The Spanish Costas are still a big pull for expats, even after Brexit

International buyers have undoubtedly been one of the main engines of growth in the residential real estate sector in Spain in recent years. According to a report prepared by different real estate platforms, 44% of the owners of second homes located in Spain are expats and the coastal regions (Costa Blanca, Costa del Sol and the Balearic Islands) have become their favourite places to invest in Spanish property.

Zooming in on the Costa Blanca, the number of homes sold to non-Spaniards in the province of Alicante in the second quarter of 2018 rises to 6,352, according to the Valencian College of Notaries, 15% more than in the same period last year. The British lead the way for the most amount of property purchases on the Costa Blanca, followed by Swedes, Belgians, Germans, French, Norwegians, Russians and Dutch.

Foreign buyers in Spain already account for 15% of purchase and sale transactions, according to data from the International Federation of Real Estate Professions (Federación Internacional de Profesiones Inmobiliarias or FIABCI). However, this figure soars when it comes to second homes or residential housing, located mostly on the Spanish coast.

As far as Spanish people are concerned, Madrid residents are the main customers for property on the Costa Blanca. No other Spanish province sells as many houses to people form Madrid as Alicante, so it is important that the prospects for this demand remain high for the good health of the local real estate sector, according to the Real Estate Trust Index (Índice de Confianza Inmobiliaria or ICIS) produced by Solvia.

Should you buy property in Spain after Brexit?

While British citizens are the main buyers of coastal property in Spain, the political instability in the United Kingdom threatened to take its toll on the purchase and sale of homes on the Costa Blanca. However, according to data from the real estate agency Yer Realty, the “market is staying stable and the worst is over”.

After the initial shock to the real estate market in the last quarter of 2017 in the first few months after Brexit was announced, the market has rebounded in 2018 and real estate sales have fully stabilised. In fact, compared with the first quarter of last year, property sales have increased by 10.9%.

"The British have been the international buyers who have been most loyal to the Costa Blanca for years, and in fact are the international customers with the greatest purchasing power in the real estate market in the region. Sales to British people make up more than 20% of all sales in Alicante," says Yer Realty.