23/03/2005 00:00
TW
0
By Humphrey Carter THE most expensive real estate in Palma is along the Paseo Maritimo while the cheapest can be found in Son Gotleu. Property prices in the old part of the city have also shot up and are now nearly as high as the 3'000 euros per square metre along the sea front. According to the latest nation wide property price study carried out by TecniTasa, in Son Gotleu property prices average out at around 1'600 euros per square metre.



However, Palma, while having some of the highest property prices in Spain, is by no means the most expensive.
Madrid is the most expensive with a square metre costing as much as 8'500 euros while Jerez is the cheapest at just 330 euros per square metre.
In the old part of Palma, the big money is on the renovated old properties and this is a part of the real estate market which is proving popular with overseas buyers.

Such is demand that properties which were valued at around 70'000 euros six years ago in the old quarter, are now selling for 222'000 euros.
Excellent travel connections and “relatively” cheaper city centre property prices in comparison to other regional capitals in Spain, means Palma is enjoying a great deal of interest from UK buyers for example. They are cashing-in on their own properties and re-locating to Palma.

As the Bulletin reporterd earlier this year, Palma is one of the hot spots for Britons looking to relocate their family and commute to Britain or even move their business operations, especially those who operate on-line, out to Majorca.

Last year, 30 percent of properties sold in the Balearics were second homes to foreign buyers and more and more foreigners, especially semi-professionals in the 30 to 50 age group, are moving into the city. They know they have all-year services and facilities unlike in the resort areas.

Apart from Madrid, San Sebastián and Bilbao are Spain's three most expensive cities for real estate with calle Serrano in the Spanish capital and calle Hernani in San Sebastian, the most expensive streets in the country.

Over the past year, for example, the price of property in calle Hernani has risen by 1'000 euros to 8'500 euros per square metre.
The only three cities where a square metre of property is valued at more than 6'000 euros are Barcelona, Marbella and Santander.
Nevertheless, over the past seven years, property prices in the Balearics have risen by 214 percent, the highest in Spain. This is higher than in Madrid where real estate prices rose by 167 percent and the national average increase in property prices for the past seven years being 143 percent.

But, while overseas buyers can afford to invest in Palma's popular and trendy areas, Majorcan home owners are having to spend an everage of 46.97 percent of their monthly income on their mortgages - the highest in Spain.

In Madrid, for example, average mortgages are eating up slightly less, 46 percent of monthly incomes. The Balearic government remains determined to try and help as many local first time buyers as possible get a foot on the property ladder.