accepting property from struggling Spanish property developers who would have otherwise faced bankruptcy. Last month, the Bank of Spain told the banks they would be required to double their property assets provisions to 20% from 10%.

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