The latest good news regarding statistics on the health of Spain’s real estate sector is a rise in the number of construction licence concessions. The number of concessions rose 1.7% in 2014 year-on-year and adds to the positive data which has been released on both sales and prices for the year.
There were 34,873 licences for new-build residential properties granted during 2014 representing a 1.7% rise on 2013 (34,288). The increase is not huge but is the first rise which has been seen in the concession of these licences since 2006 and provides yet another boost to the Spanish property sector.
The statistics were released by Spain’s Ministry of Public Works and showed that 23,301 (68%) of the licences were granted on condominium properties up 2.1% year-on year. There were 11,550 (32%) licence concessions for detached/semi-detached properties, a figure that represented a 1.5% increase on 2013.
The concession of construction licences reached its peak in 2006 during which 865,561 licences were granted. The peak to present drop in concessions is therefore 96% although even with the recovery of the sector it is unlikely that such unsustainable levels of construction as those during the boom years will be reached again.
The data from the Ministry means that another of the fundamentals underpinning the Spanish property sector has broken its negative run of annual decreases. It follows on from the first annual price increase since 2008 of 2.55% according to Spanish registrars, and a 2.2% increase in sales which was the first rise since 2010 (INE data).
Main image: Construction on the Oasis Beach VII development on the Costa Blanca © Contrimar Country S.L.
