Now is the time to buy a property in Murcia - Costa Calida

Now is the time to buy a property in Murcia - Costa Calida

On the Costa Calida over the last eighteen months the property market has gone through a correction. In fact some properties are cheaper now than they were at the latter end of 2004. This was hardly surprising as in the previous two years; the market value of properties had almost doubled.

The Costa Calida property market selling to foreigners is younger than other areas. For instance the Costa del Sol experienced a similar property pause at the end of the 80's. For nearly 2 years practically only bargain properties were selling and sellers began to reduce prices by up to 10%. Then the market took off again and properties in that area are now worth 3 times their asking prices at the end of the 80's. They have experienced another correction in the last 18 months because their prices are nearly 25% higher than other areas like the Costa Calida.

This has been influenced by the property market in the UK which has a fairly flat time for over a year. However, all the signs are now that the UK property market is beginning to surge ahead again and properties are fetching some of their highest prices ever. The rapid increase in Spanish property prices in the last 5 years means that Spanish prices in some areas were catching up to English prices. The correction in the market here means that UK prices have now raced ahead again. Which means people can now sell a house in the UK, buy in Spain and still have a bit of cash left in their pocket.

There is now a lot more competition in the overseas property market. Buyers have a choice of anything from the eastern European countries like Croatia, Turkey and Bulgaria to Mediterranean islands like Cyprus. These are new markets and of course the prices are similar to those in Spain 5 years ago. The very good reason for this is that Spain has spent the last 25 years building up their infrastructure and can now offer all the amenities that people buying in Spain have come to expect. It could be many years before the Eastern European countries have facilities like first class roads and motorway networks, impressive golf course, high class shopping areas, marinas and many more diverse leisure activities available here. Most important of all is the ease of travelling to and from Spain and at a very low cost. Practically every area of the coast is now served by the low cost airlines with fares as low as a few pounds including taxes and with a journey time of less than two and half hours from the UK. Compare that with the Eastern European destinations where the flight times are at least double those to Spain and with far higher fares. The limited alternatives in airports to fly in to can also mean several hours journey from airport to your final destination and a lot of facilities you take for granted in the UK are just not yet available.

The new projects in this area like the motorways, marinas, golf courses and the new airport will all contribute to making the Costa Calida a better place to live.

This text is taken directly from an English Language Newspaper and with their express permission - July 2006

More info on property on the Costa Calida